Informal review: Zeiss ZM Biogon 21mm ƒ/4.5 Wide-angle Lens in Olympia (Oly 16)

21mm ƒ/4.5 Biogon lens with hood. The Leica M2 body is from 1967.

My New Biogon Lens

Dear Readers, once again, I failed to curb my GAS (Gear Acquisition Syndrome). I bought a Zeiss ZM* 21mm ƒ/4.5 C Biogon lens for Leica M mount. 

Decades ago, I had a 20mm ƒ/5.6 Russar lens, a pioneering optical design from the Soviet Union. It worked well, but I sold it in the early-2000s when I was reducing my photography stuff. 

But I missed a really wide view for 35mm and had eyed this Biogon for a while. LensRentals sent an email about a 20% off sale, and they offered one of these lenses. That was too good to resist. The lens looked absolutely new, and, I assume, they seldom, if ever, rented this particular unit. After ordering a 21mm Leitz viewfinder from Tamarkin Camera, I was ready to go. (I recommend both LensRentals and Tamarin Camera for good condition equipment and honest service.)

Zeiss made two 21mm lenses for the Leica M mount, this ƒ/4.5 C (Compact) model and an ƒ/2.8 version. The C lens is a compact gem and is intended for use on film cameras. It is almost distortion-free, meaning that straight lines remain straight. It takes 46mm filters, which are larger than the 39mm filters for my other Leitz lenses. The rectangle hood clips on the outside of the lens, and if you use filters, they must be the correct 46mm diameter to fit inside the hood.   

Finally, you need a 21mm external viewfinder to see what the lens covers. The built-in finder on my M2 camera has frame lines for 35mm, 50mm, 90mm, and 135mm lenses, but it is much too inaccurate to try to guess the coverage of a 21mm lens by looking at the edges of the viewfinder. The best external finders come from Leitz (Leica), Zeiss, and Voigtlander. The Leica unit was the only one with an offset shoe such that the mounted finder does not overhang the shutter speed dial (see the photo above). 

T400CN Examples, Olympia, Washington

One October morning with misty light, I walked around downtown Olympia. Here are some examples of how this 21mm lens can take in the big picture. Please click any photo to see it enlarged.

View south on Capital Way (21mm ƒ/4.5 Biogon lens, 1/15 sec.)

Capital Way sidewalk

Art alley parallel to 4th Avenue

Olympia Federal Savings parking lot (1/30 ƒ/5.6). Note the straight lines.

Mid-century architecture, Olympia Federal Savings bank

Olympia has a good selection of mid-century architecture. The city must have enjoyed a period of prosperity after the war, resulting in a burst of commercial construction. Some of this architecture has aged well, but some of it looks dismal.

Legion Way view west (1/30 ƒ/5.6)

Sylvester Park from Dancing Goats Coffee

Capital Way sidewalk

5th Avenue

Olympia's downtown core is grungy and dirty. I wish the city would do a serious cleaning, pressure wash the sidewalks, remove graffiti, remove the homeless, and install more effective street drains. It is disgraceful considering it is the state capital. 

Morning on East Bay

Many mornings, especially after a storm, the light on East Bay is just magic. This is my view during my morning coffee.

Fuji Acros 100 Film

Washington State Capitol (May 3, 2024)

State of Washington General Administration office building from Columbia Street SW

This 1956 office building is an example of International Style architecture, emphasizing horizontal lines and severe lack of external ornamentation. 

"The building was designed by prominent Tacoma architect, A. Gordon Lumm, in the International style distinctive for its horizontal cubical form and spare ornamentation. Its exterior minimalist appearance and interior architectural flexibility, including movable aluminum wall panels, demonstrate a growing aesthetic for modular space able to easily accommodate changing space and technology requirements."

This sounds like an early form of the cube farm. The building has been unoccupied since 2018 because the wiring, plumbing, and structure no longer meet building codes. Six years later, I do not see any work on demolition. Some planning documents state it will be replaced by a parking lot and restroom???

1970 (approx.) postcard of General Services Building.

This is a postcard from the University of Idaho's Northwest Historical Postcards Collection. The building did not look too bad back then. 

Summary

I am thrilled with my 21mm Biogon lens. It is high contrast and distortion-free. Resolution is remarkable on fine-grain film. It is compact enough to easily fit in a camera bag with the rest of the Leica kit. You need to be careful in framing to avoid converging lines, such as in the photograph of the General Services building. It is fine wide open at ƒ/4.5. You need the correct 46mm screw-in filters, but the mounts can be regular thickness (slim-mount not necessary). And you need the correct Zeiss rectangle hood. 

Summary: Highly-recommended!

* The Zeiss ZM lenses are made for use on Leica-M mount camera bodies. Most lenses are made in Japan, but a few are from Germany. Many reviewers state that the ZM lenses are as good optically as genuine Leica lenses, but are much less expensive. The 21mm ƒ/4.5 Biogon that I bought is out of production, so if you want one, grab one now. 

The 50mm ƒ/1.5 Sonnar is a modern version of the classic large aperture Sonnar lens, first made a century ago. I already have one Sonnar lens, a 1962-vintage Soviet 50mm ƒ/2 Jupiter-8. These Sonnars produce a different "look" than most contemporary 50mm lenses. 

The Zeiss ZM 25mm Biogon lens has a superlative reputation. But I won't buy one, I promise...... 

(Coming soon: 21 mm scenes in Athens and Istanbul.)

Return to the Olympia Brewery (Abandoned Films 13a)

Kodak T400CN, expired 2005

The Film

Dear Readers, you may remember that in February (2024), I used some long-expired Kodak T400CN black and white film. Because it was old, I exposed it at EI=100 rather than the original 400. The results were successful, and the film is convenient because the infrared scratch tool in my Nikon Coolscan 5000 scanner cleans flaws and minor scratches. 

In preparation for an upcoming trip, I bought some more T400CN film from an eBay seller who said they had been stored in a refrigerator. I shot identical scenes at 100, 200, and 400. The roll came back really thin. The 100 frames scanned adequately, but the 200 and 400 were hopeless. I must give credit to the Coolscan scanner because it extracted so much data from the 100 frames. And having the ICE function to clean scratches and dust saves an immense amount of time.  

Results in Tumwater

Here are some more frames of the old Olympia Brewery in Tumwater. These are the 100 exposures, with minor adjustment in the brightness after scanning. 

(50mm F/2 Pentax-A lens, yellow-green filter)

35mm ƒ/2.8 Pentax-A lens at ƒ/4

The back of this building was peeled off. I heard that a company removed machines, and peeling off the wall was the only way to remove large equipment. Of course, now this eyesore sits here year after year. 

Waiting for a seat (50mm ƒ/2 lens at ƒ/8)

This concrete hulk is next to Custer Way. The back, with the peeled off wall, is within sight of the historic Schmidt House, which is owned by the Olympia Tumwater Foundation. The foundation built the 15-acre park along the Deschutes River waterfalls. 

Turn the corner to Capital Way. The Pacific Highway, formerly Route 99, runs over a 1938 bridge. It was decorated with Art Deco and Native American motifs. 

View of Rte 99 north over 1938 bridge. (Photograph 1951-1960, Item P40_N02, courtesy of the Olympia Tumwater Foundation)

Figure on northwest side of Capital Way (Rte 99)

Totem post, northeast side of Capital Way (Rte 99)

Former North Pacific Restaurant

The North Pacific Restaurant burned on June 25, 2024. Once popular with brewery workers, it had been unoccupied for many years. The "Cafe" in the color picture above is at the same location as the South Pacific (probably the same building). As of November 7, trucks were removing the debris and timbers. 

Factory walkways under the Rte 99 bridge

More walkways

View south past former powerhouse

Summary

This roll of T400CN had lost at least 2 stops of sensitivity compared to when it was new (ISO 400). But I think the frames of the old brewery, taken on a grey day, look fine. They have a classic vintage black and white look, a bit gritty (grungy?) with some grain. 

The frames above are from 50mm ƒ/2 and 35mm ƒ/2.8 Pentax-A lenses. I am impressed at the resolution of these modest-priced lenses (click any picture to expand it). Pentax made excellent glass in the 1970s, 1980s, and later, easily the equal of the big name companies. These mid-century lenses may not be as "sharp" as the newest optics, but does it make any difference?

Next roll: try at Exposure Index 50?

Trains Through Chehalis, Washington

Chehalis is the County Seat of Lewis County, Washington. It is south of Centralia and is overshadowed economically by the larger city. But Chehalis has a well-preserved downtown with late 1800s and early 20th century buildings. It was primarily a logging and railroad town in the late 1800s.  It also hosts the BNSF rail line, which cuts right through the center of town. 

Thundering through, get out of the way! (West Main Street, March 23, 2024, Panatomic-X film, 50mm ƒ/4 Distagon lens, yellow filter)

These enormous freight trains come thundering through town. The lights flash at the West Main Street crossing, the barrier arms swing down, and you wait. The ground starts to vibrate, and these trains roar through at 40? 50? 60 miles per hour?

Track debris

Milky Way dairy transportation company

Milky Way is the largest milk hauling company in the Pacific Northwest. One of their terminals is right next to the rail line off West Main Street.

DrinkAMugAMilkAMeal (Samsung mobile phone photo converted to black and white)

Line off Prindle Street (250mm ƒ/5.6 Sonnar lens, dark yellow filter)

Chehalis is a nice little town. The Willapa Hills bicycle trail starts here and continues west to Pe Ell. Eventually, it will be graded and paved all the way to Raymond. I need to explore Chehalis in more detail.

I took most of the photographs with a Hasselblad 501CM camera using Kodak Panatomic-X film, all frames tripod-mounted. 

Exploring Centralia, Washington

Centralia is a city in western Washington in Lewis County, about 25 miles south of Olympia. It was founded in 1850 by J. G. and Anna Cochran, who came via the Oregon Trail with their adopted son, George Washington, a free African-American. The town boomed in the early 1880s with the Northern Pacific Railroad building a rail line through the valley. From Wikipedia,

Founded as a railroad town, Centralia's economy was originally dependent on such industries as railroads and timber as well as coal and agriculture. At one time, five railroad lines crossed in Centralia, including the Union Pacific Railroad, Northern Pacific Railway, Milwaukee Road, Great Northern Railroad and a short line.

BNSF Rail Yard

Today, the BNSF's mainline tracks run just east of downtown Centralia. The switching yard was not too active on a sunny day in June (2024), but I stopped for a few photographs.

Better not stand here. Centralia BNSF rail yard (100mm ƒ/3.5 Planar lens) 

Centralia BNSF rail yard view south (100mm Planar lens)

Warehouse, East Hansen Street, Centralia

Alley off East Hansen Street

A Few Around Town

Time for lunch at Aceituno's, Harrison Avenue

Track off West First Street

Bowling parlor, now apartments, North Tower Avenue

Christmas was fun, North Pearl Street

Centralia is interesting, and there is plenty worthy of more exploring. I recall visiting my roommate's family somewhere in town in 1974 or 1975, but have no idea where they lived. Centralia was a worker/logging/mining town then (it looked rather rough), but I was young and not inspired by urban decay. 

The black and white photographs above are Kodak Panatomic-X film via my Hasselblad 501CM camera. The color frames are expired Kodak Gold 100 film, exposed at EI=64 in my Leica M2. The Gold was much grainier and less vibrant than when fresh. But the 35-year-old Panatomic-X film is perfect. Amazing!

When Film is too Old (Seattle 04)

Sample film strip, Epson Perfection 3200 Photo scanner

Oh, oh, some old film is just that, film that should have been discarded long ago. 

I bought an expired roll of Kodak High Definition film (Max 400??) at Photoland, the laboratory at The Evergreen State College in Olympia. It had been frozen but was much too old. I wanted to test my new/old Pentax MG. I had never heard of High Definition, and online information was scarce. It may have been discontinued around 2005. Kodak had a bad habit of renaming their various emulsions, often changing names in different markets. 

Most of the roll was grossly underexposed, and holding the strip up to the light, I could barely see any image data. The Epson 3200 flat bed scanner was remarkable at its ability to extract something for me to review. Some of the frames from Seattle looked marginally promising. I am amazed how well my Nikon Coolscan 5000 can extract data from a lousy negative. For the examples below, I scanned the frames with the Coolscan's automatic exposure function. Then I opened some of the frames in Photoshop and manually adjusted the contrast.   

Arriving at King Street Station, Seattle

King Street Station

Smith Tower from Jackson Street

Maybe I'll Walk-In (or maybe not)

Pine Street scooters

I am a Rockfish. Make some delicious fish 'n chips from me. Note the enormous eyes.

Rockfish are rather ugly. They live on rocky bottoms in cold water. There are at least 30 species in the Pacific Northwest. But they are delicious eating. Dingey's at the Olympia Farmers Market offers rockfish fish 'n chips. 

Let's drop in to Party in Reality. Well, maybe no.

I took these pictures with a Pentax MG camera, which has aperture priority autoexposure (meaning, you select an aperture on the lens, and the camera sets the correct shutter speed based on the through-the-lens light meter). The MG meters for as long as 14 or 15 seconds, which would be useful for tripod-mounted scenes. 

But because the film was so flawed, I do not know if the exposures were correct. The lens was a 50mm ƒ/2 Pentax-A with an unusual 5-element air-spaced optical design. 

Expired color film is a gamble. It just does not age well. Do not bother buying it. But black and white films, especially slow speeds, seem to last for years, especially if stored cool. Long-term readers may remember my amazing results with 60-year-old Versapan film packs. 

On the Waterfront at the Chehalis River - South Aberdeen, Washington

Chehalis River basin (based on USGS National Map data, from Wikimedia Commons)

The Chehalis River drains a broad area of western Washington's coastal hills and lowlands. This was an immensely rich timber area from the late-1800s to the mid-20th century. Logs were floated down the river in vast quantities to timber mills and processing companies along the riverfront between Aberdeen and South Aberdeen. 

2004 aerial photograph of South Aberdeen, with the Chehalis River in the foreground

This is a view from 2004, when a friend flew me from Olympia to the coast. In 2004, the waterfront just to the right of the highway bridge was occupied by a mill and lumber storage. Today, the Grays Harbor Historical Seaport occupies at least one building, and a roof truss company is in another.   

Chehalis River view east or upriver

For over a century, State and national agencies proposed to convert the lower stretch of the Chehalis River into a canal between Grays Harbor and Olympia. The project floated around for at least a century, but was never funded. Considering the environmental impact and cost, we are unlikely to ever see this idea again.  

The Lady Washington sometimes moors here at the historical seaport. It is a replica brigantine launched in 1989.

Concrete building of unknown purpose

I need to return and explore the Chehalis River waterfront in more detail.

Fun viewing at Rte 107 and Minkler Road

Further upriver in South Montesano, a collector has some interesting old trucks and a Studebaker Lark in his yard. The Lark was a decent car for the early-1960s, but it was not successful enough to save the company.  

Never-finished Satsop nuclear power plant

Continue upriver, and you reach the astonishing concrete monoliths that were once intended to become the Satsop nuclear power plant units WNP-3 and WNP-5. The State of Washington intended to build five nuclear power plants. One was completed and went into operation. The other four were bogged down with massive cost overruns, managerial failures, incompetence, and technical changes. In 1983, the Washington Public Power Supply System (WPPSS), better known as "Whoops," became the biggest municipal bond default of all-times. 

Today, two monumental cooling towers loom over the valley at Satsop. The incomplete containment buildings look like brutalism architecture run extreme. When our society collapses and we lose history records, future residents of the valley will look at these monoliths and wonder if aliens or the gods built them. What were they for? Were they religious structures? Is a King buried beneath?

I plan to return to the site. It is not quite an urban decay topic. These things will not decay; they are too strong. The concrete will harden for centuries, millennia. But they are grotesque.

The black and white photographs above are Kodak Tri-X 400 from my Fuji GW690II camera, the "Texas Leica," with a 5-element Fujinon 90mm ƒ/3.5 lens. Praus Productions in Rochester, NY, developed the film in Xtol.