SR3 mirror clearance measurements?

[Raymond Zrike]

Does anyone have the measurements for the mirror clearance of an Arriflex SR3? I’m trying to figure out if the new Laowa Nanomorphs would hit the mirror. Laowa said they won’t work with S35 cameras with mirrors, but I know that typically S16 lenses’ back elements went deeper into the body.

Here are the lens measurements that they sent me: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Xn20mL1gq7JEy3LOjYaYPF8miEijk8kd/view. Are they safe to use?

[David Sekanina]

I don't have the clearance dimensions for the SR3, but because I'm also interested in these anamorphic lenses, I checked the fit for an A-Minima (pink lines) and the Y16 (black), and all three lenses (yellow lines) have enough clearance on these two cameras.

So unless there are some S16 lenses that only fit the Aaton, but not the SR3, they should fit.

Edited August 19, 2022 by David Sekanina

[David Sekanina]

For those interested, the reason the mirror on 35mm cameras sits closer to the PL mount, and further away from the film plane than on 16mm cameras, is because the mirror has to cover a taller frame on 35mm cameras, hence in order for the mirror not to collide with the film plane, it has to move forward. 🥦

 

[Raymond Zrike]

I think I’ve heard of some lenses that don’t hit the mirror on Aaton bodies but do on the SRs, so hopefully somebody knows the SR3 dimensions. But this is helpful information, thanks! Seems like the Nanomorphs could be a great match for a diminutively sized camera like the A-Minima.

When I saw the announcement, I just realized how perfect a 1.5x stretch would be for super-16. 1.66 * 1.5 = 2.49. Would be super interesting to shoot with, though I’d have to probably supplement with a spherical lens on the wide end.

[David Sekanina]

Hmm. Dom posted these dimensions a few weeks ago, which are for the Alexa Studio (with rotating mirror shutter)

 

I now compare this with the dimensions given for the Loawa anamorphics (in yellow) and they are all within the Alexa Studio dimensions. So I don't know why Loawa tells you it won't fit a 35mm camera, let alone a 16mm camera, which has more clearance. 🤨

Edited August 19, 2022 by David Sekanina

[David Sekanina]

In green you see an S16 Optica Elite 20mm lens compared to ARRi Studio (blue) and Loawa anamorphics (yellow)

Edited August 19, 2022 by David Sekanina

[Raymond Zrike]

Loawa did say they cleared the Alexa cameras, though they didn’t specify if that meant all of them. Maybe the lenses would hit the mirror in something like an Arricam? Or maybe they were just being cautious considering they couldn’t test every camera.

At the very least, the two Nanomorph lenses that have back elements that are shorter than a 20mm Elite S16, as shown in your diagram, will fit in an SR3. I’d presume the one that is moderately longer would also fit given it fits on the Alexa Studio.

Edited August 19, 2022 by Raymond Zrike

[David Sekanina]

1 minute ago, Raymond Zrike said:

 I’d presume the one that is moderately longer would also fit.

It's the widest one, and yes, being 1mm longer than the Elite 20mm should pose no problem, as the ground glass sits quite a bit further back. Best I could do 🍕

[David Sekanina]

Last puzzle piece: my Optex focal extender protrudes 29mm to the back and fits the the SR3 as well as the Aaton.

So even the widest of the anamorphic lenses protrudes less than my focal extender, so therefore it'll fit.

 

[Raymond Zrike]

Thank you for all your input regarding the clearance of these lenses. Seems like it'll work! Looking forward to trying them out as an incredibly compact anamorphic 16mm rig. 1.5x stretch seems much more useful than the 1.3x stretch that has been often used for super-16 anamorphic shoots. Hopefully the lenses resolve well enough, especially the widest of the bunch, to look alright on the smaller format given they were designed for super-35. Hopefully will rent at least the 27mm by the end of the year and posts some tests.

[David Sekanina]

 

[Robin Phillips]

I'd love to see the raw footage, the youtube sample seems to be killing the grain (or it was denoised, possibly sharpened). The eyes look a little soft in the demo but overall theres a degree of sharpness I wouldnt expect for such cheap lenses. Very curious how well calibrated their housings are. 

Boy would it be great if they also made a wider lens option in the future too

[David Jean Schweitzer, SOC]

Apologies for joining this topic a bit late. In November 2022 I shot some footage on my Xterà using the Nanomorphs, and can proclaim they are safe to use on S16 Spinning Mirror Reflex cameras. In addition I shot some test on a BOLEX EBM using the same glass. I did not come across any issues when using these on a REX system. These lenses are very sharp right out of the box. Sharp enough to use on S16 even at wide apertures.

NOTE: Sample footage is color graded without any grain reduction

Footage shot on an Xterà: 

 

Footage shot on a BOLEX EBM:

 

 

Edited February 26 by David Jean Schweitzer, SOC