EB-1 wrote:
The 800/11 is not a catadioptric lens.
EBH
Yes, I know. I just meant that these lenses are spiritual successors to the old school mirror lenses that were common in the past. Largely due to the fixed aperture.
Because of the DO element and telescoping design, they can pack quite small for their reach, something akin to how catadioptric lenses (which also feature fixed apertures) were physically much smaller then conventional lenses back in the day
Outside of that of course, they are pretty different.
The 400/4 DO had a regular aperture, so why can't the newer DO lenses? Is it just because f/11 sucks enough already and to save costs? The cats had issues with diaphram placement, but it's not impossible.
