Biotar 58mm f/2.0 in M40 mount (Praktiflex)

<p><strong>Biotar 58mm f/2.0 in M40 (Praktiflex) Mount</strong><br />used here on a<br>

<strong>Praktiflex</strong> Generation 2 w/ script name, Version 13 (Schulz) 1947-48 Mount M40x1<br />Kamerawerkstätten Niedersedlitz <br>

Kadlubek KWE2021? <br />[The Kadlubek listings for Praktiflexes are, to me at least, irreconcilable with the actual history of the cameras as detailed in Alexander Schulz 2002 Praktiflex.. Lindemanns Verlag, Stuttgart.]<br /><br />Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 5.8cm f/2.0 M40-mount KWD0130<br /><br /><br />For a general discussion see Double Gauss: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double-Gauss_lens<br /><br />Here, we're probably talking about an early post-World War II lens. <br />There had been a 5.8cm f/2 lens for the Exakta in 1938, and that was also shown on a pre-war Praktiflex in Photofreunde in 1939. So it is possible that the lens I describe below was a pre-war lens. I got it from Eastern Europe on eBay and the vendor had no information about its provenience.<br /><br />When the Praktiflex camera out in 1938-9, there were two lenses commonly sold with it in an M40 mount (40mm x 1mm screw thread).<br />(Ludwig) Anastigmat Victar 5cm f/2.9 KWD0090<br />Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar 5cm f/3.5 KWD0090<br />and a higher quality normal lens<br />Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 5.8cm f/2.0 KWD0130<br /><br /><br />Other lenses were also available such as 13,5cm and 8,5cm Triotars and some lenses from France and even the Netherlands (see Schulz 2002).<br /><br /></p>

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<p>From 1939 to May, 1945, something like 30,000 Praktiflexes were made. Shortly after the end of the war, the KW plant came under Soviet military control and at some point soon thereafter, the Praktiflex was put back into production, destined for the Soviet Union as part of German war reparations. A total of some 25,000 Praktiflexes and Super Pilot (medium format) cameras were ordered. Some 1400 were produced under appalling circumstances by the end of 1945. Interestingly, the camera starts to show up on NYC camera store lists very soon after the end of the war. Some of this may have been new, old stock, but the stores involved had continued selling them and other German cameras right up to December, 1941, so they may have had contacts in Germany to divert some production for US dollars.<br /><br />The model I shot on here is the later Generation 2 Version 16 of Schulz. I hesitate to shoot too much with my older First Generation models since the 50-80 year old shutters are a little fragile. This 1947-8 model, however, seems to be going strong - lacking the shutter capping problems of later Prakticas (and I did remember to exercise it first too). The Praktiflexes evolved into the M42-mount Prakticas in 1950 or so. Some later Praktica FX cameras were labeled Praktiflex FX for trademark reasons later on, but these are not Praktiflexes in anything but name.<br /><br />I have already done a report on one earlier Generation 1 model at http://www.photo.net/classic-cameras-forum/00Xaoc <br /><br /> <br />I have been a fan of the Carl Zeiss Jena Biotar 58mm f/2.0 Double Gauss lens since I got my first one with an old Praktica some years ago. I have been lucky enough to get them with other M42 cameras and with Exakta and Praktina bayonet mounts. A near clone was also made in the Soviet Union under the name Helios and further developed, but that is another story)<br /><br /><br />Post-war production of the lenses and the Praktiflex were carried out by what were still mostly private enterprises under Soviet direction, but as time passed most camera and optical production in the newly minted Deutsche Demokratische Republik were folded into "people's owned enterprises" - VEBs. By the end of the DDR, these were pretty much part of a large conglomerate known as VEB Pentacon.<br /><br /><br />Interestingly, the American branch of Zeiss was also 'nationalized" (that is taken over and run by the US government until 1960 under the "Alien Property Custodian", so the only part of the Zeiss Stiftung that was actually not being operated as a socialist enterprise for a while was Stuttgart/Oberkochen . (Barringer and Small 1995 Zeiss Compendium p.36, hereafter cited as "BS"). BS indicate their belief that this may have facilitated imports from both American and Soviet Occupied Zones.<br /><br />Well, for my lens in particular<br />Here was the eBay description"</p>

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<p>"There are many signs of use over the lens including heavy cleaning marks on the front glass and scratches on the rear glass. .. very good but the optical condition is making it more for collectors purposes rather than actual shooting."</p>

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<p><br />The pictures along with the offer were admirable and showed the condition of the glass to be pitiful. Here are my own pictures of it, confirming the same.</p><div></div>

<p>I was beginning to be pretty sure that --despite advice that a small scratch or dust in a lens would cause very little degradation of the image -- that in this case, we might be a little beyond that point. So it took me almost a year to actually stick this lens on a camera and run a roll of film.<br />It does make a handsome lens on the (later) Praktiflex body in this case.<br /><br /></p><div></div>

<p>Okay for a shelf display, I think. But I am a "user-collector" so I had to give the lens a chance ...<br /><br />Then to my second mistake. The only roll of film I had handy was a roll of Kodak 800. This, as I should have figured out before hand, was not a wise choice on a stop-down lens (NOT even preset). That speed on the dim and shiny surface viewfinder of the Praktiflex meant that when you stopped down to f/16 or f/22 to actually take the picture, all you could see was your own eye looking back at you. Composition is supposed to be the advantage of an SLR, but the invention of the automatic diaphragm was of critical importance to the actual success of the form.<br /><br />Here on the left is an undamaged Biotar 58mm f/2 (on another camera) picture of my favorite portrait subject. On the right is the picture taken with the M40 Biotar on the Praktiflex. You can see that even wide open I ended up focusing on the rays on the banner behind Abe, I thought I had adjusted back enough, but obviously not.<br /><br />There's 'soft-focus' but this is ridiculous.<br /><br /></p><div></div>

<p>Well, I headed for the bright lights of outdoors to discover (again) that the fact that the top of the finder screen was polished makes it an excellent mirror. Could this have been subtle retaliation on would-be Soviet users? Probably not. Anyhow, by stepping back into the shade I got the image on the left with the Biotar. The image on the right is on the same camera, but with the 5cm f/3.5 Tessar instead of the damaged Biotar.</p><div></div>

<p>Well, one more stab (remember- unlike digital I couldn't see the results until the film was processed).<br>

Here is a town water processing facility on a reservoir.</p><div></div>

<p>I paid roughly 3 pizzas (in my international system of monetary equivalents) for the lens which is very far from what it would be worth if it had been in good shape and in a more easily adaptable mount. I got my money's worth, I think, but I do believe that this lens will live out the rest of its life with me as a shelf queen. It's quite handsome on my early Praktiflexes (which if the truth be told are themselves not quite as reliable users as the later model I used here).<br /><br />Oh Lord, won't you buy me a Biotar 75mm f/1.5 lens?<br>

That's all, f-folks<br /><br /><br>

Janis DM vW</p>

<p>Wonderful story JDM, thanks for all that work! That thing has Leica glow in spades, people pay a small fortune to get that sort of image quality :)<br>

If you find a couple of those 75mm 1.5's, send one to me won't you...I will happily stump up four pizzas...with anchovies!</p>

<p>mmm.. love anchovy pizzas... <br>

As if further evidence were needed for, well, you know.</p>

<p>The Holga crowd would be enchanted.</p>

<p>Great post <strong>JDM</strong>, atmospheric in the extreme. Sad to see a Biotar in that state, for all that. I have an Exakta-mount one with fungus, <em>and</em> a dented filter ring, the combination presenting somewhat of a challenge when it comes to cleaning. A little project for 2013...</p>

<p>How do you feel about a career in *very* soft-focus portraits, JDM?</p>

<p>Tom M</p>

<p>As for a career, only if I could find a M40 to M42 adapter so I could mount this on later cameras with prism finders, etc. Actually, I have a bunch of lenses made intentionally for soft focus, and think on the whole, that would work better.</p>

<p>By the way, if you look at the extreme lower right of the picture of the water treatment plant, you will see a tiny patch of sharpness. Not that you'd notice. :|</p>

<p>Thanks, JDM, for the informative posts. Always welcome. I acquired an M42 Biotar for the Prakticas and other M42 cameras I have. Fitted to an FX with the Carl Zeiss accessory prism fitted, it looks like a million dollars. Aperture control is stiff, so eventually a strip down will be in order but it is working OK. Not sure if I have scanned any images yet. If you'd like to see some I can take a look. The black Helios 44 in M39 that came with my market stall Zenit 3-M also impresses. (And seems much better made than later Helios types, too). Luckily M39 -> M42 adapters are both plentiful and affordable on ebay, unlike M40 sadly, so it sees some use on M42 SLRs as well.</p>

<p>good information very nicely presented.</p>

<p>Indeed very sad to see the lens in that condition. My own Praktiflex had the Victar lens; however, someone offered me hard cash for it last year, and I took it. I rather regret it still.</p>

<p>Like you, I had a terrible time with the waist-level finder and stop-down aperture; in the end, I only shot one roll with it to confirm that everything was working as it should, but I really struggled with focus and my attempt at portrait orientation. It was my first SLR with a waist-level, my only experiences prior to the Praktiflex were with 6x6 TLRs.</p>

<p>Rather later.<br /> While going over the new edition of Kadlubeks Objektiv-Katalog, I rediscovered the listing (also in the earlier edition) of the Zeiss Jena "manufacturing dates". If the serial numbers do correspond approximately to the production numbers, as suggested, then the 3 million serial number (specifically 3,109,926) of this M40 Biotar would suggest that it is a post-WWII item, since the 1944 production totals out at 2,616,749 million with only some 15,000 production in 1944. It would be doubtful that 1945 topped that production number. <br /> My M40 Biotar probably dates from 1946 to 1948, so mounting it on the second variety of Praktiflex was likely appropriate.</p>