4. June 2003
The Rollei Mutar 0.7 x on Bay II

This article is a continued story of my experiences with the Rollei Mutar 0.7 x. My first article can be found here.

The Rollei Mutar 0.7 x (or Carl Zeiss Mutar 0.7 x) is a wideangle attachment lens for Rolleiflex TLR's.
It's a pair of optics build together to fit in front of the viewing as well as taking lens of almost any Rolleiflex TLR (Bay I, II and III).

In my first article I described the use and quality of the Mutar 0.7 x attached to a Rolleiflex 2.8GX (with the 80mm Planar f2.8).
However, as I indicated in the first article, the Mutar was originally designed to fit the 75mm Planar and we must assume that it then performs optimal on that lens.
Now, in order to attach the Mutar to a Bayonet II (the one used on a the f3.5 75mm lens), I had to remove the bayonet III ring to expose the bayonet II ring. Look here for further information.
Here is the Mutar 0.7 x with a Bay II attachment:



How the test was performed
As always I used Fuji Provia 100F for the test. The camera was mounted on a tripod and scans were made on a Minolta Dimage Scan Multi Pro at 3200 DPI.
All images shown here are taken at 1/125 sec. at f/11
Image quality
What we are interested in here, is how the Mutar performs on the 75mm Planar for which it was originally optimized for.

75mm Planar, Mutar 0.7x. 1/125, f/11

80mm Planar, Mutar 0.7x. 1/125, f/11

Colors differ quite a bit, because of a number of factors; the 80mm was taken at summer time while the 75mm was taken at spring. The old 75mm Planar also has a tendency to produce quite warm colors (both with and without the Mutar attached).
Also notice that vignetting (the dark corners) is much more pronounced on the 80mm.

The angle of view are slightly different. The 80mm becomes a 56mm while the 75mm becomes a 52,5mm.

Let's see the details:

75mm. Upper left corner	80mm. Upper left corner
75mm. Left side	80mm. Left side
75mm. Lower left corner	80mm. Lower left corner
75mm. Center	80mm. Center
75mm. Right side	80mm. Right side
75mm. Lower right corner	80mm. Lower right corner

Let me also drop in examples of how the 75mm Planar performs without the Mutar attached:

75mm. Upper left corner	75mm. No Mutar
75mm. Right side	75mm. No Mutar

Conclusion
Without doubt, the image quality of the 75mm + Mutar 07.x combo performs much better than the 80mm + Mutar.
Although image quality is reduced when using the Mutar on a 75mm Planar, the difference is much less pronounced than it is when using the Mutar on a 80mm Planar.
The 75mm behaves less "strange" in the corners with the Mutar attached and the strange "double image" effect disappears.
All in all the images becomes less distorted at any aperture than they do with the 80mm.
So, the conclusion will be, that if you are going to use a Mutar on your TLR, make sure you use it on a 75mm f3.5!

The new Rolleiflex 4.0 FW
I should of course also mention the new wide angle Rolleiflex TLR here - the Rolleiflex 4.0 FW.
Rollei has produced a new version of the legendary Wide Angle Rolleiflex from the 60's. It now features a new 50mm f4.0 Schneider lens.



At a retail price of around $4400 it is quite expensive and the 75mm + Mutar combo becomes a cheaper alternative.
The Mutar 0.7 x is designed to perform with optimal quality from f5.6, so while it is a bit slower than the FW, it is also more affordable.
An old Rolleiflex F model will cost around $550 in good shape and a Mutar 0.7 x is priced around $500-$800 depending on the condition. Only 1000 of ecah type of Mutars (0.7x and 1.5x) were produced, but they can be found now and then on the Net.

Links
My first test of the Mutar can be found here.
Don't miss my review of the Rolleiflex 2.8GX.

There are many sites and pages about Rolleiflex TLR cameras on the Net, here you will find links to pages that I've found very good and informative:
• Rolleigraphy.org by Ferdi Stutterheim - this site contains lot of information about TLR's and you'll find many links as well.
• Rollei.org - links and manuals.
• The Rollei Page by Dave Wyman - lots of links and information from photographer Dave Wyman.
• Rolleiflex TLR page by Torbjorn Aase - lots of information about TLR and accessories.
• Rollei Only - Canadian Collector of Rollei TLR Cameras.
• Rollei Fototechnic GmbH - the Rollei factory web site.

Mutars are sometimes for sale here and there on the net. I think you'll find some here:
• Collectcamera