“Petzvar” Kickstarter wants to bring Petzval lenses to medium format

Earlier this year, Lomography's attempt to resurrect the Petzval lens for modern photographers was wildly successful. Now another Petzval lens Kickstarter has popped up, but with a major difference: this is for medium format cameras.

The project is called Petzvar, and is being undertaken by Denys Ivanichek. By his account, Ivanichek has made these lenses previously for just himself, but is now working to make them on a larger scale for a wider market. As with all Petzval lenses, there's an unusual swirling bokeh that many find appealing.

What's interesting is that rather than use the traditional aperture inserts that other Petzval lenses (like the Lomo one) have used, Icanichek seems to be able to put the lens in a much more modern housing, that won't look out of place on most bodies. He's also using a Pentacon 6 (P6) mount, which can be easily put on other cameras using adapters.

The full lens specs are:

Maximum aperture f=1:3.8
Effective focal length 120 mm
Image circle of coverage 80 mm
Lens mount Pentacon Six (P6) bayonet
Filter thread M72x 0.75 ( 72 mm)
Closest focusing distance 0.85m
Electronic CPU No
Maximum body diameter 80 mm
Length (collapsed) 106 mm
Length (extended) 126 mm
Weight 560 g

If you're interested in backing the project, the lens will set you back $450 — not unheard of for a portrait lens, but on the pricey side for such an untried project. If you want to know more, Ivanichek has posted more information on his own site, as well as on photo.net.

(via Phoblographer)