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Zeiss Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 - regular Versions and Specs

Spec Sheet

In the following overview you can find all regular Sonnar 5cm f/1,5 / 50mm F/1,5 versions Zeiss has produced.



Detailed Description

TOC

[v1b ZJ CR bn8] 1932 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax black nickel F/8

  • black and nickel finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr
    • filter rim: silver and black, no filter thread, uses 42mm push on filters
    • grip ring: black rippled
    • aperture mark: white dot
    • aperture ring: half silver and black, black aperture scale on silver ground, clickless
    • locking plate: small red dot
    • mount: nickel, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 8
  • uncoated optics
  • v1 optical lens calculation
  • extremely rare, only 155 were made

The first Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 was released by Carl Zeiss Jena in October 1932. It was released a half year after the release of the slower brother the Sonnar 5cm F/2. Both lenses share almost the same size and weight despite the difference of a full stop.
The design matched the black and nickel look of the new Carl Zeiss Ikon Contax I camera. It featured the new interchangeable lenses Contax Rangefinder bayonet mount.

As a standard CRF lens it used the internal CRF bayonet but has no focus ring or focusing helicoid. It depends on the camera (or adapter) for moving the lens to the right focus distance. Because of this design all CRF Sonnars are very small. Another (minor) advantage was that it allowed the photographer to adjust the focus with the right hand using a small wheel on the Contax camera. You can turn the lens with the left hand to focus it as well. The downside of this design is that the aperture ring rotates when you turn the lens. So it might end up below or at the sides after focusing.

The lens uses a circular aperture with 16 curved blades. The aperture ring of the lens is at the middle of the body and uses an exponential scale from f/1.5 to f/8. This means that the stops on this scale have different distances. The aperture ring is clickless and has no hard stops. This is common for this time and was solved decades later.

The lens was limited to stopping down to f/8 to avoid issues with low contrast due to diffraction. Compared with the available slower Sonnar 5cm F/2 that allowed stopping down to f/22 this looks like a big flaw. The creator of the Sonnar Ludwig Bertele improved the lens design and after only 2 month this first version was replaced by a new version with updated internal lens design.

Because of this short production time only 155 copies were produced. This sonnar version is extremely rare! It is that rare that most people consider it a once-in-a-lifetime lens. Most collectors never have seen one. (well, until now!) Images of this lens where kindly provided by former owner titrisol.

[v2b ZJ CR bn9] 1933 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax black nickel F/9.5

from Leitz Photographica Auction
  • black and nickel finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr
    • filter rim: silver and black, no filter thread, uses 42mm push on filters
    • grip ring: black rippled
    • aperture mark: white dot
    • aperture ring: half silver and black, black aperture scale on silver ground, clickless
    • locking plate: small red dot
    • mount: nickel, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 8 (9.5, small unlabeled aperture mark)
  • uncoated optics
  • v2 optical lens calculation
  • very rare, only 300 were made

This version almost looks like the first CRF version but it uses another optical lens calculation. Ludwig Bertele recalculated the optics of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 only month after the first release. So this version uses the improved 2nd lens calculation that allowed stopping down further than f/8. The lens can be stopped down to f/9.5 but not f/11 like later Sonnar lenses.

Cosmetically this lens is almost indistinguishable from the first version [v1b ZJ CR bn8] but there is a small unlabeled line at the end of the aperture scale right after f/8. This indicates the f/9.5 setting. On some earlier lenses of this version this indication might be missing so it can easily be mistaken for being the first version.

Only a small number was build during one production run only. Zeiss changed the overall design again to allow fully stopping down to f/11 [v2b ZJ CR bn11] so this one became a transition version. Because of that this version is very rare today and almost forgotten. A once-in-a-lifetime lens too.

[v2b ZJ CR bn11] 1933 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax black nickel F/11


  • black and nickel finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr
    • filter rim: silver, no filter thread, uses 42mm push on filters
    • grip ring: black rippled
    • aperture mark: white dot
    • aperture ring: half silver and black, black aperture scale on silver ground, clickless
    • locking plate: small red dot
    • mount: nickel, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v2 optical lens calculation

This version looks like the first CRF version [v1b ZJ CR bn8] but it uses the improved 2nd optical lens calculation that allows stopping down to f/11. This version is easily recognized by its black and nickel finish and the f/11 mark at the aperture ring. It was created as standard lens for the Zeiss Ikon Contax I camera and both share the same look.

This is the most common black and nickel Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 version. It was build in several small production runs over one year from February 1933 until June 1934. About 2.450 were made. Today this lens is rare to find but 2-4 surface each year.

[v2b ZJ CR br] 1935 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax black ring nickel F/11



  • nickel (sometimes chrome) finish with black ring with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr.
    • filter rim: nickel (sometimes chrome), rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, nickel (sometimes chrome), black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: nickel (sometimes chrome) rippled
    • black painted ring below grip ring
    • locking plate: small square red rectangle at tip
    • mount: nickel (sometimes chrome), diagonal cut, Made in Germany / Alemania
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v2 lens calculation

In February 1935 Zeiss improved the overall design of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 drastically. The aperture ring was slimmed down and moved to the front of the ring. Since it was smaller now it got 2 small grippers. The front ring got a 40.5 mm filter thread that allowed screwing on filters or sun shades. The lens uses a new aperture with 13 curved aperture blades that create a circular aperture.

This design still uses a nickel barrel but only the ring below the grip ring is painted in black color. This black ring and the faintly yellow nickel gives this version its unique look. The overall body design looks very much like the later all chrome F/11 Sonnar lens [v3b ZJ CR cb] that was build in high numbers. The mount is shaped slightly different, though.

Very likely those design changes were made to save time and money in production. Only the lens barrel needed to be painted and the look still matched the black Contax I look. On the other hand the new filter ring and the front aperture ring improved the handling further. It is easier to see the used aperture and it is very save to focus without accidentally change the aperture.

Although the Contax II camera was released a year later it foreshadowed this design. This Sonnar lens looks good on a Contax I but more so on the all chrome Contax II. In the later production run some variations exist that use chromed parts like chrome aperture rings or even all chrome lenses with black painted ring. It looks like Zeiss was preparing the production of chrome lenses and cameras in spring 1935.

This version was build in 2 production runs only in the beginning of 1935. About 1.500 were made in this time. Today this lens is rare to find but 2-4 pop up each year.

[v2b ZJ CR cd] 1935 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax chrome diagonal F/11

  • complete chrome finish on black ring (v2b ZJ CR br) body with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr.
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: small square red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, diagonal cut, Made in Germany / Alemania
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v2 optical lens calculation

This version is the successor of the black ring Sonnar [v2b ZJ CR br] but is has no black ring and and an all chrome finish. On the first glance this lens looks like the later all chrome rigid Sonnar [v3b ZJ CR cb]. But there is a very small cosmetic difference that allow one to tell the lenses apart. The mount is differently shaped in a diagonal cut and the black tube sticks out further at the bottom.

The biggest difference between both versions is the used optics, though. The later one uses a new optical lens calculation while the described version still uses the second optical calculation.

With this design Zeiss finally switched from the nickel and black finish to a fully chrome finish. This design decision matches with the later released Contax II that uses chrome face plates. The use of chrome instead of nickel might cut some production times since it got rid of the black painted parts on several parts of the Sonnar lens. But it probably made this expensive lens a little bit more expensive. The competition with Leica was stiff and Zeiss positioned the Contax and their lenses as products that were worth the money. And the chrome look oozed this sense of quality and luxury.

Less then 2.000 copies might be build in 2 production runs from May 1935 till the end of the year. Today this lens is rather rare since only 2 turn up a year.

[v2b ZJ CF] 1935 Carl Zeiss Jena Contaflex chrome F/11


from Leitz Photographic Auction 2 3
  • complete chrome finish with Contaflex mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr.
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, with aperture mark
    • aperture mark: small black dot
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • distance scale: chrome, small black letters, m 1 1,2 1,5 2 3 4 6 10 20, feet 6 8 10 15 30 60 Inf, straight distance lines, very small rippled grip ring
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 2,8 - 11, diagonal lines, red line distance mark, small red dot mounting mark
    • mount: chrome
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v2 optical lens calculation

In 1935 Zeiss Ikon released the Contaflex TLR, a two-eyed twin lens reflex camera with waist level viewfinder. It was the flagship camera of Zeiss and the first camera in an all chrome finish. It introduced new features like a build in exposure meter. Contaflex TLR cameras were offered with either a Sonnar 5cm F/2 or Sonnar F/1.5 as standard lens. Like the camera the Contaflex version of the Sonnar used an all chrome finish and was rather big and heavy compared to the Contax Sonnars. This version uses the new Contaflex bayonet.

This early version uses the second optical calculation of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 optics.

It is unclear how many copies were created. Reliable data is missing about how many cameras or Contaflex Sonnar lenses were produced. Unfortunately Contaflex Sonnars always were build within Contax Sonnar production runs. Although there is reliable data about CZJ production runs it is not detailed enough to calculate the exact amount of produced Contaflex or Contax Sonnar lenses. Though, some hundreds copies might be created in 3 production runs. Because of this low number this lens is pretty rare today and only show up 1-2 times a year.

[v3b ZJ CR cd] 1936 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax chrome nickel F/11

  • complete chrome finish on black ring (v2b ZJ CR br) body with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr.
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: small square red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, diagonal cut, Made in Germany / Alemania
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v3 optical lens calculation

This is the second all chrome version of the Contax RF Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 from CZJ. It looks exactly the same as the first chrome version [v2b ZJ CR cd]. The overall design is very similar to the more common third all Chrome version [v3b ZJ CR cb]. Most people will not notice the difference between those versions.

The one big difference is the used optical calculation of the optics. Ludwig Bertele recalculated the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 optics again in April 1935. The new calculation improved sharpness and contrast further. The improved optics were first introduced with this design. The lenses are still uncoated, though.

Because the all chrome versions of the Contax Sonnar look so similar they might only be separated by their serial number. This version was produced within 3 production runs during 1936 only. Less then 2.700 might be created and only 4-5 lenses show up a year.

[v3b ZJ CR cb] 1936 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax chrome F/11

  • complete chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr.
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: small black dot
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: hort red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v3 optical lens calculation

This version is the most common prewar Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 design. When people talk about a heavy all chrome Sonnar they mean this one.

This lens was finished entirely in chrome. It almost looks the same as its predecessor [v3b ZJ CR cd]. Though, the mount is differently shaped with a horizontal cut. It uses the third optical calculation from Ludwig Bertele too.

As stated before the use of an all chrome finish made this expensive lens even more expensive. In competition with Leica Zeiss positioned the Contax and their lenses as products that were worth the money. And the chrome look oozed this sense of quality and luxury.

This version was mass produced before WWII by CZJ. About 23.000 were produced in a course of 3 years starting April 1936. Copies can still easily be found today.

[v3b ZJ CF] 1936 Carl Zeiss Jena Contaflex chrome F/11



  • complete chrome finish with Contaflex mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr.
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, with aperture mark
    • aperture mark: small black dot
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • distance scale: chrome, small black letters, m 1 1,2 1,5 2 3 4 6 10 20, straight distance lines, very small rippled grip ring
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 2,8 - 11, diagonal lines, red line distance mark, small red dot mounting mark
    • mount: chrome
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • uncoated optics
  • v3 optical lens calculation

This is the second Contaflex TLR Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 version. It looks the same as the first version [v2b ZJ CF]. The real difference between both versions is the used optics. This version uses the improved third calculation of the optics that was created by Ludwig Bertele.

The feet scale is missing in this design but this might be only the case for Sonnar lenses that were not planed for export.

It is unclear how many copies were created. Reliable data is missing about how many cameras or Contaflex Sonnar lenses were produced. Unfortunately Contaflex Sonnars always were build within Contax Sonnar production runs. Although there is reliable data about CZJ production runs it is not detailed enough to calculate the exact amount of produced Contaflex or Contax Sonnar lenses. Though, more than one thousand copies might be created over 3 years. Today lenses show up 2-3 times a year.

[v3b ZJ CR cbT] 1939 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax chrome T F/11




  • complete chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: small black dot
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: short red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 11
  • single coated optics
  • v3 optical lens calculation

This version introduced anti-reflecting coating to the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 line for the first time. This addition is marked by the red letter T on the name ring of the lens.The T stands for Transparenzbelag (transparency coating) and is applied as single coating only.

In 1935 Alexander Smakula invented the anti-reflecting coating at Carl Zeiss Jena. It was a major breakthrough that made optical lens constructions with more than 4 lenses or lens groups feasible. The coating of lenses promised to increased contrast and flare resistance of all lens too. The effect on the Sonnar was not that huge though. Possible reasons might be that the first coatings were not that advanced, that single coating does not provide that much of a boost at all and that the Sonnar construction with its 3 groups already is optimized to a high degree.

Although Smakula invented the anti-reflecting coating in 1935 already and Zeiss recognized the importance of this invention it took them until 1939 to finally start coating all new Sonnar lenses. It took them years to introduce and improve the production process as it utilizes high-vacuum technology. In 1938, 17 coating plants were already in use but for military optical devices only. In 1940, the first coated Biotar and Sonnar lenses were presented at the Leipzig Spring Fair but coating of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 already started in summer 1939, in the middle of the 45th production run. The serial number is around 2.553.357. The exact number is not known. There is a small number of earlier Sonnars with the red T letter at the end of the 43th production run too. Serial numbers start around 2.520.226. Likely the earlier batch was still in production when the later one started and was finished after the start of coating in the Sonnar production line.

Cosmetically this version is the same as the previous all chrome F/11 version [v3b ZJ CR cb]. The used optics are the same too but with the new single coating applied.

About 1.700 copies of this version were produced. Today it is quite rare especially compared with the uncoated chrome version [v3b ZJ CR cb]. It shows up about 3-4 times a year.

[v4b ZJ CR cbT] 1939 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax chrome T F/22


  • chromed aluminum body with metal front rings with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: silver, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, silver mate, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: smaller black dot
    • grip ring: small, chrome rippled
    • locking plate: short thick red line at tip
    • mount: chrome, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

In August 1939 Ludwig Bertele finished a new recalculation of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5's optics. It improved on the v3 optics by offering a minimum aperture of F/22. This optical calculation was first used by this version. Combined with the T coating it gave the new Sonnars an edge over the previous common v3 uncoated Sonnars. LJB probably started the recalculation because of the new T coating. He tried to improve his calculation with integrating the added improvements from the new anti reflex coating into the result. As a result sharpness and contrast were boosted.

This is the first Contax Sonnar version where all lenses are coated. This can be seen by the red T letter at the name ring. The T stands for Transparenzbelag (transparency coating). CZJ started coating all Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses from this point on. Ironically not only this and later versions got the T coating but even the at that time crafted previous version [v3b ZJ CR cbT] Sonnar lenses got it.

This version got some other improvements and changes too. Some of these cosmetic differences are difficult to spot. The height of the holding grip ring got reduced. The red mark on the locking plate was changed. But one of the biggest change was the reduced weight of the new version. The all chrome finish was dropped and the used metal was of lesser quality. Most of the lens body was now made from aluminum. This caused that the new lens was a lot lighter than previous versions. This change might be caused by the start of the Second World War. Germany's industry was steering to serve military production and metal became rare and expensive since it was needed for military arms and vehicles. And since Carl Zeiss Jena was part of the German military suppliers it adapted to the new situation quickly.

About 4000 copies might have been build in 2 production runs from 1939 until 1940. Despite the low number copies show up quite regularly.

With the start of WWII the build quality of Sonnar lenses start to drop compared to previous versions. Parts of lenses were made from cheap metal, dimensions of parts start to vary and the failure rate goes up. One cause of this is that a growing number of experienced specialists start to leave the production to serve in the German army. They were replaced by foreign workers, refugees and forced labourer. Later the supply with metal and material for production became an issue too. The later the war the worse the quality issues got. This version was only affected slightly.

[v4b ZJ CF T ] 1939 Carl Zeiss Jena Contaflex chrome F/22


from french-camera.com
  • complete chrome finish with Contaflex mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, with aperture mark
    • aperture mark: small red dot
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • distance scale: chrome, small black letters, m 1 1,2 1,5 2 3 4 6 10 20, straight distance lines, very small rippled grip ring
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 2,8 - 22, diagonal lines, red line distance mark, small red dot mounting mark
    • mount: chrome
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

This is the third and last Contaflex TLR Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 version and it was build during the time of WWII. It looks almost the same as the first versions [v2b ZJ CF] and [v3b ZJ CF]. It uses another optical calculation as those versions, though. This version uses the improved 4th calculation of the optics that was created by Ludwig Bertele. The optics were single coated too. Those improvements are reflected in small cosmetic changes like the red T on the name ring of the lens or that the lens aperture can be closed down to f/22.

The feet scale is missing in this design but this might be only the case for Sonnar lenses that were not planed for export.

It is unclear how many copies were created. Reliable data is missing about how many cameras or Contaflex Sonnar lenses were produced. Unfortunately Contaflex Sonnars always were build within Contax Sonnar production runs. Although there is reliable data about CZJ production runs no information is available about this version. There are some copies out there but only very few are known yet.

[v4b ZJ RS rb] 1939 Carl Zeiss Jena RSBK R-Sonnar


source Leitz Photographica Auction, Ebay
  • all black metal body in RSBK mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena R-Sonnar f=5cm 1:1,5 T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black
    • body: black
    • thread mount: black, M44x0,5
    • rear: black
    • no aperture blades and aperture ring
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

With the start of the Second World War we see a new trend in the development of Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses. CZJ opted to use the Sonnar 5cm for more and more diverse uses. So the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 was not longer used for Zeiss Ikon cameras only but for other camera systems without the Zeiss brand too. The R-Sonnar for RSBK cameras were the first new development.

RSBK means Röntgen-Schirm-Bild-Kamera (X-Ray screen picture camera). It is a camera that is used as part of medical fluoroscope. In the time of WWII a medical X-ray system would incorporate a fluorescent screen that glows when hit by X-rays. By putting your subject between the X-ray source and the fluorescent screen you can see the X-ray image on the screen. To make a photograph of this image a RSBK camera is used. The RSBK might not be a conventional camera. Most likely it was installed in a medical room or scaffold since camera, screen and X-ray source should be calibrated to the right distance and position.

The RSBK R-Sonnar is an unusual lens. It is designed to photograph faintly glowing screens to create a permanent photograph of a short moment. It needed a very bright lens in a large film format to achieve this goal. So CZJ picket the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 for this task. To not miss focus the lens was screwed into place so that it has the exact same distance to the screen for ever photograph. So the R-Sonnar has no focusing helicoid. And since it needed the brightest aperture to capture those images the R-Sonnar has no aperture (blades) and aperture ring. The lens is coated too. This is necessary to create the least amount of light loss through reflections possible to photograph the screen.

It is save to say that every RSBK R-Sonnar was packet with a RSBK camera. Today those R-Sonnar lenses can be found with a lot of luck but only without the camera. Maybe some RSBK cameras have survived the decades in a museum or a solitary storage but even if found it is doubtful the finder will know what it is.

Since this lens is part of a medical setup it is found in different forms and packages. It depends on how much of the socket is part of this lens. Most of the time it looks like a dismantled Contax Sonnar. All of them have a complete black barrel with a screw mount but no letters, markings or moving parts on it. Only the name ring identifies this lens as an R-Sonnar.

This all being said it should be clear that this version is pretty rare today. About 1.000 copies were build during WWII. Since it is no ordinary lens that can be used on a rangefinder (without modification) it is likely that most of them found its way to the junkyard with the outdated X-ray setup. But some copies still exists and show up 1-2 times a year.

[v4b ZJ LT as] 1940 Carl Zeiss Jena LTM aluminum F/22

  • chromed aluminum body with silver filter ring with Leica Thread-Mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: black line, in a line with red arrow of distance mark
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • distance scale: chrome, black scale, 1 - 20, small m
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 1,5 - 22, diagonal lines, red arrow distance mark
    • mount: silver, small rippled grip ring
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

Zeiss only build only one Leica Thread-Mount (M39) version of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 ever. They started production 1940 and produced it until the end of WWII.

This lens is lightweight because it was made of aluminum. Like most lenses of that time it was not painted and appeared in an all silver finish. CZJ added a focusing helicoid and ring to the lens so it can be focused on a Leica III camera. The aperture scale is in meter. Other than the Contax Sonnars the Leica version focuses down to about 0.9 meters.

CZJ used the best available optics for the Leica version. So Leica users got the latest optics with coating from Zeiss. There is no doubt that this lens was superior to Leitz's own Xenon 5cm F/1.5 from 1936 and Summarit 5cm F/1.5 that was produced after WWII from 1949.

A very similar looking LTM Sonnar was produced during WWII but it was not produced by CZJ. This copy only differs in small details. The aperture mark is a red dot (while CZJ used a black line), the aperture and focal distance number use dots (.) instead of comma (,) that Zeiss is using for every lens and some aperture scales put the numbers in a zigzag order instead in one line like Zeiss is doing. The origin of those copies is unclear. All copies have a authentic looking name ring with Carl Zeiss Jena as manufacturer name and a serial number so it looks authentic on the first view. But most serials conflict with authentic batches of CZJ for example with Tessar lenses or even Sonnar 5cm F/2. Carl Zeiss Jena itself issued problems with copycat lenses during and especially after WWII. There seem to be a great amount of workshops producing those fake CZJ Sonnars to sell on the black market for a living.

After WWII a similar looking L39 Sonnar was build in the Soviet Union as Jupiter-3. It used different optics because the production had no access to Schott glass anymore and so a recalculation was done to use glass available in the Soviet union. The Soviet lenses use a name ring with the name Jupiter-3 instead of Sonnar and a red P instead of red T. A black dot is used as aperture mark and a big M as meter abbreviation instead of a small m like CZJ Sonnar lenses.

About 6.000 copies of this LTM Sonnar lens might be produced. Today this lens is quite rare with only 2-3 showing up a year. They are easily dismissed in the shear flood of Jupiter-3 lenses and Leica Thread-Mount copycat Sonnars.

[v4b ZJ SP cg] 1941 Carl Zeiss Jena Super Parvo

  • all brass finish with Parvo mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • shade: brass, painted black inside and outside
    • aperture ring: brass, painted black, holding pin
    • aperture mark: red line
    • aperture scale: silver crescent strip with black scale screwed on brass body, 1,5 - 22
    • mount: brass, with big dish-like mounting plate, black ball bearing
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

In 1941 CZJ started the production of several cine lens versions of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5. One is is for the Debrie Super Parvo motion picture camera. This French 35mm cine camera was created by André Debrie in 1932 and was the European standard motion picture camera of the 1930, 40 and 50ies.

The lens is made of brass with a black painted lens shade and a crescent formed aperture scale. The lens is quite big because of the dish formed plate that is needed to lock the lens on to a Parvo camera.

Despite the popularity of the Super Parvo camera CZJ only manufactured a low number of Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 with Parvo mount. Only 160 are recorded but some Contax ones might be converted too. CZJ manufactured this lens only until the end of WWII. But as with the Leica [v4b ZJ LT as] or Arriflex version they used the latest optics with T single coating that made this lens with its bright aperture one of the best 35mm movie lenses available.

Because of this low number of copies this lens is very rare today. There are almost no pictures or data of this lens online.

[v4b ZJ AF cbs] 1941 Carl Zeiss Jena Arriflex smooth rim

from Ebay 2
  • all black finish with ARRI Standard mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • aperture ring: black, white aperture scale, top half rippled, group of 3 small silver bumpers below rippled ring, clickless
    • aperture marker: white line?
    • focus ring: black, rippled, with screwed finger grips
    • finger grips: silver (rarely black), 2 big round plates from one piece, pointing forward
    • distance scale: black, white letters, m 1 1,2 1,5 2 2,5 3 4 5 8 15
    • mount: copper, brushed to silver
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

In 1941 CZJ started the production of several cine lens versions of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5. One is is for the Arriflex 35 motion picture camera. This German 35mm cine camera was first first introduced 1937 by Arnold & Richter Cine Technik (ARRI) at the Leipzig Trade Fare. It was the first Reflex motion picture camera. This camera features three Arri standard mounts on a rotating turret so users can easily switch between different lenses and focal length. It was widely in use as "battlefield camera" for the German Wehrmacht during WWII. The camera was used for military purpose for example to collect material for battlefront intelligence or propaganda cinema movies. But it was used for reports of sport events or recordings of nature or science too. During WWII US army captured some models and brought them to the US where it was studied and produced almost identical as Cineflex PH 330.

It is no coincidence that CZJ manufactured Sonnar 5cm, 8cm or Tessar lenses in high numbers for Arriflex 35 motion picture cameras. Despite the huge popularity of the Arriflex it was manufactured in the time of WWII in Jena Germany. CZJ was an important supplier of technology and optical equipment for the German Wehrmacht. Most of the Arriflex Sonnars were intended for use by the German army.

The Arriflex Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 has a complete black body and matches the looks of the Arriflex 35. It features 2 silver finger grips that look like mice ears. As with the Leica [v4b ZJ LT as] or Super Parvo v4b ZJ SP cg version CZJ used the latest optics with T single coating that made this lens with its bright aperture one of the best 35mm movie lenses available.

About 1.000 copies were build until the the end of WWII. Later after the war Carl Zeiss in East and West Germany started the production again to fill the need of Arriflex users. This first Arriflex version is quite rare (as most wartime Sonnars). 1-2 show up a year.

[v4b ZJ CR as] 1942 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum silver rim T F/22


  • aluminum body with silver filter ring with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: silver, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, silver mate, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • locking plate: red painted top side
    • mount: silver, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

1942 the body of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 T was changed again by CZJ. The new design introduced small cosmetic changes like a bigger dot as aperture mark, a big grip ring and the locking plates top side was now painted completely with red color. The changes are very subtle and it is difficult to tell it apart from the previous Contax Sonnar version [v4b ZJ CR cbT].

Maybe about 6.000 copies of this Sonnar version were made until the end of WWII. Despite the relative low number and the chaotic production time copies show up regularly, about 4-5 a year.

[v4b ZJ CR rs] 1942 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax R-Sonnar chrome T F/22

from Ebay
  • complete chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena R-Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: chrome, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: small black dot
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: short thick red line at tip
    • mount: chrome, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

There is only one production run of 200 Contax R-Sonnar 5cm lenses in 1942. The body of this lens is the same as the 1939 Sonnar [v4b ZJ CR cbT].

As described in the RSBK section [v4b ZJ RS rb] this Sonnar version is made for photographing X-ray screens. So it is used as part of a medical setup. Therefore the basic idea of this Contax R-Sonnar lacks any logic. Body, mechanics, optics and coating are the same as the mentioned 1939 Sonnar. The only difference is the R-Sonnar name at the name ring. The has aperture blades too. As mentioned before to take images of a X-ray screen it is best to not change the distance between lens and screen or change the aperture. Mounting a R-Sonnar on a Contax camera and let the user set the aperture might defeat the purpose of this lens.

[v4b ZJ CR ab] 1943 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum black rim T F/22

  • aluminum body with black filter ring with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, silver mate, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • locking plate: red painted top side
    • mount: silver, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

1943 CZJ started the production of a slightly changed version with a black filter rim. This version looks the same as the previous version [v4b ZJ CR as] but has a black filter ring instead of a silver one. Both version were build side by side. Later the first Zorkii Jupiter-3 version used this design too.

After WWII the situation around CZJ was quite dramatic and chaotic. Supply and workers were sparse. Through the events CZJ had lost its management, workers, some production engines and blueprints and the complete lens collection. Soon the new Soviet administration started the dismantling and transport of over 90 percent of the lens production in Jena. Some former CZJ employees started black market businesses with hacked Sonnar lenses for a living. Frequently Contax Sonnars got converted to Leica M39 by skilled workshops. Documentation about all of this is rare. So it is difficult to say something with certainty.

Maybe about 3000 copies might be build before the design was changed again. Only few show up today, about 3 a year.

[v4b ZE CR abbb] 1947 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum black arrow, block pin, black mount

  • aluminum body with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, silver, black aperture scale, long straight lines, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: black arrow
    • grip ring: big, silver rippled
    • locking plate: small block, red painted top side
    • mount: black
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

This is one of the first new Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 versions from CZJ after WWII. They all use a new different design language compared to the previous wartime Sonnar lenses. They feature a new Bauhaus look, simpler, more edgy and industrial. The new lens has an aluminum body that is lighter than the previous wartime aluminum Sonnar lenses. It offers a big aperture ring with an own rippled grip ring and a large aperture scale. The aperture mark is now a big black arrow. This all improves the readability of the aperture setting very much. The mount of the lens is fully painted in black.

The locking pin consists of a small square. The top side of the pin is fully painted in red color. The square pin might cause issues with some adapters since it fits the Contax lock very tight.

The lens uses the same optics as the wartime Sonnar lenses. It uses the 4th optical calculation from Ludwig Bertele, glass of Schott and T coating.

After WWII the situation around CZJ was quite dramatic and chaotic. Through the events during and after the war the lens factory had lost a lot of valuable employees and at the end of 1946 the Soviet administration started the disassembly of the Jena factory to move it to the Ukraine for the planed future Jupiter-3 production. 94% of the CZJ and Schott factories were moved. To stabilize the supply of lenses until the new factory is assembled and fully running CZJ was forced to produce new batches of Contax lenses. So all this written it was a great feat of Zeiss Jena to create a new Sonnar version and start production in Spring 1947.

Production started 1947 with large batches of 600 to 1500 copies. The chaotic production of wartime continued after the war. Within those production batches different post war Contax Sonnar version were mixed without any obvious order. Exact numbers are not available so take all information with a grain of salt.

CZJ continued the previously used serial numbers system after WWII. Nevertheless 1947 production reached the serial number 3.000.001 and the first Sonnars 5cm F/1.5 batch of this year started with serial 3.001.001. This version appeared only in the first 2 production batches 1947. About 500 copies were produced. With about 1 lens appearing a year this is a rare one.

[v4b ZE CR arrb] 1947 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum red arrow, red dot pin, black mount

  • aluminum body with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, silver, black aperture scale, straight lines, Germany, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: red arrow
    • grip ring: small, silver rippled
    • locking plate: triangular, red dot
    • mount: black
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

This is the second post war Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 version from CZJ. The design of the previous version [v4b ZE CR abbb] was changed again in 1947. The color of the aperture mark was changed from black to red and the locking pin was sculpted in a rectangular shape with a red dot on top. It can only be speculated why those changes were made but the locking pin was more refined and the issues with locking some adapters seem to be solved.

Most of what it is written for the previous version [v4b ZE CR abbb] applies for this one too.

This is the most common Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 of this period. About 3.600 copies might be produced by CZJ in 4 batches. 8-10 lenses show up every year.

The production (of all Contax Sonnar lenses) ended in Spring 1951. In this year the production of Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 T started by Opton-Zeiss in West Germany. The Production of Jupiter-3 5cm F/1.5 P lenses had already started in 1950 in the Ukraine. It is speculated that the Soviet administration forced CZJ to stop the production after the Soviet production had been stabilized.

[v4b ZE CR arbb] 1947 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum red arrow, block pin, black mount

from Ebay
  • aluminum body with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, silver, black aperture scale, straight lines, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: red arrow
    • grip ring: small, silver rippled
    • locking plate: small block, red painted top side
    • mount: black
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

This is the third post war Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 version from CZJ. It is basically the first version [v4b ZE CR abbb] with a red arrow as aperture mark.

Most of what it is written for the first version [v4b ZE CR abbb] applies for this one too.

This Sonnar version was produced in a low number of maybe 300 copies only. So it shows up very rarely with only 1 lens a year.

[v4b ZE CR arrs] 1947 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum red arrow, red dot pin, silver mount



  • chrome plated brass body, chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, chrome, black aperture scale, straight lines, Germany, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: red arrow
    • grip ring: small, silver rippled
    • locking plate: triangular, red dot
    • mount: chrome
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

This is the fourth post war Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 version from CZJ. It was introduced in the second half of 1947. Although the overall design looks very similar to the previous versions, especially to the second one [v4b ZE CR arrb], it is more of an upgrade compared to them. The lens body is chrome over brass. Therefore the lens is heavier than the all aluminum Sonnars but looks and feels solid and of higher quality. The other main difference is the new silver mount. The lens now looks like made from a single piece with its all chrome look.

This version is not as common as the second black mount one [v4b ZE CR arrb] and did not replace it. Both versions were produced side by side but the silver mount one in lower capacities. Maybe about 1500 copies were build. Single copies show up rarely with about 4-5 lenses a year.

[v4b ZE AF] 1948 Carl Zeiss Jena Arriflex


from Coeln Cameras, Ebay
  • all black finish with ARRI Standard mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • aperture ring: black, white aperture scale, diagonal 16 & 22 line, top half rippled, group of 3 small black humps on rippled ring, clickless
    • aperture marker: white line
    • focus ring: black, rippled, with screwed finger grips
    • finger grips: black, 2 big angular (sometimes round) plates from one piece, pointing forward
    • distance scale: black, white letters, m 1 1,2 1,5 2 2,5 3 4 6 8 ... OR feet 3,5 4 5 6 7 8 10 12 15 20 25 50
    • mount: silver (first copies cooper), black bottom
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

From 1948 to 1953 CZJ was producing Arriflex Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 T lenses. Only a low number of about 800 lenses were build in this time to be used on motion picture Arri cameras.

The design of the post war Sonnar looks very similar to the 1941 Arriflex Sonnar [v4b ZJ AF cbs]. What has been changed is that the 3 previously screwed on small silver humps at the aperture ring now are black too and part of the grip ring. The big finger grips now are either silver rounded bend from one piece of metal, later black painted and angular forget as one piece or black painted and rounded and bend from one piece again. The mounts color changes too. At the beginning it is cooper and later silver.

The optics were not changed. They use the 4th optical calculation from Ludwig Bertele and are T single coated.

These Arriflex Sonnars are rare with only 1-2 copies showing up each year.

[v4b ZE RS rb] 1949 Carl Zeiss Jena RSBK R-Sonnar


from Leitz Photographica Auction, 1957 CZJ catalog
  • all black metal body in RSBK mount, with bronze tube
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena R-Sonnar f=5cm 1:1,5 T Nr., JENA R-S 1,5/50
    • filter rim: black
    • body: black
    • rear: black
    • no aperture blades and aperture ring
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

From production documents and marketing material it can be seen that CZJ produced RSBK R-Sonnars after the war again. They were produced from 1949 until 1958. Only very few details are known about this Sonnars. From marketing material it looks like the lenses were all black without any visible aperture or focus rings. The missing aperture is mentioned too. As explained for the previous RSBK version [v4b ZJ RS rb] they are not needed for this Sonnar version.

The engraving on the name ring changed between 1954 and 1957 and used a new naming scheme. Carl Zeiss Jena was shortened to JENA and R-Sonnar to R-S. Then f=5cm 1:1,5 was shortened to 1,5/50. The red T was dropped. The naming changes reflect the consequences of the lost lawsuit and settlement over the Carl Zeiss name. CZJ did not used the Zeiss name for some time and shortened the names of lenses to the capital letters only. The abbreviation of aperture and focal length can be seen at other brands at this time too.

The marketing material mentions that the R-Sonnar is designed for the format 24x36 or 31x31. It is said that the lenses are only available in bundle with an RSBK camera (Röntgenschirmbildkamera) 31x31.

Only 120 copies were made. Today it is extremely rare and finding one is very unlikely.

[v4b ZE A1] 1950 Carl Zeiss Jena A1

  • unknown body design and mount
  • used at flight simulator (A1) camera
  • single coated optics
  • v4 lens calculation

Nothing is known about this version of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 nor do photos exists from this lens. It is used as part of the A1 flight simulator.

From 1950 until 1959 475 copies were made. It is very unlikely that lenses will show up or will be recognized as A1 version. Since there are no images of this Sonnar version it might go by as hacked or damaged. More likely these lenses do not exist anymore because they were thrown away as part of the flight simulator.

[v4b ZE CR arrb16] 1951 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum red arrow, red dot pin, black mount, diagonal f/16 & f/22 mark

  • aluminum body with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=5cm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, silver, black aperture scale, straight lines, diagonal 16 && 22 line, Germany, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: red arrow
    • grip ring: small, silver rippled
    • locking plate: triangular, red dot
    • mount: black
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation
This is a variation of the second post war version of the Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 [v4b ZE CR arrb]. CZJ improved the aperture ring markings by using diagonal lines for the F/16 and F/22 setting. It is a very small cosmetic improvement to show more clearly which aperture mark belongs to which setting as the lines at the end of the scale are normally very close to each other. Interestingly it seems like this improvement was not introduced in the production of of the fourth Contax Sonnar version, the all Chrome one [v4b ZE CR rrs0].

In every other aspect the lens mirrors the second post war version. 

There is only a small batch of those lenses produced in 1951. They mostly belong to one production run where in the second half this improvement was introduced. This makes this version rare. Single copies show up about 2-3 lenses a year.

The production (of all Contax Sonnar lenses) ended in Spring 1951. In this year the production of Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 T started by Opton-Zeiss in West Germany. The Production of Jupiter-3 5cm F/1.5 P lenses had already started in 1950 in the Ukraine. It is speculated that the Soviet administration forced CZJ to stop the production after the Soviet production had been stabilized.

[v4b ZE CR rrs0] 1950 Carl Zeiss Jena Contax aluminum red arrow, red dot pin, silver mount 50mm

  • chrome plated brass body, chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1:1,5 f=50mm T Nr. (red T)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, chrome, black aperture scale, straight lines, Germany, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: red arrow
    • grip ring: small, silver rippled
    • locking plate: triangular, red dot
    • mount: chrome
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

This is a variation of the fourth post war version of the Contax Sonnar 5cm F/1.5. CZJ changed the naming scheme of the name ring from the old focal length inscription 5cm to the more modern 50mm one.

Only one Contax lens was found that uses this new naming scheme. 100 copies were documented though.

[v4b ZE KF cb] 1950 Carl Zeiss Jena KEF

source: 1957 CZJ product catalog, Zeiss Archiv
  • all black finish with KEF mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 1,5/50 1Q
    • filter rim: black, smooth
    • aperture mark: white arrow
    • aperture ring: black, white dots, small grip rippled grip ring, clickless
    • mount: black, threaded, 33x0.5
  • aperture markings (1,5 - 22) dot marks without letters
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation

From 1950 to 1960 CZJ produced another cine version of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 for the KEF mount. KEF stands for Kino-Einbaufassung (cinema build in mount). This is not a standardized mount and no proprietary one. This version of the Sonnar was intended to be customized by movie makers to fit their needs and cameras. Even at this time motion picture camera users rehoused existing lenses to improve the handling or just to add a specific lens for another mount to a desired cine mount. To help in adapting and customizing Zeiss lenses for motion picture cameras CZJ created KEF versions of multiple lenses like the Biotars 1,5/75, 2/25, 2/35, 2/40, 2/58 or the Sonnars 1,5/50, 2/50, 2/85, 2,8/180, 4/135, 4/300. CZJ claimed that they tried to build the KEF versions as lightweight and small as possible without sacrificing quality or functionality.

The KEF version of the Sonnar 1,5/50 comes in an all black body with white letters. There is an aperture ring with markings but without numbers. So the user has the freedom to use the lens as it is or add inscriptions, disassemble the lens or add grips, hoods or scales to the lens body and customize it. The only mounting help is provided by a standardized M33x0.5 screw mount.

The name scheme used at (later) lenses name rings shows a more modern inscription. The focal length and maximum aperture is abbreviated to 1,5/50. The red T for coated lenses is dropped (although the lens is coated). The new quality symbol 1Q was added too (later). It stands for Erste Qualität (first quality) and shows build quality suitable for world wide sales. It was meant to be sold on the international market to earn urgently needed western money. Nevertheless a lot of the KEF Sonnars might be used by the East German DEFA creating motion pictures.

About 420 lenses were created. Only four were found yet.

[v5b ZO CR sot] 1950 Zeiss-Opton Contax silver rim T

  • chrome over brass body, chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Zeiss-Opton Sonnar 1:1,5 f=50mm T Nr (red T)
    • filter rim: chrome, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, chrome, 2 scales, black aperture scale, straight lines, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: black arrow
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: small red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, (Made in Germany)
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 16
  • single coated optics
  • v5 optical lens calculation

This is the first Contax Rangefinder Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 version that was produced in Oberkochen in West Germany. In February 1949 the Carl Zeiss Foundation was moved to Heidenheim and so the Optische Werke Oberkochen became the head of Carl Zeiss. Development and production of new lenses started then in Oberkochen. This step was justified by the Carl Zeiss management through the disassembly of the plant in Jena by the Soviet administration.

This Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 T uses a completely new cosmetically and optical lens design. It uses a new optical calculation with unknown origin. Although not stated anywhere officially this 5th optical design was created by the father of the Sonnar lens Ludwig Bertele again. Zeiss Oberkochen continued the production of the Contax Rangefinder system. New materials, glass, coatings and the new competition from Japan and the Ukraine forced ZO to pay LJB to do a recalculated of the existing Sonnar design. The result is a further increase in contrast and center sharpness compared to the 1939 calculation. The minimum aperture was reduced to f/16 though.

The design of the new Zeiss-Opton lens resembles the CZJ 1947 silver mount Sonnar design [v4b ZE CR arrs] but tries to improve on it in several ways. First the name ring has a different naming scheme. It clearly states Zeiss-Opton instead of Carl Zeiss Jena. And secondly it uses a modern focal length notation in mm instead of cm. The lens is chrome over brass with a chrome filter ring. So it is quite heavy and has a solid feel to it.

For the first time the aperture ring shows a linear scale. This means that the distance between all stops on the scale is equally the same. In the past the scale was exponential so the distances between stops differed from wide and narrow aperture settings. The new aperture scale made setting up narrow apertures easier. Another improvement was the introduction of a double scale. The aperture scale now is shown on 2 sides of the lens and there are two black arrows as aperture mark. Since the complete Contax lens turns when focusing the aperture scale is moving with it. By putting a scale and marker on both sides of the lens body one scale should be easily visible before and after focusing. Those changes might seem simple but they improved the handling of the lens in a nice way.

ZO added a new designed aperture. The new 12 bladed aperture is not circular anymore. The new mechanism is a complex (and beautiful) design that creates ninja star like apertures.

One important detail needs to be explained. Zeiss Oberkochen decided to start their own serial number counting. The used serial numbers don't start from 3.000.000 but from 1.000. The first ZO Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 batch started with the serial 47.001. This restarted numbering might cause some confusion and even overlapping serial number blocks with serial numbers used by CZJ.

ZO produced 15.100 copies of this new Sonnar version from 1950 to 1951. Copies are quite common with about 15 copies showing up each year.

[v5b ZO CR bot] 1951 Zeiss-Opton Contax black rim T

  • chrome over brass body, chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Zeiss-Opton Sonnar 1:1,5 f=50mm T Nr (red T)
    • filter rim: black, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, chrome, 2 scales, black aperture scale, straight lines, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: black arrow
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: small red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, (Made in Germany)
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 16
  • single coated optics
  • v5 optical lens calculation

This is the Contax second ZO version of the Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 T. It differs in 2 details from the first version [v5b ZO CR sot]. It has a black filter rim and the aperture was changed to 11 blades instead of 12 blades. It uses the same ninja star aperture mechanism.

This is a very common lens. ZO produced 22.500 copies from 1951 to 1953. About 30 lenses show up every year.

[v5b ZO CR bo] 1954 Zeiss-Opton Contax black rim

from Ebay
  • chrome over brass body, chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Zeiss-Opton Sonnar 1:1,5 f=50mm Nr
    • filter rim: black, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, chrome, 2 scales, black aperture scale, straight lines, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: black arrow
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: small red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, (Made in Germany)
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 16
  • single coated optics
  • v5 optical lens calculation

This third version of the Contax Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 is the same as the second version [v5b ZO CR bot]. The only difference is the name ring. Since all produced Zeiss lenses get the Zeiss T coating the T was dropped from the name in 1954. So the name ring is missing the red T mark.

This lens is not as common as the other Contax versions. About 6.000 copies were made in 1954. Nevertheless about 13 lenses show up each year.

[v5b ZO AF] 1954 Zeiss-Opton Arriflex





from Ebay 2
  • all black finish with ARRI Standard mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Sonnar 1:1,5 f=50mm Nr
    • aperture ring: black, white aperture scale, top half rippled (sometimes silver), group of 3 small black humps on rippled ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: white line
    • focus ring: black, rippled, with screwed finger grips
    • finger grips: silver, 2 big plates from one piece, pointing forward
    • distance scale: black, white letters, m 1 1,2 1,4 1,6 1,8 2 2,2 2,5 3 3,5 4 5 7 10 20 AND feet 3,5 4 4,5 5 5,5 6 7 8 9 10 12 15 20 30 60
    • mount: black
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v5 optical lens calculation

In 1954 ZO build a small number of Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 lenses in ARRI Standard mount. It was only one batch of 400 lenses to be used on Arriflex 35 motion picture cameras.

On first sight this ZO Arriflex might look like the CZJ Arriflex version [v4b ZE AF]. Both lenses share the black body with 2 big finger grips. But there are some significant differences. First there is the name ring with the name Carl Zeiss and the focal range of 50mm. The biggest difference is probably the used optics. As all ZO Sonnars this lens uses the 5th optical calculation of Ludwig Bertele with T-coating. Then this Arriflex Sonnar uses the ninja star aperture blades instead of a circular aperture.

There are more cosmetic differences between the CZJ and ZO Arriflex Sonnar. The mount of the lens is all black and the big finger grips are silver. The ZO Sonnar uses 2 distance scales with feed and meters instead only one. Last but not least the inside of the lenses shade has a different shape. It has a small plateau to improve the usage of filters.

Not much is known about this version. ZO probably tried to fill the void left by CZJ after they stopped making any Arriflex Sonnar lenses for the western market in 1953/54. ZO improved on the CZJ design by adding the new v5 optics and aperture mechanism. They improved a little bit on the handling and usability.

This lens is pretty rare to find with only 1 or 2 showing up each year.

[v5b ZO CR bz] 1954 Carl Zeiss Contax black rim

  • chrome over brass body, chrome finish with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Sonnar 1:1,5 f=50mm Nr
    • filter rim: black, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: big, chrome, 2 scales, black aperture scale, straight lines, very small rippled grip ring, clickless
    • aperture mark: black arrow
    • grip ring: chrome rippled
    • locking plate: small red rectangle at tip
    • mount: chrome, (Made in Germany)
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 16
  • single coated optics
  • v5 optical lens calculation

This is the 4th and last Contax Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 from ZO. It features the new company name Carl Zeiss on the name ring. In 1954 ZO won the court trial about the usage of the name Carl Zeiss. As a result the name Zeiss-Opton was dropped and Carl Zeiss was used instead. This is the only visible difference between this and the previous version [v5b ZO CR bo].

There are small sometimes invisible changes to this version over the whole lifespan. The font of the aperture scale was changed to feature smaller but stronger letters. And then the internal mounting of the glass has been changed to the point where no glass elements were mounted into a holder anymore. The glass is just pushed into the tube that also holds the aperture. This late term lenses are more prone to separation because of this internal change. The latest lenses weight only 151 grams while the first lenses weight 155 grams.

This is the most common West German Sonnar 50mm lens. About 36.000 copies were manufactured until 1959. This one is easy to find with about 50 copies showing up every year.

This version is the last Contax Sonnar version of Carl Zeiss. Zeiss dropped the whole Contax system 1959. For decades this was the last Zeiss Sonnar 50mm.

[v6z ZC LM] 2006 Carl Zeiss C Sonnar T* ZM

  • all black (B) or all silver (S) finish with Leica M-mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss C Sonnar 1,5/50 ZM T* (red T*)
    • filter rim: chrome, 46 mm filter thread, with aperture mark
    • aperture mark: black line on chrome in a line with distance mark
    • aperture ring: (B) black with white aperture scale, (S) silver with black aperture scale, half moon rippled gripper, 1/3 stop increments
    • focus ring: (B) black, (S) silver, top half polished, bottom half rippled grip with single small focus bump
    • distance scale: (B) black, red 3 - 15 ft, white 0,9 - 5 m, white infinity, (S) silver, blue 3 - 15 ft, black 0,9 - 5 m, black infinity
    • fov scale ring: (B) black, white scale and arrow mark, red 50, (S) silver, black scale and arrow mark, blue 50, scale 4 - 16, diagonal lines, red 8 line on right side, blue spot mounting mark, Lens made in Japan (white (B) or black (S)), 2 short rippled grip areas
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 16
  • multi coated optics
  • v6 optical lens calculation

In October 2004 Carl Zeiss announced the release of the Zeiss Ikon ZM camera at the Photokina 2004. A year later it was released. The Zeiss Ikon ZM is a range finder camera for analogue film that was designed by Zeiss and manufactured by Cosina in Japan. It is said that this camera was a heart project of some Zeiss manufacturers and came after a short Renaissance of range finder film cameras like the Voigtländer Bessa or the Nikon S3 Year 2000 Limited Edition.

The camera used a Leica M compatible bayonet mount and was introduced with a new line of ZM (Leica M-mount) lenses. While the first 50mm lens available was the legendary Carl Zeiss Planar Planar 2/50 ZM Zeiss later released a new 50mm Sonnar too. In 2006 the C Sonnar T* 1,5/50 ZM was released.

The name C Sonnar stands for classic and compact. The red T* means this lens uses multi coating with Zeiss latest anti reflection coating. ZM means this Zeiss lens is for Leica M-mount and can be used on a Zeiss Ikon ZM camera or every Leica M camera.

The C Sonnar T* 1,5/50 ZM is a very compact lens like it's predecessors from 70 years ago. As its predecessors it is an all manual lens with an aperture ring on top and focus ring at the base. To keep it small and compact and since it is used on range finder cameras there are no focusing motors and electronics. This ZM design is a completely new and more modern design that does not resemble the previous Leica LTM version [v4b ZJ LT as] at all. It is the first Sonnar 50mm that was offered in 2 color schemes at the same time, black and silver. It offers a linear aperture ring with 1/3 stop increments and hard stops (with click). Compared to other Sonnar lenses the C Sonnar features only 10 aperture blades with a ninja star opening.

This is a modern take on the optical Sonnar design. Despite pointing out the heritage to the original Sonnar design of Ludwig Bertele this version uses a completely new optical calculation that was not produced by Bertele anymore. In 2005 computers and software did the calculation and optimization of this optical design. The result was a new design with 6 elements in 4 groups and with only 1 group of kitted elements instead of 2 as the original design. With the usage of modern multi coating it is not necessary to kit groups of elements anymore. By keeping one kitted lens group the heritage to the Sonnar design is still there but now with a good bit of Planar DNA as well. The Sonnar character is still visible with a good amount of sharpness, correction and contrast.

This lens is still in production today. The exact number of copies is unknown but Zeiss and Cosina manufacturing them in small batches but more then 12.000 were produced.

[v6z ZC NS] 2007 Carl Zeiss Sonnar T* S


from MapCamera
  • black and chrome finish with Nikon S mount
    • name ring: Carl Zeiss Sonnar 1,5/50 T* (red T*)
    • filter rim: chrome, 43 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: black, 2 scales, white scale, diagonal 16 line, small grip ring on top
    • aperture mark: black arrow on chrome
    • grip ring: chrome, small rippled
    • locking pin: small red line on tip
    • mount: chrome, silver letter, Lens made in Japan, N
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 16
  • multi coated optics
  • v6 optical lens calculation

In September 2007 Carl Zeiss announced a mini series of it's Sonnar 1,5/50 T* for Nikon S mount range finder cameras. Nikon S cameras were popular at that time especially in Japan. So Zeiss wanted to use this market with this offer.

The Nikon S mount version resembles a lot the Contax RF versions since both share a similar mount (actually the Nikon S mount is some kind of copy of the Contax RF mount) but cosmetically Zeiss followed the Nikon lens designs. So this lens is black with white letters with a chrome mount. Optically it is the same as the Leica M mount version from 2006 [v6z ZC LM] as it uses the same optics.

Zeiss is noticeable quit about the release of this Sonnar lens. There is not much documentation about it. A reason might be that it was intended for the Japanese market only. Other reasons might be that at the time of the release the near future of Zeiss rangefinder lenses were foreseeable bad. It seems that the idea of ZM and range finder lenses were only supported by a part of Zeiss. And since the financial success did not occurred like expected further ambitions were silently scrapped.

Production was limited to preorders over retailers only. So only a small amount of copies were build. Exact number do not exists. It seems that over 370 Nikon S mount Sonnar 1,5/50 T* exists. Most of them were sold in Japan. That is why this lens became an immediate collectors item. It is very rare to find an offer and they go for high prices.

Sonnars from other companies

1948-1988 Jupiter-3 1:1,5 F=5CM P Contax

Sovietcams.com has created an overview over all Contax RF Jupiter-3 versions. It is very detailed and with a lot more insight than this article. The following description is only a rough overview over some of the Jupiter-3 versions. The Contax Jupiter-3 lenses where produced by different manufacturers in the FSU: 1948-1955 KMZ (Krasnogorski Mekhanicheskii Zavod), 1956-1974 ZOMZ (Zagorsky Optiko-Mechanichesky Zavod)

[v4b ZK CR ZK] 1948 KMZ ZK P Contax
  • aluminum body with black filter ring with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: (1948) (ZORKII) ZK 1:1,5 F=5CM P N (red P)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, silver mate, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: big red dot
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • locking plate: red painted top side
    • mount: silver, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation
  • extreme rare

In 1948 Krasnogorski Mekhanicheskii Zavod (KMZ) started the manufacturing of Jupiter-3 lenses in Kransogorsk (a small town near Moscow - Russia). The first Jupiter-3 lenses were no plain copies of Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses. Those lenses were created with machines and tools from the German Jena factory, glass and metal and even finished parts from the Zeiss factory were used and engineers and craftsmen from Jena were training russian workers how to build and assemble Sonnar lenses.

So it is no coincidence that the first version almost looks the same as the CZJ Sonnar lenses build during wartime. There are some differences though. The aperture mark is a big red dot. The small finger grips of the ring use a different number of ripples than the Jena Sonnars. The name ring differs in many ways. It contains the manufacturing year, the serial number, the KMZ Logo and the name ZK and a red P. The name ZK stands for Sonnar Krasnogorsk. The brand name Зоркий / ZORKII / sharp-sighted was added in later batches. KMZ used a own serial number system that is much simpler than the CZJ one. Serial numbers for every lens model start at zero ever year and get a number when finished. The serial number is prefixed with the production year. In case of the ZK lens this is 1948, 49, 50. That way it is easy to tell when a lens was manufactured. The red P is used like the Zeiss red T to show that the lens is coated. It means Просветление / Prosvetleniye / brightening.

A small sidenote to the subtle design changes of the aperture ring. Maybe this was introduced by the involved Zeiss engineers to mark the created Sonnars as made in USSR. So people can tell Jena and Russian made Sonnar lenses apart. This is something Zeiss engineers did on purpose with the Russian Contax production too.

The Contax Jupiter-3 was intended to be paired with a (Kiev camera)[http://camera-wiki.org/wiki/Kiev_rangefinder] that uses a Contax RF mount. Those early lenses contain Jena glass from Schott and use the same optical calculation CZJ was using. A lot of lenses are partly or sometimes fully build from parts from the Jena factory. Those parts were taken by the Soviet army after the war and brought to the Soviet Union to start a new Soviet lens production. Those parts and glass were used up later and had to be replaced with parts from Soviet production.

Those early ZK lenses are extreme rare so prices are very high for copies.

[v4b ZK CR J3] 1951 KMZ JIOPITER-3 P Contax
  • aluminum body with black filter ring with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: JIOPITER-3 1:1,5 F=5CM P N° (red P)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: silver, black aperture scale, short straight lines, very small rippled grip ring topside, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: small, mate silver, rippled
    • locking plate: red painted top and bottom side
    • mount: silver, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation
  • very rare

In 1950 KMZ changed the name of their ZK lens to ЮПИТЕР / JIOPITER-3 / JUPITER-3. The name Jupiter is derived from the Zeiss name. Zeiss sounds a bit like the Russian word for Зевс / Zeuss, the highest god of greek mythology. Since Jupiter is the Roman name of Zeuss KMZ used this name for all Zeiss derived lenses.

In 1951 the 2 small finger grips at the aperture ring were dropped and instead it got a similar aperture ring as the latest CZJ Sonnar lenses with a small rippled grip ring at the top. The main grip ring was reduced in size to make space for the bigger aperture ring. The lenses used Schott glass from Jena and the 4th optical calculation of Ludwig Bertele. They were still manufactured by KMZ in Kransogorsk.

This version of the Jupiter-3 are very rare today and sought by collectors because of the Jena optics.

[v4k ZZ CR J3] 1955 ZOMZ JIOPITER-3 P Contax


  • aluminum body with black filter ring with Contax Rangefinder mount
    • name ring: JIOPITER-3 1:1,5 F=5CM P N° (red P)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: silver, black aperture scale, short straight lines, very small rippled grip ring topside, clickless
    • aperture mark: big black dot
    • grip ring: smaller, mate silver, rippled
    • locking plate: red painted top and bottom side
    • mount: silver, horizontal cut, Made in Germany
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4k optical lens recalculation

In 1954 the supply of Schott glass was slowly drying out at KMZ in the Soviet Union. M.D. Maltsev created a new optical recalculation based on the 4th optical calculation from Ludwig Bertele to only use domestic and available glass. This new optical design scheme was used inside Jupiter-3 lenses starting 1955. This change was introduced with a change of the body design again. The main grip ring was reduced in size for example.

In 1956 the manufacturing of the Jupiter-3 lens was moved from KMZ to ZOMZ. ZOMZ stands for Zagorsky Optiko-Mechanichesky Zavod and was another optical manufacturer in Sergiyev Posad (Zagorsk) near Moscow. ZOMZ made some slight cosmetic changes to the KMZ body design. For example the lens used a slightly more mate finish.

In 1963 ZOMZ changed the name ring of the Jupiter-3 lens. The red P was dropped and the 1:1,5 F=5CM was replaced by a shorter more modern naming scheme 1,5/50.

This version is pretty common and can easily be found today.

1948-1988 Jupiter-3 1:1,5 F=5CM P L39

Sovietcams.com has created an overview over all L39 thread mount Jupiter-3 versions. It is very detailed and with a lot more insight than this article. The following description is only a rough overview over some versions. The Leica tread mount Jupiter-3 lenses where produced by different manufacturers in the FSU: 1947 GOI (Gosudarstvennij Opticheskij Institut), 1948-1955 KMZ (Krasnogorski Mekhanicheskii Zavod), 1956-1974 ZOMZ (Zagorsky Optiko-Mechanichesky Zavod), 1975-1988 VALDAI (Valdaijsky Zavod Jupiter)

[v4b ZK LM ZK] 1948 KMZ 3K P L39
  • chromed aluminum body with silver filter ring with L39 thread mount
    • name ring: (1948) (ZORKII) ZK 1:1,5 F=5CM P N (red P)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: small, chrome, black aperture scale, with 2 small finger grips, clickless
    • aperture mark: small black dot, in a line with red arrow of distance mark
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • distance scale: chrome, black scale, 1 - 20, capital M
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 1,5 - 22, diagonal lines, red arrow distance mark
    • mount: silver, small rippled grip ring
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation
  • extreme rare

In 1948 Krasnogorski Mekhanicheskii Zavod (KMZ) started the manufacturing of Jupiter-3 lenses in Kransogorsk (a small town near Moscow - Russia). The first Jupiter-3 lenses were no plain copies of Carl Zeiss Jena Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses. Those lenses were created with machines and tools from the German Jena factory, glass and metal and even finished parts from the Zeiss factory were used and engineers and craftsmen from Jena were training russian workers how to build and assemble Sonnar lenses.

Before manufacturing started near Moscow the GOI created some prototypes of the Jupiter-3 lens. This was during 1947. The first Sonnar lenses looked almost the same as the copied CZJ Sonnar lenses build during wartime. There are some differences though. The aperture mark is a small red dot. The meter scale uses a capital M instead a small m. The small finger grips of the ring use a different number of ripples than the Jena Sonnars. The name ring differs in many ways too. It contains the manufacturing year, the serial number, the KMZ Logo and the name ZK and a red P. The name ZK stands for Sonnar Krasnogorsk. The brand name Зоркий / ZORKII / sharp-sighted was added in later batches. KMZ used a own serial number system that is much simpler than the CZJ one. Serial numbers for every lens model start at zero ever year and get a number when finished. The serial number is prefixed with the production year. In case of the ZK lens this is 1948, 49, 50, 51. That way it is easy to tell when a lens was manufactured. The red P is used like the Zeiss red T to show that the lens is coated. It means Просветление / Prosvetleniye / brightening.

A small sidenote to the subtle design changes of the aperture and focus rings. Maybe this was introduced by the involved Zeiss engineers to mark the created Sonnars as made in USSR. So people can tell Jena and Russian made Sonnar lenses apart. This is something Zeiss engineers did on purpose with the Russian Contax production too.

Those L39 thread mount Jupiter-3 lenses were intended to be used with a KMZ (Zorkii camera)[https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zorki]. The L39 mount is mostly compatible with the LTM / M39 mount but there is a small difference in pitch between both thread mounts that can cause issues. Since the Zorkii camera is a Leica Model II copy the difference was caused by pitch differences and inconsistencies of Leica's first LTM lenses. KMZ did not correct the mount later but just kept it as L39 thread mount. That is the reason why Jupiter-3 lenses are not optimized for usage on a Leica camera but on Kiev cameras. As a result reaching perfect infinity can be impossible with Jupiter-3 lenses on LTM cameras.

Those early lenses contain Jena glass from Schott and use the same optical calculation CZJ was using. A lot of lenses are partly or sometimes fully build from parts from the Jena factory. Those parts were taken by the Soviet army after the war and brought to the Soviet Union to start a new Soviet lens production. Those parts and glass were used up later and had to be replaced with parts from Soviet production.

Those early ZK lenses are extreme rare so prices are very high for copies.

[v4b ZK LM J3] 1951 KMZ JIOPITER-3 P L39
  • chromed aluminum body with silver filter ring with L39 thread mount
    • name ring: JIOPITER-3 1:1,5 F=5CM P N° (red P)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: silver, black aperture scale, short straight lines, very small rippled grip ring topside, clickless
    • aperture mark: small black dot, in a line with red arrow of distance mark
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • distance scale: chrome, black scale, 1 - 20, capital M
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 1,5 - 22, diagonal lines, red arrow distance mark
    • mount: silver, small rippled grip ring
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4 optical lens calculation
  • very rare

In 1950 KMZ changed the name of their ZK lens to ЮПИТЕР / JIOPITER-3 / JUPITER-3. The name Jupiter is derived from the Zeiss name. Zeiss sounds a bit like the Russian word for Зевс / Zeuss, the highest god of greek mythology. Since Jupiter is the Roman name of Zeuss KMZ used this name for all Zeiss derived lenses.

In 1951 the 2 small finger grips at the aperture ring were dropped and instead it got a similar aperture ring as the 1947 CZJ Sonnar lenses with a small rippled grip ring at the top. The lenses used Schott glass from Jena and the 4th optical calculation of Ludwig Bertele. They were still manufactured by KMZ in Kransogorsk.

This version of the Jupiter-3 are very rare today and sought by collectors because of the Jena optics.

[v4k ZZ LM J3] 1956 ZOMZ JIOPITER-3 P L39
  • chromed aluminum body with silver filter ring with L39 thread mount
    • name ring: JIOPITER-3 1:1,5 F=5CM P N° (red P)
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: silver, black aperture scale, short straight lines, very small rippled grip ring topside, clickless
    • aperture mark: small red dot, in a line with red arrow of distance mark
    • grip ring: big, chrome rippled
    • distance scale: chrome, black scale, 1 - 20, capital M
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, 1,5 - 22, diagonal lines, red arrow distance mark
    • mount: silver, small rippled grip ring
  • aperture markings 1,5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4k optical lens recalculation

In 1954 the supply of Schott glass was slowly drying out at KMZ in the FSU. M.D. Maltsev created a new optical recalculation based on the 4th optical calculation from Ludwig Bertele to only use domestic and available glass. This new optical design scheme was used inside Jupiter-3 lenses starting 1955. This change was introduced with a change of the body design again. The focus ring was reduced in size for example.

In 1956 the manufacturing of the Jupiter-3 lens was moved from KMZ to ZOMZ. ZOMZ stands for Zagorsky Optiko-Mechanichesky Zavod and was another optical manufacturer in Sergiyev Posad (Zagorsk) near Moscow. ZOMZ made some slight cosmetic changes to the KMZ body design. For example the lens uses a small red dot as aperture mark instead of black.

In 1964 ZOMZ changed the name ring of the Jupiter-3 lens. The red P was dropped and the 1:1,5 F=5CM was replaced by a shorter more modern naming scheme 1,5/50.

This version is pretty common and can easily be found today.

[v4k VA LM J3] 1975 VALDAI JIOPITER-3 L39
  • all black body with L39 thread mount
    • name ring: JIOPITER-3 1,5/50 N
    • filter rim: black, rippled, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: black, white aperture scale, short straight lines, very small rippled grip ring topside, clickless
    • aperture mark: small red dot, in a line with red arrow of distance mark
    • grip ring: big, black rippled
    • distance scale: black, white scale, 1 - 20, capital M
    • fov scale ring: black, white scale, 1,5 - 22, diagonal lines, red arrow distance mark
    • mount: black, small rippled grip ring
  • aperture markings 1.5 - 22
  • single coated optics
  • v4k optical lens recalculation

In 1975 the manufacturing of the Jupiter-3 lens was moved again. It was moved to VALDAI / Valdaijsky Zavod Jupiter a optical production facility right between Moscow and St. Petersburg. The production of L39 Jupiter-3 lenses ended in 1988. Not much is known about VALDAI and the manufacturing in the 70ies and 80ies.

The VALDAI Jupiter-3 lens uses a more modern all-black look. The lens has a black finish with white letters and red focus and aperture mark. The name ring uses the same modern naming scheme like the later ZOMZ lenses. The red P is missing and the 1:1,5 F=5CM is replaced by a cleaner 1,5/50.

The black VALDAI Jupiter-3 lenses are not as common as the ZOMZ Jupiter lenses but can easily be found today.

1950 Nippon Kogaku Tokyo NIKKOR-S.C 1:1,5 f=5cm No.

Pacific Rim Cameras and CameraQuest have a very detailed description of the Nikon Nikkor-S 1,5/5cm. See their articles for images of the lens and comparison of different versions.

Nippon Kogaku (Nikon) released their NIKKOR-S 1,5/5cm in early 1950. They manufactured it until spring 1951 when it was replaced with the faster NIKKOR-S 1,4/5cm. So it was only produced for about a year and only a small number of copies where created in this time.

The NIKKOR-S 1,5/5cm is derived from the CZJ Sonnar 1,5/5cm. Nikon used the same optical calculation Ludwig Bertele had created for the Sonnar. As a result of WWII both Japan and Germany where punished for the death and suffering they have caused. German Carl Zeiss Jena lost all patents they hold of lenses and cameras. So Japanese lens and camera manufacturers could use those patents for their own. Nikon decided to complete their rangefinder lens lineup with a fast standard lens by copying the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5. Up until then the fastest lens was a NIKKOR-S 5cm F2.

Although this lens was produced for a short time only there is one Leica M39 mount version and even 2 Nikon-S mount versions. All are made with chrome finish, have a minimum aperture of F/11 and are coated. The first Nikon-S version uses the same aperture mechanism like the very first CZJ Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses [v2b ZJ CR bn11]. The grip ring is at the top of the lens and the the aperture ring is below of it in the middle. The second later Nikon-S version looks very similar to the first Contax RF Opton-Zeiss Sonnar lens [v5b ZO CR sot]. The aperture ring is at the top of the lens and the big grip ring below of it is in the middle. The LTM NIKKOR-S uses the same approach. The aperture ring is at the top of the lens. The focus ring is at the base of the lens. But in comparison to the Nikon-S versions the aperture scale is in typical Leica direction, clockwise when looking through the viewfinder. Nikon used a black point as aperture mark for all 1,5/5cm NIKKOR-S lenses.

Nikon used the optical calculations of Ludwig Bertele for their Sonnar / NIKKOR-S 5cm F/1.5. It is unclear which one of the calculations was used by Nikon. The minimum aperture of F/11 could hint that they used the v2b or v3b calculation of the Sonnar lens. They used their own glass and coating for the new NIKKOR-S.C 5cm F/1.5 though.

Around 500 Nikon-S mount lenses and around 300 LTM lenses where created. All versions of the NIKKOR-S 5cm F/1,5 are extremely rare and are very sought by collectors. So they go for a lot of money.

1951 Nippon Kogaku Tokyo NIKKOR-S.C 1:1,4 f=5cm No.

Pacific Rim Cameras have a very detailed description of the Nikon Nikkor-S 1,4/5cm and phillipreeve.net a thorough review of the lens. See their articles for images of the lens and comparison of different versions.

Immediately after manufacturing the NIKKOR-S 5cm F/1.5 Nikon decided to recalculate the Sonnar formula to achieve an even higher aperture of F/1.4. In December 1950 they introduced the new NIKKOR-S.C 1:1,4 f=5cm and caught the competition by surprise. At this time it was the fastest lens for 35mm film worldwide. And it drew a lot of attention to this former small Japanese company. Yet it was the first step in a race between different optical companies for the fastest photographic lens.

The NIKKOR-S 1,4/50 is slightly bigger and heavier than it's Sonnar F/1.5 brothers. It was produced for Nikon-S mount to be used on the Nikon S2 camera and in Leica thread mount. First versions where made in chrome over brass until in 1953 Nikon started the trend of painting all lenses black (with the NIKKOR 8,5cm F/1.5) that soon was followed by all lens manufacturers worldwide.

There is another S-mount version of this NIKKOR-S 1,4/50 that was produced later in the 60ies. It is called the Olympic NIKKOR-S 50mm F/1.4, is all black, is heavier and bigger than the 5cm F/1.4. It features a different optical design (7 elements in 5 groups) and is no Sonnar design anymore.

NIKKOR-S 5cm F/1.4 lenses are rare outside Japan. Especially chrome lenses are not seen very often. In Japan it should be easy to find good copies.

1951 Canon Camera Co. Japan CANON LENS (Serenar) 50mm f:1,5

A good overview with a lot of sample pictures of the lens and assessment of the image quality gives this review and 35mmc.

Canon released the Canon S Serenar 50mm F/1.5 in November 1952. Although it was the fastest standard lens in the Canon lens lineup at this time Nikon released the faster NIKKOR-S 5cm F/1,4 month before the same year.

The Canon S 1,5/50mm is derived from the CZJ Sonnar 1,5/5cm. Canon used the same optical calculation Ludwig Bertele had created for the Sonnar. As a result of WWII both Japan and Germany where punished for the death and suffering they have caused. German Carl Zeiss Jena lost all patents they hold of lenses and cameras. So Japanese lens and camera manufacturers could use those patents for their own. Canon used those patents to add a fast standard lens to their Canon S lens lineup by copying the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5. Up until then the fastest standard lens was a Canon S Serenar 50mm F/1.8.

There is only one version of this lens build for the Canon S mount / LTM. The lens has a minimum aperture of F/16, is coated, has an all chrome finish and is heavy. The aperture ring is at the top of the lens and the aperture scale is in typical Leica direction, clockwise when looking through the viewfinder. The lens uses a red point as aperture mark.

Canon used the optical calculations of Ludwig Bertele for their Sonnar / Serenar 50mm F/1.5. It is unclear which one of the calculations was used by Canon. The minimum aperture of F/16 could hint that they used the v2b or v3b calculation of the Sonnar lens. They used their own glass and coating for the new Serenar 50mm F/1.5 though.

The Canon S 50mm F/1.5 lens is rare outside Japan. In Japan it should be easier to find good copies.

1953 Teikoku Kogaku ZUNOW f=5cm 1:1.1

A good overview with a lot of sample pictures of the lens and assessment of the image quality gives this review. Lens-db.com has a lot of images of different versions of the ZUNOW. Further details about the history and creation of the ZUNOW and other ultra fast lenses gives this pixelcraft.photo.blog article.

Development of this lens already started 1943 during WWII in Japan. It was intended for military use for for aviation searches for the Japanese Navi. Teikoku Zunow is a small optical manufacturer known for their outstanding optical designs. When it was released in 1953 it was the fastest lens available for commercial photography. It was so until Canon released the Canon 50mm F/1.0 in 1961.

The Zunow 1,1/5cm uses a Sonnar design. It has 2 more glass elements than the CZJ Sonnars is bigger and heavier. In 1955 the design was improved by Teikoku Kogaku a second time. The number of elements could be reduced from 9 to 8 elements. The 1953 version often called the golf ball is only available in all chrome finish and for Contax RF / Nikon S mount. The 1955 version is offered in in Contax RF / Nikon S and Leica thread mount / M39. The LTM version has an all chrome finish. The Contax RF version exists as an all chrome or black paint and chrome finish design. The aperture mark is a red dot, the focus scale uses feet and the aperture scale is not in Leica direction. The aperture scale runs counter clockwise seen from the rangefinder window.

Today the lens is very rare and very expensive since only a small number of copies where produced in the 50ies.

1954 FUJI PHOTO FILM Co. FUJINON 1:1.2 f=5cm

A good overview with a lot of sample pictures of the lens and assessment of the image quality gives this Japan Camera Hunter review. Lens-db.com has a lot of images of different versions of the Fujinon.

https://www.oldlens.com/fujinon 5cmf12.html

In the 50ies several Japanese lens manufacturers competed in creating and offering the fastest photographic lens. It was a challenge to proof the own mastery of optical design and manufacturing and to spread the own brand name. It was the same spirit that Ludwig Bertele drove to create the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5. Fuji Photo Film Co. was one of those big 4 Japanese companies that competed over the fastest Rangefinder lens. In 1954 they released the FUJINON 5cm F/1.2. At this time Teikogu Kogaku had already released the ZUNOW 5cm F/1.1.

Like the ZUNOW the FUJINON is a Sonnar design. It uses 8 elements in 4 groups. Fuji used a Gaussian design as starting point and transformed it into a Sonnar to achieve better correction. They used a new type of rare earth glass to increase refraction and to create an aperture of F/1.2. Size and weight is similar to the ZUNOW 5cm F/1.1 and a lot heavier and bigger than Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses. The FUJINON comes in LTM and Nikon-S mount. While there is a black and a chrome version of the LTM FUJINON there is only one Nikon-S version that comes in a chrome and black look. Like the ZUNOW 1.1 the FUJINON 1.2 the aperture scale runs counter clockwise seen from the rangefinder window.

About 800 LTM lenses and about 50 Nikon-S mount lenses where created. Today it is very rare to find a FUJINON 1,2/5cm for offer and prices are very expensive (double of NIKKOR-S 50mm F/1.1 or ZUNOW 5cm F/1.1).

2006 MS-OPTICS MS-MODE 1.3/50 DUALSYSTEM

MS Optics is a small Japanese company that designs and manufactures handmade lenses. The main focus is on improved small rangefinder lenses. In the last decades they released multiple new and ambitious Sonnar lenses in different focal length. An overview and reviews of MS lenses can be found at phillipreeve.net

In 2006 MS released the MS-Mode 50mm F/1.3. This new lens is an improved Sonnar design with 5 lenses in 4 groups. Although it has a wider aperture weight and length is comparable to the Sonnar 50mm F/1.5. Only the filter size and diameter shows that this is an F/1.3 lens. The lens is all black with white inscriptions. The MS-Mode 50mm F/1.3 was available for Nikon-S and Leica thread mount or both with an attached LTM adapter.

The MS-Mode 50mm F/1.3 is not in production anymore. About 200 copies where produced. Today this lens is very rare and fetch high prices on the used market.

2013 MS-OPTICS SONNETAR 1.1/50 MC

A good overview with a lot of sample pictures of the lens and assessment of the image quality gives this review on phillipreeve.net.

MS Optics is a small Japanese company that designs and manufactures handmade lenses. The founder of MS admittedly likes Sonnar lenses and wanted to improve on the existing Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 design. In 2013 MS released the SONNETAR 50mm F/1.1. With its maximum aperture of F/1.1 it is (beside the ZUNOW) the fastest Sonnar lens ever made. Other then other ultra fast rangefinder lenses the SONNETAR manages to keep a small size and weight. Like the MS-Mode F/1.3 the SONNETAR F/1.1 is a Sonnar design lens with 5 elements in 4 groups. Both lenses have a lot in common. Although it has a wider aperture weight and length is comparable to the Sonnar 50mm F/1.5. Only the filter size and diameter shows that this is an F/1.1 lens. Like the MS-Mode the SONNETAR lens is all black with white inscriptions. It is only available in Leica M mount. The form and design reminds a lot of the MS-Mode with attached Leica adapter.

The name SONNETAR is inspired by old German lens names like Protar, Tessar or Biotar and the German word Sonne / sun (like the original name Sonnar).

The SONNETAR 50mm F/1.1 drew a lot of attention to MS Optics. The lens is sought by a lot of collectors and photographs worldwide. The number of copies is low and limited though. Today this lens is very rare and fetch high prices on the used market.

2022 MS-OPTICS SONNETAR 1.3/50 S (Slim) FULL.MC

A good overview with a lot of sample pictures of the lens and assessment of the image quality gives this review on phillipreeve.net.

MS Optics is a small Japanese company that designs and manufactures handmade lenses. The success of the SONNETAR 50mm F/1.1 inspired MS for another Sonnar lens. The SONNETAR 50mm F/1.3 was released in 2022. It offers the same maximum aperture of F/1.3 as the MS-Mode from 2006 but a slightly improved optical calculation. The SONNETAR is a Sonnar design lens with 5 elements in 4 groups. All lenses are multi coated. Although it has a wider aperture weight and length is comparable and on the lighter side of Sonnar 50mm F/1.5 lenses. Only the filter size and diameter shows that this is an F/1.3 lens. Like the MS-Mode the SONNETAR lens is all black with white inscriptions. It is only available in Leica M mount.

The number of copies is low and limited. The lens is still available but prices are on the high side.

[v4k LO LM J3+] 2016 Lomography New Jupiter 3+ Art Lens 1.5/50 LTM

  • chromed brass body with L39 thread mount
    • name ring: LOMOGRAPHY X ZENIT NEW JUPITER 3+ 1.5/50 L39/M Manufactured in Krasnogorsk, Russia
    • filter rim: black, 40.5 mm filter thread
    • aperture ring: silver, black aperture scale, straight lines, very small rippled grip ring topside, clickless, LOMOGRAPHY X ZENIT
    • aperture mark: small red dot, in a line with red distance mark
    • grip ring: big, chrome, rippled
    • distance scale: chrome, black scale, straight lines, .7 - 20, INF, small m, short straight red line at INF mark
    • fov scale ring: chrome, black scale, straight lines, 1.5 - 22, straight red line distance mark, No 000xxxxx
    • mount: silver, small rippled grip ring
  • aperture markings 1.5 - 22
  • multi coated optics
  • v4k optical lens recalculation

In 2016 Lomography released the New Jupiter 3+ art lens. Manufacturing is done by KMZ in Krasnogorski in Russia.

The Lomography lens is based on the last KMZ Jupiter-3 lens [v4k ZZ LM J3]. But the New Jupiter 3+ is more than just a rerelease. The new lens is made of brass and finished with chrome. The optics now have a modern multi coating to reduce flare and reflections even better. All markings and inscriptions where redesigned. The name ring shows the new name and both manufacturers LOMOGRAPHY X ZENIT. Aperture mark is a red dot and focus mark a straight red line. The lens is adjusted to focus down to 0.7 meters. The lens is further optimized to focus correctly on Leica rangefinder cameras. That means that it achieves infinity focus when used on Leica M cameras. Further the New Jupiter 3+ is optimized for close focus at F/1.5.

There are subtle cosmetic changes never seen in the Jupiter-3 line. The serial number is not shown at the name ring but can be found at the opposite side of the fov scale. The distance scale shows a small m instead a capital M. Very subtle is the change in number formatting. All numbers use a dot instead comma.

Only a limited number of lenses has been created yet. The New Jupiter 3+ is not listed at Lomography.com at the moment.

Disclaimer

The goal of this article is to give an overview over all the different official versions of the Carl Zeiss Sonnar 5cm / 50mm F/1.5. It will mainly focus on the Carl Zeiss originated lens versions and there on the Contax rangefinder mount ones. I will include other Sonnar copies from other manufacturers like Nikon or Zenit as it deepens the understanding.

I did my best to collect and validate the provided data and information. I've got a lot of information from systematic analyzing online offers of Sonnar lenses and measuring a lot of Sonnar lenses myself. Beware that there might be differences to other online sources or literature though. I'm aware of this discrepancies and could even find differences to information provided by other (Sonnar lens) experts. A reason for this is that there exists different sources for some historical facts. Although there is a lot of information available about Carl Zeiss and their lens manufacturing some essential information are missing or might be lost over the years and could only be guessed.

Last but not least the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 lenses that you own might not match the provided numbers or description. Although I measured a lot of samples myself the numbers are only an approximation. There still is a lot of sample variation and weight, diameter, size will differ even between 2 identical looking lenses of the same production batch. It is possible that some of my samples are bad ones with a completely wrong weight or fabrication failures. Please keep this in mind when using and comparing the given numbers.

Then the Sonnar 5cm is notorious for its hundreds of different versions. The goal of this article is not to list all existing variations and prototypes of the Sonnar 5cm F/1.5 but the lenses official main versions. Though even after 2 years of research I can not rule out that there are still some main versions missing here. But you can nevertheless use this documentation to evaluate if your lens is a common Sonnar lens, a rare version or a unique variation.

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