Hawk V-Lite Vintage ’74 Anamorphics

This lens system from Vantage offers contrast, flare and other old-school “flaws” reminiscent of 1970s cinema built with state-of-the-art Hawk mechanics

By Jim Matlosz

Digital sensors continue to improve in quality of image capture, allowing filmmakers to push their creativity and experiment with a variety of specific looks. Yet, as lens manufacturers continue to reach new heights in lens quality, cinematographers are often found degrading new lenses, applying techniques and know-how to "take the edge... Read more

Canon’s Prime AF Power

Canon to release a new EF 50MM F/1.8 STM lens

By Neil Matsumoto

Canon U.S.A. just announced the STM lens we’ve been waiting for – the 50mm f/1.8 STM standard lens. The prime features a maximum aperture of f/1.8, and is suited for portrait photography with shallow depth of field (it’s an 80mm when attached to a Canon APS-C sensor). The lens is also ideal for low-light photography and night scenes.... Read more

Flare On

The new ARRI Master Anamorphic Flare Sets give your Master Anamorphic lenses more creativity and control on set

By Neil Matsumoto

It’s been a busy few weeks for ARRI, which is looking to make a huge splash at NAB 2015. With the announcement of the ALEXA Mini and ALEXA SXT, ARRI will also be showing their new ARRI Master Anamorphic Flare Sets for their Master Anamorphic lenses. As you probably know, anamorphic lenses – along with ARRI’s ALEXA Plus 4:3 Super 35... Read more

Widescreen In A Digital World

Anamorphic prime and zoom lenses are making a comeback

By Neil Matsumoto

The anamorphic format was developed during World War I in order to give soldiers a wider view while traveling in tanks. But in the ’50s, with the explosion of television, 20th Century Fox took the technique and created CinemaScope, a marketing ploy to lure audiences back to movie theater seats instead of their couches. So what exactly are anamorphic... Read more

Go Cine-Style

Tokina Cinema ATX zoom lenses grant indie filmmakers entry into the cinema zoom lens world

By Neil Matsumoto

With a growing number of "priced-to-own" digital motion-picture cameras being released, such as Blackmagic Design’s URSA and AJA’s CION, shooters who like to own their gear are living it up. But the reality is that these shooters usually expend all of their resources on a camera body when they should be spending it on lenses. After... Read more

Glass Candy

The latest prime and zoom lenses for cinema production

By Neil Matsumoto

With high-end digital motion-picture cameras being cycled far more frequently, the window on getting a good return on your big investment is becoming increasingly short for cinematographers and filmmakers. With this in mind, having a good set of prime lenses or an all-purpose cine zoom might be a better bet. And now with 4K becoming the dominant capture... Read more

At A Glance: Rokinon VDSLR Lenses

The “V” is for video

By Neil Matsumoto

Large-sensor cameras, especially video-enabled DSLRs with APS-C or full-frame sensors, have changed low-budget filmmaking forever. Like HD or 24p capture, the ability to use fast prime lenses to capture cinematic shallow depth of field was a huge breakthrough for filmmakers used to shooting with camcorders that contained 1⁄3-inch CCDs and fixed zoom... Read more

At A Glance: Hang On To Your EF Lenses

Redrock Micro’s LiveLens MFT

By Neil Matsumoto

The Panasonic AG-AF100 was the first large-sensor camcorder to hit the market, and because of its ability to capture full 1920×1080 HD to SD cards, 4⁄3-inch image sensor and relatively low price point ($4,995), the camera quickly became popular with indie filmmakers. Now that the video industry has shifted toward large CMOS sensors in hopes... Read more

At A Glance: Go Wide

The Canon EF 8-15mm ƒ/4L fisheye zoom lens

By David Willis

Most of us are familiar with the distorted 180° angle of view that a fisheye presents. Similar to the peephole of a door, a foreground subject close to the lens will appear much closer and larger than the background, while the background will curve in an exaggerated distortion. The possibilities of the complete 180º field of view provided by a... Read more

Through The DSLR Looking Glass

Choosing the right lens package for your DSLR

By Dan Brockett

Many months after the introduction of innovative detachable-lens video cameras like Sony’s NEX-FS100U and Panasonic’s AG-AF100, digital single-lens-reflex cameras like the Canon EOS 5D Mark II and EOS 7D and Nikon’s new D7000 continue to enjoy robust sales among video shooters. Why? Undoubtedly, some of it’s simply economics.... Read more

Prime Time

In part two of our new lens report, we look at the latest prime lenses designed for both film and digital cameras

By Andrew Takeuchi

The past year has seen an avalanche of new lenses. Some of this development can be attributed to the exponential growth in the field of digital motion-picture cameras, with new products from RED and ARRI, as well as the explosion of HD DSLRs, which are being used in professional applications, including music videos, television, commercials and even... Read more

Optics Within Reach

Priced-to-purchase lenses join the digital cinema revolution

By Jim Matlosz

Many people will argue that it’s not so much what’s behind the camera, in terms of capture medium or format, but what you put in front of the camera in the way of lenses that matters most. And while this debate rages on the set, fodder for these arguments is being offered annually by those who set the standard for high-quality glass. Motion-picture... Read more