Ercona 6x9 Tessar 3,5/105 Kodak Portra 160 Portraits

siudym · Joined: 27 Jun 2015 Posts: 78 Location: Poland

VEB Zeiss Ikon Ercona 6x9 + Kodak Portra 160 Portraits (Tessar 3,5/105 Wide Open)

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dan_ · Expire: 2016-12-19

Nice and sharp portraits!
How have you managed to focus the lens so well without a rangefinder? It's not easy.
Erconas were made in in several variants, cheaper or more expensive, with coated and uncoated Tessars and different shutters. I have both variants of this lens and the coated ones seem much better. Yours looks like being coated and the shutter is the better variant. The coated Tessar 105mm f/3.5 is one of the best normal lenses for the 6X9 format and a very desirable one. It has a very nicely balanced contrast and color, nice Bokeh and sufficient sharpness. I was not keen about Tessars in general but this was the lens that made me change my mind when I adapted it to Linhof 6X9. And they can still be had for cheap.

siudym · Joined: 27 Jun 2015 Posts: 78 Location: Poland

I do not know if I can explain it well:
1. The need for a macro lens, which depends on how close we want to take pictures
2. In the place of the FILM, install the focusing screen (I used one from the damaged LCD screen).
3. In BULB mode, block the camera and direct to any strong, contrasting light source and use the measuring tape to measure the exact distance of the sharp spot from the front lens.
4. Now it's enough to cut out a thin stick for that distance, which will serve as focusing. I set the focus for a moment before taking a photo, simply putting the stick perfectly to the eye and the lens.

Sory for English, I use a translator:]

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TeemÅ · Joined: 07 Apr 2016 Posts: 586 Location: Australia

Depth of field at F3.5 at that distance (about 70cm) is around 1.8cm. Using the viewfinder framing (assuming it shows the framing for the lens FL accurately enough), you can remember the focusing distance knowing the average size of a person's head and shoulders and how that fills the frame. Of course without the stick, you'd still want to stop down to about F8 to double the depth of field.

Really great portraits!

peterlee10 · Joined: 17 Jan 2020 Posts: 1 Location: Australia

The last image of the man holding a stick to his eye then to the camera lens puzzles me.Shouldnt the stick extend to the film and not the lens

dan_ · Expire: 2016-12-19

No, the front of the lens-film distance is quite constant because focussing from infinity to 1m. is done, in the case of this lens, by moving the front group of the lens only with ~1-2mm. The distance film-shutter remains constant and the stick seams to point to the shutter, not to the lens.