venchka
10-Mar-2008, 07:43
From my other thread in the Camera section:
The big brass lens on the camera seems to be one that I can't find any mention of in GOOGLE searches. Here's what it said on the black ring holding the front element:
Taylor-Hobson Cooke Portrait Lens 12 1/2inch Series I. f/3.1 No. 108093
Those are the exact words from the lens. This was not a Series II nor was it an f/3.5. Min. f-stop: f/16. The lens had a short, integral hood and engraved on the barrel behind the hood was either "Push for maximum sharpness" or "Pull for maximum softness." Can't remember which and I didn't write it down. Either way, you pushed-pulled on the front of the barrell to change the amount of soft focus. The brass was in good shape. The lens board had a hefty spacer to keep the rear element in front of the Packard shutter. The glass looked decent but there was the beginnings of a couple fungus spots around the edges. The aperture worked fine.
Can anyone shed some light on this lens?
The big brass lens on the camera seems to be one that I can't find any mention of in GOOGLE searches. Here's what it said on the black ring holding the front element:
Taylor-Hobson Cooke Portrait Lens 12 1/2inch Series I. f/3.1 No. 108093
Those are the exact words from the lens. This was not a Series II nor was it an f/3.5. Min. f-stop: f/16. The lens had a short, integral hood and engraved on the barrel behind the hood was either "Push for maximum sharpness" or "Pull for maximum softness." Can't remember which and I didn't write it down. Either way, you pushed-pulled on the front of the barrell to change the amount of soft focus. The brass was in good shape. The lens board had a hefty spacer to keep the rear element in front of the Packard shutter. The glass looked decent but there was the beginnings of a couple fungus spots around the edges. The aperture worked fine.
Can anyone shed some light on this lens?