Voigtländer, one of the oldest companies in the photographic industry, has had a significant impact on the history of photography since it was founded in the 18th century. Founded by Johann Christoph Voigtländer in Vienna, Austria, as a manufacturer of scientific instruments, the company has introduced pioneering innovations in the optical industry over the years.
While many companies had only short-lived successes in the industry, Voigtländer was at the forefront of analogue photography. The first big breakthrough came in 1840 with the Petzval lens, an innovative lens design by Josef Petzval that was characterized by its extremely high speed. This lens revolutionized daguerreotype portrait photography by allowing significantly faster exposure times.
In addition to manufacturing lenses, Voigtländer also produced groundbreaking cameras. They made the first all-metal daguerrotype camera, a milestone in the history of camera technology.
With the company moving to Braunschweig, Germany in the mid-19th century, Voigtländer continued on its path of innovation and became a dominant player in the photography industry. During the First World War, like many other companies, Voigtländer participated in the production of military equipment. But despite the economic and political challenges created by the two world wars, the company remained true to its core business of photography.
Another notable Voigtländer product was the first zoom lens for 35mm photography, introduced in 1959, and the first 35mm compact camera with built-in electronic flash, launched in 1965.
However, the late 1960s and 1970s were challenging for the company. The sale of Voigtländer to the Carl Zeiss Foundation and later integration with Zeiss-Ikon could not stop the company’s decline in a rapidly changing photo industry. The production of cameras was stopped in 1971, which meant the end of an era for Voigtländer.
After the factory closed, the company was transformed into Optical Works Voigtländer, in which Carl Zeiss AG, the state of Lower Saxony and the Braunschweig camera manufacturer Rollei participated. However, when Rollei collapsed in 1982, Plusfoto took over the Voigtländer name and sold it to Ringfoto in 1997.
In modern times, since 1999, the Japanese optics and camera company Cosina has manufactured and marketed products under the Voigtländer brand under license from Ringfoto GmbH & Co. ALFO Marketing KG.
