Archived posting to the Leica Users Group, 1996/12/17

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Subject: Re: Summicron & Genealogy
From: Chris Fortunko <fortunko@boulder.nist.gov>
Date: Tue, 17 Dec 1996 11:49:52 -0700

There is very little consistency in naming lenses. At last, the new 2.8
Elmar 50mm lens is a true Elmar, which is a modified triplet design.

Chris



At 12:26 PM 12/14/96 -0500, you wrote:
>At 10:25 AM 12/14/96 -0500, you wrote:
>
>>I hope this straightens things up!  We really have three distinct optical
>>designs here, and ought to have had three different lens names.  Leitz/Leica
>>confused the issue by carrying over the old name on a new lens (as they did
>>on so many other designs as well, though!)
>>
>
>Yes--as you know, their relatively recent practice has been to name lenses
>roughly by their speed, rather than by their design, so Summicrons are f2,
>Elmarits f2.8, Elmars f4, etc.  But then they violate that too--e.g., with
>the collapsible 50 mm. f 2.8 Elmar, the name of which is intended, I
>suppose, to get the blood pumping in old Leicaphiles by referring to an old
>design!  I guess they see the names now as just marketing tools reminding us
>all of their great tradition.
>
>Charlie
>
>Charles E. Love, Jr.
>CEL14@CORNELL.EDU
>
>
>