Zoom Zenzanon-E Variogon 70–140mm f/4.5 (ETR)
Zenza Bronica · Bronica ETR · 1982 · Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon zoom, 15 elements in 13 groups¹
single source, unconfirmedAlso known as: Zenzanon-E Variogon 70-140mm f/4.5 · Zenzanon E 70-140mm F4.5 · Bronica Variogon 70-140mm f/4.5 · Schneider Variogon 70-140mm f4.5 Bronica ETR · Bronica ETR 70-140mm zoom · Zenzanon-E 70-140/4.5 · ゼンザノンE バリオゴン 70-140mm F4.5 · ブロニカ バリオゴン 70-140mm F4.5 · ゼンザブロニカ 70-140mm F4.5 ズーム
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Zoom Zenzanon-E Variogon 70–140mm f/4.5 | Bronica ETR | — | — | — |
- Elements, groups, 1.8 m closest focus and the 93 mm filter are from Japanese Wikipedia's ゼンザブロニカ lens table; the brochure transcription on the medfmt ETR page gives the same 13-group/15-element construction and adds the 1,500 g weight. Schneider-Kreuznach is named as the optical maker by both.
- The 0.25 m close focus in the macro setting and the Series 9a filter fitting are reported with the カメラ年鑑 (Camera Annual) 1982 entry and have not been checked against a second source.
- No launch date was found. The lens is absent from the 1976 MC catalogue, belongs to the Zenzanon-E generation of about 1980–81, and is listed in the 1982 Camera Annual; 1982 is the earliest year it can be placed with a source, not a release date, so the page carries the single-source flag. It did not continue into the PE catalogue of 1988 onward.
- The shutter is the Seiko #0 electronically timed leaf shutter common to every ETR lens: 8 s to 1/500 plus T, with B on the ETRSi and a mechanical 1/500 without battery, speed set on the body (camera-wiki.org for the body's shutter range; Japanese Wikipedia for the lens-shutter arrangement).
How to tell them apart
- Zoom Zenzanon-E with Variogon on the ring, a Schneider name no other ETR lens carries except the 125–250
- 93 mm filter thread and about 1.5 kg: far larger than any ETR prime short of the 500mm
- Two-ring zoom with a macro setting that reaches 0.25 m²
Zoom Zenzanon-E Variogon 70–140mm f/4.5:
- Name ring carries both names: ZENZANON-E and VARIOGON, with Schneider-Kreuznach's name on the Bronica ETR lens; no MC or PE version exists
- The only ETR zoom with a 93 mm front thread; the later PE zooms take 95 mm and the primes 58 or 62 mm
- Seiko #0 electronic leaf shutter inside the barrel; the shutter must be cocked for the lens to go on the body
- Zoom Zenzanon-E Variogon 70–140mm f/4.5: The single version. Japanese Wikipedia lists it among the Zenzanon-E lenses as a Schneider-Kreuznach OEM product; Bronica's own E-series brochure (as transcribed on the medfmt ETR page) credits the design to Schneider and Bronica together. The 'Tokina-made' story sometimes attached to it is not supported by any source consulted.
Specifications
- Formula
- Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon zoom, 15 elements in 13 groups¹
- Construction
- 15 elements / 13 groups
- Aperture range
- f/4.5
- Shutter
- Seiko #0 electronic leaf shutter, 8s–1/500 + T (B on the ETRSi), mechanical 1/500 without battery; speed set on the body
- Min. focus
- 1.8 m
- Weight
- 1500 g
- Filter
- 93 mm
- Country
- Japan
What reviewers say
No reviews aggregated yet — this family is still in the research queue. Written one? We'd love to index it.
History
The 70–140mm f/4.5 is the shorter of the two zooms Bronica sold for the ETR 6×4.5 system in its Zenzanon-E years, and it was not a Bronica design: both Japanese Wikipedia and the Bronica E-lens brochure name Schneider-Kreuznach as the maker of the optics, and the ring says so, carrying Schneider’s trade name Variogon beside Bronica’s Zenzanon-E. Bronica’s part was the Seiko #0 electronic leaf shutter and the four-claw bayonet, the same arrangement as every ETR lens: the body sets the speed from 8 seconds to 1/500 plus T, a mechanical 1/500 works without a battery, and the lens only goes on with the shutter cocked. The design is 15 elements in 13 groups, focuses to 1.8 m, and takes 93 mm filters on a barrel that the brochure puts at 1,500 g. The 1982 Camera Annual entry adds a macro setting reaching 0.25 m and a Series 9a filter fitting.
Its dates are loose. It is not in the 1976 MC catalogue, it belongs to the Zenzanon-E generation that arrived around 1980–81, and the 1982 Camera Annual lists it; no release date was found, so 1982 stands here as the earliest documented year rather than a launch. It did not carry over into the Zenzanon-PE catalogue of 1988 onward, where Bronica’s own 45–90 and 100–220 took the zoom slots. The ‘Tokina-made’ attribution that circulates for the ETR zooms is not supported by any source consulted; the evidence points to Schneider throughout.
No published review of the lens was found, and the page says nothing about its optics beyond the construction. On the ETR it is a two-ring zoom of 1.5 kg, heavier than any ETR prime below the 500mm, with a front thread that no other Bronica lens shares: 93 mm, a size that makes filters and hoods a hunt in their own right. A buyer should work both rings through their travel for stiff grease, check that the shutter fires at the slow speeds on a body with a fresh battery, and confirm the lens arrives cocked, since one that will not mount is usually one whose shutter was released off the camera.
Open points: the launch and discontinuation years, the minimum aperture, blade count, length and diameter, a list price in any currency, and any review.
This history is AI-written, from the sources listed at the foot of the page. Where the record is silent it says so rather than filling the gap — but no human wrote these sentences.
Example photos
Sample photo wanted — shot with a Zoom Zenzanon-E Variogon 70–140mm f/4.5 (ETR)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).
Live listings
- ★希少・極美品★ブロニカ BRONICA VARIOGON 70-140mm f4.5 #1838
- ★ジャンク品★ SCHNEIDER-KREUZNACH シュナイダー ZENZANON-E VARIOGON 70-140mm F4.5 for ZENZA BRONICA J2609022
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