Schneider
Schneider Kreuznach in Bad Kreuznach, Germany image by Uwe Kulick (Image rights) |
Schneider or Schneider Kreuznach is the popular abbreviated name of a manufacturer of industrial and photographic optics.
When the company was founded at Bad Kreuznach in Germany on 18 January 1913 by Joseph Schneider, the name was Optische Anstalt Jos. Schneider & Co. In 1922 the name was changed to Jos. Schneider & Co., Optische Werke, Kreuznach, and in 1998 to the current Jos. Schneider Optische Werke GmbH.
Over 14 million Schneider lenses have been sold worldwide. Schneider camera lenses are renowned for their quality and have equipped many luxury cameras to this day, including the recent Alpa 12WA and 12/SWA, Rollei 6006, and the Linhof Technorama panoramic camera. They continue to offer a full line of view camera lenses, including specialized ones for digital capture backs. As lens supplier for Kodak and Samsung, Schneider is present in the mass market too. Schneider also makes lenses for repro cameras and for television cameras, as well as a range of industrial optics.
Schneider lens names
- Angulon and Super Angulon
- Radionar and Isconar: triplet lenses
- Tele Xenar (4 element) and Tele Arton (5 element) Telephoto lenses
- Symmar: Initially a 3+3 Dagor-type sold as triple convertible, later a Plasmat sold as convertible
- Variogon: range of zoom lenses
- Xenar: mostly four element designs, copies of the Carl Zeiss Tessar, though some f/2.8 Xenars were a five element design (5 elements in four groups)
- Xenon: six element design, for high aperture lenses
Radionar lenses were assembled in the 1930s by the Japanese company Neumann & Heilemann, certainly from loose elements supplied by Schneider. See here for dating the serial numbers of Schneider lenses.
Exakta variant of Xenon image by ATNewton (Image rights) |
Schneider Retina-Xenar image by Dirk HR Spennemann (Image rights) |
Symmar in Synchro-Compur shutter image by ebayer www_leicashop_com (Image rights) |
See also
The links go directly to the Schneider section:
- 39mm screw lenses
- 42mm screw lenses
- Exakta lenses
- Hasselblad
- Leicaflex / Leica R lenses
- Rolleiflex SL35 lenses
Cameras with a fixed Schneider lens
- Adox 300
- Agfa Karat 36 and Karat IV)
- Balda Baldaxette, Baldina, Super Baldina, Jubillete, Baldalette, Baldini, Baldinette, Super Baldinette, Super Pontura, Baldessa
- Certo Dollina I, Dollina II, Dollina III, Super Dollina
- Franka Solida, Super Frankarette
- Gamma Perla
- Kodak Duo Six-20 (various models)
- Kodak Easyshare DX6490
- Kodak Instamatic 500
- Kodak Retina and Retinette (various models)
- Kodak Regent II
- Linhof Technorama 617 and 617S
- Nagel Pupille and Vollenda 3x4
- Plaubel Makina IIa
- Rollei 35 (1972-1973 only)
- Rollei Rolleicord and Rolleiflex (various models)
- Welta Welti, Weltini, and Weltur
- Zeiss Ikon Ikonta 522/24
Links
- Homepage of Schneider Kreuznach, in English and in German
- Company's archive in German
- Schneider lens age by serial number in English