Episkop lenses: when the size is not the chief

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1674

I got a couple of lenses which I presume were used in episcope/epidioscope. The first is marked in an inhabitually complex way: plawa-Feinwerktechnik, Uningen / Wurtt. Will-Maginon 200 (without the aperture indication, I guess it is f3.5 of f4). The other one is MC Ennagon 3.5/280. They are both ridiculously huge, especially the longer one. Here they are, with a modest Berogon (Westron) 3.5/35 put in line for scaling purposes.

I also have an old simple Episkop that I did not dare to disassemble in order to take off its lens. It still works, and even if I don't really serve of it, putting it in pieces makes me feel a little bad. The lens in it is Kamera Werkstatten Dresden Projekzion Anastigmat 13.5cm 3.2. I think it comes from the 1930s.

All the three lenses are diffucultly adaptable. The third one just stays inside the small projector. The first two have a too large diameter, such as 90mm of the Ennagon.

So, I only freelensed with those giants using Sony Nex-5N and bellows to reduce stray light, then applied auto-contrast. I could only use the old Dresden Anastigmat reversed, which worked suprisingly well. Does it mean it's a symmetric lens? On the whole, the results are pretty mixed.

#1 Here is the reversed Dresden Projekzion Anastigmat 13.5cm 3.2, gives this way a nice vintage triplet feel, not at all bad for a lens of its age

#2 This is the Will-Maginon 200, pretty sharp and contrasty: an impressive overall rendering, right?

#3 And here is the MC Ennagon 3.5/280 which is pretty disappointing, in spite of my multiple attempts to get a sharper image

I say to myself that the Will-Maginon might be an interesting candidate for adaptation, for its IQ. The Dresden Anastigmat is just a nice retro glass. And I am asking myself how the hell this largest Ennagon MC might give such a compromised rendering. I've made two dozens of shots, all with the same output, both blurred shapes and split colours. Did the projector it was used in had another, more sophisticated scheme of projection?

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1674

Well, the diameter of the Will-Maginon F200mm revealed itself to be precisely 62mm, like Visionars, Soviet ROs and some other projection lenses. The Maginon is made of plastic, with those typical slide lens thread. So, it could hardly be a cine-projection lens. Still, I rectify my previous statement: this one is easily adaptable, under condition you already have a custom 62mm helicoid.

So, here we go! I decided to take shots with the lens unrestrained from the uncomfortable freelensing. And to make a direct comparison with a lens... of the same outer diameter, a Visionar 1.6/84. Yes, I know, I know. But it is still fun. And it tells some bit more about mastering different distances and focal lengthes.

All shots are taken this time with a FF Sony A7, autocontrast is applied except for the 100% crops which are left unprocessed out-of-camera jpgs.

#1 This is a no-comparison shot with the Maginon, to see how it isolates neighbour objects

#2 Maginon closer shot that I slightly corrected to cut the blue overcast, and still the image retains more blue than Visionar, but it looks more complaint with today's gloomy light

#3 Visionar shot that I cropped in order to get it as much closer to the Maginon frame proportions

#4 Maginon, subtle structure test

#5 A 100% unprocessed crop from the previous

#6 Visionar, cropped to better comply with Maginon

#7 A 100% unprocessed crop from the previous

#8 Maginon, this time without any possible shift proper to freelensing

#9 Visionar, this time without cropping, to see the difference given by FL

#10 Maginon 100% unprocessed crop from the previous

#11 Visionar 100% unprocessed crop. Lighter, more pronounced CAs, but not that dramatically sharper, right?

#12 Maginon, the autocontrast got even more visible this strage horizontal "vigneting". Is it a result of some internal reflexion within a large lens when exposed to the sky?

#13 A 100% unprocessed crop from the corner, to see the FF corner performance (even though it must be quite far from the real lens' corner, given its diameter)

#14 Visionar, shot from the same standpoint

#15 As long as it is not a perfectly formal comparison, here is a 100% unprocessed crop that is not stuck to the corner

To conclude, I once tried a 2.8/85 projection Maginon and it did not impress me more than usual. But this 200mm oversized version renders really great. I think I need to get back to a more usual 2.8/85 Maginon in order to check if I previously missed something important.

55 · Expire: 2022-06-15

Thanks for the report, alex ph. I like your results.
Even if such lenses don't give brilliant image quality, they're still fun to try!

Like 1 small

kds315* · Expire: 2021-03-09

alex ph · Joined: 16 Mar 2013 Posts: 1674

Thank you, 55 and Klaus! Ys, it is certainly a great entertainment to play with "inappropriate" lenses.