Introduction
Meopta is a Czech company that variety of enlargers over the years. There were surprisingly popular in the West despite being an Iron-curtain country for most of their production life.
Quick Comparison
| Axomat Ia |
Early 1960s |
35mm |
16x23 |
Single condenser |
Rack & pinion |
No |
Oblique post |
1,2 |
split-line rangefinder focus |
| Opemus 4 x 4 |
Mid 1960s |
1-5/8 x 1-5/8" |
15-½x 24 |
Single condenser |
Rack & pinion |
No |
Oblique post |
2 |
|
| Opemus 6 x 6 |
Mid 1960s |
2-¼ x 2-¼ |
15-½x 24 |
Double condenser |
Rack & pinion |
No |
Oblique post |
2 |
|
| Opemus IIa |
Mid 1960s |
2-¼ x 2-¼ |
15-½x 24 |
Double condenser |
Rack & pinion |
No |
Oblique post |
2 |
split-line rangefinder focus |
| Proximus |
Early 1960s |
35mm |
13-½ x 18 |
Double condenser |
Helical |
No |
Single post |
1 |
split-line rangefinder focus |
Key
Era: It's nearly impossible to get actual production year spans; I've provided this simply to give an idea of when an enlarger was in production.
Focusing:
- Bellows means that the lens stage is connected to bellows that expand and collapse, and the bellows are typically moved via a wheel using friction (as opposed to using rack & pinion gears).
- Helical focusing means a collar around the lens is turned, and the lens housing is threaded so that the lens moves up and down.
- Rack & Pinion means that the lens stage moves up and down via a knob that turns gears.
- Tube means that the lens is set into a tube that moves up and down (as opposed to bellows).
Autofocus: not to be confused with what we think of as autofocus today; these enlargers don't focus themselves. What they do is offer a sort of tracking control so that once the image is focussed, it says in focus as you change the elevation of the head for cropping.
Column: all columns are assumed to be vertical unless oblique is noted. Oblique columns (i.e. angled forward) are nice at higher head elevations because the image won't expand back across the column post when the head is at the top of the post. On smaller enlargers this wouldn't be a problem, but at larger magnifications (and with lenses with shorter focal lengths), this can become a concern.
References
- Modern Photography magazine, October 1962
- Modern Photography magazine, February 1965
