Schneider's analogue lens production

[Brassai]

Who else besides Cooke is still making LF lenses for use with film?

RR

Congo?

[Bob Salomon]

Who else besides Cooke is still making LF lenses for use with film?

RR

Rodenstock, but only 4 lenses. 135mm, 150mm and 210mm Apo Sironar S and the Apo Macro Sironar.

[Regular Rod]

Rodenstock, but only 4 lenses. 135mm, 150mm and 210mm Apo Sironar S and the Apo Macro Sironar.

Hmmm... What about 8x10?

RR

[mihag]

How come they never announced the discontinuation on their web sites?

[Bob Salomon]

Hmmm... What about 8x10?

RR

Only those lenses. All lenses that could cover 810 have been discontinued for at least a year now. The last one that we had in stock, a 240 Apo Sironar N, was sold several months ago.

[Bob Salomon]

How come they never announced the discontinuation on their web sites?

Probably because they announced in a letter to their major customers late last year that this was going to happen and that those customers could place one last order by the end of this past January for their anticipated needs. That + their inventory at that time meant that lenses would not just stop being available on a given date. Lenses would be in the pipeline for some undeterminable time frame. Plus their customers still had lenses in their inventory.

A blanket announcement to the public would disrupt their and their customers and their retailers from having an orderly run down of the lenses. And they probably wanted to avoid that.

You should expect to hear more about what is and isn't available from both Rodenstock and Schneider at Photokina in a couple of months.

[mihag]

Probably because they announced in a letter to their major customers late last year that this was going to happen and that those customers could place one last order by the end of this past January for their anticipated needs. That + their inventory at that time meant that lenses would not just stop being available on a given date. Lenses would be in the pipeline for some undeterminable time frame. Plus their customers still had lenses in their inventory.

A blanket announcement to the public would disrupt their and their customers and their retailers from having an orderly run down of the lenses. And they probably wanted to avoid that.

You should expect to hear more about what is and isn't available from both Rodenstock and Schneider at Photokina in a couple of months.

Thanks Bob. In 2013 I had no problems purchasing a Schneider lens (via Linhof). It all came rather quick it seems.

[Richard Johnson]

There is a craftsperson in Japan making exotic and compact Leica-mount lenses all by himself, perhaps someone with similar ambitions will tackle making interesting large format optics? But all the same, we have millions of used lenses to choose from and for $200 you can take your choice of many excellent normal 4x5 lenses in a good shutters so it's hard to see a problem here.

[Jody_S]

There is a craftsperson in Japan making exotic and compact Leica-mount lenses all by himself, perhaps someone with similar ambitions will tackle making interesting large format optics? But all the same, we have millions of used lenses to choose from and for $200 you can take your choice of many excellent normal 4x5 lenses in a good shutters so it's hard to see a problem here.

I've been pushing the idea here for a couple of years, to resounding jeers and mockery. But yes, I think this is the future of Large Format, especially as Digital improves and us LF-ers seek niche markets and 'artsy' lenses. Plus, there will always be people with sh*tloads of money to spend, who demand something exclusive (just look where Dallmeyer prices have been going). If I had knowledge of lens grinding, brass turning, assembly, marketing, and classic lens design, plus some talent, I would go for it myself.

[Bill_1856]

What the hell is an analogue lens? And while I'm at it, what the hell is a digital lens?