Do you get sentimental about your lenses?

[ericantonio]

I get sentimental thinking about the lenses/cameras I've sold. Sometimes I forget and I start looking for something to shot with and realize, oh man, I sold that thing years ago.

[LabRat]

Definitely about the long-term relationship, where we surprise each other time and time again!!!

Steve K

[Jim Jones]

Many decades ago, when were often trading their 5x7 gear in on 4x5, I bought a 5x7 flatbed B&J camera and a Kodak 203mm f/7.7. I used them until going digital several years ago, while also using a few monorails. The B&J was versatile and easy to carry, and that Kodak lens probably took more than half of all LF photos, even when most were 4x5. It's easy to get attached to something like that, and not upgrade it for something that might be only slightly better.

[jnantz]

The corollary is never sell a BAD lens

I try real hard not to sell any lens especially crap

Is there is any such thing as a crap lens ?

[Greg]

Maybe not exactly to describe the term as "sentimental" but more as the preferred optics that I use the most...

FX: 85mm f/1.8 MF AIS Nikkor. Ironically an exceptional performer for shooting macro.. who knew. Also Vivitar Series One reflex 600 and 800 mm lenses - amazingly sharp and surprisingly little fall off. Very challenging to use effectively, but when they work the resulting images are amazing especially when shooting IR with them.

4x5: 210mm f/9 Repro Claron. Was my go-to lens when I was shooting 4x5 Chromes.

Whole Plate: 90mm f/5.6 Schneider Super-Angulon XL with Schneider IVa Center ND filter, and a 330mm f/6.8 IA Raptar (convertible to 508mm and 647mm) in an Alphax. The XL barely covers the format but I just love its ultra wide angle perspective. Raptar is used a lot more often.

8x10: 12 inch f/4.5 Wollensak Velostigmat Series II BETAX 5. Lens doesn't have the variable diffusion of the front element. 100% of the time for making Platinum/Palladium final prints from the negatives shot by this lens. At f/64 just produces a very visually appealing image. Yes its sharpness/resolution obviously not the greatest, but it just gives me a pleasant 3D depth in the final prints.

11x14: 508mm f/7 Caltar ILEX. The first lens for 11x14 that I acquired, probably around 1980. Have other optics for the 11x14 format, but always seem to go back to using the 508mm Caltar.

[Dan Fromm]

Is there is any such thing as a crap lens ?

Yes, and I've had several.

[djdister]

A bit sentimental perhaps about my 9" Verito lens in Alphax shutter (works fine), mainly because I got it with my first 5x7 camera (Ansco) and before I understood what a Verito was. Also got a 240mm Xenar lens in compound shutter that I should have kept, and the Ansco came with a 5x7, and two split backs (2 image and 4 image). I shot a series of Polaroids with the Verito lens at each f stop and it was a great demonstration on the capabilities of that lens.

[bob carnie]

funny but good question, I get protective of my lenses and all the gear I have, it is my livelihood and therefore I keep all my gear for as physically long as I can, the oldest piece of gear that I purchased is my film dryer, it has seen better days but I still use it, in 1983 I watched a 11 x 14 devere colour enlarger come into the lab I worked at, it was magnificent and every one wanted to work on it, today I have the very same enlarger and am teaching two young women to work with it and take care of it... Sentimental or Respectful I feel this way about all my gear.

[Vaidotas]

I have two lenses and I’m third owner for both.
In 1967 there was first public photo studio offering color prints in Vilnius, then USSR.
Parents made an appointment and I have first my portrait in color. Studio camera (24x30 cm) had twin lensboard with shortish 200-300? mm symmetrical Persheid and longish Berthiot Olor 500/6 serie IIa which is in my possesion by chance, bought it from former photographer assistant. Persheid at that moment was gone.
That Olor originally was bought in Moscow before 1917 revolution by latvian photographer Karlis Bauls. was in use in studios in Riga, Kaunas and finally in Vilnius.

Second lens is Protar VII set for 13x18 (22, 28, 35 cm cells), which was bought in Berlin in ~1925 with Ica Favorit camera by lithuanian constructivist painter Vytautas Kairiukstis. His main idea was to use camera ground glass to obcerve perspective changes applying camera movements for his paintings sketches. That Ica was main museum (where I work at the moment) studio camera for decade after WWII devastation and shortages.

[jnantz]

Yes, and I've had several.

sorry to sideways the thread but .. why were they crap ?