Sonnar 150mm f/4 (SL66)
Carl Zeiss · Rollei SL66 · 1966 · Sonnar, 5 elements in 3 groups
Also known as: Rollei SL66 Sonnar 150mm f/4 · Rolleiflex SL66 Sonnar 150mm F4 · Carl Zeiss Sonnar 4/150 SL66 · Sonnar HFT 150mm f/4 SL66 · Rollei HFT Sonnar 150mm F4 SL66 · Zeiss Sonnar 150mm f4 for Rollei SL66 · Sonnar 1:4 f=150mm Rolleiflex SL66 · Rollei SL66 Sonnar 150mm leaf shutter · ローライ SL66 ゾナー 150mm F4 · ローライフレックス SL66 Sonnar 150mm F4 · カールツァイス ゾナー 150mm F4 SL66
Variants & identification
| Variant | Mount | Years | Serial ranges | Production |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sonnar 4/150 without shutter (October 1966 onward) | Rollei SL66 | 1966 | — | — |
| Sonnar 4/150 with leaf shutter, LS (January 1970 – 1988) · Leaf shutter in the lens, X and M sync to 1/500 s, cocked by hand before each exposure; the body's focal-plane shutter is set to 1/30 s or slower | Rollei SL66 | 1970–1988 | — | — |
- Rollei built the SL66 lenses under licence from Carl Zeiss from 1974, engraved 'Made by Rollei'; the earlier lenses are Zeiss-built from Oberkochen. The brand is Carl Zeiss because the design and name are Zeiss's.
- Five elements in three groups for both barrels in sl66.rolleigraphy.eu (3/5), English Wikipedia (5/3) and Japanese Wikipedia; the leaf-shutter lens is the same optic in a shutter barrel, which is why it is a variant here rather than a page of its own. Weights, dimensions and the f/32 minimum are from the English Wikipedia table.
- Closest focus is the body's bellows limit, 0.6 m (2 ft) in English Wikipedia; the lens has no helicoid.
- HFT dating: sl66.rolleigraphy.eu gives 1972 for HFT on its lenses page and 1974, with the start of Rollei's licence production, on its cameras page, where the chronology is written for the Planar 80 and is assumed to hold for the 150. Chrome aperture rings run to about 1982, black after (lenses page). No blade count, production total or list price was found.
- Shutter operation on the LS lens: cocked separately before each exposure (English Wikipedia: 'not particularly convenient'); the body shutter set to 1/30 s or slower so that it is open while the leaf shutter fires (camera-wiki). The shutter's speed range was not found in a maker document and is not given.
How to tell them apart
- A 150 mm Sonnar with no focusing ring and the SL66 double bayonet; the SLX/6000 Sonnar 150 has a helicoid and electronic contacts, the Hasselblad Sonnar 150 a Synchro-Compur or Prontor shutter and the V bayonet
- Two barrels: the plain lens with only an aperture ring, and the LS lens with a shutter-speed ring and cocking lever, 160 g heavier
- Zeiss-built lenses read Carl Zeiss; Rollei-built lenses from 1974 read 'Made by Rollei' with HFT; chrome aperture ring before about 1982, black after
Sonnar 4/150 without shutter (October 1966 onward):
- A bare barrel with an aperture ring and no shutter-speed ring: 79 × 94.5 mm, 545 g (English Wikipedia)
- Carl Zeiss on the single-coated lenses of 1966–c.1974 and on Zeiss-built HFT lenses; 'Made by Rollei' with HFT on the licence-built lenses from 1974, which camera-wiki lists as a separate 'Sonnar Rollei-HFT 150mm' row
- Chrome aperture ring until about 1982, black after; the open-aperture-metering mount of the SL66E/X/SE on late lenses and on earlier ones retrofitted by Rollei service
Sonnar 4/150 with leaf shutter, LS (January 1970 – 1988):
- A shutter-speed ring and cocking lever on the barrel; 82 × 94 mm and 705 g against 545 g for the plain lens (English Wikipedia)
- Same 5/3 Sonnar optic and the same f/4–32 range as the plain lens
- Sonnar 4/150 without shutter (October 1966 onward): The medium telephoto launched with the camera in October 1966 and listed by sl66.rolleigraphy.eu until after 1994. It reverse-mounts on the double bayonet like the shorter lenses.
- Sonnar 4/150 with leaf shutter, LS (January 1970 – 1988): Introduced in January 1970 together with the leaf-shutter Distagon 80 to give the SL66 flash synchronisation to 1/500 s instead of the body's 1/30 s. The optic is the same five-element Sonnar in a barrel that carries the shutter. sl66.rolleigraphy.eu ends it in 1988, six years before the plain lens was still listed.
Specifications
- Formula
- Sonnar, 5 elements in 3 groups
- Construction
- 5 elements / 3 groups
- Aperture range
- f/4–f/32
- Min. focus
- 0.6 m
- Dimensions
- 79 × 94.5 mm
- Weight
- 545 g
- Filter
- Rollei Bayonet VI
- Years manufactured
- 1966
- Country
- West Germany
- Coating
- Single-coated 1966–c.1972/74; HFT multicoating after
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 Sonnar 4/150 is the portrait and medium-telephoto lens of the Rolleiflex SL66, launched with the camera in October 1966 and listed by sl66.rolleigraphy.eu until after 1994. It is a five-element, three-group Sonnar, the same count as the Hasselblad Sonnar 150 of 1957, but as on every SL66 lens there is no shutter and no focusing mount: the body’s bellows focus it to 0.6 m, it tilts with the lens board, and it can be reversed on the double bayonet. The plain lens weighs 545 g and measures 79 × 94.5 mm, with an automatic diaphragm from f/4 to f/32. Nuno Pinheiro calls a 50, an 80 and this 150 “the usual kit” for the camera; Dave Varo added one to his 80 for abstract work.
From January 1970 the same optic was also sold in a barrel with a leaf shutter, the LS lens, the SL66’s answer to a focal-plane shutter that syncs flash only at 1/30 s: X and M synchronisation to 1/500 s, with the lens shutter cocked by hand before each exposure and the body set to 1/30 s or slower so that it stands open. The shutter adds 160 g and 3 mm of diameter. sl66.rolleigraphy.eu ends the LS lens in 1988, while the plain lens ran on; James Tocchio describes the two leaf-shutter lenses as studio-oriented, and Wikipedia calls the cocking “not particularly convenient”. The Distagon 80 LS, the other leaf-shutter lens, is a different optic and has its own page.
Across both barrels the generations follow the system: single-coated Zeiss-built lenses engraved Carl Zeiss to about 1973, HFT multicoating from 1972 or 1974 depending on which page of sl66.rolleigraphy.eu is read, Rollei’s own licence production engraved “Made by Rollei” from 1974 (camera-wiki’s “Sonnar Rollei-HFT 150mm” row), chrome aperture rings giving way to black around 1982, and from 1982 a mount coupled for the open-aperture metering of the SL66E, X and SE, which Rollei service also retrofitted to older lenses. No review devoted to the lens was found; the camera reviews are shot with the 80. When buying, check that the automatic diaphragm snaps shut cleanly, and on an LS lens that the shutter cocks and runs and the sync contacts work; a Sonnar 150 with a focusing ring is the SLX/6000 lens and does not fit. Blade count, the LS shutter’s speed range, production totals and list prices were not found.
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 Sonnar 150mm f/4 (SL66)? We'd love to feature it (with credit).
Live listings
- 〓人気レンズ〓ローライフレックス Carl Zeiss Sonnar 150mm F4 Rolleiflex SL66
- ★レア★ ROLLEIFLEX SL66 E + CAEL ZEISS SONNAR F4 150mm #L991
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