Ludwig J. Bertele

"As I am writing this, many of the hard copies have been snapped up, but that should not deter those of us interested in optics or the history of lenses for miniature cameras from locating a copy one way or another, for this is a fascinating and well written story about Bertele the man as well as a look into optical development from the 1920's to 1950's. ...

The book alternates between Bertele's personal history and the history of his lens designs, with early chapters also covering the history of lenses back into prehistory, and the development of optics since the beginning of the photographic record. Bertele (1900–1985) was an autodidact from a poor family who never went formally beyond secondary school, and was self-taught in mathematics and the Seidel Imaging Errors and formulas and their corrections. He went well beyond these concepts in his innovative designs – more or less as a pathfinder of new formulas and ways of conceptualizing what was needed for specific optical purposes. ...

The book is chock full of photographs: almost every area of interest covered in the text has its corresponding images, and these are well chosen and well reproduced. The translation is skillfully done and flows naturally, not the easiest thing to accomplish as this reviewer knows from personal experience working with other writers' texts. Extensive picture credits and references are listed as befits such a scholarly work."

(Ed Schwartzreich, Viewfinder 52/3, 2019, p. 50f.)