Closeups with a Zeiss Ikon Tenax II camera

#1339 Contameter in its case

For the Tenax II owner who just had to do closeup photography, Zeiss Ikon offered a few accessories, either the same or modeled on those for the Contax rangefinder cameras.

Contameter 1339 mounted on a Tenax II

The best known was a Contameter, a combination of a rangefinder device and three closeup lenses that came as a kit. Each of the smaller Zeiss cameras had a Contameter designed specifically for that camera and its normal lens. The kit for the Tenax II was #1339. Other kits were #1340 for the Contax III, #1341 for the Super Ikonta B, #1342 for the Super Nettal and Nettax and, the mostly commonly still seen, #1343 for the Contax I and Contax II. At $65 each in 1930s dollars, these kits were expensive.

Each lens has a tiny matched focusing lens that fits onto the rangefinder focusing and framing device that goes onto the accessory shoe. In use, you do not focus the lens, but shift the camera back-and-forth until the rangefinder images match. It is simple to operate and requires no exposure adjustment, but one is limited to only three distances and setting up requires some time.

Bloodroot

Crocus on bloom

Cherry blossoms on Mayapple

 The 37mm slip-on closeup lenses for the Tenax II set consist of a #20, a #30 and a #50. When the 30 and 50 are used, the device mounts using one shoe; When the 20 is used, the Contameter uses the opposite shoe which adds additional tilt for the closer distance parallax. The #20 focuses to approximately 10 1/2 inches or 270mm, for a reduction of 1: 6.75. The #30 focuses to 15 inches or 380mm. The #50 is sharp at 21 inches or 530mm.

Contameter kit 1341 for the Super Ikonta B

Tenax II, 7.5cm Sonnar, #50 CU lens.

 The more widely-available #1341 Contameter can be used on the Tenax II since they both share the same square format and take the same size filters. The rangefinder focuser works with the #50 and # 70 lenses. It does not work with the #20. When the #50 is combined with the 7.5cm Sonnar, it works even better, since that was the focal length the 1341 closeup lenses were designed for.  The Contameter framing however is too wide.  For more information on the 7.5cm f4 Sonnar for the Tenax II go to: 7.5cm for Tenax II

In addition, Zeiss offered two Proxar closeup lenses, numbers 1 and 2. These were quite inexpensive at $5.25 each, but since they came with no framing or focusing, a user would have to use a tape measure to gauge distance.

The camera in these pictures is mounted onto a Micrometer, a device that allowed fine tuning of the distance of the camera from the subject. For more general and historic information on the Tenax II go to: Zeiss Ikon's Action Camera

4cm Sonnar, #50 closeup lens.

7.5cm Sonnar, #50 closeup lens.

 

The Nikon rangefinder cameras and reflex housings

50cm f5 Nikkor and the view

This entry covers reflex housings (sometimes called "mirror boxes") that fit and work on Nikon's series of interchangeable rangefinder cameras. You are also welcome to look at my earlier site on the 500mm (50cm) f5 Nikkor in short mount, one of Nikon's early lenses for its reflex housings [http://www.personal.psu.edu/mwl2/500/500Nikkor.htm]. This is a condensation of a series of articles that appeared earlier in the Nikon Historical Society's Journal.

The entries will cover the six housings shown below. All will fit on a Nikon RF camera and allow infinity focus with their own lenses.

 Kilfitt kilfascope with cable, Novoflex, Panflex II, Panflex model 1, Nikon reflex housing, model I, Nikon Housing model II

Each one has its values and idiosyncrasies.

The Kilfascope was one of Kilfitt's second series housings. It has a forty-five degree angled finder that provides a right-side-up and laterally-correct view similar to Kilfitt’s earlier Repriscope. The mirror is spring-loaded in the up position. Pressing down on a button on the left side of the housing lowers the mirror and a connecting cable plugged into the right side holds the mirror in the correct position. This cable screws into the camera’s cable release socket. Pressing down on the button causes the pin to withdraw, releasing the mirror, followed by the firing of the shutter. It is impossible to get out of sync and the action is as fast as the photographer’s finger, permitting rapid firing and film advancing. Re-lowering the mirror is awkward. The view in the finder is reduced but bright with both the landscape and portrait views outlined by overlapping horizontal and vertical boxes. The camera may be rotated, allowing either view to be used without having to turn the housing on its side. Short-mount lenses included a 90mm f3.5, a 135mm f4, 150mm f4.5, 300mm f5.6 and a 400mm f5.6, still famed for their lightness and sharpness. Many were sold with adaptors for use on Arriflex movie cameras. All came in Leica-thread. Focal lengths 150mm and longer will focus to infinity on a Contax-mount housing as seen below. Unfortunately, their single helical focusing rings tend to shift whenever one closes down the diaphragm. In addition, their focusing helicoids turn in the opposite direction of Nikkor lenses in Nikon mount. Early versions of these lenses had manual diaphragms. Later ones were preset. Kilfitt used rubber bands for its focusing and aperture rings. In many cases these have stretched and no longer fit tightly, or are even missing.  In addition, their back rings are so thick that they get in the way of mounting the reflex housing on a large-based tripod.

The 150mm Kilar lens is particularly sweet: light, compact and it takes 52mm filters.

The 300mm f5.6 Kilar in Leica short-mount. Behind is a Novoflex housing also with a 300mm f5.6 lens. These housings have a Contax bayonet in back and Leica thread in front. Both units work on a Nikon rangefinder camera.

Image: Landscape taken with 300mm Noflexar. Note the vignetting, a problem with all long-focus lenses and the Nikon RF cameras.

The Novoflex housing also came in either a waist-level version or one with a fixed 45 degree finder. The 45 degree finder can be rotated 360 degrees, allowing its use from a variety of positions. The mirror box in the Contax/Nikon mount version, 98mm in depth, is deeper then the Visoflex standard, but it still has a Leica thread front mount. The mirror is spring loaded up. A lever on the right side of the box cocks the mirror. A metal bridge release that mounts on the camera links the shutter release to one of two small buttons, one for the horizontal viewpoint, the other for the vertical setting that, in turn, release the mirror. The camera may be rotated for vertical or horizontal and the viewfinder rotates with it in the same way Nikon’s second housing does. In action, this housing is one of the best designed and integrated, but if one is missing the bridge, fast action is impossible. It is not known if Novoflex ever offered a bridge to fit the Nikon rangefinder cameras. Novoflex offered a special bellows that locked onto the housing using its tripod screw. The bellows has the ubiquitous Leica thread mount and Novoflex sold a wide range of barrel mount lenses to go on this bellows, ranging from 135mm through 300mm. Unfortunately, the bellows must be focused using the right-hand knob, the left hand serving as a lock. This limits action photography.

30cm f5.6 Noflexar mounted on the Novoflex reflex housing and Nikon SP. Note the home-made bridge

Wolfgang Jacobi, designer of the Panflex in his office in the 1930s. {courtesy of Zeiss Historica Society).

In addition, the Contax-mount Novoflex housing can take longer Noflexar lenses that use their original fast-focus pistol grip. The rapid-focus bellows in Leica thread mount will take 240mm Noflexars and longer. The Leica-thread Pistol-grip focuser will handle the early 300mm Noflexars and longer focal lengths. The later breech-lock mount focusers will only mount on the Leitz Visoflex II.

The first model of the Panflex and the Nikon Reflex housing, model 1, side-by-side for comparison. Their operation is almost the same, but the Nikon housing looks like a Leitz PLOOT housing.

The Zeiss Panflex was designed for closeup work by Wolfgang Jacobi, a designer of accessories within the WICO department (WIssenschaftliche COntax Photography or Scientific Contax Photography department). It has the external Contax mount on the front, allowing a wide range of Contax/Nikon mount lenses, 85mm and longer to be mounted. The pre-war version did not have any particular lenses in short mount designed for it. A 135mm f4.5 Tessar in short mount was prototyped but never put into production. To change from landscape to portrait view, one must use one or the other of the two 3/8” tripod sockets provided. The view through the fixed finder is laterally reversed and upside down, making any field work challenging. A cable release attaches underneath the side housing, a coupling cable projects out the top. Pressing on the cable release forces up the mirror, then the connecting cable which, in turn, depresses the camera shutter release.   It is similar to Zeiss’ Flektoskop (also a Jacobi design) in shape, finder, operation and view, but smaller. It has the external Contax mount on the front, allowing a wide range of Contax/Nikon mount lenses, 85mm and longer to be mounted.

The post-war Panflex II follows the general pattern of the first Panflex but with a number of definite improvements. The view is laterally and vertically correct. A plunger behind the connecting cable allows picture taking without a cable and without moving the hand off the camera. Unfortunately, the 115mm f3.5 Panflex Tessar was the only lens officially sold for the post-war version and it is hard to find and expensive. The connecting cable requires a shallow-depth adapter when used on a Nikon. The Panflex II is easy to operate and use. The tripod mount rotates from horizontal or vertical.

Nikon (Model I)

Rare and strange. Waist-level finder and body modeled on the Leitz PLOOT model housing, but cable system follows ideas of Panflex model I with a cable release or “Finger-tip” release screwing in below the side housing. In use, you push up, forcing the mirror up, then the connector cable.  View is upright but laterally reversed. Exchanging the finder-tip release for a cable release is inconvenient. The release delay is adjustable. The body can be rotated horizontal to vertical with spring-loaded lock to set position, but the view does not rotate. Instead, a cross-shaped mask over the ground glass allows both views to be seen. The Nikon housings have the greatest depth of any housings, limiting focal lengths to 180mm and longer except for the bellows-mount 135mm.

Although first mentioned in 1952, it appears that the first Nikon reflex housing did not make it to market until late in 1954. Fewer than 200 may have been sold before Nikon replaced it with the Model II in May 1956.

Nikon (Model II)

This last model housing for the Nikon is rounded and finished in crinkle-black. It takes the same connecting cable as Model I, and one can substitute a cable for the Nikon pistol grips. The socket for the release is on top of side and forward. The socket is threaded for an external cable release but only the Nikon “Finger-tip release” or the special cable release will work without modification due to the long, narrow plunger needed to push up the mirror. Mirror is spring-loaded down but the slightest pressure on the release will cause it to start to rise, shifting focus. The is probably the most awkward and user-unfriendly housing for the RF Nikons. Shutter release delay is adjustable. 45 degree finder is removable. A few 90 degree pentaprism finders were made late in the RF period. Viewer is bright with a plain ground glass and is large enough that taking in the entire screen can be difficult. A button on the left side allows camera rotation with a locking position for vertical and horizontal. View in finder shifts with the rotation. 

My humble Retina 35: a pocketable camera

Around 1977, I was looking for a truly pocketable 35mm camera that I could take with me for casual shooting—something that none of my Nikons allowed. At that time I was living in Eugene, Oregon, a university town with an active photographic community. It even had a store that specialized in selling only used cameras. It was in that store that I located this Retina I and, after promising that I would actually use it for taking pictures, the owner sold it to me for a modest sum. I have run a number of rolls through it over the years, but in the end its liabilities outweighed its virtues and currently I use other cameras for my film photography.

This is a solid, compact camera and folded, it slips readily into a jacket pocket or belt case. The Compur-rapid shutter with speeds to 1/500th of second stills works and has never given me any trouble. The unit-focusing 5cm f3.5 Xenar lens is decent and capable of good results within the limits of an uncoated lens. On the other hand, the finder is squinty. The controls are tiny and setting the aperture is difficult. The depth-of-field scale is on the bottom of the camera and impossible to access if the camera is in its case. But the biggest problem is the lack of double-exposure prevention. If one always remembers to advance the film immediately after taking a picture, then maybe that problem goes away, but I used this camera so seldom that good habits never formed.

The Retina series of 35mm cameras were the brainchild of Dr. August Nagel, former head of the Contessa-Nettal AG company in Stuttgart who walked away from the merger of his company with Zeiss Ikon to continue his own company. Deciding that 35mm film cameras were more than a passing fancy, Eastman Kodak bought Nagel Camerawerk, and began manufacturing the Retina I in 1934.  This type 119 (1936-1939) is similar to the earlier two models but the lines are cleaner and the frame counter sets into the camera top. The black painted finish, nickel trim and fine-grain leather covering have held up well.

Note the still-unexposed roll of Eastman film in the picture. It is a 20-exposure roll of Eastman Plus-X (exposure index: 50), nitrate base, and a contemporary of this camera. Do not get a flame near it! Nitrate film is highly flammable. This picture also appears as an illustration in my book on the early history of the Nikon camera.

The 7.5cm (75mm) Sonnar for the Tenax II

7.5cm f4 Sonnar for the 35mm 24X24 Zeiss Tenax II camera

[To see my earlier entries on the Tenax II camera below, go to: Tenax II action camera ].

Zeiss Ikon offered a selection of only four lenses for its Tenax II camera. The 7.5cm f4 Sonnar was its sole telephoto lens.

Tenax II with 7.5cm Sonnar and 433/17 albada finder for 4cm & 7.5cm lenses

Despite its limited range of lenses and the restricted development of a system of photography, everything Zeiss made for the Tenax II was first-class and of the same quality as accessories sold for the Contax. This is particularly true of its optics. The Tenax II and its lenses were not cheap ( the 7.5cm Sonnar was $120.00 in 1939), nor were they intended for the common amateur. Rather, they were aimed at prosperous, middle-class families who wanted a fast-action camera with interchangeable lenses for recording family and recreational activities.
The Carl Zeiss Jena 7.5cm Sonnar is a four element optic similar to the 135mm f4 Sonnar for the Contax. It is the same design as the 7.5cm for the Movikon movie cameras. Zeiss also made a number of these lenses in Robot mount. Construction is satin chrome over brass. The focusing is a double helicoid so the lens does not rotate during focusing. This is true for all the Tenax II lenses. The need to couple to the gears that drive the wedge focusing optics for the rangefinder may have required such a mounting. The non-clickstop diaphragm has settings to f22, and is double, resulting in a beautiful circular opening at all settings and an even spacing of the stops. The focusing lever sets below the lens and rotates counter clockwise for about 30 degrees to carry the focus from infinity to 1.5 meters (63 inches or a little over five feet).

Since the Tenax II shoots pictures that are 24 X 24 instead of the almost universal 24 X 36, the 7.5cm Sonnar offers framing that would be the equivalent of a 94mm lens in a full-format 35mm camera.

The Thiele database of Zeiss lens production indicates that a total of 1025 7.5cm Sonnars were manufactured in four groups. This is a much higher number than the rare 2.7cm Orthometar, the Tenax II’s only wide-angle, but as many as 50 of these shipped out in Robot mounts and it is possible that most if not all the last lot of 275 manufactured in 1940 went to the Kriegsmarine (German war navy) and ended up off at sea. So the 7.5cm Sonnar may be rarer than production numbers would suggest. However, a few 7.5cms have shown up with numbers that do not fit into Thiele's production series, so who knows?.
At least one 7.5cm has been seen without its rangefinder arm and equipped with a ring-driven helicoid. The author has seen two late 7.5s with Kriegsmarine inventory markings on their lens rear mounts. In both cases the numbers have a “MF” prefix. "M" stands for "marine," but I have not seen a consensus on what the "F' stands for. Some naval lenses have inventory numbers that just start with a "M."

The mount is the three-tang Tenax II standard and the back barrel seats well into the camera body. To mount, set the shutter speed to 1/50th or slower, line up the red dot of the lens with the red-marked pin, set the barrel in, rotate counter-clockwise about 30 degrees and the lens clicks into place. To remove, depress the top lever and rotate clockwise. The projecting arm of the lens houses the two wedge-shaped lenses that connect via gears to the outer helicoid. These lenses line up in front of the camera’s rangefinder window. As you focus, these lenses rotate, one clockwise, the other counter-clockwise, to cause the RF image to aline.

As is true of all Tenax II lenses. the 7.5cm Sonnar takes 35.5mm screw-in filters and 37mm slip-on accessories. Zeiss offered two Proxars, 1 and 2, in the 37mm slip-on type. The Proxar 1 mounted on a 7.5cm, allows focusing from 41 to 24 inches. To determine accurate focusing, one would need to set the camera on a tripod and use a tape measure.

Zeiss Ikon also offered a Contameter set (#1339) for the Tenax II but whether its lenses or focuser would work with the 7.5cm Sonnar is unknown. The focuser and the #50 lens from the #1341 set for a Super Ikonta B will work nicely at about 21 inches. See entry on closeup work with a Tenax II: Closeups with the Tenax II

The 7.5cm f4 Sonnar illustrated here came with the dent to the front rim you see, eliminating any possible use of screw-in filters. Otherwise, this blemish has no effect on the lens’ performance. However, when I received the lens, it had another problem: the helicoid would not turn. This was not expected. After completely disassembling the helicoid and the rangefinder arm, I was able to determine the problem lay in the gears that connect the wedge lenses to the outer helicoid.

The focusing gears for the 7.5cm Sonnar disassembled. The two small
gears rotate the front RF lens counter-clockwise and the larger gear
rotates the rear RF lens clockwise.

They set into the arm casting and were binding against the casting. The gears rode on pins that follow an eccentric path when rotated. By turning the pin screws slightly, I was able to shift the gears so they no longer rubbed the casting. But reassembly was a challenge. The gears and the two wedge lenses had to be exactly right to the tooth in order for the rangefinder image to appear to move horizontally as you focus the lens. Even one gear tooth off for either lens would result in a RF image that would appear to move up or down on a diagonal. Once that was corrected, I had to rethread the inner helicoid onto the outer so that the lens would set at infinity and the screw holes lined up. That also took time. In the end, it took me two days to determine the problem and fix it. Fortunately, none of this affected the optics which are in good condition with only one small scratch on the front element and no cleaning markings.

Claire & her mother.

Bloodroot in bloom.

Penns Creek near Poe-Paddy. Note the flare.

Easter egg hunt.

Repairman's mark from distant past.

Assembly number on focus tab.

Kriegsmarine inventory number on rear mount partly removed by previous owner.

Assembly number on helicoid. Note the careful engraving.

Performance is about what one can expect for a uncoated lens. It flares in direct sunlight but yields nice, sharp images indoors or pointed away from the sun. It is so small and compact that weight is never a problem.

 Framing is another issue. Zeiss Ikon offered two options: one, a combination 40/75 albada finder, the other a mask that clipped onto the studs on either side of the Tenax’s finder window. Good luck finding either possibility!

Older lens on left, later lens on right.

For the student of the manufacturing changes that occur over time and due to war, here are two 7.5cm Sonnars, both in Tenax II mount for comparison.

Both lenses appear to be the same, but a closer examination reveals a range of differences.

The first (2246175) is an early production lens, one of the first 200 built in three lots in January 1938—only a few months before the public release of the Tenax camera. It is the earliest serial number in my records. It is an export lens intended for sale to either the British or American market.

Features:
1) The engraving of the the beauty ring is bolder and larger than the later lens, and not as sharp. It does not include slots for a spanner wrench.
The distance scale is in feet and begins with “Inf.”
“Made in Germany” is engraved on the outer edge of the lens mount.
The chrome finish appears to be a high quality. The ding on the front-rim has not resulted in any chrome flaking. A poorly-done straightening has resulted in a crack in the rim. One can screw in a filter part-way.

The second lens (2543494) is from Thiele’s third lot of 150 dated to April 1939. With the Second World War less than five months away, most of this lot may have been intended for the German military.

The engraved letters and numbers on the beauty ring are finer, smaller and better defined. The beauty ring includes slots for a spanner wrench.
The distance scale is in meters and begins with “∞”.
No indication as to the country of manufacture other than the “Carl Zeiss Jena” marking.
The chrome finish is poorer with a bit of flaking where the filter rim was dinged and and a rub-though mark on the barrel. On the other hand, the lens-release shows no pitting, while the earlier lens does.
It is engraved “MF818” on the rear of the lens mount. This has been ground down to hide the number, but the letters and number are still easy to see. This is a military mark indicating a lens for the Kriegsmarine (“war navy”). In the picture you can see how the mark was applied with a hand-held engraving tool.

The later lens with the distance scale in meters

The early lens with distance scale in feet.

Made in Germany engraved on rim of early lens.

Closeup of military engraving on lens flange

The glass on both lenses are in fair condition. The early lens has clear front glass with the slightest hint of cleaning marks, but the back element has a haze that hints at the possibility of fungus. The later lens has a scratch on the front surface but no apparent cleaning marks. The front glass is not as clear as the earlier lens but the back element is beautifully clear and clean. Take your pick as to which will be the better user.

The two Instruction Booklets for the Nikon S2

The first Nikon S2 Instruction booklet on the left dating to 1954. The second version on the right dating to mid-1956.

With the establishment of a new distributor for its products in the United States, Ehrenreich’s “Nikon, Inc.,” Nippon Kogaku revised the instruction books that came with its cameras.

The bright and colorful covers that appeared starting in 1954 with the late-production model Nikon S cameras were the work of Yusaku Kamekura of Nippon Design Centre. They established a “look” to Nippon Kogaku’s advertising that persisted up to the changeover to the gold books and boxes of the 1960s.

While as the Nikon SP, S3 and S4 all had only one instruction booklet that remained unchanged throughout the production life of each model, the S2 had two different ones. The reason lies in the illustrations, some of which appear here.

The first instruction booklet would have been assembled in the autumn of 1954 shortly before the public announcement of the Nikon S2 in December 1954. All the illustrations show a chrome-dial camera and a chrome-finished normal lens. This was still the standard in 1954. What is more curious is that the lens page shows only the lenses from 25mm to 135mm, ignoring the longer lenses for the reflex housing. But apparently only the 250mm Nikkor was out of the prototype stage at that point, so these were not really available.

The other major difference is the variable-focal finder, still shown with the parallax adjustment above the shoe.
The second version must date from the spring of 1956, for the new Micro-Nikkor does not appear in the display on the next-to-last-page, but the 50mm f1.1 Nikkor does. The second version of the reflex housing is there, as are its lenses and even the Leica-thread mount versions of the rangefinder optics. Note also that the variable-focal finder illustrated is the final version with the parallax adjustment moved to a ring around the finder eyepiece. But the biggest change is that the normal lens on all the camera shots is a black-finished 50mm Nikkor and all but one of the other Nikkors are in their final black-mount versions. That is the major reason NK decided to go with a new version of their S2 instructions.

The lens page from the first S2 instructions. Note that none of the reflex housing, short-mount lenses are shown. Lenses are still chrome-finished.

The lens page from mid-1956. Note the added lenses, now in their black-mount versions.

Anyone know if the pictures got changed again when the S2 morphed into the black-dial version of the camera in the fall of 1957?