Ernst Leitz from Wetzlar

In 1869 Ernst Leitz (1843-1920), a mechanic native of Baden (Germany) who moved to Wetzlar, bought by the widow of Carl Kellner a factory of microscope lenses.

Ernst Leitz (left) and Oskar Barnack

Ernst Leitz changed the name of the company and gave it his name. The factory produced especially microscopes, whose production grew exponentially: in 1887 was made microscope n. 10,000; in 1891 n. 20,000; in 1899 n. 50,000; in 1907 n. 100,000 which it was donated to the bacteriologist Robert Coch. Since then Leitz had adopted the advertising idea that will be continued thereafter for Leica cameras: donating their product marked with an important serial number, to a personality very illustrious. At the beginning of '900 the company had already famous in the world, also known for the treatment of his employees had introduced a time of 8 working hours. The First World War it caused extensive damage to the factory.

Meanwhile, in 1911, a precision mechanical engineer who had previously worked in Carl Zeiss Jena started working in Leitz factory: Oskar Barnack (1879-1936), who had in mind a very precise idea and was looking for a partner for achieve it. Barnack had two passions: photography and the mountain; but also serious health problems that prevented him from carrying heavy loads. In 1913, photography was certainly widespread, but the cameras were made of wood, very bulky and especially heavy. Barnack wanted to make a camera very small, very light, but also very high quality. Barnack’s slogan was "a small camera for great pictures."

Oskar Barnack

It is not true that, before the Barnack’s camera (1913), it does not exist format cameras smaller than heavy wood models. Since 1900 they were marketed the light metal cameras 6x9 format. Not only that: in 1905 there were also some smaller models that used the motion picture film 35 mm (link). It is not correct to say therefore that Barnack was the first to think of using this film for cameras. However the motion picture film cameras prior to Barnack model were of poor quality, a kind of curiosity for amateurs. Those cameras also, even if they used the motion picture film (which now call 35 mm) were not real 35 mm cameras. As we shall see Barnack was the inventor of the 35mm format (24x36 mm), using two frames paired cinema format (18x24 mm). The real merit of Barnack however was to believe that a 35mm camera could become a high quality camera, suitable for professional use. Barnack did not invent the 35mm camera, but invented the camera that has set the standard 35 mm in the photographic industry.

It is not true that, before 1913, Leitz industry had never dealt with photography; on the contrary it made numerous camera lens.

Leitz produced lenses, but not the camera bodies. To tell you the truth, Leitz marketed cameras wood 4,5x6 called Klapp-Kamera and Moment-Kamera; but they were made by local artisans: Leitz merely provide them with lenses and to affix their own brand. The only camera produced in-house by Leitz was the Hand-Kamera, which however remained at the prototype stage.

In 1913 Barnack thought of using the motion picture film for his camera. Barnack had found that this kind of film had now reached very high quality, however, the size of the film frame (18x24 mm) was too small to produce high-quality prints. As the width of the film to 24 mm had now established itself as standard (therefore was not imaginable to be able to change it) Barnack had an idea as simple as brilliant: he transformed the long side of the frame (24 mm) on the short side, while the new long side derived from the sum of two former short sides (18 + 18 = 36 mm). In this way 35 mm format was born. Who therefore argues that there were 35 mm cameras before to Barnack, says a not exact thing: existed motion picture film cameras, it's true, but they were not 35 mm cameras; because the inventor of 35 mm cameras was mr. Barnack. Barnack built his prototype: the UR-Leica. UR stands for "Urbild" which in German language it means "archetype", equipped it with an motion picture lens: a Carl Zeiss Kino Tessar (the factory where Barnack worked until a few years earlier).

the "mother" of the UR-Leica

Barnack did not choose a Leitz lens for an obvious reason: if he used a motion picture film, he needed a motion picture lens, and Leitz industry did not produce them. To tell you the truth, the Zeiss kino Tessar lens impressed film frames (18x24) for which the Barnack’s 35 mm intuition could not be applied until the engineer Max Berek had not designed the first 35 mm lens in the world: the Anastigmat / Elmax (5 lenses in 3 groups). The 35 mm format was initially named "Leica format", and then (when it was adopted by some other houses) "35 mm format"; name that later passed to indicate the film format.

The first UR-Leica (he was also made a second for private use of Barnack) is currently kept in the museum of Leitz in Wetzlar, and it has a value that can not be calculated. The Barnack’s one was inherited by his son shopkeeper who sold it at auction to a stranger, and since then they have gone missing. Barnack used his prototype for many years, and some of his photos have come down to us: the quality was very good and "Barnack's camera" was also appreciated by the owner Ernst Leitz I. However, the draft Barnack remained unrealized until the end of First World War when Ernst Leitz, in a context of deep economic crisis, was forced to gamble on a new and different to revitalize his industry.

UR-Leica (1913)

Before that, the Leitz industry had never produced a single camera in its 50 years of life. Or rather, it had produced only one: the UR-Leica, the prototype of Barnack. (To be fair the UR were three, the two already mentioned plus the mother of UR-Leica, and more the prototype of Hand-Kamera 6x4.5). The decision to enter, without any experience, in the cameras market, threatening the survival of Leitz, was therefore truly courageous. If the attempt had not succeeded Leitz would fail and would have gone the way of all the other factories of the German optics of the first post-war: it would have been absorbed within the Carl Zeiss Group. It’s important to put in mind that, the unique feature of Leica equipment (mechanical perfect, but at the same time extremely simple and therefore reliable and durable) is also the result of this dramatic choice: being forced to risk, Leitz wanted to containment risk at minimum. Nothing had to be unusual: Leitz ordered Barnack always choose the simplest solution. The Zeiss Ikon political will be quite the opposite.
Once the decision to produce 35 mm cameras were improved, the shutter and the frame counter of the UR-Leica were changed; shutter speeds were increased from 2 to 6, inclusive Z (ie the speed T). The camera was also equipped with a Galilean viewfinder and lens designed specifically for the new format.

Barnack invented the light-tight cassette (Leica cassette), what we today call "camera roll" and that did not exist before Leica; which, pre-loaded in the darkroom with the motion picture film, it allowed to rewind the exposed film making it fall within the roller (Leica cassette), and allowing to replace it on the light of day with another one to be exposed, thereby allowing the photographer to great autonomy without increasing the size of the machine. The first camera roll was put on the market only in 1932 by Perutz (4-ASA). This means that, between 1925 and 1932 the Leica  user necessarily had to prepare himself the Leica cassettes, in the darkroom, using the motion picture film. The real innovation introduced by Barnack was not so much the 35mm camera, but rather the Leica cassette (which will become the camera roll) and the rewind action of the film within the Leica cassette.

"Leica cassettes" open (left) and closed (right) compared with a camera roll

Before Leica introduction, all cameras had to be loaded and emptied with film exclusively in the darkroom. Users of the camera 6x6 know that, even today, the film passes from take-out spool to the take-up spool. It does not rewind. When you load a new film, the old take-out spool now without film becomes the new take-up spool.
On the Leica instead, for the first time, the film passes from Leica cassettes (take-out cassettes) [c] to the take-up spool [m]; when the film ends, the film is rewound into Leica cassette.

He is thought to examine further the Leica cassette to describe it and to emphasize that it (invented in 1925) is, even today, more efficient than a camera roll. A Leica cassette loaded and ready for use, it presents with the tail of film that protrudes from the cassette, as a modern camera roll.
A camera roll, however, are equipped with velvet to prevent light from penetrating inside through the slot from which comes out the film.

The Leica cassette has not velvet, but a slit for the exit of the film much wider. The same result to enable the film to go out, but to prevent light from entering, is obtained through the movement of two brass cylinders that slide one inside the other. Both cylinders have a large slit from which emerges the film when the slots are aligned. When the slits are not aligned, the light can not enter, and a mechanical lock prevents the outer cylinder to rotate accidentally with the risk of matching slits of the two cylinders. The Leica's base plate is designed in such a way that, once positioned in its seat, turning clockwise (direction "zu" closed) the lever that connects the base to the machine body, is automatically released also mechanical locking of the Leica cassette and simultaneously the outer cylinder of the Leica cassettes is made rotate up to match the two slits. In this way the film is free to exit the cassette through the wide slit between the two cylinders. Once exposed the whole film (wrapped in the take-up spool) and rewound in Leica cassette, when you rotate counterclockwise (direction "auf" open) the lever at the Leica's base plate, the same mechanism automatically rotates the outer cylinder of Leica cassette, so that the slit is closed. Moreover, the mechanism triggers the safety lock, so that it can not open accidentally. Removed the base plate from the Leica camera, the Leica cassette can be removed safely, even in sunlight.

Why this system would be better than the modern camera roll? Because in the camera roll, the film never escape freely from roll through a wide slit, but slips through the velvet pressing constantly on the film. In this way, however, the sensitive film must constantly rubbing against the velvet, which means that, in case of the presence of impurities (dust) on the velvet, these will scratch the film leaving a horizontal mark very visible. Not only: the film must pass twice through the velvet, the first output and the second input when the roller is rewound. Using the Leica cassettes instead the film never comes into contact with the cassette; nor outgoing, nor during rewinding. Imagine you to pass a white sheet of paper under the very narrow slit of a closed door, or through an open door. Obviously, the second way is better, because it ensures that the paper will not become dirty during the transition.

Other camera manufacturers adopted the film cassettes system, and so we have the Contax cassettes, Nikon cassettes (also for the Nikon F SLR!), Kiev, Canon etc .. Each of these cassettes had a specific form, in order to not to allow the use of them on the camera of another manufacturer. Obviously the incompatibility was not the fault of Leica (who was the first to invent the cassettes) rather it was of its competitors, who slavishly copied the idea, but prevented the use of the Leica cassettes in their cameras.

The choice to rewind the exposed film in the same roll of film that contained it, made necessary an unlock command and another to rewind the film. To understand the extent to which Barnack has affected our lives of photographers simply ask themselves: why a camera roll is long 36-exposure (and not 30 or 40 or 45)? I have never found an answer. A legend passed down in the factory Weltzar said that, the length of the film to be included in the film Leica cassettes, was established by Barnack: corresponded exactly to the length of his outstretched arms.

Probably it's not true, but it is true that Barnack decided the length alone.
Billions of photographers walked putting their feet in the footsteps traced by Barnack.

Leica 0 ("nullserie") n. 107 (1923)

These cameras were not for sale, were given to the photographers to test them

This specimen, at an auction in Vienna in 2012, was sold at € 2.16 million

Let's go back to the debut of the Leica. Leitz produced a pre-series of 31 (potential) pieces of Leica 0 (null series), slightly different from each other, which were tested by some photographers in 1923. They have serial numbers from 100 to 130. The pieces that were actually made were only 22, and today survive only 17 of them.

The adventure begins

The Leica Anastigmat (1925)

The first Leica sold to the public had the number 131. This photo was reproduced in the n. 201

It 'was auctioned for € 50,000.00

In spring 1925 the Leica (Leitz Camera) was finally introduced to the market at the Fair Lipzia. The first Leica sold to the public had the serial number 131.

The Leica was a perfect machine: Leitz had center with the first shot.

The Leica was equipped with a fixed lens, the lens Anastigmat 50 / 3.5 (5 lenses in 3 groups) designed by another absolute genius who at the time was employed by Leitz Wetzlar: Max Berek (1886 to 1949).

family tree of the first Leica

Carl Zeiss from Jena

In 1846 Mr. Carl Zeiss, aged 30, opened his own workshop of optical at Neugasse along the road to Jena. Mainly it produced microscopes.

All the work of Carl Zeiss was based on the empirical method; that is to say, "trial and error". It was obvious that this method of production involved the waste of large amounts of material. Zeiss was convinced early on that he needed serious scientific studies, to obtain products more accurately, in less time and with less waste. In 1866 Zeiss accidentally found what he was looking for; he met prof. Ernst Abbe of the Jena University.

Abbe was immediately taken into the workshop Zeiss as Research Director for optical products. In 1872, after six years of work applied to the production of new types of optical glass, laboratory Zeiss invented a "compound microscope", a microscope superior to any other existing at that time.

As a reward for his efforts, in 1876 Carl Zeiss Abbe appointed as a partner in his business. In 1879, the third member of the team that created the company Carl Zeiss, he was invited to join him by Abbe and Zeiss continued effort to improve the microscope. Friedrich Otto Schott studied the use of lithium in a new type of optical glass, and wrote to Dr. Abbe describing his progress.

In 1888 Carl Zeiss died. He thus (ironically) never saw any of the famous objectives that bring his name.

1889, on the initiative of Abbe, Carl Zeiss founded the Carl Zeiss Stiftung (Carl Zeiss Foundation) based in Jena which will play a decisive role in the world history of photography. The son of Zeiss, sole heir, he sold all the shares inherited at Abbe.

In 1890 the company expanded more and more. The sector lenses for photographic use is assigned successfully to the direction of Mr. Paul Rudolph (1859-1935). Begins production of camera lens:

Anastigmat - Protar (1890) (lens scheme)

Unar (1899) (lens scheme)

Planar (1896) (lens scheme)

Tessar (1902) (lens scheme)

In order to consider the importance of the Paul Rudolph’s work, it is necessary to say that all camera lenses descended from only 4 ancestor lenses: Double Gauss (1888); Anastigmat - Protar (1890), Cooke Triplet (1893) and Tessar (1902).

Well two of these four lenses (Protar and Tessar) were invented by Paul Rudolph for Carl Zeiss, while a third (Planar 1896) is the improvement of the Double Gauss, again by Paul Rudolph for Carl Zeiss. In other words Zeiss has contributed to ¾ the universal history of photographic optics. The lens "Protar" was, at birth (1890) christened "Anastigmat". However, this name was not registered, by the will of Ernst Abbe, who argued that "science belongs to all." The competitors of the Carl Zeiss named their lenses with the name "Anastigmat", thereby engendering consumers in the mistaken belief that the quality of their lenses, was similar to that of the Zeiss. The result was a rapid decline of the prestige of the name "Anastigmat". Carl Zeiss reacted by changing name to its lens, called, since then until now, "Protar", from greek proto (first) to which was added the suffix “ar”. So Zeiss wanted to proudly remember their birthright in the invention of such important lens. As for the fourth and last ancestor (Cooke Triplet) Ing. Ludwig Bertele of Carl Zeiss, developed in 1929 the Zeiss Sonnar, which is the best lens of the family of the Triplet.

The Planar, invented in 1896 by Paul Rudolph, was not exploited commercially by Zeiss until 1957, because the number of passages air / glass (eight) created an over-refraction, so that the image quality was not good because little engraved. This problem could be solved just after the discovery of the anti-reflective treatment of the lenses (1938). In addition, the number of lenses (six) raised the price of production. So the Planar remained a rough diamond for 61 long years. However it was a real diamond. In fact, the brightest camera lens ever is the Planar 50 / 0.7 (lens scheme). In 1966 NASA commissioned to Zeiss a lens brighter than ever, in order to photograph the surface of the Moon, to decide which was the best place to land on the Moon. This ‘mystic’ lens (only 10 pieces produced) was used only twice: by NASA and by the film director Stanley Cubrick for the movie "Barry Lyndon." Link

Seventy years before NASA, however, in 1896, the Planar lens was a commercial disaster: it was expensive to produce and not very sharp. Carl Zeiss lost much money by cause of Paul Rudolph, and now he had to invent something of very popular, a lens that represents the exact opposite of Planar: cheap to build (only 4 lenses in 3 groups), spartan, by the superb engraving, low brightness, to be sold at low prices and available for all.
This is the exact description of the Tessar. The real name of the Tessar is "the opposite of Planar". The Tessar (and all its imitations) is probably the best-selling lens ever. Rudolph proved to Carl Zeiss Jena that he was able to design both an optical elitist as the Planar, and a hugely popular one as the Tessar.

Note that the Tessar, contrary to what many believe, despite having three lens groups, does not follow from the Triplet, but from the four lenses of Protar. More precisely, Tessar takes the two front lenses from “Unar” (ditto invented by Paul Rudolph) and the posterior group from “Protar” (photo). For this reason, the Tessar did not descend from one of the other three ancestor lenses, but constitutes itself a fourth one. The descendants from Tessar lens are innumerable, because it's a lens easy and cheap to build. It is not very bright but has an exceptional definition. Tessar is “the perfect lens” for every camera with low-end price.

1891 When Abbe and Schott died, they left their shares to the Carl Zeiss Foundation, which became the sole owner of all the Carl Zeiss companies.

1925 Ernst Leitz Wetzlar surprises the world by introducing the Leica, the first 35mm camera.

1926 The Carl Zeiss Foundation reacted by deciding to produce cameras. Takes four German industries: Optische Anstalt CP Goerz (Berlin), Countess Nettel (Stuttgart), ICA (Dresden) and Ernemann (Dresden), merges them together and created the Zeiss Ikon AG company, based in Dresden.

The Zeiss Ikon policy was to continue to produce the same cameras of the absorbed manufacturers, but providing them with Zeiss lenses. It was imposed on the use of the shutter "Compur" (the cheaper cameras had shutter "Klio") another company of the Carl Zeiss group.

So Zeiss Ikon had to buy exclusively from Carl Zeiss Jena to equip their cameras lenses. However Carl Zeiss Jena was free to provide their own lenses to other camera manufacturers.

We should mention the commercial policy of Carl Zeiss.

Carl Zeiss was a firm manufacturing highly successful, world leader in optics and one of the largest industries in Germany. After the First World War the economy of the Weimar Republic had suffered serious crisis, on account of the costs of post-war reconstruction, and the weight of compensation for war damages that were inflicted on Germany by the Treaty of Versailles.

The high inflation in Germany has led millions of people to poverty. In this crisis situation, the acquisitions of competitors (at very low prices) by Carl Zeiss, not only were not hindered by the central government for the protection of the market (antitrust), but these were encouraged.

This explains how it was possible for Carl Zeiss, becoming the almost absolute monopoly of the entire sector of optics and photography. This monopoly included not only the production of lenses, but also of glass and camera bodies.

At the same time the commercial policy of the Carl Zeiss was determined by the property (Carl Zeiss Foundation) which continued to implementing the philanthropic ideas of founder Mr. Ernst Abbe. When Carl Zeiss (Company) acquired an industry competitor, Carl Zeiss (Foundation) required that nobody worker was fired. Factories, formerly competitors but now placed in the same group, continued to market products that were essentially identical. The result of this policy led Zeiss Ikon to simultaneously produces up to 220 "different" models of cameras. Obviously, many of these 220 models were very similar to each other. It was an uneconomic production. Waste which involved such duplication of product lines, within the same group, were covered by the monopoly profits. The very high standard of production quality of the optics department, generated profits can keep up departments at a loss. Zeiss Ikon, which was the cameras department of Carl Zeiss, was at the same time a giant (the world's largest camera producer), but sick of inefficiency for not cutting waste. That was the status quo when, in 1926, the top managment of the Zeiss Ikon AG decided to enter in the market of 35 mm (absolute monopoly of Leica) by creating a new brand ad hoc: the Contax, intended to represent the diamond of the Zeiss camera production.

The project was entrusted to a team composed of the best engineers Zeiss, coordinated by Ing. Heinz Küppenbender. At the same time Carl Zeiss Jena was in charge of designing the best lenses for this camera body. The goal was to adapt the best Carl Zeiss lenses to 35 mm format and making them Contax bayonet.

But Carl Zeiss wanted to go beyond that: for the Contax put into production two lenses exceptional completely new, patented in 1929 but not yet placed on the market: the Sonnar 50/2.0 (6 elements in 3 groups) and especially the legendary Sonnar 50/1.5 (7 elements in 3 groups), considered the best lens "normal" (ie 50 mm) ever built for a 35 mm camera.

To be fair the Sonnar had a great ancestor:

In 1923 the Ing. Ludwig Bertele (1900-1985) created, for Ernemann factory in Dresden, the lens Ernostar 105/1.8 (1923), descending from Cook Triplet, which was fitted on the camera (6x4.5) Ermanox. It was a revolutionary camera (thanks to the outstanding brightness of the lens Ernostar 1.8), because it allowed professionals to shoot without a tripod. The camera therefore marked the birth of the photojournalist as we understand it today, that is the one who takes the scene by surprise, without asking the subject being recorded to pose. Erich Salomon, known as the "the king of the indiscreet" was the founder of this new type of photojournalist; He worked especially during the international summits. He was famous for his shots "stolen" by which caught prime ministers and foreign ministers in informal poses. Sometimes informal a lot. In 1928 he photographed the signing of the Kellogg-Briand Pact entered the room and sat down in the empty seat of the Polish delegate. When, in 1926, Carl Zeiss acquired the factory Ernemann (which along with other went to form the Zeiss Ikon), Bertele found himself to be an employee Zeiss. For Carl Zeiss Bertele developed its own Ernostar lens and created the Sonnar 50 mm f 2.0 and f 1.5 for 35 mm cameras.

No doubt the Sonnar lens is the best of the family descended from the ancestor Cook Triplet.

In 1932 it was placed on the market the Contax I, immediately accompanied with six excellent Carl Zeiss optics: four "normal" (50 mm): Tessar 50/3.5; Tessar 50/2.8; Sonnar 50/2.0; Sonnar 50/1.5 and two telephoto lenses: Triotar 85/4 and Sonnar 135/4. The following year the optics for Contax had become ten: adding the Tessar 28/8, the Biotar 40/2, the Sonnar 85/2 and the Tele-Tessar 180/6.3. No other camera in the world, of any kind, could boast ten lenses. What surprised most was however the exceptional (for the period) of the optical brightness.

Four years later, in 1937, the lenses available had become fifteen. Between these, two lenses renowned sublime: the Biogon 35/2.8 and the '(Olympia) Sonnar' 180/2.8, in addition to Orthometar 35/4.5, Tele-Tessar 300/8 and Telephoto 500/8.