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Lens Names - What Do They Mean?


Vlad Soare

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Sorry, Fred, I'm not buying it. Nothing to do with "Zeiss talk." I've been looking at these designs for years.

 

Is your issue only with the 85's? If so, why not say that & not claim that they've been "using the terms interchangeably a while"? The "real Sonnar" was not an 85 as you claim; it was a 50 in its original design. That basic design has been adapted to applications anywhere from 40 to at least 135 - maybe longer but I can't recall at this point. It was modified initailly even in its 50 mm focal length with the introduction of modern coatings & to adapt it to different focal lengths, it has been modified again. However, when I look at a Sonnar, I see a basic design type & same for a Planar. When I look at the designs that you cite, I find it hard to believe that we're looking at the same diagrams & seeing the same thing.

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>The "real Sonnar" was not an 85 as you claim; it was a 50 in its original design. That basic design has been adapted to applications anywhere from 40 to at least 135

 

According to this logic, no lens other than the original 50 should be called a Sonnar because it's the only real one? Or do you mean any lens can be called a Sonnar even though its design is much closer to double-Gauss?

 

Bill, you're not making much sense. No matter, I fully expected you to buy only their coporate talk. I will keep on using my Zeiss lenses but I don't drink their cool-aid.

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This discussion is out of my league of understanding and knowledge. Isn't the Biogon type often copied from the original, i.e., the Mamiya 43, large format Schneiders, Zeiss 35, etc? How close is the vintage Nikkor 50/1.4 or Rollei 35's 40 to the original Sonnar. Are these designs and name are so old, as to be in the public domain?
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