Article: Emil Busch & ROW - Projection lenses and History

After I had been working on this for a very long time, I finally managed to finish (a first version) of my article

Emil Busch & ROW

In this write-up I'm trying to give some insights into the history of R.O.J.A., Emil Busch & ROW, provide an overview of their projection lenses including hundreds of sample images with many of those adapted and also try to give some estimates about the timeline of the various models and serial numbers.

It is my longest and most comprehensive write-up so far and I've invested a lot of time and energy into it. Thankfully I got some support from some official institutions in Rathenow, but particularly also from likeminded and helpful individuals all around the world. I really appreciate that and want to thank everyone for helping me out!

This is the first article which I'm publishing on my own website simplejoy.at

I hope it won't be too long before I'm able to release the next one, but of course it takes some time and effort to try and do these topics justice. If you have any additional thoughts, information or suggestions, please reach out here, in the comments of the article or via mail. I'm always happy to hear what you think.

Here are a couple of sample shots from the article, all taken with Emil Busch/ROW lenses:

ROW Cinerectar 80 mm f/1.9

In-still movement by simple.joy, on Flickr

A moment turns into adventure by simple.joy, on Flickr

Emil Busch Mod Kino 90 mm f/2
Fall-en by simple.joy, on Flickr

Emil Busch Neokino 50 mm f/1.6

A moment turns into adventure by simple.joy, on Flickr

Golden treesure by simple.joy, on Flickr

Emil Busch Mod Ki 185 mm f/5.4

Chaos rains supreme by simple.joy, on Flickr

Emil Busch Neokino 135 mm f/1.7

Stuck in the pasture by simple.joy, on Flickr

Emil Busch Neokino 120 mm f/2.6

Free form fall, finally! by simple.joy, on Flickr

You‘re outstanding! by simple.joy, auf Flickr

Emil Busch Glaukar 95 mm f/3.1

Chaos rains supreme by simple.joy, on Flickr

That's ridge... coming from a tool! by simple.joy, on Flickr

Emil Busch Neokino 85 mm f/2.1

Bokeh o-key by simple.joy, on Flickr

@Maoby:
One question, if you don't mind: I wanted to add you to my 'inspiration' page on my website. Is there any particular site or link, which gives the best overview of your excellent work in archiving and comparing digital cameras? Thanks in advance.

Of course, it would be an honor for me 😎
I have been using Flickr primarily for over fifteen years now.
With over 600 albums spread across seven pages, containing 41,000 photos
And Flickr statistics indicate that I have been visited more than 60 million times to date.
www.flickr.com/photos/maoby/albums

And here, too, with my two little stories

My Little History of DSLR/ML : dprevived.com/t/my-little-history-of-dslrml/2537/
My Little History of Digital Compacts: dprevived.com/t/my-little-history-of-digital-compacts/381/

The two (threads) have surely been seen by at least ten people 🤣

*I just skimmed your site Emil Busch et ROW for now, What a Herculean task!!
I admire people who have a beautiful kind of “madness”, and you're part of it 👍🏼

Thanks for the information - I've added it!

Thank you very much! I'll print the "A beautiful kind of madness", frame it and hang it on my wall as a reminder. It is indeed... BTW. 10 people might be a crowd compared to the ones who're willing to struggle through my book-sized article about a niche-within-a-niche topic like that. 😂

SJ, hats off for your endeavour, time and effort. I have glanced through about an 1/8th of it but have other things to do. I like the history of something I am very new to.

Count me as one who read the whole thing! (Though I barely understood anything about the lenses, I did learn a bit). I so admire your creativity and enjoyed all your beautiful images along the way.

An incredible piece of work: the text is for true geeks, but the photos are… a simple joy.

Thank you! I'm glad you found it interesting enough to give it a look. I doubt many people these days are very knowledgeable on Emil Busch, but I still hope that I can reach a couple of people who can add a thing or two over time. I've also been in contact with the official optical museum in Rathenow (the birthplace of the company) and I'm looking forward to hearing what they think about it.

Thanks a lot for that dedication! I'm really glad that you liked the images as well. I wanted to make sure to show enough captures taken with these old lenses, to balance all the historical details and specs... hope it worked out somewhat.

Thank you very much - that means a lot!