Photographica Pages

An online guide to collectable cameras and related stuff

85-250/4 Zeiss Vario-Sonnar for Contarex

Introduced at Photokina in 1966, the 85-250/4 Vario-Sonnar was a marketing failure. Zoom lenses were starting to gain acceptance, and people were willing to trade a little image quality for the convenience of having multiple focal lengths in a single lens. Zeiss Ikon was not willing to compromise image quality and created two zoom lenses that did not trade image quailty for convenience, but instead traded afforabiliy and weight. This lens weighed in at nearly eight and a half pounds, and cost $849 in 1968.

The Zeiss product code for the lens is 11.2424.

Years produced	Quantity produced	Black or chrome	Angle of view	Elements/groups	Filter size
1966-1970?	581	Black	29-10 degrees	15/11	B96