Exakta Varioplan 18-28mm

[jarrydbekker]

I recently searched every second hand dealer I knew of for a k-mount

wide-angle lens. What I found was a Exakta Varioplan 18-28mm. I

can't find anything on the net about it and was wondering if anyone

had used one before. Is it a good lens?

[art_haykin]

A google.com search produced several sites mentioning that lens, and one even had pictures taken with it, but most sites were in a foreign language.

[richard_oleson]

I've never used it. Even in their heyday, Exakta never made lenses, so there's no telling who made this one.

[art_haykin]

I believe Schneider-Kreuznach made Varioplan lenses.

[jean_jacques_granas1]

Hi Jarryd,

 

Here is some info about the lens gleaned from two Polish pages:

 

The Exakta Varioplan 18-28/4,0-4,5 lens has a metal bayonet mount of the PB type (Praktica). Manual focus from 0.5m to infinity. Manual aperture from 4.0 to 22 for 18mm focal length or 4.5 to 22 for 28mm focal length. Filter size: 72mm. The first element of the lens rotates during focusing.

(http://magma.home.pl/komis/product_info.php?products_id=478)

 

AND

 

Average quality optics, but makes rather decent pictures. At focal length 18mm and with the filter on, one can see vignetting quite clearly. Closing down the aperture doesn�t help. I didn�t make prints and only examined the pictures on the monitor after scanning the film to 3089 x 2048 resolution. One of the few lenses to have contacts for both Ricoha P and for Pentaksa A.

(http://www.pentax.osw.pl/forum/watek.asp?id=16924)

 

Hope this helps a little,

 

Jean-Jacques Granas

 

Warsaw