Anamorphic lens for 5d mii

[Jeanette Egenlauf]

Hey all!

 

I am looking for a anamorphic lens for my canon 5d mark ii.

Does anybody know what adapters or what I should look into to

 

Thanks

[Phil Rhodes]

If you can find an anamorphic lens with a 1.33:1 squeeze factor, you'll end up with a roughly cinemascope frame from any 16:9 camera. Panasonic made the LA-7200 lens as an add-on for the DVX-100, allowing it to shoot a 16:9 frame with an optical rather than digital modification. There are others, some of them designed to be used as projection lenses, and there are probably some, possibly very old, variable anamorphics available.

 

None of the readily-available types are very cheap or very sharp. The Panasonic LA-7200 was designed for a standard definition DV video camera and has optical performance problems that are visible even in that format. They have been used on a 5D but the vastly larger sensor can make coverage a problem, especially with wide (or even not so wide) lenses.

 

P

[Vinicius Pedrozo]

I use Sankor in small Carl Zeiss Lens and..

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2N2U8Hul8Q

 

I transform circle in oval shape, its cool?

[Vinicius Pedrozo]

I finally understood the obvious, the editor changed the dimensions of the video, only reducing the time, did a quick test in a difficult situation backlight, I just have to figure out how to convert MOV to AVI keeping the video in high definition.

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nUMkGG7E260

[Brandon Ruiz]

It is possible to use cine anamorphic lenses with the 5d, though the 2x squeeze factor on the 16x9 sensor produces roughly a 3.60:1 aspect ratio, requiring cropping to conform to 2.35:1. With less than HD resolution to begin with, this proves to be a deal breaker for most filmmakers, though a couple of users on this board have had good results with Lomo round front anamorphic lenses.

 

A more popular option is a 1.3 or 1.5x anamorphic adapter like Phil mentioned. Iscoramas are known to be the best quality anamorphic adapters, though with prices that have shot through the roof in the past year due to renewed demand.

 

Isco facts:

 

• 
   
  
• Extremely sharp, high quality glass.
  
• Rear threads allow you to screw the adapter right on to the filter threads of your taking lens without any sort of clamp or mount.
  
• They come in 3 sizes, the smallest being the Isco 36, Isco 42, and the largest, the Isco 54.
  
• 1.5x squeeze produces a 2.55:1 aspect ratio. Very close to cinemascope 2.35:1.
  
• The Isco 36, the only adapter of the family without multicoating on the lens, produces the strongest flares.
  
• Vignetting is a big issue with anamorphic adapters. Don't plan on shooting wider than 50mm with your 5d on the largest aperture Isco available, the Isco 54.
  
• Rack focusing is almost impossible with any anamorphic adapter, though the Iscoramas manage better than others due to its focusing front element, which unlike other adapters, does not require focusing of both the taking lens and the adapter at the same time. Close focus filters, or diopters, are required to focus closer than the minimum focusing distance of 8 feet.
  
• Chromatic aberration is an issue with the larger adapters at larger apertures. f2.8 and above seems fine.
  

 

Isco's aren't cheap, often going on ebay for $1500 and up. Popular lower cost alternatives include Kowa and Sankor adapters which are reasonably sharp with strong flares and 2x squeeze ratios. I would stay away from the Panasonic adapter as users have reported it to be excessively soft below f8.

Edited January 9, 2011 by Brandon Ruiz