Variogon 75–150mm f/4.5 (6000)
Schneider-Kreuznach · Rollei 6000 · 1976 · Zoom, 15 elements in 13 groups
Also known as: Rollei Variogon 75-150mm f/4.5 HFT · Schneider Variogon 75-150mm F4.5 Rollei · Variogon 4.5/75-150 Rolleiflex 6008 · Rollei 6000 75-150 zoom PQ · Schneider-Kreuznach Variogon HFT 75-150 PQ · Rollei SLX 75-150mm Variogon · ローライ バリオゴン 75-150mm F4.5 · シュナイダー バリオゴン 75-150mm PQ ローライ · ローライフレックス 6000 75-150mm ズーム
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150, original SLX-type lens (no PQ marking) | Rollei 6000 | 1976 | — | — |
| Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150 PQ (1988–) | Rollei 6000 | 1988 | — | — |
- Construction (15 elements in 13 groups), f/4.5–32, 1.8 m closest focus, 100 × 180 mm, 1,800 g and the 95 mm thread are from the English Wikipedia list of SLX/6000/Hy6 lenses, drawn from Rollei's brochures; rolleigraphy.eu gives 15 elements, a 55–29° diagonal field, M 95 × 1 and a 'macro setting 1.8–0.25 m'; Japanese Wikipedia gives 13群15枚, 1.8 m and φ95.
- Years. 1976 is the start of the original lens generation, not a documented date: the lens is absent from Rollei's 1984 SLX table as reproduced on English Wikipedia, so its original version was most likely introduced between 1984 and 1988. 1988 is the 6008 professional's year for the PQ. No end dates were found.
- The English Wikipedia list notes that the Variogon zooms were designed and manufactured by Schneider-Kreuznach even in the SLX years, when the rest of the line was Zeiss-designed and built by Zeiss or by Rollei under licence.
- Relatives. A Schneider Variogon 75–150 of the same speed was sold as the Zoom Zenzanon-S for the Bronica SQ, in Bronica's own mount and shutter; no source consulted compares the two computations. The autofocus AF Variogon 60–140 f/4.6 of 2002 is a different, later Schneider design.
- Not found: the number of diaphragm blades, the macro setting's magnification, a list price, production figures, and any published test.
How to tell them apart
- The shorter of the two manual-focus Variogons: 75–150 mm, f/4.5, 95 mm thread, 100 × 180 mm, 1.8 kg, with a macro setting reaching 0.25 m; Rollei's brochure wording, as quoted on rolleigraphy.eu, is 'Zoom lens with extra-ordinary image quality. Heavy!'
- Rollei 6000 bayonet with ten contacts and no shutter-speed ring; aperture ring 4.5–32 with an 'A' position; nothing beside the numbers on the original lens, 'PQ' on the later one
- Not the Zenzanon-S Variogon 75–150 for the Bronica SQ, which has Bronica's bayonet and a Seiko shutter, and not the Mamiya or Hasselblad zooms of this range
Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150, original SLX-type lens (no PQ marking):
- No PQ marking beside the aperture numbers (rolleigraphy.eu); shutter-priority and manual exposure only
- M95 × 1 thread, 100 × 180 mm, 1.8 kg, macro setting (English Wikipedia list, rolleigraphy.eu)
Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150 PQ (1988–):
- 'PQ' engraved or printed to the right of the aperture numbers (rolleigraphy.eu)
- Aperture-priority and program exposure on the 6008 and later; 1/500 s top speed; no PQS version was listed
- Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150, original SLX-type lens (no PQ marking): The original-generation lens, listed as an SLX type by the English Wikipedia list and as 'O' by rolleigraphy.eu. It is not in Rollei's 1984 table of SLX lenses as reproduced on English Wikipedia, which has only the 140–280 zoom, so it may have joined the line between 1984 and the PQ lenses of 1988; no source consulted dates it.
- Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150 PQ (1988–): The Professional Quality electronics in the same glass. Japanese Wikipedia lists the PQ at 13群15枚, 1.8 m and φ95 mm.
Specifications
- Formula
- Zoom, 15 elements in 13 groups
- Construction
- 15 elements / 13 groups
- Aperture range
- f/4.5–f/32
- Shutter
- Electronically timed leaf shutter built into the lens, 30 s–1/500 s, its blades and the diaphragm driven by linear motors through the 10-pin contact; speeds are set on the body
- Min. focus
- 1.8 m
- Dimensions
- 100 × 180 mm
- Weight
- 1800 g
- Filter
- 95 mm
- Years manufactured
- 1976
- Country
- Germany
- Coating
- HFT multicoating
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 Variogon HFT 4.5/75–150 is the shorter of the two manual-focus zooms Schneider-Kreuznach supplied for the Rolleiflex SLX and 6000 system, a standard-to-portrait range at a constant f/4.5: fifteen elements in thirteen groups, stopping to f/32, focusing to 1.8 m normally and to 0.25 m on its macro setting, 100 mm across and 180 mm long, 1.8 kg, with a 95 mm filter thread. Rollei’s brochure, quoted on rolleigraphy.eu, promised “extra-ordinary image quality” and added “Heavy!”. The zooms were Schneider’s work from the start, the English Wikipedia list notes, in a line that was otherwise Zeiss-designed, and like every 6000 lens it has its own electronically timed leaf shutter and linear-motor diaphragm, driven by the body through the ten-pin bayonet from 30 s to 1/500 s.
Two versions were listed. The original lens, with no type marking, gives shutter-priority and manual exposure; it is recorded as an SLX type but does not appear in Rollei’s 1984 table of SLX lenses, where the only zoom is the 140–280, so it probably arrived in the 6006 years. The PQ of the 6008 era, marked beside the aperture numbers, adds aperture-priority and program modes. No PQS, EL or autofocus version followed; the autofocus zoom of 2002 was a new 60–140 mm design. A Schneider Variogon of the same range and speed was sold by Bronica as the Zoom Zenzanon-S for the SQ, but nothing consulted says whether the computations are shared.
No test or review was found, nor a list price. In use it covers the ground of the Planar 80 and Sonnar 150 at the cost of a stop and a kilogram, which is the trade a 6000 user would be making. When buying, work the zoom and focus through their travel, check the macro setting engages, and exercise the shutter and diaphragm on a body or tester, since nothing in the lens moves without power; read the barrel for “PQ” if the bodies’ automatic modes matter.
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 Variogon 75–150mm f/4.5 (6000)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).
Live listings
The listings collector hasn't run for this family yet — check back soon, or search the marketplaces directly meanwhile.