Goerz-Dagor 1:9 f-10cm Carl Zeiss Jena

[Dan Fromm]

Ian, please see http://www.largeformatphotography.in...ter-optik.html

I don't think many of us would consider a wide angle process lens to be a wide angle lens for general use.

[Ian Grant]

I've seen Arne Croell's page Dan, unfortunately details on East German CZJ lenses are rather sketchy and scarce. Kerry Thalman & Chris Perez wrote about Germinar W's as taking lenses a few years later, they mention having Multicoated versions.

You and I have our own opinions on "Process lenses" for camera use, I'll see my 150mm G Claron in a couple of days

I've found it near impossible to get details on my early 1950's CZJ T (coated) 150mm f4.5 Tessar, it's a n excellent lens better coating than the equivalent Xenar's of the 50's & 60's.

Ian

[Dan Fromm]

A question, Ian, and a suggestion. What angle must a lens cover to be called "wide angle?" Re y'r early '50s CZJ Tessar, I'm not sure there's much to know about it. The one question it raises for me is whether that focal length/speed of Tessar was redesigned post-WWII. I b'lieve that Arne Croell has addressed the question of which post-WWII CZJ Tessars were unchanged from pre-war.

Re using process lenses, well, some are very useful. Others, not so. I thought we agreed on this, also that the only way to know for sure whether one would do is to ask it.

[Ian Grant]

Dan, I guess that a lens with a coverage of more than 60° would conventionally be termed Wide angle, so with a 35mm camera that's a 35mm focal length lens (63° diagonal), manufacturers termed a 40mm as wide standard lens, a 28mm lens has 75° diagonal Field of View.

Translating to LF isn't quite as simple as usually we want an image circle that allows movements, so a typical standard is usually assumed to be a 150mm lens on 5x4, but on 5x7 it's a wider angle.

Taking simple designs as a base and assuming that a 150mm Tessar is equivalent to a 50mm standard lens on a 35mm camera then:

90mm Angulon 81° equivalent to a 28mm on a 35mm camera
150mm Tessar/Xenar 62° is equivalent to a 50mm on a 35mm camera

On that basis a lens with coverage of around 70° is equivalent to a 35mm wide angle. So as a Germinar W has approx 10° more coverage than a Tessar it's a moderate wide angle lens. Arne Croell doesn't list the Docter 150mm f9 Germinar W, Kerry Thalman says it's a 6 element Plasmat with 70° coverage and Multi coated so it's a different lens to the Apo Germinar W.

We do agree about process lenses

Ian

[ajmiller]

Some interesting and 'wide' information here, thanks.
I've just used the lens and dev'd the film so will be posting some contact prints later.
Thanks for the input.

- Tony

[Ian Grant]

Tony, you can get an idea of the age of the Dagor from here. Remember the shutter has a serial number as well although sometimes they can be a year or two older than the lens, bought in advance & sat on the shelf awaiting the lens cells

Ian

[ajmiller]

Cheers Ian, good link. the lens serial is 2214722 so it looks like circa 1913 I think.

[Ian Grant]

Put you glasses on Tony !!! it's in the 2 millions not the 200 thousands so 1937

Goerz was still an independent company in 1913, they only merged with Ica, Zeiss, Ernemann etc in 1926. Also the early Compur shutters were Dial set unlike the later rimset version, which is like all modern shutters.

I have a very nice 165mm Tessar from 1913

Ian

[ajmiller]

Put you glasses on Tony !!! it's in the 2 millions not the 200 thousands so 1937
Ian

heh! cheers Ian!

[Mark Layne]

Somewhere I have the Zeiss booklet listing all the Zeiss Dagors and their coverage