We can start with perhaps nothing else than one of the most famous lenses in history - the Heliar from the German company Voigtländer, first created in 1900, here in one of its many iterations in 360mm focal length and f4.5 aperture.

• there were really, really many versions - they would make a book in their own right. The pre-Dynar version produced from 1900-1902, the famous (and considered by many to be the best) Dynar design emerging in 1903, and the most widely used post-war iteration, gradually displacing the Dynar version entirely after WWI. Lenses varied in aperture (f3.5 to f5.5), focal length, construction and size, and later even added anti-reflective coatings. The material was also experimented with - aluminium alloys, which had the advantage of very low weight, were replaced by brass during the First World War (due to the shortage of aluminium used, among other things, in armaments).
• I've had various types - aluminium Dynars, black brass modern types like the one on the picture, or the interesting Frankenstein's monster in the form of a mix of aluminium alloy and modern construction. You can also come across rare non-black gold brass versions. Although some will surely swear to you on the honesty of their mother that there is a quite obvious and abysmal difference in output between the versions, I - I hate to admit it - didn't notice any. I am sure there is one, but God forbid that my eyes should see it. The Heliar name is such a precious family silver that it has survived to this day and is still in production - but of course on digital (I am crossing myself and spitting over my left shoulder) cameras. It should be noted that it really has only the name in common with the original Heliars.

My current version is nothing more than a 2.5kg heavy beast made of blackened brass and glass (more eruditely expressed, a more modern iteration with anti-reflective layers of not inconsiderable weight and selected materials) that must have crushed an entire regiment of toes in its precious years of existence. Asymmetrical five-lens construction with a rear cemented biconvex group, a front convex-concave group, and blah blah blah, noone doesn't really care about this anyway (I'll refer the few weirdos to the Lens Vade Mecum. A ready-made bible - and big book - which is a must have for any lens enthusiast. For the less determined, the obligatory Wikipedia or Camera-wiki will suffice).

The nature of the glass (slang for the word "lens", reserved exclusively for dense photography gangs) is perfect for portraiture - sharp yet soft rendition with a beautiful bokeh. It gradually earned a reputation as the Crème de la Crème of portrait photography - so much so that many celebrities, from kings and maharajas, movie stars, warlords and lords and peasants, strictly refused to be photographed with any other lens than this one. The word "Heliar" is a derivative of Helios, the Greek sun god. How about standing alongside the greats and getting immortalized before the good weather leaves us again? Because as the late Ned Stark used to say - God rest his soul - winter is coming! So write in and don't despair, see you in the next part. There's nothing you can do about it.