75mm/80mm lens recommendations?

[Griffin Miller]

Hey there!

Looking for a new enlarger lens that isn't too pricy, but is an upgrade from what I'm using now. Right now I have a Rodenstock EL-Omegar 75mm f/4.5 and 50mm f/3.5. I just picked up a Durst M605 color that came with a Schneider Componar-C 50mm f/3.5, so that'll be super helpful for enlarging 35mm negs, but I'm looking to get a better lens for enlarging 6x6 negatives.

If anyone has one for sale or has any recommendations let me know!

Thanks

Griffin

 

[MattKing]

Most of the 75mm lenses are in the budget category, so you probably should concentrate on the 80mm options.
I believe that the Componar-C lens is a fairly basic 3 or 4 element lens, so you may want to upgrade it as well.
What filter threads do your lens mounts have? Are they the fairly standard 39mm, or something more unusual? You will most likely want to look for lenses that use the same size.

 

[Griffin Miller]

I'm not shooting as much 35mm these days, so the Componar-C might be alright for now, but I'll think about upgrading it in the future. The enlarger I just bought came with a panel dedicated to a 50mm lens and one for a 75/80mm, both panels are M39 threads

 

[JensH]

Hi,

I would recommend the Schneider Componon-S 4/80mm for both 35mm and 6x6cm.
I bought mine in 1988 new and still don't feel the need to replace it by a pricy Rodenstock Apo-Rodagon-N.

Best
Jens

 

[Martin Rickards]

As well as the usual El Nikkor, Schneider, Rodentock advice, the Fujinon EP/EX, Minolta CE and Meopta Meogon lenses are also very good and don't demand the same asking prices as the former.

 

[bernard_L]

I read similar statements repeatedly: that 4-element enlarging lenses are inferior to 6-element. Yet, when I retired my EL-Nikkor 75/4 for a 80/5.6 Componon I did not notice an improvement in my prints. The document posted there https://www.photrio.com/forum/threads/any-opinion-on-this-rolleiflex-lens.179737/#post-2348331 claims that, as concerns Rolleiflex, 4-element leaves nothing to be desired wrt 5- or 6-element lenses "at the moderate aperture f/3.5". I never do the actual exposure at max aperture, generally f/8 to f16, depending on the paper size. Or maybe i should get my eyes examined, as I also fail to see the difference in character between German and Japanese rendering...
Anyone would step forward and report on A/B comparison; not hearsay, but firsthand experience? At what aperture? Grain sharp in center? In corners? Does a naive observer also see the difference in "blind" (well not quite) comparison?

 

[Deleted member 88956]

What's TOO expensive for you though? To me any APO lenses are an overreach given the rest of enlarging process effect on print, and are not worth the price at all. Maybe there are some high precision applications where their inherent quality actually matters, but that is NOT in general photography, even if one wants to call it a "fine art" one.

Schneider Componon-S is a very fine line of enlarging lenses and I would stick to this in general. EL-Nikkors are fine as well. If you can find a Meogon at a reasonable price (which may be a problem especially in US), then by all means, but reasonable to me would be $50 or less. But a Componon - S in 80mm is often under $100.

 

[Griffin Miller]

Honestly, I'd love not to spend more than $100. I've heard a lot of good things about the Componon-S and if one came around for under $100 I'd definitely pick it up. Can anyone tell me the main differences between the f/5.6 and f/4 versions of this lens? That seems to be the lens I'm hearing about over and over again. I'm not looking to buy an APO lens as those are almost certainly out of my price range, but I'm open to recommendations for the future. I might post a WTB and see if anyone has a Componon-S 80mm f/4 they're looking to sell.

 

[Deleted member 88956]

Componon-S comes up all the time under $100 on the bay. Looking at 80 mm of course. I don't believe there is any performance difference between 4.0 and 5.6, 4.0 being newer and that one stop helps sometimes to focus right.

Componon-S 80/4.0 in UK now

 

[Griffin Miller]

None under $100 in the US right now except a few as-is sales. Not sure if that seller in the link you posted will ship to the US, but the cost of shipping would probably bring it up to $100. I'll just keep my eye out for them and see if anything pops up

 

[Deleted member 88956]

I did not look US side, but in EU there were several more, some 5.6 versions, all under 100$.

 

[Griffin Miller]

I'll check them out, thanks!

 

[Deleted member 88956]

In USA 1

 

[Griffin Miller]

I think I'm gonna force myself to be patient and wait for an f/4 version to come around in my price range

 

[Deleted member 88956]

Patience is always good

 

[MattKing]

There are other options as well - good quality lenses that are rebadged by others (usually enlarger manufacturers) - Beseler Color Pro being an example.
Having an f/4 maximum aperture is an advantage over f/5.6 when it comes to use. There are other practical advantages that are sometimes engineered in - things like illuminated aperture scales and aperture range limiters and adjustable click stops.
It would be entirely appropriate to ask opinions here about a listing that you come across.

 

[Hilo]

As well as the usual El Nikkor, Schneider, Rodentock advice, the Fujinon EP/EX, Minolta CE and Meopta Meogon lenses are also very good and don't demand the same asking prices as the former.

Re the Meogon line made by Meopta, these are really excellent. In particular the 50/5,6, the 60/5,6 and the 80/5,6 are impressive. I use 150w bulbs and find opening at 5,6 no problem.

I prefer their metal barrels and turning that wide zebra ring (which is at least 60 percent of the barrel) is an experience. In the eighties a French magazine did a test, including the usual brands, and these Meopta lenses came out on top. As Martin says, they sell at very low prices.

Michael

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Hey there!

Looking for a new enlarger lens that isn't too pricy, but is an upgrade from what I'm using now. Right now I have a Rodenstock EL-Omegar 75mm f/4.5 and 50mm f/3.5. I just picked up a Durst M605 color that came with a Schneider Componar-C 50mm f/3.5, so that'll be super helpful for enlarging 35mm negs, but I'm looking to get a better lens for enlarging 6x6 negatives.

If anyone has one for sale or has any recommendations let me know!

Thanks

Griffin

I can highly recommend the Nikkor EL 80mm.

 

[voceumana]

Does your lens board for the Durst have 25mm or 39mm threads? Many of the Durst enlargers came standard with 25mm threaded lens boards though 39mm boards were optional. Most lens brand offer 39mm threads for the focal lengths you want--Schneider was one of the few who offered both often with the same lens design.

 

[Griffin Miller]

Does your lens board for the Durst have 25mm or 39mm threads?

The lens boards I have are 39mm threads

I appreciate the recommendations from everyone else. It seems like the El-Nikkors I'm seeing are a little pricier than the Schneiders, and the only Meopta I'm seeing anywhere is the 50/5.6. I'll keep looking and see if anything new pops up

 

[Pieter12]

The Beseler HD lenses are Rodagons. You might find one for a reasonable price.

 

[jjphoto]

There's no question that any of the 'later' lenses from the major brands will be just fine, eg Rodagon, Componon-S, EL Nilkkor (the later 'N' lenses), Fujinon EX (EX 4.5/75), Minolta (C.E. Rokkor-X 5.6/80), Omega/Osawa/Hoya 75, the Meogons (Meogon S 4/80 and Meogon 5.6/80, there is also a Meogon S 2.8/80 but they are quite expensive). I doubt you'd go too far wrong with any of them. There's also a Komuranon-E (and an 'S' version, I think the only difference is improved coatings) 5.6/75 from the 1970s which is a 6 element lens with a 39mm rear thread (so simple to adapt) and usually quite cheap, it's worth considering. But just buy a 4/80 late model Rodagon or Componon-S and you'll never have to think about this again.

The condition of the lens matters so an APO-Rodagon-N that's had haze, fungus, surface cleaning marks (or just been re-assembled badly) could be outperformed by a clean version of an otherwise 'inferior' lens. Unfortunately many enlarging lenses are stored badly so the above issues are very common with second hand lenses.

 

[voceumana]

I'm going to suggest you get a Meopta Anaret 105mm, available at Freestlye for bargain price of $34.95 on closeout special. See:https://www.freestylephoto.biz/110257-Meopta-Anaret-105mm-f-4.5-enlarging-lens

This enlarging lens would normally be used for 6x7 or 6x9 negatives, but it can also be used for 6x6; the only disadvantage is the maximum enlargement with it will be a little smaller than with a 75 or 80 mm lens. But, it is brand new, beautifully finished. It's a 4 element lens, and if you decide to upgrade, you haven't put much into it.

I have a collection of lenses, some used, and I've seen evidence of pitting on some of the used ones--I suspect fumes from the various darkroom chemicals have attacked some of them when they were not properly stored, so getting a new lens is an advantage.

 

[JensH]

... But just buy a 4/80 late model Rodagon or Componon-S and you'll never have to think about this again.

The condition of the lens matters so an APO-Rodagon-N that's had haze, fungus, surface cleaning marks (or just been re-assembled badly) could be outperformed by a clean version of an otherwise 'inferior' lens. Unfortunately many enlarging lenses are stored badly so the above issues are very common with second hand lenses.

+1 to all that.

Internal haze or fungus can be a nasty problem. I once used a 150mm Componon-S for 4x5" that was easily outperformed by a clear 210mm Rodagon.

Best
Jens

 

[RalphLambrecht]

Hey there!

Looking for a new enlarger lens that isn't too pricy, but is an upgrade from what I'm using now. Right now I have a Rodenstock EL-Omegar 75mm f/4.5 and 50mm f/3.5. I just picked up a Durst M605 color that came with a Schneider Componar-C 50mm f/3.5, so that'll be super helpful for enlarging 35mm negs, but I'm looking to get a better lens for enlarging 6x6 negatives.

If anyone has one for sale or has any recommendations let me know!
a author called 'Ctein' published a book in which many enlarging lenses are compared.Ithink it's called 'post exposure' It is available online as a free pdf(Google is your friend) but in short, he found that all name-brand 6-element enlarging lenses are very good with little differences between them.So, don't expect too much by switching from your current lens
Thanks

Griffin