I've been planning on using an old lens on my 4x5 Graflex for portraits. It's a 21cm f3.5 Carl Zeiss Jena Tessar, probably made sometime in the 1930s.

I figured that a big lens like this, wide open, would have a different look that would be interesting for portraits. Maybe I might want something even older. I've been following some threads at APUG about antique portrait lenses, particularly Petzval types. Petzval design lenses have two groups with two cemented elements in front and two elements with an air space in back. This is a very early lens design and it is fast for it's time but it has some very interesting characteristics. The center part of the lens is very sharp but the lens has a curved field so it goes out of focus as you get to the edges. Makes for some wonderful out of focus areas when used wide open.

The above picture is here on a page that is part of Jim Galli's website. Jim is the resident weird lens guy at APUG. (I bought a wonderful 150mm Kowa process lens from him.) He has several pages with examples of some of the antique lenses he has come across like these pictures taken with another Petzval. Check out some of the other pages. In addition to the Petzval type there are the soft focus Wollensak Verito lenses. All sorts of interesting looks from these old lenses. There is an interesting site that sells some of these old portrait lenses:

Camera Eccentric

Of course there is always eBay and these lenses can be had cheap if one shops carefully. For example, the projection lenses off of old magic lanterns are usually Petzval types. No iris so they would have to be shot wide open but then that's the whole idea. I will have to wait and see how the 21cm Carl Zeiss does after I get my darkroom going and after I clean up the Graflex but the idea of using the Graflex as a portrait camera with old lenses is looking like a good idea. Here are some of the threads at APUG about these lenses. There is a lot of good information there.

The Petzval Madness Continues...
Saw Jim Galli's images, now need a Petzval-type lens!
Soft Focus Portrait Lens
Dancing with the Devil! Flirting with the Dark side! Have I gone too far for BOKEH???
Petzval focal length vs coverage?