Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1997/09/29
[Author Prev] [Author Next] [Thread Prev] [Thread Next] [Author Index] [Topic Index] [Home] [Search]>Eric Welch wrote: > >But my all time favorite it the one native to the V35, the 40mm 2.8 >> Focotar. I have prints made with it that are much better than with Rodagon >> and Schneider APO lenses I've used in rental darkrooms. Not necessarily >> sharper, mind you - just like Leica's camera lenses. Just different. > My guess is that the main reason the prints with the focotar were better than the prints with the Rodagons or Componons was that the Focomat enlarger has a very nicely designed film carrier that has anti-newton glass on the top to keep the negative FLAT. Most enlargers don't take this into consideration. All of the Leica enlargers I have used (Valoy II, Focomat 1c, Focomat V35) have some means of keeping the negative flat, just like the pressure plate in the camera does. On a side-by-side test between a Focomat V35 with the Focotar 40 against a Durst L1200 with an Apo-Rodagon 50, I found the Rodagon to be a bettter performing lens at higher magnifications. I was making 16x20 Ilfochrome prints. The Durst enlarger is also set up with the piece of glass to keep the film flat. The Durst had a higher light output, which really helps with large Ilfochrome prints. But I still love the Focomat V35, and it is too bad Leica stopped making it. Maybe they will have something new coming out.