Kodak printing ektars

[juan]

I see a number of lenses for sale that are branded Kodak Printing Ektars or Color Printing Ektars. They all list a focal length and a f/stop. Some look like a normal enlarging lens with an f/stop ring or lever. However the photos of many show threaded bodies but no obvious way to adjust the f/stop. Did Kodak make some of these lenses with fixed f/stops?

 

[Dan Fromm]

Yes. They were for automatic printing machines as used by photofinishers. I think that business has pretty much dried up and blown away.

 

[juan]

Thanks, Dan.

 

[AgX]

They were for automatic printing machines as used by photofinishers. I think that business has pretty much dried up and blown away.

What do yoz mean by this? That photofinishers no longer use such machines, ar that there are no longer photofinishers?

 

[Dan Fromm]

What do yoz mean by this? That photofinishers no longer use such machines, ar that there are no longer photofinishers?

That there are no longer photofinishers. And yes, this is somewhat of an exaggeration.

 

[AgX]

Quite a bit, depending at what and where you look.
Europe's major photofinisher has as much employees as Kodak and prints about 2.5 billion photos a year. The single sheets on RA4 paper.

 

[Dan Fromm]

Quite a bit, depending at what and where you look.
Europe's major photofinisher has as much employees as Kodak and prints about 2.5 billion photos a year. The single sheets on RA4 paper.

From negatives? Or does the photofinisher print from digital files?

 

[AgX]

From digital files. The number of prints from film is meanwhile negligable against the digital source.