"JohnR" <nospam.DeleteThis@att.net> wrote in message
news:gt5wd.129353$7i4.117214@bgtnsc05-news.ops.worldnet.att.net...
> >
> >
> Pentax had the very thin 40mm f/2.8 in production from 1976-1984. It was
> just shy of 3/4 of in inch long! I'm not aware of an earlier one, but I
can
> be wrong. Some of the slower 50mm lenses were pretty small, but not as
small
> as this.
> John
>
It was a Tessar design, based on a Carl Zeiss original. Carl Zeiss still
offers that lens in the Contax/Yashica mount. Their advertising headline
reads something like, "The Eagle Eye of your camera . . ."
My understanding of the Tessar design is that it is not as well corrected as
the double-gauss ("Planar") design, and thus has more distortion than most
standard normal lenses (virtually all of which are based on the Zeiss Planar
design which is now over 100 years old).
So one trades small size of the "pancake" lens for a bit less overall
fidelity. The pancake lens' faults would be more visible on static subjects
like architectural themes, as opposed to the more "in your face" street
style of photography.
I read an article just the other day that noted that the pancake lens is
readily available on eBay, despite sellers often characterizing it as a
"rare" lens. When I read the word "rare" in an item's description, I tend
to keep one hand on my wallet . . .
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