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View Full Version : Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar Lens???? (help)



Bob Cooley
9-Sep-1998, 13:10
HELP!



I need some help and info about a lens that I recently bought. I have just purchased my first large format camera, though I've been a shooter for many years (using 35 and 2-1/4).



While at a flea market, I picked up a 4X5 enlarger for parts (it cost me a whomping $10). and I found this lens on it:



http://www.eyekonphoto.com/storage/lens3.jpg



http://www.eyekonphoto.com/storage/lens1.jpg



it is a ring-mount lens; and I'm pretty sure its for a 4X5 camera, but I coul d be wrong.



It's marking are "COMPUR" on the name plate; "Contessa" and "Nettel" on the top, and it has a numbering of "D.R.P. No 258646 D.R.G.M." on it. What does any of this mean?



The barrel of the lens itself has the following info:



Tessar 1=6.3 f=16.5 cm (which of course makes it a 165mm ƒ/6.3) But what does "tessar" mean?



It is a Carl Zeiss Jena. What does "jena" mean?



Sorry to seem so ignorant on most of this; I'm new to the large format game; and I'd love to find out if this lens was a lucky treasure or just a nice pape rweight...



Please Drop me an email at Bob@eyekonpho to.com (mailto:Bob@eyekonphoto.com) if you can help with any info on this!



Thanks!!!

Eric Lohse
9-Sep-1998, 17:46
Re: tessar . The Tessar is a 4 element formula in three groups. Acoording to Rog er Hicks in a recent View Camera article the Tessars with f6.3 max aperture are fine lenses. If uncoated it will be somewhat more prone to flare in backlight an d deliver somewhat lower contrast than a more modern coated lens. The coverage s hould be more than adequate for 4x5. Compur is the shutter manufacturer. Contess a, Nettel was a folding plate and sheet film camera, probably 9x12cm(31/3x41/4) DRP stands for Deutsches Reichs Patent -German Imperial patent. Sorry don't reca ll what the DRGM stans for. Jena was the city where Carl Zeiss company manufatur ed the lens. I'd say yopu got a very good deal. Enjoy. Eric Lohse

Tony Brent
9-Sep-1998, 21:31
I used to have a Speed Graphic camera (4 x 5) with a 150mm Zeiss Tessar in that same Dial Set Compur shutter. It was an uncoated lens, but was one of the sharpe st lenses I have ever used. It should do fine on a 4 x 5 camera. You stole it.

Rob Rothman
9-Sep-1998, 21:44
The original Carl Zeiss factory was in Jena. After WWII, because Jena was locat ed in East Germany, US law prohibited lenses made in the original factory from b earing the name "Zeiss." Instead, they were just labeled "Jena." Lenses from t hat era which do bear the name Zeiss were made at another factory in West German y.

Since your lens, which was made in Jena, is labelled Zeiss, it must have been ma de before the war.