Irix Introduces Cine 15mm T2.6 Ultra-Wide

Irix Introduces Cine 15mm T2.6 Ultra-Wide

The newest wide-angle lens from Irix joins the ultra-wide 11mm, standard 45mm, and macro 150mm.  Inspired by their popular Firefly and Blackstone 15mm f/2.4 models, the new cinema lens is lightweight, affordable, and exhibits very little distortion.  Available in EF, E, PL and Micro 4/3 mounts.

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The Missing Milvus Link: 35mm f/1.4

The Missing Milvus Link: 35mm f/1.4

Zeiss launched their Milvus line back in September of 2015 and has continued to add focal lengths over the past two years including the still-new 15mm, 18mm, and 135mm. Originally, the Milvus line was Zeiss’ answer to the long-in-the-tooth Classic line of primes which desperately needed an optical design overhaul. The initial line of Milvus primes included a brand new, fast 50mm and 85mm, but lacked a fan favorite; 35mm f/1.4. Until now… Continue reading “The Missing Milvus Link: 35mm f/1.4”

Goodbye CP.2 – Hello CP.3!

Goodbye CP.2 – Hello CP.3!

Zeiss pulled the veil of their long anticipated update to the Compact Prime line which will officially be called the CP.3 and CP.3 xD. The new line will consist of FF35 primes ranging from 15mm to 135mm in a lightweight, compact cinema housing. The new lenses will feature high performance optics at affordable prices with a couple of features not yet seen in the Sub-$5K market. Let’s take a look at the details of Zeiss’ new cinema primes.

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A Closer Look at Rokinon’s New ‘Special Performance’ Line of Primes

A Closer Look at Rokinon’s New ‘Special Performance’ Line of Primes

I know… Another Rokinon post. What can I say? They’re in high gear and don’t show any signs of slowing down anytime soon. Samyang, the magicians behind the Rokinon line of photo and cinema lenses have another new line of primes. Several months ago they announced their native E-mount auto-focus lenses which I completely ignored since they don’t really interest me (google it if auto-focus E-mount primes interest you), but Rokinon has just begun shipping two primes in a new line they’re calling “Speical Performance” or “SP” for short. Currently, these two lenses consist of a 14mm f/2.4 and an 85mm f/1.2. I spent a few weeks with the new 85mm so let’s give that a closer look Continue reading “A Closer Look at Rokinon’s New ‘Special Performance’ Line of Primes”

Sigma Fills Out Nicely with 14mm and 135mm Cine Primes

Sigma Fills Out Nicely with 14mm and 135mm Cine Primes

Sigma has just announced the development of a 14mm T2 and 135mm T2 prime lens. Based on the Sigma ART line of optics, these two new primes will join the already impressive 20mm, 24mm, 35mm, 50mm and 85mm . This news comes as no surprise to anyone who follows Sigma. The photo version of these lenses which were released earlier this year, seem like they were designed specifically to join the Sigma Cine family. They’re a welcome addition and render the Sigma Cine Primes a powerful option for cinematographers.  Continue reading “Sigma Fills Out Nicely with 14mm and 135mm Cine Primes”

Canon Expands Compact-Servo Line with 70-200mm Tele-Zoom

Canon Expands Compact-Servo Line with 70-200mm Tele-Zoom

A favorite focal length of still photographers, and naturally of hybrid cinematographers bridging the gap between the worlds of still photography and motion picture, the new 70-200mm Compact-Servo is sure to be an ideal choice for the ultra-light documentary shooter. Canon’s 18-80mm Compact-Servo was announced about the same time last year, just ahead of NAB 2016. If you’re unfamiliar with the Compact-Servo line, imagine all the camera operators in the world using Canon’s L series still lenses. Now imagine half of them called Canon and complained that their L series lens doesn’t hold focus through the zoom and it doesn’t have integrated gears, and the focus isn’t reliable or repeatable… Then imagine Canon going to their engineers and explaining this – and that’s where we get the Compact-Servo zooms.  Continue reading “Canon Expands Compact-Servo Line with 70-200mm Tele-Zoom”

Angenieux Adds 48-130mm to Optimo Style Line

Angenieux Adds 48-130mm to Optimo Style Line

Ahead of NAB 2017, Angenieux has announced another addition to the Optimo Style line of zooms – a 48-130mm T3. The 48-130mm features a 2.7x zoom range along with the other lightweight Optimo Style zooms, the 16-40mm and 30-76mm. It weighs 4.3 lbs and Angenieux states it is idea for hand held, steadicam and drones productions. Continue reading “Angenieux Adds 48-130mm to Optimo Style Line”

Rokinon adds 16mm T2.6 to Xeen Line

Rokinon adds 16mm T2.6 to Xeen Line

Last week Rokinon announced that the latest addition to their XEEN by Rokinon line, the 16mm T2.6 lens, is available immediately from authorized dealers. This is the first XEEN lens to be released since the 135mm lens began shipping last July, and is the first (but most likely not the last) XEEN of 2017. Continue reading “Rokinon adds 16mm T2.6 to Xeen Line”

Tokina Cinema Introduces New Primes, Refreshed Zoom, and More!

Tokina Cinema Introduces New Primes, Refreshed Zoom, and More!

Tokina entered the cinema lens market several years ago with a few zooms and a macro prime which were all ported over from their still photography line of lenses. Originally, their 11-16mm T3 (a lens that we lovingly began the trend with) lacked a PL mount option which it finally gained just recently, while the other lenses featured the PL mount as a factory option. The 11-16mm was accompanied by two additional zoom lenses – a 16-28mm T3 and a 50-135mm T3 and a lonely 100mm Macro prime lens. Last week, Tokina announced that it will begin manufacturing three brand new prime lenses – a 35mm, 50mm, and 85mm, all T1.5, and refreshing the 16-28mm with a version II. Continue reading “Tokina Cinema Introduces New Primes, Refreshed Zoom, and More!”

Sigma Steps Into The Spotlight With New Cine Zooms and Primes

Sigma Steps Into The Spotlight With New Cine Zooms and Primes

This one has been a long time coming and I couldn’t be happier to be breaking this news to all that have waited so patiently. For the past couple of years I would receive an email or phone call about twice a month asking if we had plans to convert the Sigma 18-35mm and/or 50-100mm to a cine lens. I would consistently, politely decline citing high cost or some other hurdle that made such a project unattractive to my organization which was generally met with the oh so annoying “Well, this other company in China does it for real cheap”. Good for them… But alas, we can finally admit to the real reason why Duclos Lenses has avoided such a project. Sigma has taken it upon themselves to carry out what so many have asked for over the past couple of years; Manufacture a high quality, fast, lightweight range of zooms and primes direct from their factory in Aizu, Japan. Let’s take a look into the future of Sigma Cine. Continue reading “Sigma Steps Into The Spotlight With New Cine Zooms and Primes”

Angenieux Reveals New Anamorphic Zoom Ahead of NAB

Angenieux Reveals New Anamorphic Zoom Ahead of NAB

It was only a matter of time before Angenieux anamorphasized it’s 25-250mm Optimo Style and here it is. A 44-440mm T4.5 2X anamorphic zoom. This lens rounds out the rest of Angenieux’s anamorphic line-up which consists of a wide 30-72mm T4, and the mid-range 56-152mm T4. Let’s take a look at some of the finer details of this brand new anamorphic telephoto  zoom. Continue reading “Angenieux Reveals New Anamorphic Zoom Ahead of NAB”

Zeiss 28mm Otus Officially Announced

Otus-1.4-28-ZE-und-ZF081_4cZeiss has had a busy few weeks with the announcement of the new autofocus Batis primes as well as the Milvus line of lenses that replace the outgoing “Classic” ZF.2 and ZE primes with a more modern, ergonomic housing including two brand new optical designs in the Milvus 50mm f/1.4 and Milvus 85mm f/1.4. Then, only a few weeks later Zeiss announced their 21mm f/2.8 Loxia lens designed specifically for Sony FE mount cameras. A wide-angle Otus lens had been rumored for almost a year and we’re finally able to talk about the newest member of the venerable Otus line of primes.  Continue reading “Zeiss 28mm Otus Officially Announced”

Zeiss Announces New Milvus Line of Primes

Milvus

Eager to show their engineering prowess, Zeiss has released a whole new line of SLR lenses they’re calling the Milvus. The new lenses include a 21mm f/2.8, 35mm f/2.0, 50mm f/1.4, 85mm f/1.4, 50mm f/2.0 Makro, and 100mm f/2.0 Makro. If you’re a Zeiss fan and these focal lengths all sound familiar to you, there’s a good reason for that – some of the previous ZF.2 lenses, which are now considered “classic” were based on relatively old optical designs. Continue reading “Zeiss Announces New Milvus Line of Primes”