Welcome to Delta

In 2021 the Digital Enlarger Lens Test Archive (D.E.L.T.A) outgrew its original home at 16-9.net – and its remit. It continues to expand, and is now the most wide-ranging resource for film-makers and photographers seeking and using enlarger, projector, macro, repro, process and cine lenses to create digital work. Spanning 130 years, Delta collates information about almost 3,500 universally-adaptable lenses, and contains hundreds of unique reviews and articles.

The quick-browse catalogue below orders every lens by manufacturer and can be filtered by category or keyword.

The primary archive tracks generations of lenses with more in-depth information, and ranks hundreds for sharpness and rendition. Please use the main menu and search function to access further articles, pictures and videos.

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amitar-anastig-135-4.5a

Amitar 135/4.5
Rebranded Japanese enlarger lens fitted to Magnalux Super. Marked Anastigmat.
   

amitar-50-4.5a

Amitar 50/4.5 [V1]
Japanese enlarger lens with black body and wide aperture collar marked Anastigmat. AKA Phago and Astron.
   

amitar-anastig-50-4.5a

Amitar 50/4.5 [V2]
Widely rebranded Japanese enlarger lens with black body, silver mount and red dot on aperture ring. Amitar’s offering closely mirrored the Phago range. AKA many others . . .
   

amitar-anastig-90-4.5-v2a

Amitar 90/4.5 [V1]
Japanese zebra enlarger lens with black body and silver mount. Marked Anastigmat.
   

amitar-anastig-90-4.5a2

Amitar 90/4.5 [V2]
Japanese enlarger lens with silver body but black mount and fascia. Marked Anastigmat.
   

ampro-125-a

Ampro 125/3.5
American slide projector lens marked Ampro Corporation 5″ Coated Anastigmat. Seems related to SVE 125/3.5.

angenieux-100-3.5a

Angenieux 100/3.5 [Cine]
French cine projector lens. Some versions marked Kodak and/or Anastigmat.

angenieux-100-2.8a

Angenieux Anastigmat 100/2.8
French cine projector lens. Some versions marked Kodak and/or Anastigmat.

angenieux-100-3.5c

Angenieux Anastigmat 100/3.5
French slide projector lens marked Kodak Anastigmat. Silver metal barrel, black plastic nose.

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Angenieux G-0.75 85/1.68
Projector lens marked P. Angenieux No 7176463. Per-pixel Sharp poor. Some CA.

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Angenieux G-10 48/4
Enlarger lens.

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Angenieux Type 65 156-164/3.5
Zoom projector lens marked P. Angenieux St. HEAND AX. Black body. Aperture unmarked (estimated)

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Angenieux Type 75 164-172/3.5
Zoom projector lens marked P. Angenieux Black body. Aperture unmarked (estimated)

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Angenieux Type 75 90-95/3.5
Zoom projector lens marked P. Angenieux St. HEAND. Silver body. Aperture unmarked (estimated)

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angenieux-u2-135a

angenieux-u2-88-c

Angenieux Type U2 88/4.5
French enlarger lens marked P. ANGENIEUX PARIS.

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Angenieux Type Z2 50/2.9
Enlarger lens.

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Angenieux Type Z7 50/2.9
Enlarger lens marked P. Anegnieux Paris. Apertures marked 1-32.

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Ansco 127/3.5
Fitted to Anscomatic slide projectors. Marked 5”. Silver nose. By Wollensak?

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Apollo 100-150/3.5
Multicoated zoom black plastic-bodied lens made in W. Germany with worm gear for Kodak slide projectors.

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Apollo 85-150/3.5
Multicoated zoom black plastic-bodied lens made in W. Germany with worm gear for Kodak slide projectors.

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Apollo 90/2.8
Multicoated black plastic-bodied slide projector lens made in W. Germany.

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Appro 100-225/4
Zoom slide projector lens. Black body. Aperture estimated.

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Argus 50/3.5
Enlarger lens.

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Argus 75/3.5
Enlarger lens.

argus-100-a

Argus Projection 100/2.8
Black slide projector lens marked 4”. Zebra nose.

argus_100_3.5a

Argus Projection 100/3.5
US-made black slide projector lens marked 4” Anastigmat fitted to Argus 5068.

argus-projection_85mm_f2.9

Argus Projection 85/2.9
Zebra 35mm slide projector lens marked Projection Anastigmat.

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Argus Projection Anastigmat 100/3.3
Black slide projector lens marked 4” with castellated front ring.

arista-50-a

Arista 50/3.5
Black body. Made in Japan. Likely triplet enlarger lens.

arista-75-b

Arista 75/3.5
Black body. Made in Japan. Likely triplet enlarger lens.

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Arsenal Triar-1 150/3.5
Russian multicoated slide projector lens. Black body. 52mm barrel.

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Arsenal Triar-3 85/2.8
Russian multicoated slide projector lens for Kiev 66. Black body. 52mm barrel.

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Asahi Bellows-Takumar 100/4
Pentax macro/bellows lens.

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Asahi Repronar 50/3.5
Pentax Takumar macro lens fitted to Heiland Repronar.

Asahi Repronar 50/4
Pentax Takumar macro lens fitted to Honeywell Repronar 805-A. Product image by Paul M Provencher.

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Askania Diastar 400/
German 35mm film projector lens. Metal body. Aperture unmarked.

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Astragon 135/4.5
Enlarger lens. Marked 5.25” Made in Japan

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Astragon 50/3.5
Enlarger lens. Made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astragon 75/3.5
Enlarger lens. Made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astragon 90/4.5
Enlarger lens. Made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astranar 135/4.5
Entry-level enlarger lens made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astranar 50/3.5
Entry-level enlarger lens made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astranar 75/3.5
Entry-level enlarger lens made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astranar 90/4.5
Entry-level enlarger lens made in Japan and supplied in the US by Luminos Photo Corp.

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 100/1.8
Gauss enlarger lens.

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 100/2
Gauss enlarger lens.

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 125/2.3
Gauss enlarger lens.

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 50/1.8
Projector lens in black body marked Astro-Gesellschaft

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 50/2.3
Projector lens in black body marked Astro-Gesellschaft

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 75/1.8
Cine projector lens in silver metal body marked Astro Germany. Pat Pending.

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 75/2.3
Enlarger lens. Black body.

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Astro-Berlin Pan-Tachar 75/2.3
Cine projector lens in brass body marked Astro-Gesellschaft

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Astro-Berlin Tachonar 75/1
Industrial lens. Black body. Silver mid-ring.

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Astron 105/4.5
Japanese enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

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Astron 135/4.5
Japanese enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

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Astron 150/4.5
Japanese enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

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Astron 35/3.5
AKA Vivitar, Aico PSL, Samigon enlarger lens. Image circle: 30mm.

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Astron 50/3.5
Japanese enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

astron-50-4.5-a

Astron 50/4.5
Japanese-made enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

astron-75a

Astron 75/3.5
Japanese enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

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Astron 90/4.5
Japanese enlarger lens. AKA Ilford?

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Astronar Anastigmat 75/3.5
Black body. Likely triplet enlarger lens. Made in Japan.

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Bauer Neovaron 80/2.8
Multicoated projector lens.

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Bausch & Lomb 152/1.4
Double Gauss projector lens.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 100/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 18/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 25/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 30/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 35/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 40/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 50/2.3
Cine lens. C-Mount. Silver metal body.

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Bausch & Lomb Baltar 75/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Cinephor 140/1.8
Projector lens marked 5.5”

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Bausch & Lomb Cinephor 146/2
Petzval projector lens marked 5.75”

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Bausch & Lomb Cinephor 75/2
Projector lens marked 3”

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Bausch & Lomb Cinephor II 127/2
Petzval projector lens marked 5”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 100/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 152/2.3
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 20/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year. Image circle c35mm.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 25/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year. Image circle c35mm.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 30/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year. Image circle c35mm.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 35/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year. Image circle c35mm.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 50/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Baltar 75/2
Cine lens. Black body. Made in Rochester, NY. First serial letter is production year.

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 108/1.8
Coated projector lens marked 4.25”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 127/2
Coated projector lens marked 5”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 133/2
Coated projector lens marked 5.25”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 152/1.8
Coated projector lens marked 6”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 159/2
Coated projector lens

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 178/1.8
Coated projector lens marked 7”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 75/2
Projector lens marked 3”

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Bausch & Lomb Super Cinephor 95/2
Coated projector lens marked 3.75”

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Beck Apochromatic 210/10
Blue/purple coated dialyt process lens marked 8.25”.

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Beck Enlarging Anastigmat 108/4.5
Enlarger lens marked 4.25”

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Beck Enlarging Anastigmat 57/4.5
Enlarger lens marked 2.25”
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Acknowledgements: The DELTA project wouldn’t have been possible with the naysaying of experienced lens collectors; the death of film; the opposition of my wife; defrauding by shady eBay sellers and dodgy Japanese auction agents; the re-branders; the same 50/3.5 seen in a thousand guises; the entirely unhelpful attitide of extant manufacturers who jettisoned their history without a backward glance (I would specially like to mention Schneider, Rodenstock and Agfa); the disregard of librarians and archivists who no longer view photographic publications as important; the museums that have failed to digitise their collections and who  refused to grant permission to grant access to relevant material rotting unseen in their basements; the sheer bloody-mindedness of Agfa serial numbers; the arrogance of those who have previously written about alt.lenses and imagine their sayings to be unalterably definitive, despite being patently erroneous;  widespread dementia and death befalling a generation of those with inside knowledge of the industry; the majority of used camera dealers who regard these lenses as pointless relics and have no interest in deploying them as taking lenses and regard their slow-moving stock as an irritation; clueless marketing people devoid of specific product knowledge; an overwhelming majority of photographers apathetic about the benefits and possibilities of alt.lenses; a notable number of publishers who failed to express an interest in a book deal; the army of DIY botchers who took their lenses apart and didn’t know how to put them back together again; a postal system that loses packages as a normal happenstance;  and all the fungus. Against this tide stand we few. You know who you are. Thank you.