Beautiful, Rare & Huge Dallmeyer 4D Wet Plate Collodion Petzval Portrait Large

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Beautiful, Rare & Huge Dallmeyer 4D Wet Plate Collodion Petzval Portrait Large & Ultra Large Format ULF Soft Focus Brass Antique Lens with Original Lens Shade.17" / 432mm f6, 11x14, 12x10, 8x10 For Wet Plate and Traditional Film ca. 1890s. Made in England. Dallmeyer manufactured the highest quality lenses of the period and were in the same class as such lens as Darlot, Ross, Lerebores et Secretan, Hermagis, Holmes Booth Haydens, CC Harrison, etc. Bausch & Lomb, Carl Zeiss, Hugo Meyer Wollensak, et el. This lens is in beautiful condition with its original lens shade and very clean glass. These lenses are rarely found in this condition and are often missing the shade and in very rough shape with dirty, scratched glass with separation. This lens is beautiful and ready to shoot, displays well too.The serial # indicates that this lens was manufactured in the late 1890s. Dallmeyer began production in 1860 with a quick acting Petzval Portrait lens that improved spherical aberrations and was f3. In 1862 Dallmeyer introduced an Extra Quick Acting Petzval Portrait lens that was f2.2. In 1866 Dallmeyer patented the soft focus device that was added to the rear group and this lens was called the Patent Portrait lens. It is rumored that Julia Margaret Cameron used this lens to create her dramatic soft focus images.This is a rare and very functional lens for the large & ultra large format photographer that doesn't come up for sale often. It has unique characteristics that make it ideal for both individual and group portraits and even landscapes and architecture if used correctly. As a Patent Group lens this lens was designed to have a maximum aperture of f6. This is not as fast as the B & A series of Dallmeyer Patent Portrait lenses but if it were it would be enormous and not practical to use in the field. This lens is ideal for the field because it has huge coverage for 11x14, which is really what it will be used for, but it is extremely light and compact and will travel well.Lens measures 6 1/2 inches tall and weighs only 3 lbs. Called a group lens because at f6 the depth of field is deeper than the standard max petzval aperture of f3.8 so all in the group will be in focus at the max aperture of f6. At f6, this lens is still faster that the ever popular Rapid Rectilinear at f8.This Dallmeyer 4D will still offer great swirly bokeh because f6 at the focal length of 17" will still offer nice fall off and bokeh when shot correctly. For the 8x10 shooter this lens will make an ideal portrait lens, especially for head shots because at 17" it is the best focal length for pleasing, flattening perspective.This lens is called the "Patent" because it has a device in the rear that separates the the two elements of the rear group when the outermost element of the rear group is unscrewed. There are four sets of notches that indicate the level of softness. One notch is mild softness. Four notches is maximum softness. Unscrew beyond four notches for extreme softness and experiment for great artistic expression.It has a slot for Waterhouse stops but non are provided.This lens will perform beautifully on 11x14 and provide the most swirly bokeh on 11x14. It will also make amazing head shots on 8x10 because of it long focal length of 17" / 432mm this will provide beautiful, flattening and flattering perspective on 8x10. I use the the rule of thumb for close portraits of the sum of the length plus the width of the format to obtain the focal length to be used. In this case, 8 + 10 = 18, so at 17", close enough, this lens will be ideal for 8x10 close portraits. read more

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