Ludwig

Ludwig or Ernst Ludwig was a German optical company based at Lausa, a small town near Dresden.

History

The town of Lausa merged with the neighbour town of Weixdorf in 1938. Some prewar lenses were thus marked Ludwig Lausa Dresden.

Ludwig made entry level lenses, often with three elements. After the war, they were offered as a low price alternative to the Carl Zeiss Jena or Meyer lenses. In 1972 it was absorbed in VEB Kamerafabrik Freital, and in 1980 it fell under VEB Pentacon.

Lenses

Some trademarks used for Ludwig lenses include:

• Auxanar (simple triplet, enlarger lens)
• Cosmar (five element triplet with cemented first and third groups)
• Enoldar
• Kosmar (four element triplet with cemented front group)
• Meritar (simple triplet or a Tessar type)
• Peronar
• Victar (simple triplet)
• Vidar

Cameras

Ludwig was not a camera maker, but rather a lens maker. Cameras equipped with a Ludwig lens include:

• Altix - Meritar 2.9/50 mm

Wirgin Auta (1935) with a Ludwig 6.3/10.5cm image by Dirk HR Spennemann (Image rights)

Ludwig Meritar 3.5/75 in Blitz I shutter image by Dirk HR Spennemann (Image rights)

• Baldax Vidar f/2.9 75mm as well as Vidar f/4.5 75mm
• Beirette - Meritar 2.9/45 mm, later 2.8/45 mm
• Beirette SL 200 - Meritar 2.9/45 mm, later 2.8/45 mm
• Beirette SL 300 - Meritar 2.9/45 mm, later 2.8/45 mm
• Belca Beltica - Meritar 2.9/50 mm
• Certo KN 35 - Kosmar 2.8/45 and Meritar 2.8/45 alternatively
• Exa - Meritar 2.9/50 mm (bayonet mount)
• Minifex
• Praktiflex Victar 5 cm f/3.5 or Victar-Anastigmat 5 cm f/2.9
• Precisa - Meritar 3.5/75 mm
• Reflekta I - Meritar 3.5/75 mm
• Reflekta II - Meritar 3.5/75 mm
• Super Dollina II
• Weltaflex - Meritar 3.5/75 mm
• Wirgin Auta (1935) with E. Ludwig Lausa 6.3 /1 0.5cm lens

See their Exakta lenses, 42mm screw lenses and Praktiflex lenses.

Sources

• Fincke H.E.: Das Objektiv deiner Kamera; Fotokinoverlag Halle, Halle, 1959.
• Naumann H.: Das Auge meiner Kamera; Verlag von Wilhelm Knapp, Halle (Saale), 1951.
• Puskov V.V.: Poradnik fotograficzny; PWT, Warsaw, 1956.

Links

In English:

• The Ludwig Exakta lenses at Captain Jack's site

In German:

• Company history at dresdner-kameras.de