Vintage Lens Question

[Steve H]

All,
I've been hunting around for an old lens to mess with (I have been inspired by Mr. Galli and others). My requirements are that it is between 200-280mm in focal length, and have coverage for 4x5. I've been keeping a lookout on ebay, etc., but haven't come up with much that I would deem 'affordable', especially for a lens that seems to have been sitting in a pile for the last 80 years or so.
I did manage to find a petzval, but it was only 140mm in focal length. When I asked the seller if he had any others in longer focal lengths, he stated that the petzvals rairly came in a focal length much longer than 140mm, so finding one would be almost impossible. Any thoughts ? Perhaps Im just not looking in the right places ?

Thanks !

[Joe Smigiel]

...he stated that the petzvals rairly came in a focal length much longer than 140mm, so finding one would be almost impossible. Any thoughts ? Perhaps Im just not looking in the right places ?

Thanks !

Although the smaller focal lengths are more common there are plenty of longer Petzvals around. I've had two Dallmeyer 3As for example as well as a 16" and 20" Wollensak Vitaxes. I also just put an 8" Darlot on a box camera recently built and have a Dallmeyer 1A which I believe is about a 7" lens. Ebay is the place to find them though you may end up paying a premium. Look for old magic lantern projection lenses since those tend to be Petzvals (though they lack a slot for waterhouse stops).

Beware that as the fast Petzval focal lengths get larger, their size increases tremendously in order to maintain f/4 or thereabouts. You'll ned a sturdy camera with large lenboards to mount something like a 3A. I'm nervous even putting them on an 11x14 Burke and James.

Joe

[Steve Feldman]

Try a Kodak Ektar 203mm f7.7. Very sharp. Small. About $200.00 +- on ebay.

[Gordon Moat]

I managed to get a really old Zeiss Tessar 21cm f4.5 for near $10 including shipping. After cleaning the dust, it works fine. Unfortunately, it did not come with a shutter, though I managed to find another auction that had a slip-on Zeiss lens cap with felt lining that works okay. The other bad thing is the weird filter size, since I cannot seem to find any way to use filters with it.

Ciao!

Gordon Moat

[Scott Davis]

Try a Kodak Ektar 203mm f7.7. Very sharp. Small. About $200.00 +- on ebay.

Steve F-

you're missing his point in seeking out an old Petzval or similar. The Ektar 203 is such a sharp lens, and with the small maximum aperture you won't get the dramatic blurry bokeh or the field distortions an old Petzval or Rapid Rectilinear will provide.

[Jason Greenberg Motamedi]

I certainly wouldn't buy a lens from a seller who told you that Petzvals weren't commonly made longer than 140mm--this statement is sheer ignorance.

Keep on looking. There are thousands of them out there. The minimum FL you will need to illuminate 4x5 will be about 8".

[Steve H]

Gentlemen,
Thanks for your help, I'll keep the hunt alive. Im planning on taking a portrait of my grandmother (who turns 90 this year), and I don't believe my sinaron -s is quite the proper lens for the task.

[Jack Flesher]

There is a 240 Dogmar on eBay right now. Don't know the seller or anything about them but: http://cgi.ebay.com/Goerz-Berlin-240mm-Brass-Dogmar-lens-no-reserve_W0QQitemZ270006336577QQihZ017QQcategoryZ711QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

[Steve H]

Thanks Jack.
A question - Im an obvious newbie to the LF world...How do you know what construction a lens is ? For example, how would I know a 3A would be a petzval, as opposed to an rectilinear type of design ?

[John Kasaian]

How about a wolly model ending with an "ito" or "tax?"
Of course theres always Heliars.

For a lot less $$, 300mm Velostigmats are fairly common as is the Cooke series 2 Anastigmat

[Jack Flesher]

Thanks Jack.
A question - Im an obvious newbie to the LF world...How do you know what construction a lens is ? For example, how would I know a 3A would be a petzval, as opposed to an rectilinear type of design ?


Sorry, I thought you said in your original post you were looking for an "old lens ... requirements being between 200 and 280mm and cover 4x5" -- I did not note you specifically wanted a petzval...

To the best of my knowledge -- and I am NO expert! -- the Dogmar was a four-element, air-spaced dyalite, so it is kind of like an Ektar with low contrast that is flare prone ;)

[Michael Graves]

I had a 12" Wollensak Velostigmat in a Betax #5 that I sold a couple of years ago and I haven't stopped kicking myself since. I figured my 300mm Fujinon was a better lens in the same focal length. It is certainly sharper and contrastier; but it doesn't do portraits the way that old Velostigmat did. Anything under f16 made for a sharp, yet soft image. I know that sounds contradictory; but that's the best I can describe it. Contrast was a little flat, so I was always developing a couple of minutes more on negs that I shot with it. I never should have sold it.

[Jonathan Brewer]

I tell U, the Velostigmat is a great lens, compared with some the lenses we're talking about, it goes for relative peanuts.

[Ernest Purdum]

If you have the lens in front of you, a Petzval is quite obviously asymmetric, while the glasses of a Rapid Rectilinear are identical front and back.

If you are buying on eBaY and the seller is vague about what he is selling, your best bet is to inquire again here. There are too many makes and models to list, but somebody here can probably tell you about any lens which has a moderate amount of information provided. "3A" is Dallmeyer's identification of a 16" focal length f4 lens.

One point often ignored. If a large lens is, like so many, lacking a flange, it will probably be expensive to replace. Put the other way around, one that has its flange is worth maybe $125.00 more than it the flange were missing.

[Steve H]

Thanks again.

On a side note - I have not forgotten about your extreme kindness to me, Mr. Purdum. The shutter and lens are a perfect match to that old folding camera.