Tanaka Kogaku W Tanar 35mm f/3.5

Tanaka Kogaku W Tanar 35mm f/3.5

The W Tanar 35mm f/3.5 was the first wide-angle lens that Tanaka Kogaku built for its Tanack rangefinder cameras, and it remains one of the rarer products of that short-lived Japanese maker. It was announced in the autumn of 1955 alongside a 13.5cm telephoto, appearing first in an October special issue of Photo Art and then in the November issue of Shashin Kogyo, where the price was set at ¥13,800 [1]. The lens uses a compact optical layout of five elements in two groups [1]. Because Tanaka built it only in Leica thread mount (LTM / M39), it was sold for the company's own Tanack bodies and other screw-mount cameras rather than for the Nikon or Contax rangefinder systems that later Tanar wide-angles also served [1].

In handling the W Tanar follows the pattern of the rest of the Tanar line: a straight (non-rotating) helical, a focus ring with a focusing tab and infinity lock, and a distance scale engraved in feet down to about 3.5 feet, consistent with the close limit recorded for this lens [1]. The barrel is all chrome, the aperture ring carries fine knurling and is graduated from f/3.5 to f/16, and the front bezel is black, marked W TANAR 35mm f:3.5 Tanaka Kogaku Japan with the W picked out in red [1]. As a wide-angle of this era it was used with an accessory viewfinder rather than the camera's own coupled rangefinder patch.

The W Tanar 35mm f/3.5 was made in a single all-chrome version and never received the black-and-chrome finish that later Tanar lenses adopted around early 1957 [1]. Production was short: confirmed serial numbers run from 35002 to 35293, the sequence almost certainly beginning at 35001 with the "35" prefix denoting the focal length, which implies a total output of roughly 300 units [1]. The lens was effectively superseded by the faster W Tanar 35mm f/2.8, introduced in late 1956, although the f/3.5 continued to appear in Tanack IV-S advertising into 1957 and then again from February to June 1958, probably to clear remaining stock [1].

Optical qualities

Rendering Independent test data and user reviews specific to this lens are scarce, reflecting its very small production. What is documented is the optical configuration, five elements in two groups, and its standing as a modest-aperture wide-angle from the mid-1950s [1]. No reliable, repeatable measurements of its sharpness, contrast, flare behavior, distortion, or bokeh have been published, so any characterization beyond the design itself would be speculative.

History

Development and Launch Tanaka Kogaku produced a family of Tanar lenses in Leica screw mount for its Tanack cameras, spanning the Tanack 35, IIIS and IV-S through the later SD, V3 and VP [1]. The W Tanar 35mm f/3.5 and the Tele-Tanar 13.5cm f/3.5 were the first lenses outside the standard 50mm range, both announced in chrome finish in late 1955 [1]. They were aimed at expanding the system around the Tanack IV-S, then Tanaka's current interchangeable-lens body.

Production Evolution The lens did not go through optical or coating revisions of its own. Across the broader Tanar line, Tanaka shifted from chrome to black-and-chrome finishes around early 1957, but the 35mm f/3.5 was withdrawn before that change reached it and was instead replaced in the catalogue by the black-and-chrome 35mm f/2.8, which also became available in Nikon and Contax mounts [1].

Special editions No factory special editions, military or export variants, or alternate mounts of the W Tanar 35mm f/3.5 are documented; unlike the later 35mm f/2.8, it was produced only as an all-chrome lens in Leica screw mount [1].

Collector Notes Genuine examples can be identified by the all-chrome barrel, the red W on the black front bezel, the feet-only distance scale, and serial numbers in the narrow 35xxx band [1]. The lens should not be confused with the more common W Tanar 35mm f/2.8, which is black and chrome and may be engraved either W TANAR or W TANACK [1]. Tanaka appears not to have made a dedicated hood for the 35mm lenses, reportedly because the recessed front element made one unnecessary; in Leica mount the lens was supplied in an oval brown leather case holding the lens and a TANACK 35mm accessory finder side by side, and front caps were embossed Tanack [1]. Given the estimated production of only a few hundred units, completeness with the matching finder and case is a meaningful consideration for collectors.

Sources

• [1] Camerapedia. Tanar lenses. https://camerapedia.fandom.com/wiki/Tanar_lenses