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Vintage Kodak Projection Ektar f:4.5 75mm Enlarger Lens Bokeh Test and Review



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This vintage Kodak Projection Ektar f:4.5 75mm Enlarger Lens is the next interesting discovery that we're going to test and review for its bubble (or bubbly) bokeh, swirly bokeh, contrast, sharpness, and flare. So, if you're one of our regular readers, make sure you're with us until the end of this post.

The Kodak Projection Ektar 75mm f/4.5, manufactured by Eastman Kodak Company, represents a period of rapid development in optical design during the late 1930s and early 1940s. It was produced in Rochester, New York, and it belongs to Kodak’s respected Ektar line—known for delivering high optical performance across both professional and industrial applications.

The “Projection Ektar” markings on it reflect its intended role in enlargers and projection systems, where consistent sharpness and even illumination were essential. A 75mm focal length made it particularly suitable for medium format negatives, a common standard in commercial and studio photography of the time.

It has a design that's characteristic of pre-war manufacturing: a solid chrome-plated brass barrel, scalloped grip for handling, and clearly engraved markings. Optically, it follows the straightforward, efficient formulas typical of enlarging lenses of the era, optimized for flat-field reproduction rather than general-purpose photography.

An interesting detail is its place in the timeline of lens technology. This model dates to a period just before anti-reflective coatings became widespread, meaning it reflects a stage when optical engineers relied primarily on glass types and element configuration to control image quality. Normally, because the lens flaws are abundant in these lenses, there's a better chance of peculiar characters if you mount them on mirrorless cameras.

This specific lens comes with haze and traces of fungus, which is not rare in such vintage lenses. On account of this, the photos are considerably clean. The color shots were taken with the camera set on vivid colors, and the black-and-white shots were taken in grayscale on the camera. That is, they were not edited to black-and-white post-production. This lens has 10 aperture blades that were kept wide open during photography.



Color Shots and Bokeh

You can scroll down to see the sample shots that we took with this lens mounted on a Nikon Z7 mirrorless camera. Photos are surprisingly sharp, and bubble bokeh is spectacular. Circles have sharp edges, and merge into each other and gain the color of the background; take, for example, the 9th photo in the frame below. I think you agree that its bokeh is great. Also, perhaps because of the mount that we used on this lens, we were able to approach the subject and focus at close range, as if it was a macro lens. This is clear in the first shot below.




Black-and-White Photography

While bokeh remains fascinating without color, the sharpness and contrast in the photos below catch the eye of the beholder.


Flares

Although the front element is relatively deep into the body of this lens, it was worth the effort to find an angle so that sun rays shine nearly parallel to the front element of the lens. This lens ranks in the top three of the lenses we've tested so far in terms of the beauty of its flare.



Although sun rays lose color in black-and-white photography, the magic of flare stays in place. You can see the composition of rays and beautiful bokeh coins in the B&W photos below.


I assume you have noticed so far that we are not sharing videos anymore. This way, we are able to post more often and share more interesting materials while preserving space on our hosting service as well. In the meantime, remember that if you are interested in videography or you'd like to know what videos look like with these lenses mounted on mirrorless cameras, leave us a comment or shoot us an email and we'll share more materials with you.


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