Lens names: How the heck do they come up with these things?

[George Papantoniou]

There was one mentioned in a recent magazine which I had never heard of, Thambar. I did some googling and here's what I found. I don't know how accurate it is.

"Thambos" means "blurred" or "not sharp" in Greek.

 

[dmr]

"Thambos" means "blurred" or "not sharp" in Greek.

Thank you. When I was googling it, the best I came up with as far as the origin of the term was an article about caste names in India. I'm sure that was coincidence.

 

[Murray@uptowngallery]

Speaking of India, an ektar is a one-stringed Indian musical instrument...but that's probably purely coincidental...

...or maybe since Ektar's were Kodak's best, one might only need a single lens, an Ektar...never mind, I think I've fallen off that limb...

 

[Kino]

If you think lens names are bad, you should peruse the names given early optical lanterns and motion picture systems!

Zoopraxinoscope, phenakistoscope, biograph, kinograph, heiliograph, and on and on and on...

 

[Murray@uptowngallery]

I think Ole cited at some point and time and place in the past the Greek word root for 'gon' being related to angle.

 

[Nick Merritt]

Well, Ektar, like Ektachrome, comes from EK -- Eastman Kodak.

Much of lens naming is marketing -- no independent significance to them. Some names can be amusing, at least to American English speakers. I forget which company made the Dogmar -- whether you see "dog" or "dogma" it's kind of amusing. Likewise the Lausar, found on early Yashica TLRs. I would pronounce it to sound like "lousy." And the Industar lens line, fitted on many FEDs and Zorkiis, sounds like a proud proletarian name.

The Ysarex (made by Schneider, I think?) takes its name from the Ysar River. as I understand it, which flows right near Bad Kreuznach.

 

[Barry S]

I have a Goerz Dogmar lens and I have no doubt what the "dog" stands for. However, I always have wondered about the Ross Xpres on my Ensign Selfix. It makes me think of ex-prez, but I guess it was Ensign's idea of modern.

 

[AgX]

Nick,

Thanks for that hint concerning the Ysarex, as just today I stumbled over the Ysaron and wondered. Your idea with the river seems great.

Though, the river is `Isar´. (The one and only German word beginning with an Y is `Ypsilon´) Most probably the reason why I as a German did not think in that direction.
However, `Y´ gives it (for a German mind) a very scientific touch.

However the river Isar is far off Bad Kreuznach. But the Ysaron was made by Rodenstock and they were settled in München which is at the Isar.

 

[Anscojohn]

I have a Goerz Dogmar lens and I have no doubt what the "dog" stands for. However, I always have wondered about the Ross Xpres on my Ensign Selfix. It makes me think of ex-prez, but I guess it was Ensign's idea of modern.

******
The Brits fought some big WWI battles at Xpres. Wonder if that might have a connection?

 

[IloveTLRs]

... Claron. ...

Isn't that a nasal decongestant :confused:

 

[analogfotog]

Ekta

Well, Ektar, like Ektachrome, comes from EK -- Eastman Kodak.

EKTA = Eastman Kodak Tries Again

A Kodak rep--who shall remain nameless--told me that some years ago.

 

[Fotoguy20d]

So, who is the Elmar named after?

Personally, I like the Raptar lens in Rapax shutter. Was it supposed to devour the competition, ala Velociraptor?

Dan

 

[Seele]

Sorry for coming in late.

As far as I am aware of, the naming of lenses started with the Zeiss Protar: before that, lenses were pretty much named for their designs and characteristics, so when Zeiss introduced the Anastigmats, soon they realised the need to make sure that they need a name that no one else could use, so they thought up the name "Protar", and it started from there. The "-ar" name of many lenses by other makers might be an attempt to get some of the Zeiss magic..

The first lens on the Leica was the "Leitz Anastigmat" but later the name "Elmax" was coined: short for Ernst Leitz, MAX... the Max being Max Berek the lens designer who also named a lens after his dog Hektor... wondering what would have happened if his dog was called "Fido" or something. Anyway, the Elmax design was simplified, which warranted the change of name to "Elmar".

Originally Wollensak called their lenses "Velostigmat", so the more catchy name "Raptar" would be totally understandable.

 

[Ole]

Steinheil was a lot earlier than Zeiss - with "Periskop" (1865), "Aplanat" (1866), and "Gruppen-Antiplanet" (1882).

 

[Seele]

Ole,

Sure thing, but then they are descriptive names, not contrived propriety names.

 

[Ole]

... they are descriptive names, not contrived propriety names.

Eh???

 

[Seele]

Say, "Periskop" refers to two element symmetrical, "Aplanat" means without distortion, etc. Same goes for other makers such as Dallmeyer: "Rapid Landscape", "Rapid Rectilinear", "Patent Portrait" etc. We are talking about contrived names which can be registered, and "Anastigmat" is descriptive, therefore Zeiss felt the need to invent the name "Protar" which started this whole lens-naming business.

 

[Ole]

"Periskop" refers to a two-element symmetrical lens, because that is the name Steinheil used for his symmetrical two-element lens.

"Aplanat"? There's obviously someththing about "plan" or flat in there, but Aplanat is not explained by that. The a- suffix usually means "not-", so it's a "not-flat-thingy"? "Without distortion" is what Dallmeyer decided on in naming the Rapid Rectilinear as opposed to the previous Rectilinear, which was not at all rapid.

"Antiplanet" descriptive? Certainly no more than "Protar"! "Proto-" as in first, original; Prot-A(nastigmat)-R(it's German; it would be pronounced and misspelled with the R if it wasn't there).

 

[Shmoo]

For some reason, to me lens names and the names of drugs sound similar. I can easily imagine putting a 100mm Lipitor on one of my cameras.

Since Lipitor comes in 10 mg to 40 mg quantities, would that make it a zoom lens?

 

[AgX]

Lens names is a wide and often puzzling field.

One common lens which name I always wondered about, and so far not dared to ask, is the Industar.

It sure was not the first mass produced soviet camera-lens and thus hardly could have been taken as praisal for the industry. Or was it ??

 

[Theo Sulphate]

The 400/6.3 Girl Watcher lens from Spiratone, circa 1971. Easily understandable.

 

[dmr]

The 400/6.3 Girl Watcher lens from Spiratone, circa 1971. Easily understandable.

My brother had one of them, he called it his "beach lens" and if people did what he and his friends did back then he would be arrested as a perv! He used it on an old Pentax H3 (or HV or something like that) and it had the most funky stop-down mechanism I have ever seen. When I got my Spotmatic he let me use it on occasion and it actually performed quite well, image wise, but a pain to use.

 

[AgX]

A quite similar lens (500mm,F8) got famous in West-Germany as "Surprise Bag" as a reviewer who was impressed by its features at rather low cost called it that way.

"Girl Watcher Lens" I read for the first time, I rather thought of an attachment with oblique mirror...

 

[JensH]

"Aplanat"? There's obviously someththing about "plan" or flat in there, but Aplanat is not explained by that. The a- suffix usually means "not-", so it's a "not-flat-thingy"? "Without distortion" is what Dallmeyer decided on in naming the Rapid Rectilinear as opposed to the previous Rectilinear, which was not at all rapid.

Hi Ole,

yes, "A-" means not (or without) here.
"Planat" comes from "planaein" , greek for to wander, here spherical aberrations are meant.
So Aplanat is a lens without / with reduced spherical aberrations.
Btw, the word "planet" comes from "planaein" , too...

The latin word "planus" means flat. On microscope optics a common suffix like in "Plan-Apochromat".

Best
Jens

 

[NB23]

Viagron

Cialisor

Erecton

All sounds good to me