Rodenstock Industrial Lenses Just Arrived

Robert OToole ·

In the past I’ve had excellent results with all kinds of industrial lenses so I was glad to see this set of lenses arrive.

The line-up of new lenses includes:

Rodenstock Ysaron 1:4 f=25
Rodenstock Rogonar-S 1:8 f=35
Rodenstock Rodagon 1:5.6 f=43
Rodenstock Rogonar-S 1:3.5 f=50
Rodenstock Rogonar-S 1:8 f=57
Rodenstock Rodagon 1:8 f=60

(The APO-Rodagon in the above image is for scale)

Don’t let the conservative apertures of the lenses fool you. In almost all cases these have an aperture disk that is easy to access and remove. Also in my experience the lenses image quality is acceptable wide open, in some cases the image quality can be excellent with the disk removed.

So far with an initial test the Rogonar-S 1:3.5 f=50 image quality looks impressive, I’m working on a full test report now.

3.4x II Test Results Online

Robert OToole ·

This weekend I finished up a test with some interesting results, the top three or four finishers are all probably pretty much unknown to 95% of macro photographers out there so be sure to check it out. To read the full test click on the image above or use this link:

3.4x II test: https://www.closeuphotography.com/35mm-lens-test

3.4x II Lens line up

Canon Macro Photo 35mm f/2.8 Lens
Canon MP-E 65mm 1-5x Macro Lens
Copal 35mm f4 E18C Printing Machine Lens
JML 21mm f/3.5 Lens
Noritsu 32mm f4 Printing Machine Lens
Schneider APO-Xenoplan 35mm f1.8 Industrial Lens
Schneider Componon 35mm f4 (at f/2.2) Industrial Lens
Schneider Xenon 35mm f/2 Industrial Lens
Tominon 35mm f/4.5 Copy Lens

Standout lenses are the Noritsu 32mm and Schneider Componon / Xenon 35s. The Componon was run at f/2.2, over a stop wider than in the first 3.4x test with much better results. The first 3.4x test had a slightly different lens line-up and a different target disk : https://www.closeuphotography.com/three-point-four-x-lens-test

Amazing Resolution at High Magnification: f/2.2 Componon at 4x Magnification

Robert OToole ·

Click on the image below to check out the image quality possible with a common retail market Schneider Componon lens. Click on the image to see a larger version, right click/two finger click and select option Open Image in New Tab, or Save As. To make sure the image is full size, check the URL, it should end in 2500, if not, change it to 2500 and refresh/return.

In the past I have had really good luck with the amazing Schneider Componon 28mm f4 lens but this time I’m sharing an example made at 4.3x magnification and an astounding aperture of f/2.2! That is more than a stop wider than wide-open!

The most impressive part of the performance shown in the image above? The corners are almost identical in sharpness and resolution compared to the center. That is really hard to find in a lens, even with expensive macro lens, and almost never wide open. Center to corner consistency wide open is really, really rare.

To put the Componon’s maximum aperture in perspective, remember that a wider aperture has the potential for higher resolution (the highly regarded Mitutoyo M Plan 5x objective has a nominal aperture of only f/2.9)

I will post more about how to set up the Componon for f/2.2, until then be sure to click on the image above to a better idea of the kind of image quality that is possible with a stacked setup using a lens like the Componon.

For more about the performance of the 4/28 Componon see these tests here on Closeuphotography.com;

$50 enlarger lens vs Mitutoyo M Plan APO 5x test:

https://www.closeuphotography.com/50-dollar-componon-vs-mitutoyo-objective

The f/2.8/28 Componon f/2.8 version vs. the Mitutoyo M Plan 5X (pushed down) at 4.3x:

https://www.closeuphotography.com/schneider-kreuznach-28mm-f2-8-componon-lens