simple.joy - delta

Author: simple.joy

I'm a manual lens enthusiast who likes to experiment in the field of photography, particularly in the close-up and macro range. I really like adapting all kinds of manual lenses (from enlarging lenses, special industrial-, repro- and macro-lenses to vintage full frame, medium- and large-format lenses...) and using them on my bellows-system. It‘s all quite fascinating to me: their origin stories and construction details, their strengths, limitations and little quirks, their unique way of rendering images, their materials and exterior design, trying to see through the mysticism and hyperbole around some of them, but also finding the underappreciated gems among them! Last but not least, I enjoy having conversations and an exchange of ideas with curious and open-minded people. So if you find something interesting, strange or plain out wrong in my clumsy writings, or in case you want to add some missing details, have a question, or would like to have some clarification on something, please don‘t hesitate to get in touch and have a conversation! I‘m really eager to broaden my horizon and getting to know what others think is always interesting and worthwhile in my opinion!

The Tomioka Story

by simple.joyThe Makers January 18, 2024January 21, 20249 Comments

Tomioka has acquired a peculiar mystique among collectors, artificially inflating the value of some otherwise unremarkable lenses. The making of often-spurious connections with Carl Zeiss has at times felt like a conspiracy to overheat the market. The Tomioka brand has become a talisman, indiscriminately conferring desirability on a wide range of optics. However, some of …

Tomioka Industrial Lenses

by simple.joyLens Reviews January 18, 2024February 13, 20245 Comments

This article is my attempt at giving an overview of a couple of notable enlarging and industrial type lenses made by Tomioka. If you’re interested in the history of this interesting, but still not well documented manufacturer from Japan, you can find some of that under ‘The Tomioka Story‘ . Contents Here’s a quick look …

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