what does all these lens lerms mean?

[Ruvy]

I am new to large format. Still don't have one but looking very hard into it. When looking at adds I meat a lot of terms I have no clue about them amd often feels like an idiot.

Here is a list (I am sure not a complete one) of lens terminology - words that I would love to know their meaning, use, and relative advantage of one vs. the other. I didn't arrange them in any order, just listed names I found on E-bay as I have found them.

I assume a good part of it has to do with brand names and brand specific terminology. I also assume that they all have meaning that can be described in simpler terms so I and other who are trying to choose one over the other will have the advantage of knowing what we are getting.

So here they are:

Goertz Dagor
Goretz Berlin Dogmar
Computar symmetrigon
APO
Ektar
Artar
Caltar
Optar
Caltar II-N
Ilex
Acuton
Acutar
Acme Synchro 3 shutter
George Leimeir
Anastigmat
Tessar
Xenar
Angulon
super angulon
G-Claron
Symmar
Ronar
Sironar
Helimar
Heliar
Sironar
tominon

Also, what is the difference between copal shutter and alphax shutter. Any other ?

[Nick Zentena]

Goertz is a company name. Actually a few companies. One german one US.

Dagor and Dogmar are types of lenses. They tell you what the lens design is. Dagors are wide angle lenses. Different models have different angles of coverage.

Ektar is a Kodak name.

Artar is a Goertz name. Narrow angle. Good for normal or longer lenses.

Ilex was a US company.

Acme a shutter make. Often used by the Road Runner.

Tessar and Xenar are the same design made by different companies. Zeiss Tessar is the orginal. All others are Tessar types. The Scheinder Xenar is a Tessar type lens. Most companies make a Tessar or did.

Angulon and supers are wide lens designs. Some body can confirm if the first one is basically a modified Dagor or not.

G-Claron is a wide angle process lens that happens to work peachy on cameras.

[Nick Zentena]

BTW if you plug any of those terms into the google news group archive for rec.photo.equipment.large-format The amount of info is quite broad.

[Tom Hoskinson]

...Acme a shutter make. Often used by the Road Runner...

Coyote...

[jjstafford]

Acme a shutter make. Often used by the Road Runner.

*SPLUTTER*! LOL!

Thanks, Nick. I needed that.

[Ruvy]

BTW if you plug any of those terms into the google news group archive for rec.photo.equipment.large-format The amount of info is quite broad.

Thank you Nick for the explanation and the link to the news group . - found there all I needed to know and than some. looks like a good source for many other questions running in my mind all the time

[MichaelBriggs]

Most of the words are lens brand names. A few are shutter brand names or company names. Describing the properties of all of them would need a very lengthy answer.

What is your purpose? Selecting an inexpensive first lens? You don't need to understand the entire technical and commercial history of optics to enter LF photography. You might do better to tell us your goals, e.g., focal length, cost, etc., and get suggestions. If you can afford a recent lens, some of the manufacturers have datasheets on the web that provide the pertinant figures such as coverage -- with this you can select the lens by performance requirements rather than understanding the design.

If you want budget-priced lens, I think that a Symmar in a Compur or Copal shutter represents an excellent tradeoff between cost, quality reliablity and availability. These are sometimes called convertible Symmars. The Symmar names was reused by Schneider for improved versions (Symmar-S, Apo-Symmar,..), but these will cost more. Focal lengths from 150 to 210 are considered normal for 4x5 -- I like 180, but the 150 and 210 are more common.

If you find lens design and history interesting, the best source of information is the book "A History of the Photographic Lens" by Rudolf Kingslake. This will explain most of the classic designs and many of the brand names. It is very readable and reasonably priced. Most of the currently made LF lens designs are derivates of classic designs, usually tweaked with computer analysis.

You can learn alot about specific lenses by browsing the archives of this forum, or the forums at http://www.photo.net/bboard/forum?topic_id=1547 and http://www.largeformatphotography.info/lfforum/.

[jnanian]

you can also find some lens info here: http://www.graflex.org/lenses/lens-spec.html

[Flotsam]

Acme a shutter make. Often used by the Road Runner.

I've never been satisfied with their shutters but their Dynamite and Anvils are without peer.

[Dug]

I've never been satisfied with their shutters but their Dynamite and Anvils are without peer.

I have always been partial to their Giant Magnets and Cannons with the pull string.