15 cm f:3 Petzval

Music | Sour Times by Portishead

Over the weekend, besides hanging those fantastic large format prints with Susan de Witt, that afternoon I got to work with one of my favorite models, Aiméelisa. Specifically, I wanted to test the gifted Petzval that I received a few weeks earlier.


2014-12-07 Aiméelisa
As you might imagine, I am ecstatic about having this lens! I love the characteristics of this little giant! Without much foreshortening, the shallow depth - the butter like and immediate fall off, contrast... all lovingly distinct. One of the things I wasn't too sure about was the somewhat short focal length that I usually do not like to shoot with. I much rather prefer a longer lens, not only giving me some distance from my subject, but elongating and not distorting - objects appear closer than they are, quality. That is the beauty of this lens. I'm shooting maybe 3 feet away from Aiméelisa, but there is no wide angle effect happening here. Given that this image was shot with a paper negative, I'm more than sure I will be happy with this Petzval's sharpness. The eyes are deadly!

I'm looking forward to working more with this one. I think I can work more intimately with my subjects, but still keep that shallow depth I crave. I love that speed kills!

Petzval

Music | In a Sentimental Mood (1964) by John Coltrane

I have the best of friends... Just at the beginning of my foray into large format photography, I met a guy named Chris during a gathering of large format shooters. They would meet once a month, show prints, talk photography... I was the odd man out as I didn't shoot much large format, but really wanted to. I'm not sure if he knew it or not at the time, but Chris was on his way out. He had intimated in so many words that he just wasn't getting what he wanted out of the various analogue processes he had immersed himself in. During one of our gatherings, I decided to bring prints I had made digitally just to show my work. I printed them ~11x14. I remember Chris was especially interested as they were digitally produced, and I'd like to think, very high quality. He took an interest with the way I produced them, equipment including cameras, lenses, printer and even paper.

Fast forward a few months, Chris got me going with film processing equipment and an unopened box of 4x5 film. I think he recognized poor starving artist and he empathized! It meant quite a lot as I was able to shoot and learn more about the little 4x5 camera I had at the time as well as learn technique in processing the larger film.

Years have gone by, at least 7. Chris has moved on living the dream of Paris and photography. He is a master of the digital photography realm and I can tell he has found his outlet, his joy, to be able to let out his expressions of his art.

About a month ago, I got a message from Chris about a lense he came across in Paris. Not knowing a lot about it, but the price being right he just bought it. Turns out it is a 15 cm f:3 Petzval lense  that he was thinking about adapting to one of his digital cameras.

Well, the project stalled and the message Chris sent was to ask whether or not I wanted the lense. A Petzval that I knew at least would fit on my camera was all I needed to know to say yes! I received it a few days ago, quickly made a fitting lense board for it and mounted it on the Chamonix 4x5. I am hopefully going to be able to test it soon, but the view I'm getting out of the ground glass is bright with a wonderful depth fall off. Maybe a new signature look... I am quite excited!!!


Chamonix 4x5 with no name Petzval 15 cm f:3 lense

Vallantin

Music | Spiritual by John Coltrane

Back in my early assisting days in the mid 1980's, I worked for a photographer that was sharing a space with an older photographer. He was one of the few photographers that was shooting professionally as early as the late 1940's. He was slowly moving into retirement and was getting rid of some of the equipment he wasn't using and taking up space. I saw this beautiful old camera sitting alone in the corner and if anything for me at the time, it would be a great conversation piece. He sold it to me for an amazingly generous price. The Camera, a Century, probably made in the late 1920's, early 1930's also had a very fast portrait lens made with the Kodak name on it. 405 mm f:4.5. I used it several times, shooting some film, but also paper negatives and contact printing them. I loved the size and the look, but for whatever reason, the combo sat on a shelf, being an art piece rather than equipment to take photographs...

I think I've had the camera/lens for over 25 years. With the desire of shooting wet plates, the camera came out of the basement and sat in my room being displayed again. I shot one wet plate with it and the results were fine. The lens however excelled more so with film than wet plates. Difficult as it was, I decided to put it out to the universe and see type of interest there would be for it. I had a few offers ranging a large gamut. I decided to keep it. As I became more involved with Wet Plate Collodion, and a growing desire to shoot larger plates, I set a price for the lens and put it out for sale. Lots of interest, but no follow up and I thought maybe this just wasn't going to happen.

I put an ad out stating my desired price, but also that I was interested in a Petzval design barrel lens, a period lense made in the 1800's. It wasn't til the last few years that these lenses started growing in price. Gems with a nice price became very difficult to find. I did get one email from a gent on the East that had a Petzval who was very interested in my Kodak. I had the feeling that the Vallantin Petzval was going to be significantly more in price than my Kodak. We initially couldn't come up with a deal we both would feel good about, and for me, merely afford.

My view on humanity changed a few days after our initial conversation. The gent, L.P. wrote back to me and said he went to my website and loved what I was doing. He thought that having this lens would enable me to produce more great work. He dropped his asking price significantly, gave me all the time I needed to come up with the difference in price and made a deal. Over a period of roughly one month, I sold a few things, worked on some unexpected gigs and sent out my lens.

3 days later, I got this beast of a lens. I'm looking forward to seeing what it can do.


Century No.4A Studio Camera w/ Kodak Lens 405mm f:4.5







Vallantin Petzval Lens