Photographer Brandon Edwards created a video on an antique Petzval lens that he own. He’s sure it’s from the 1800s and originally made in France, but can’t totally verify it. Brandon gives us a history of the lenses and essentially tells us that this lens was the Canon L equivalent of its time because of the much shallower depth of field.
Lenses like these were created using math by Joseph Petzval and later on were improved by the Voigtlander company.This lens is so unique because for many years, science and math wasn’t used to create lenses. But in this case, it was to ensure the best image quality. This would affect the production of lenses for years to come.
A tour of the Petzval lens is after the jump. But for a more modern take, check out Lomography’s offering.
