Q4 2023 (Oct-Dec) — Through Your Adapted Lens

This makes sense, I believe the serial numbering shows the origin of the lens.

You have written a nice story there. The Zenotar type Componon-S 50mm f/2.8 is a very interesting lens. I guess it was the only one of that type in Componon-S line with it's big max aperture. The longer (and maybe later) Componon-S lenses were double Gauss type with six elements.
Btw. it looks like my Focotar's max aperture was a little limited by the iris. Maybe for image quality reasons. When I open the aperture it'll never be full open.
Focotar could be a f/3.5 or f/2.8 lens if not limited.

I did mean Focotar-2 but I did write straight from my memory without checking the facts...

And here I tried mimicking simplejoy but failed again... At least I got mother and child in focus with f/11 and 9 degrees of tilt.

Looks good. If you go further (that is, if you have a tilt adapter or bellows which does more than 9 degrees) you'll likely see image quality decrease significiantly with most lenses.

Here's a shot I've made with my (Schneider Kreuznach made) Focotar 50 mm f/4.5 yesterday:

Buckle up for hiss second try! by simple.joy, on Flickr

Compared to the (older) Componon-S (5-element Xenotar) 50/2.8 the Focotar 50/4.5 is slightly better when both lenses are compared at f/4.5, visibly at the edges of the frame. Judging by reflections these two lenses might be identical in terms of optical design, however they certainly seem to have different coatings and I also think the Focotar may be better at dealing with stray light.

I'm sure Schneider might have learned a thing or two by these dealings with Leitz, as the latter company was known to be extremely harsh in terms of quality control and oftentimes demanded changes to be made, whenever they decided to use another makers lens.

Yes, I agree.
I have not tried very big amounts of tilt with many lenses. I have to check that.
My bellows ( Cambo Actus ) gives me +-10 degrees of tilt and unlimited swing ( at the same time if needed! ). In practice with the bellows no more than ~45 degrees swing is possible. So Actus is not the limiting factor.

Very nice shot. At f/4.5 I guess? Did you look at the iris when the aperture was at 4.5? Did you see the same as I did, the maximal opening was limited?

Indeed - the Actus seems like a great device.

Yes, that's normal. The diaphragm doesn't fully open. I've compared the lens to the Componon-S (5-element version without illuminated aperture indicator) and it is indeed pretty much identical in terms of reflections, so it might have been the basis for the Schneider-made Focotar. I've made a comparison shot and the Focotar is better at f/4.5... not by much, but enough that it makes me think Leitz has a.) done their additional checks in order to just use the best samples and b.) made some additional changes. It's a pity the Focotar doesn't open up fully, but I'm sure for enlarging Leitz had good reasons to limit it.

Winter warmth by simple.joy, on Flickr

Very nice color. Looks very natural. Leitz has always been good at that.

Remember years ago a consumer magazine group tested several different brands of current 50mm film lenses. One of the "tests" rated the lens coatings. Leitz wasn't one of the brands tested. They wrote a letter to the magazine saying it was nearly impossible to separate lens design from coating quality without testing the same design with and without coatings. Leitz then said it took them over 200 different tests to tell if a lens was good or not. The magazine did 7 or 8 tests. I disregarded their tests after that.
Thanks,
barondla

One thing I've learned is lenses aren't the same efficiency through their range. Glass lenses become more opaque as they descend into UV. Eventually they let no light in. Different glass responds differently. The Nikon EL-Nikkor and Leitz Focotar enlarging lenses reach 310-320nm. This is very good for glass based lenses. To do better takes something like a Nikon 105 UV lens that records down to ~250 nm. All quartz elements and about $7K new. The interesting part is the Quartz 105 UV lens is less efficient than the glass EL-Nikkor 80 in the 350-400nm range. Some glass lenses don't manage much below 400nm.

This can also affect standard photography. Olympus ILC have less UV sensor filtration and can run into fringing when using Panasonic lenses. The fix is a Zeiss UV or Tiffen Haze E filter. These filters are much stronger than a normal UV filter. No wonder lenses look different.
Thanks,
barondla

The Q4 of 2023 is near of it's end. Happy New Year with Travegar 105mm!

Very nice! Wish you a Happy New Year as well!

Excellent image. The 105 renders nicely. Ready for 2024. Happy New Year everyone.
Thanks for sharing,
barondla