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Cooke Optics Ltd. is a camera lens manufacturing company based in
Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...
. Administratively speaking, Cooke Optics is a spin-off of the company
Taylor-Hobson Taylor Hobson is an English company founded in 1886 and located in Leicester, England. Originally a manufacturer of still camera and cine lenses, the company now manufactures precision metrology instruments—in particular, profilometers for the ...
. However, Taylor-Hobson used to be a lens manufacturer and Cooke lenses used to be its sole activity before Taylor-Hobson moved to the market of metrology instruments. Hence the foundation of Cooke Optics can be regarded as the foundation of Taylor, Taylor and Hobson (TTH) in 1886, and Cooke Optics can be regarded as the successor of the original Taylor, Taylor and Hobson business. The name Cooke originally came from the company T. Cooke & Sons of
York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...
, a manufacturer of telescopes. The optical manager of that company, H. Dennis Taylor (no relation), devised the
Cooke triplet The Cooke triplet is a photographic lens designed and patented (patent number GB 22,607) in 1893 by Dennis Taylor who was employed as chief engineer by T. Cooke & Sons of York. It was the first lens system that allowed elimination of most of th ...
lens in the 1890s. Cooke of York was not interested in the manufacture of camera lenses, and licensed this design and others to TTH. Subsequently many of TTH's own designs, though unconnected with Cooke of York, also carried the Cooke brand. The Cooke triplet lens was also made under licence by
Voigtländer Voigtländer () was a significant long-established company within the optics and photographic industry, headquartered in Braunschweig, Germany, and today continues as a trademark for a range of photographic products. History Voigtländer was fo ...
and other companies. Throughout the twentieth century TTH produced a series of innovations, and supplied lenses for the (once large) UK camera industry, for photolithography in the printing industry in the USA and UK, and for cinematography. It provided a succession of technical solutions for Hollywood's evolving needs. Notable products include: * a soft-focus 'portrait' lens favoured by
Clarence White Clarence White (born Clarence Joseph LeBlanc; June 7, 1944 – July 15, 1973) was an American bluegrass and country guitarist and singer. He is best known as a member of the bluegrass ensemble the Kentucky Colonels and the rock band the Byrds, ...
and
Alfred Stieglitz Alfred Stieglitz (January 1, 1864 – July 13, 1946) was an American photographer and modern art promoter who was instrumental over his 50-year career in making photography an accepted art form. In addition to his photography, Stieglitz was kno ...
* the Aviar aerial survey lens, designed in World War I when German lenses and optical glass became unavailable to the RAF * the Series XV triple-
convertible lens A camera lens (also known as photographic lens or photographic objective) is an optical lens or assembly of lenses used in conjunction with a camera body and mechanism to make images of objects either on photographic film or on other media capab ...
for 10×8 inch cameras, favoured by
Ansel Adams Ansel Easton Adams (February 20, 1902 – April 22, 1984) was an American landscape photographer and environmentalist known for his black-and-white images of the American West. He helped found Group f/64, an association of photographers advoca ...
and others (also see below) * the Opic and Speed Panchro large-aperture lenses, widely used by Hollywood * the inverse telephoto (retrofocus) lens, created for use with the early
Technicolor Technicolor is a series of Color motion picture film, color motion picture processes, the first version dating back to 1916, and followed by improved versions over several decades. Definitive Technicolor movies using three black and white films ...
process, and now the standard design for wide-angle lenses in 35 mm and other small-format cameras * high-quality zoom lenses for cinematography and television * high quality lenses for cinema projectors
Bell & Howell Bell and Howell LLC is a U.S.-based services organization and former manufacturer of cameras, lenses, and motion picture machinery, founded in 1907 by two projectionists, and originally headquartered in Wheeling, Illinois. The company is now he ...
took control of the company in 1930, but it was sold to
Rank Rank is the relative position, value, worth, complexity, power, importance, authority, level, etc. of a person or object within a ranking, such as: Level or position in a hierarchical organization * Academic rank * Diplomatic rank * Hierarchy * H ...
in 1946. In its later years, Taylor-Hobson's main interest was
metrology Metrology is the scientific study of measurement. It establishes a common understanding of units, crucial in linking human activities. Modern metrology has its roots in the French Revolution's political motivation to standardise units in Fran ...
, and it now operates as a subsidiary of
Ametek AMETEK, Inc. is an American multinational conglomerate and global designer and manufacturer of electronic instruments and electromechanical devices with headquarters in the United States and over 220 sites worldwide. The company was founded in 1 ...
. In 1998, Cooke Optics was a new company formed following a buy-out of the Optical division of Taylor-Hobson. Chairman Les Zellan led the buy-out. Dave Stevens was then Managing Director of the Leicester-based facility and remained so until 2008 when Robert Howard replaced him as Chief Executive Officer. The company now designs and manufactures 35 mm lenses for the film industry. In a reversion to its previous markets, it has also made limited quantities of the PS945, a redesigned Pinkham and Smith portrait lens, and the Series XVa, a redesigned triple-convertible lens for 10×8 inch format. The company distributes to over 60 countries worldwide and exports 90% of its production. In 2013, the
Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS, often pronounced ; also known as simply the Academy or the Motion Picture Academy) is a professional honorary organization with the stated goal of advancing the arts and sciences of motio ...
gave the company an award of merit, saying it "helped define the look of motion pictures over the last century," with innovations over the years that have included zoom lenses for movie cameras and lenses that did not require bright lights. resulting in lenses that produce what is known in the industry as the "Cooke look" — warm, natural images on the screen.


References

{{Reflist


Further reading

* Wilkinson, Matthew, and Colin Glanfield. ''A lens collector's vade mecum.'' (CD publication) "Version 7/5/2001" (7 May 2001).


External links


Official site
;History:

Lens manufacturers Manufacturing companies of the United Kingdom Photography companies of the United Kingdom Photography in the United Kingdom British brands Recipients of the Scientific and Technical Academy Award of Merit