Plaubel Peco Profia

History

Plaubel is a Frankfurt optical and camera manufacturer founded in 1902. The company is best known in broader photography circles for the Makina rangefinder series (67 medium format), but Plaubel also produced a professional large-format line under the Peco name. The Peco Profia was the flagship studio monorail in the Peco line, positioned above the simpler Peco Junior and Peco Universal models.

Plaubel's history became complicated in 1975 when the company was acquired by Doi Photo Industry of Japan, which subsequently relaunched the Makina line while the LF/studio division continued under Plaubel branding. By the 1980s, the Peco Profia was competing against Sinar (Switzerland), Cambo (Netherlands), and Toyo (Japan) in the studio monorail market - a crowded field where Sinar's modular ecosystem had already established dominant market share.

Why It Matters

The Plaubel Peco Profia matters primarily as a quality German-made alternative in the studio monorail segment at a time when Sinar was defining that category. For studio photographers who wanted German optics heritage and build without paying Sinar P prices, the Peco Profia was a viable option. It also represents a less-documented chapter of Plaubel's history - a company better remembered for its rangefinder cameras than its view cameras.

Today the Peco Profia is a minor collectible. It functions as a fully capable studio view camera and accepts standard 4x5 film holders, Polaroid backs, and roll-film backs via the Graflok standard. Its relative obscurity compared to Sinar means that working examples can be found at lower prices, though parts and service knowledge are harder to source.

Lenses & Accessories

If Technika-compatible boards are confirmed, the full range of standard 4x5 lenses applies. Common studio choices:

• Schneider Symmar-S 150/5.6 - standard normal for studio work.
• Schneider Super-Angulon 90/5.6 - wide for architecture and tight product shots.
• Rodenstock Sironar-N 210/5.6 - long normal for product and still life.
• Schneider Apo-Tele-Xenar 300/5.6 - short telephoto for portraits.

Backs: Graflok international standard accepts all 4x5 holders, Polaroid 545i, and roll-film backs. Bag bellows likely available for wide-angle work.

Sample Photographers / Notable Use

• The Peco line was used in German commercial studios in the 1970s-1980s, particularly for product and industrial photography.
• Plaubel's reputation from the Makina 67 line sometimes led medium-format photographers to evaluate the Peco when moving to large format.

References

• Camera-Wiki: Plaubel
• Wikipedia: Plaubel