Despite the company’s distinguished reputation as a fabricator, Rollei commonly partnered with, and outsourced to, the best German glassmakers rather than producing their own lenses. For cameras, Rollei has been synonymous with Goerz, Zeiss and Schneider, but within Delta’s purview – projection and enlargement lenses reversed for use as capture optics – the most relevant partnerships were with Schneider/Isco, or Schneider and Isco, as it/they were sometimes known.
Although Rollei branded their packaging, many of the lenses themselves omit maker’s marks, blurring the distinction between externally sourced and in-house developed optics. However, hiding among the catalogue there are not only a number of desirable taking lenses, but a surprising number that Rollei developed and produced – a timeline and roll call of which follows shortly.
First, though, it will be helpful to observe the following organisational milestones:
| 1922 | Establishment of Franke and Heidecke in Brunswick, Germany |
| 1939-1947 | No new cameras designed, and the Brunswick factory was bombed. Post-war reorganisation. |
| 1962 | Company name changed to Rollei-Werke Franke & Heidecke |
| 1972 | Rollei takes over the Voigtländer brand following the collapse of Zeiss Ikon |
| 1978 | Rollei taken over by Schneider |
| 1979 | Company is renamed Rollei-Werke Franke & Heidecke GmbH & Co KG |
| 1982 | Bankruptcy declared. Following a buy-out the company is reorganised as Rollei Fototechnic GmbH |
| 1987 | Company rebrands as Rollei Fototechnic GmbH & Co KG |
| 2009-2010 | Following a declaration of insolvency, production was partly recommenced by DHW Fototechnik |
| 2014 | DHW Fototechnik declares insolvency |
| 2015 | Company assets purchased by RCD |
Silma (Italy?) 1983
Secondly, we will chart the full chronology of Rollei projectors, before disambiguating the four ‘families’ of Rollei-supplied lenses and offering observations about and images from the most interesting examples.
Rollei Slide Film Projectors
| Model | Production | Lens Options | Catalogue # |
| Rollei P11 Universal Projector (74mm barrel) | 1960-1978 | Heidosmat 45/2.8 Frank & Heidecke Heidosmat 110/2.8 Vario-Heidosmat 110-160/3.5 Franke & Heidecke Heidosmat 150/2.8 Rollei Heidosmat 150/2.8 S-Heidosmat 150/2.8 Heidosmat 180/3.5 Heidosmat 250/3.0 Heidosmat 400/4.0 | 610 240 610 200 979 030 – – 979 510 610 220 610 230 979 040 |
| Rolleiscop (for 35mm) (46mm barrel) | 1965- >1969 | 50/2.8 [Isco] 85/2.8 110/2.8 | 8829 67 8816 33 8833 00 |
| Rollei P35 A and P35 AF (42.5mm barrel) | 1968-1981 | Rollei-Projar 50/2.8 [Isco] Rollei-Projar 85/2.8 [Isco] Rollei-S-Projar 90/2.5* Rollei Vario-Projar 70-120/3.5 Rollei Projar 150/3.5* | 979 380 979 390 979 500 979 410 979 770 |
| Rollei P37 and P37 AF (42.5mm barrel) | 1972-1978 | Rollei-Projar 50/2.8 Rollei-Projar 85/2.8 [Isco] Rollei S-Projar 90/2.5 Rollei Vario-Projar 70/120 Rollei-Projar 15/3.5 | 979 380 979 390 979 500 979 410 979 770 |
| Rolle P37 E (42.5mm barrel) | Rollei-Projar 85/2.8 | ||
| Rollei P66 A and P66 AF (for 6×6) (74mm barrel) | 1973- >1975 | Heidosmat 150/3.5 S-Heidosmat 150/2.8 Heidosmat 180/3.5 Heidosmat 110-160/3.5 Heidosmat 250/3.0 Heidosmat 400/4.0 | 979 780 979 510 610 225 979 035 610 235 979 910 |
| Rollei P300 (42.5mm barrel) | |||
| Rollei P350 A (42.5mm barrel) | 1974-1980 | Rollei Projar 50/2.8 Rollei-Projar 85/2.8 [Isco] Rollei S-Projar 90/2.5 Rollei Vario-Projar 70-120/3.5 Rollei Projar 150/3.5 | 979 380 979 390 979 500 979 410 979 770 |
Rollei P350 AF (42.5mm barrel) | 1974-1980 | Rollei Projar 50/2.8 Heidosmat 85/2.8 [Rollei Singapore] Rollei S-Projar 90/2.5 Rollei Vario-Projar 70-120/3.5 Rollei Projar 150/3.5 | 3/3 (Singapore) |
| Rollei P3800 (Twin 42.5mm barrels) | 1976- >1980 | V/S-Heidosmat 90mm f2.4 [V1] Heidosmat 85/2.8 M | |
| Rollei PM35A Diamat S and SE | Heidosmat 85/2.8 | 3/3 (Singapore) | |
| Rollei P360 A and P360 AF (42.5mm barrel) | 1977 | Heidosmat 85/2.8 MC | 3/3 (Singapore) |
| Rollei P300 and P300 Autofocus (42.5mm barrel) | Heidosmat 85/2.8 | 3/3 (Singapore) | |
| Rollei P320 A (42.5mm barrel) | 1978 | ||
| Rollei P355 A and P355 AF (42.5mm barrel) | 1978 | Heidosmat 85/2.8 MC | 3/3 (Singapore) |
| Rollei P360 AF IR (42.5mm barrel) | 1980 | Projar 50/2.8 (979 380) Heidosmat 85/2.8 (979 390) [Isco] Heidosmat MC 90/2.4 (S?) (979 394) Vario-Projar 70-120/3.5 (979 410) [Isco] Projar 150/3.5 (979 770) [Isco] | 979 380 979 390 5 / 5 – – |
| Rollei P3801 and P3801 S (AKA P801 and P801S) (42.5mm barrel) | 1982 | Heidosmat 50/2.8 (203 310) [Isco] Heidosmat 85/2.8 MC (979 380) [Isco] V/S-Heidosmat MC 90/2.4 (979 391) [Isco] Heidosmat 150/3.5 (979 770) Vario-Heidosmat 70-120/3.5 (979 410) Heidosmat 250/4.3 (610 245) [Isco] | 3/3 (Singapore) – |
| Rollei P305 (42.5mm barrel) | 1981 | Heidosmat 85/2.8 MC [Rollei] | 3/3 (Singapore) |
| Rollei P66 S (74mm barrel) | 1980- >1983 | Heidosmat 150/3.5 (979 780) [Rollei] S-Heidosmat 150/2.8 (979 510) Heidosmat 180/3.5 (610 225) Heidosmat 250/3.0 (610 235) Heidosmat 400/4.0 (979 910) Vario-Heidosmat 110-160 (979 035) | – – – – – Black version |
| Rolleivision 35 Twin (42.5mm barrel) | 1984-1988 | V/S Heidosmat 90/2.4 | |
| Rolleivision 66 (for 6×6) (74mm barrel) | 1986-1997 | Heidosmat 110-160/3.5 Schneider AV-Xenotar 150/2.8 HFT | |
| Rolleivision 66 AV (for 6×6) (74mm barrel) | 1998 | Schneider AV-Xenotar 150/2.8 HFT | |
| Rolleivison 66 Dual P (for 6×6) (74mm barrel) | c.1999-2014 | Rollei AV-Apogon: 90/2.8 + 120/2.8 Schneider AV-Xenotar: 90/3.5 + 150/2.8 + 250/4 + 400/4 Rollei Heidosmat 180/3.5 Rollei S-Heidosmat 150/3.5 | 74mm |
| Rolleivision 35 Twin Digital and P (Twin 42.5mm barrel) | 1989-1995 | ||
| Rolleivision 2500 AFS IR (42.5mm barrel) | c.1990 | ||
| Rolleivision Twin MSC 300P (Twin 42.5mm barrels) | 1993-2014 | Schneider AV-Xenotar HFT: 60/2.8 + 90/2.4 + 90/2.4-8 + 150/2.8 Schneider AV-Xenotar CF 90/2.4 Schneider Vario Xenotar 70-120/3.5 Rollei AV-Apogon: 35/2.8 + 90/2.4 Rollei S-Heidosmat MC 90/2.8 Rollei AV-Heidosmat 250/4.3 | |
| Rolleivision Twin MSC 325P (Twin 42.5mm barrels) | 1993-2014 | As MSC 300P | |
| Rolleivision Twin MSC 535P (Twin 42.5mm barrels) | 2004-2015 |
- Present in 1975 catalogue, but not in 1969
The entry-level standard lens for all Rollei 35mm slide projectors was the 85mm f2.8 triplet – typically in a plastic 42.5mm barrel. Between 1960 and 1973 this Isco-made, single-coated lens was designated ‘Rollei-Projar’ and marked ‘Made in Germany’, or ‘Isco-Göttingen’ with the catalogue number [979 390]. However, during the early 1970s Rollei set up a substantial manuacturing facility in Singapore that would at its peak employ the majority of Rollei’s workforce. From 1973 – or perhaps a little earlier – certainly by the time of the P350 AF’s launch – many Rollei projectors shipped with the new, in-house developed, multicoated 85mm f2.8 MC Heidosmat lens proudly marked ‘Made in Singapore’. Probably this had the catalogue number [979 392].
Between 1973 and 1981, Rollei continued to offer the Isco-made version – now also labeled Heidosmat, and multicoated – with the catalogue number [979 393]. The choice may have been territorial, or varied according to supply and demand, but contemporary catalogues (ie, 1974-75) describe the P350A still shipping with the Isco triplet (still designated Projar), and the P350 AF shipping with the Rollei Heidosmat version, inviting the suggestion that Rollei may have favoured one lens over the other for mechanical or optical reasons.
[INSERT COMPARISON BETWEEN ISCO PROJAR/ROLLEI HEIDOSMAT 85/2.8 MC]
Proliferation on the used market – certainly in the UK, US and Europe – seems to indicate that the majority of stock triplets shipped with Rollei projectors between 1973-1981 were Rollei-made Singapore versions. However, this period ended sharply in 1981/82 when Rollei declared bankruptcy and Singapore production ceased [CONFiRM SouRCE]. On-the-ground shipment of the Rollei Heidosmat 85/2.8 doubtless continued for as last as stock lasted, but Rollei catalogues from 1981 onward only offer the Isco-made Heidosmat MC [979 393].
Down the decades, four designations were given to Rollei lenses: Projar, Heidosmat, AV-Xenotar and AV-Apogon. The interchangeable nature of the 42.5mm barrel mount for many German-made 35mm slide projectors enabled crossover between these optics and machines made by Agfa, Braun, Kindermann, Silma and Kodak, and quite frequently the same lens appeared in different livery, simultaneously bundled with different models. Rollei’s catalogues transparently presented a pick-n-mix of different manufacturers and lens types, but here we disambiguate as far as possible who made what, and how they differed . . . .
The Projar (AKA Isco) Family
The Projar designation invariably indicates that a lens was made by Isco. Projar lenses are also found in ‘Gnome-Projar’, ‘Carousel Projar’ and other variants, depending on the manufacturer of the projector. Prior to 1982 there was also an Optische Werke Göttingen or Isco-labeled Projar series of lenses with silver metal body, black nose and 62.5mm barrel, made for projection of large format advertisement slides in cinemas.
Rollei-Projar lenses for 35mm slide projection were typically plastic-bodied 85mm triplets, but Isco also made fine, five-element metal-barrel versions of the standard lens at appropriately elevated prices: for instance, in 1968, the stock Rollei-Projar 85/28 retailed at 30 Deutschmarks but buyers of the Rollei-S-Projar 90/2.5 paid a premium of more than 400% (DM 123). Like Superman, these so-called ‘Super-Projars’ displayed an S on the front, but only gave their full name in company literature and – in certain eras – on the packaging. Isco’s afocal Iscovar 0.8-1.3X converter and 150mm f3.5 lenses were also designated Super-Projar optics. It’s likely that the pre-1982 Isco-Göttingen V/S-Projar 90/2.5 was the single-coated predecessor of the S-Projar, but perhaps not identical to the Isco-Göttingen V/S-Heidosmat 90/2.4.
| Catalogue | Elements | Launched | |
| Projar for 35mm Slide Projection | |||
| Rollei-Projar 50mm f2.8 (for 18 x 24mm) | 979 380 | 1968 | |
| Rollei-Projar 85mm f2.8 | 979 390 | 1968 | |
| Rollei-S-Projar 90mm f2.5 | 979 500 | 5 / 5 * | 1969 |
| Isco-Göttingen V/S-Projar 90mm f2.5 | 5 / 5 | ||
| Rollei-Vario-Projar 70-120mm f3.5 | 979 410 | 1968 | |
| Rollei-Projar 150mm f3.5 | 979 770 | 1973 | |
| [Super Projar] Iscovar 0.8-13X Converter | 658 20 | ||
| Projar for 6×6 (Rollei 66 Series) | |||
| Isco-Göttingen S-Projar 150mm f2.8 MC | 5 / 5 | 1980 | |
| Projar in 62.5mm Barrel | |||
| Projar 300mm f5.1 |
- ColorFoto December 1978 reported S-Projar and S-Heidosmat 90/2.5 as six-element lenses, but correctly identified them in January 1974 as five-element.
Among slide projection optics, Projar lenses are more commonly associated with the 35mm format, with some exceptions noted above. Between 1960 and c.1980 it was a relatively clear-cut distinction that diferentiated them from the Heidosmat-branded lenses used for medium format projection. Subsequently, however, Heidosmat branding proliferated, as we’ll see. . .
Heidosmat Variants
Heidosmat lenses were supplied with the first, and the last, Rollei projectors – as well as Voigtlander, and Silma projectors. A few were in-house designs produced by Rollei, but the majority (see below) were still made by Isco. First generation Heidosmats were often marked ‘Franke & Heidecke’. Heidosmat was also the designation of the four-element Xenar-type viewing lens fitted to the Rolleiflex camera range.
As noted above, between 1960 and c.1975, Heidosmat referred exclusively to medium format projection lenses. But in 1974, a Rollei-designed, Singapore-manufactured 85mm f2.8 Heidosmat was issued as a standard lens for the new Rollei P350 AF – a 35mm slide projector. From this point on, Heidosmat lenses began to replace the Projars. In time – from the late 1980s, at least – Heidosmat became Rollei’s way of identifying home-brewed lenses that weren’t Schneiders.
Given the difficulty of generalising about the provenance of Heidosmat, S-Heidosmat, and V/S-Heidosmat lenses, the following case-by-case chart is needed.
| Maker | Catalogue | Elements | Launched | |
| Medium-Format and P11 Heidosmat Lenses | ||||
| Heidosmat 45mm f2.8 (for 12x17mm) | Isco | 610 240 | 1963 | |
| Franke & Heidecke Heidosmat 110mm f2.8 | Isco | 610 200 | 1960 | |
| Heidosmat 150mm f3.5 | Isco | 979 780 | 1974 | |
| Heidosmat 150mm f2.8 | Isco | 610 210 | 1960 | |
| S-Heidosmat 150mm f2.8 | ? | 979 510 | 5 / 5 | 1970 |
| Vario-Heidosmat 110-160mm f3.5 [V1] | Isco | 979 030 | 1961 | |
| Vario-Heidosmat 110-160mm f3.5 [V2] | Isco | 979 035 | 1974 | |
| Heidosmat 180mm f3.5 [V1] | Isco | 610 220 | 1962 | |
| Heidosmat 180mm f3.5 [V2] | Isco | 610 225 | 1974 | |
| Heidosmat 250mm f3.0 [V1] | Isco | 610 230 | 1960 | |
| Heidosmat 250mm f3.0 [V2] | Isco | 610 235 | 1974 | |
| Heidosmat 400mm f4.0 [V1] | Isco | 979 040 | 1962 | |
| Heidosmat 400mm f4.0 [V2] | Isco | 979 910 | 1974 | |
| 35mm Format Heidosmat Lenses (42.5mm barrel) | ||||
| Rollei-Heidosmat 50mm f2.8 for Rolleiscop (46mm) | Isco | 1965 | ||
| Rollei-Heidosmat 85mm f2.8 for Rolleiscop (46mm) | Isco | 979 160 | 1965 | |
| Heidosmat 85mm f2.8 | Isco | 979 392 | 3 / 3 | 1978 |
| Heidosmat 85mm f2.8 MC | Isco | 979 393 | 3 / 3 | 1981 |
| S-Heidosmat 85mm f2.8 MC (Singapore?) | Rollei | 979 394 | 3 / 3 | 1989 |
| S-Heidosmat 90mm f2.5 | 6 | <1978 | ||
| V/S-Heidosmat 90mm f2.4 [V1] | Isco | 979 391 | 1980 | |
| V/S Heidosmat 90mm f2.4 [V2] | Isco | 979 400 | 1985 | |
| Rollei-Heidosmat 110mm f2.8 for Rolleiscop (46mm) | Isco | 979 170 | 1965 | |
| Heidosmat 150mm f3.5 | Rollei | 979 770 | 1979 | |
| Heidosmat 250mm f4.3 | Isco | 610 245 | 1979 | |
| AV-Heidosmat 250mm f4.3 | Rollei | 85 137 | 1994 |
Schneider Kreuznach AV-Xenotar
Xenotar always designates a Schneider-made lens. The textbook Xenotar is a five-element design. Later, six or seven-element variants appeared, but there has been some controversy over whether AV-Xenotar designated projection lenses were an Ernostar-like four-element variant in which the second and third elements were combined. It can be confirmed that the medium-format AV-Xenotars were indeed true five-element Xenotars, but what of the more common AV-Xenotar 90mm f2.4 lenses that seem so similar to the Reflecta / Braun / Agfa 90/2.4?
Rollei AV-Apogon
At some point around the turn of the millennium Rollei debuted their own high-end lenses designed to compete with, or even exceed, the performance of Schneider’s AV-Xenotars. Rollei AV-Apogons for 35mm slide projection were four element lenses, very similar, but not identical to the Braun Profiline and Agfa Agomar MCs. AV-Apogons for medium format projection were larger and more complex six-element designs.