Biolam and Lomography

Biolam and lomography are some of the concepts we rarely understand and we hardly grasp. These terms are somewhat popular to those who have lived many years ago and for the scientists. The history of Lomo and its connections with Carl Zeiss Jena is an interesting and rather complex one. LOMO manufactured its first microscope in 1934 but its history goes further far back to 1914 when the factory first started producing optical equipment for the Russian army. However, during the 1930's, the Carl Zeiss Jena factories located in Germany were employing a vast work force of highly skilled laborers. Over its long history, mathematical theories and optical skills of Professor Abbe and Kohler and the manufacturing of new glass types by Dr. Otto Schott radically changed the nature of microscopy.
Some of the earliest post-war lomo microscopes are copies from the pre-war Jena catalogue as you would expect since much of the manufacturing plant was obtained by them but diversification over the years have produced a number of new designs. However you only have to look at many of the pre DIN objectives and accessories of older designs like the Biolam to see a very strong resemblance even today to those manufactured by Zeiss many years ago in their Jena workshops, indeed the objectives such as the apochromatic range are outwardly nearly identical to those of Jena in the 1930's, the glass however is different the raw material being sourced in Russia.

Lomo remained a rather secretive enterprise for many years after the war not only manufacturing microscopes but also optical equipment for the military. The lomo name remains and a large range of optics is still offered for sale, indeed you can still buy the Biolam in the U.S. now called the Multiscope. The Multiscope is offered along with more sophisticated and expensive stands with DIN objectives together with microscopes for polarizing and fluorescence work.

Sometimes, they have an argument if what is the best to use, lomo? Or Zeiss?

Zeiss made phase rings for their older condensers that had a tendency to flake or fall off. While, lomo is not alone in the grease problem, they have found Zeiss condenser and field diaphragms seized, phase condenser mechanics seized and correction collars on objectives very stiff and difficult to operate. So now we come full circle back to the LOMO Biolam