Updated Information on 210mm F:2.8 Schneider Xenotar

There was an earlier thread on this board discussing the Schneider

Xenotar 210mm F:2.8 lens.

 

http://www.photo.net/bboard/q-and-a-fetch-msg?msg_id=00Aswz&tag=

 

I had promised to get back to the board if I found out any

information from Schneider about the lens. Mr. Eilsburger of

Schneider Germany was Kind enough to reply to my e-mails (first of

which was lost causing some delay) to supply the information.

 

At first he had no record of a 210mm Xenotar ever being made, as

records are incomplete before the reorganzation of Schneider in the

mid 80's and asked for Photos to see the lens to make sure the data

was correct. I knew the lens was made in 1960 and I had only seen

one other (a sequencial serial # to this one, later sold by an NY

lens dealer).

 

After sending the photos, he did find information from the design

department that indeed a 210mm version was made and that the angle

of view was 56 degrees to cover a 222mm circle for 5x7 film. The

most interesting item that there were only 5 of these lenses made

for the same customer in the USA. As my lens originally belonged to

White Sands Missle Range, we can assume Who that customer was.

Needless to say, no information was supplied on original cost of

those 5 lenses, but I assume the Taxpayers of the day paid quite a

substantial amount!

 

I was using my lens on a Plaubel 4x5 view camera with a BetterLight

Super 8k digital back, but have semi-retired the lens after

comparing it on flat field copy work to my 210 Apo-EL-Nikkor, which

after some serious Pixel Peeping was slightly better than the

Xenotar. Probably use the Xenotar on other studio work, that round

iris and fast speed can make for some nice effects in images.

 

Anyway for you other folks who like me are incurable "Lensaholics",

I posted some quick photos of my Xenotar Lenses (80mm to 210mm) on

PBase to give some idea of the size of the 210mm. Photos are at-

 

www.pbase.com/acelkins/xenotar_21080

 

Enjoy, and let me know if you have any more info on the 210 Xenotar!

Thanks! - A.C.Elkins

I was hoping if you could post some pictures with the Xenotars at 2.8, perhaps the 100, 150,

and 210mm.

 

Thanks.

Thanks for the post and the photos, Arlen. Interesting information for us lensoholics! So only 5 of those were made. Wow. Now where are the other three......? ;-)

Arlen, If you have two of the 210/2.8 Xenotars, have you tried stacking them? It would be lot brighter. I don't know what kind of image circle that will project though.

Sad to say, I only have one 210mm Xenotar, Stacking sounds like fun, but if I did have 2 I could make one heck of a Stereo Camera! Don't know what happened to the other 3 lenses, but being around a missile range the possibility of being destroyed in photographing a test is common. I'll try to post some shots some time, but most of my bread and butter work is of other peoples artwork so have to get copyright and owner's permission to post.

Thanks!

So, Arne has to lend you his sample, I guess!

 

Stacked LF lenses are fun indeed. I popped a few WA lenses to see what happens, the image circle is much smaller, in general. But it is lot brighter.

 

With two 210/2.8, it should become something like 105/1.4 with enough coverage for the BetterLight scanning back.

Vivek, I don't own one of these (but would love to try one ;-) ). The remark about the remainining three is related to the fact that thanks to Arlens research we know there were 5 in existence, originally bought by the government. Now Arlen owns one, and another one was first bought and later sold by Lens and Repro (check the earlier thread mentioned above).

Can that lens be put in a shutter? A Copal 3 perhaps?