Lens Guide: Compact Full Frame Cine Primes

Lens Guide: Compact Full Frame Cine Primes

What an exciting past couple of years we’ve had right? I mean regarding lenses. You got that? Okay good.

Yes, even in the past year alone we have had some incredible new products come out that have showcased the evolution of the cinema lens technology. Compact full frame cinema lenses have gained popularity for their portability, optical quality, and ability to deliver stunning visuals without compromising on performance. Never before have quality optics and this much variation between them been accessible to filmmakers. We pulled a few options in this category from our inventory to take a look at what they have to offer you.

To preface, this list only contains a few of the many Full-Frame/Vista Vision lenses on the market. Including s35 and even anamorphic lenses for sale would be exhausting and we don’t have enough coffee around today. We’ll save them for future blogs though. Stay tuned for that.

Now, let’s dive in.

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First Look: DZOFilm Arles Cine Primes

First Look: DZOFilm Arles Cine Primes

NAB. The stage on which brands throughout the industry showcase their newest products shined extra bright this year. However, as a shop specializing in optics, we had our focus on the new lenses out on the floor. Enter the new DZOFilm Arles Primes VV cine primes.

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Zeiss Announces Nano Primes – Fast, Compact, Cine Primes for Mirrorless Cameras

Zeiss Announces Nano Primes – Fast, Compact, Cine Primes for Mirrorless Cameras

It’s been quite a while since Zeiss released a new cine lens. In fact, the Supreme Primes were the latest addition to the Zeiss cine family. A few focal lengths have been added such as the Supreme 15mm and if we want to really stretch Zeiss portfolio additions, we can also include the Supreme Radiance – Zeiss’ answer to the vintage lens craze. Aside from those, there really hasn’t been a whole lot of buzz out of the German lens manufacturer. That’s about to change!

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Rental Referral Initiative from Duclos Lenses

Rental Referral Initiative from Duclos Lenses

I’ve added a simple new feature to the Duclos Lenses website that allows visitors to see a short list of rental houses that have specific lens models available for rental. At a time when our industry is at a moral deficit, this new feature is tiny gesture, a modest attempt at helping the businesses that have been so kind to us over the last twenty years. If you’re a rental house or have friends at rental houses, read on and help spread the word!

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Sirui Launches Campaign for Nightwalker Primes

Sirui, a renowned name in the budget cine lens market, has just launched an exciting new line of compact cinema-style lenses under the name “Night Walker.” Designed to cater to cinematographers and filmmakers on a budget, the Night Walker series features three versatile lenses, including 24mm, 35mm, and 55mm focal lengths, each boasting an impressive T1.2 aperture. These lenses are compatible with APS-C and Super35 sensors, offering exceptional low-light performance without compromising image quality.

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New Tools from Duclos Lenses

New Tools from Duclos Lenses

Duclos Lenses, a renowned motion picture lens specialty shop, has once again raised the bar for professional cinema lens technicians with their latest innovation – the Service Tray Mini and Service Tray PRO. Designed by lens technicians for lens technicians, these new service trays offer an efficient and organized solution for handling screws, hardware, and small components during lens disassembly. With the growing demand in the field of professional lens servicing, Duclos Lenses continues to lead the way by introducing specialty tools that are exclusively designed and manufactured for lens technicians.

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Canon Expands Flex Zoom Series Cinema Lens Lineup

Canon Expands Flex Zoom Series Cinema Lens Lineup

Canon has announced the launch of two new additions to their highly popular 8K Flex Zoom Cinema Lens Series—the CN-E14-35mm T1.7 and the CN-E31.5-95mm T1.7 Super 35mm format lenses. In addition, Canon is also introducing four new relay kits—the RL-S1 and RL-S2 (for Super 35mm) and the RL-F1 and RL-F2 (for full-frame). These relay kits allow each Flex Zoom lens to be adapted to suit different sensor formats, providing enhanced versatility and value for cinematographers.

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Vista One – More Character from Tokina Cinema

Tokina joined the cinema market with their Vista Primes which were met with open arms for their excellent image quality and coverage. But for many cinematographers, the lenses lacked character or personality. They were simply too clean or “clinical” as I’ve come to refer to them. But that changes with the Vista One primes.

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The World’s Largest Lens

The World’s Largest Lens

While this post diverges from cinema just a tad, it’s particularly interesting to us. Duclos Lenses has been working with Formlabs for several years now, dating back to their original Form1 machine. To see such an inspiring use of modern technology compelled me to repost this quick article and share with the rest of you. Take a look and enjoy! Continue reading “The World’s Largest Lens”

LensFinder.com Launches Online Marketplace for Vintage and Pre-Owned Lenses

LensFinder.com Launches Online Marketplace for Vintage and Pre-Owned Lenses

Many of you may remember a little site that I began several years ago called LensRescue.com. It’s goal was to be a marketplace for high-end motion picture lenses. But with the growth of Duclos Lenses and the birth of my first daughter, I simply didn’t have the attention or the resources to dedicate to the site and it faded away. Fast-forward several years and I’m thrilled to bring my newest venture to life; LensFinder.com Continue reading “LensFinder.com Launches Online Marketplace for Vintage and Pre-Owned Lenses”

The Ultimate Anamorphic Lens Test

The Ultimate Anamorphic Lens Test

Yep. We did it again. Last year the folks at ShareGrid, Old Fast Glass, a brilliant, talented crew, and myself came together to test a wide variety of vintage lenses to give the cinematography world a sort of sampling, flight, if you will, of the various vintage lenses and what sort of characteristics you can expect with when using them. It’s been shared thousands of times and utilized in who knows how many pre-production meetings to determine the visual aesthetics as it pertains to lenses for a specific project.

So what’s next… ANAMORPHIC! The subject that baffles so many with a shroud of mystery. Optics designed to provide a wider field of view when bound by a specific format, fashioned by unsung geniuses from around the world – some a shining beacon of optical engineering superiority, and others a trophy of intentional flaw for the sake of introducing artifacts and characteristics that, to the average viewer, carries a subconscious nostalgia, lending honesty and legitimacy. But most importantly… They’re beautiful! Continue reading “The Ultimate Anamorphic Lens Test”

The Pacific Northwest Lens Summit

The Pacific Northwest Lens Summit

That’s right. It’s a lens test. I’ll be joining host Michael Koerner at his facility Koerner Camera Systems in Portland Oregon in just a few weeks. The perfect bridge between NAB and Cine Gear – Koerner will be hosting a range of manufacturers to showcase their latest gear. Less of a shootout and more of a hands-on event, we’ll be pairing up cameras and lenses and giving each a go to see what works best in different situations.

We’ll have lenses and reps from the following:

  • Angenieux
  • Arri
  • Canon
  • Cooke
  • Fujinon
  • IB/E
  • Leica
  • Lomo Illumina
  • PS Technik
  • Raptor
  • Sigma
  • Tokina
  • Zeiss

So how about it? Join us! No need to RSVP. You can find the event details over on Koerner’s facebook page. Looks like it’s going to be a good time. Come hang out. Drink. Eat. Mingle. I’ll have some swag on hand to give away. If you’re a lens geek like me and Michael Koerner, you’ll be in good company.