Lenses

Zeiss Celebrates Founding Father's 200th Birthday

Thu, 08/18/2016 - 10:48 -- Nick Dager

Carl Zeiss was born September 11, 1816 in the town of Weimar, Germany. The mechanic opened a small workshop for precision mechanics and optics in Jena in 1846, laying the foundation for today’s global technology player Zeiss. "Without these achievements and the intellectual legacy of its founding father, Zeiss would not be as successful as it is today," said Dr. Michael Kaschke, president and CEO of Carl Zeiss AG. This year the company will celebrate the 200th birthday of its founder with many different activities and events.

Tags: 

Duscio Wraps Jungle Shoot

Tue, 08/16/2016 - 12:33 -- Nick Dager

Cinematographer Stefan Duscio recently finished shooting Greg McLean’s psychological thriller Jungle: A Harrowing True Story of Survival, based on Yossi Ghinsberg’s memoir. The film recounts Ghinsberg’s 1982 journey through the Amazon where he ended up alone for three weeks before being found and rescued. Jungle stars Daniel Radcliffe in an Arclight Films production, directed by Greg McLean and lensed by Stefan Duscio.

Surviving the Night

Wed, 08/10/2016 - 09:57 -- Nick Dager

When Luke Sauer, veteran director of photography of reality television production, including Wives with Knives and I (Almost) Got Away with It, was selected to shoot the Lasso he knew it would involve a lot of night shoots. Lasso, a survive the night thriller directed by Evan Cecil, centers around senior community center workers Kit (Lindsey Morgan) and Simon (Andrew Jacobs), whose lives are turned upside when they find themselves fighting to stay alive against a group of bloodthirsty cowboys from the local rodeo. Lasso is his first feature project. Currently in post-production, the film is slated for an early 2017 release.

Embracing the Elements On Location

Mon, 06/27/2016 - 13:13 -- Nick Dager

The Hallmark Movies & Mysteries modern day TV western JL Ranch spent this past winter shooting on location in Kentucky presenting director Charles Robert Carner and DP Kris Kimlin with an array of often-unexpected challenges. Facing snow, rain, mud, and temperatures ranging from -11°F to +50°F Kimlin relied heavily on his Cooke S4/i lens package consisting of 18mm, 25mm, 35mm, 50mm, 75mm, and 100mm focal lengths on an Alexa digital camera. “We didn’t expect the elements, so we had to embrace them,” said Kimlin.

Racing up Pikes Peak

Mon, 06/20/2016 - 13:19 -- Nick Dager

To capture the danger, excitement and beauty of a racing competition that has been around for a century a team of young, innovative and resourceful filmmakers and builders worked together to mold a story around an up-and-coming star in the motorsport field and give audiences a riveting, personal look at the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.

Cooke Adds to Anamorphic/i Lens Range

Mon, 04/18/2016 - 13:09 -- Nick Dager

Cooke Optics has introduced its second front Anamorphic/i zoom lens, the 45-405mm zoom. In addition, the 35-140mm Anamorphic/i wide angle zoom is expected to start shipping over the summer. The 45-405mm T4.5-22, front Anamorphic/i zoom lens has preliminary specifications featuring 9x zoom front anamorphic, 5’10” MOD from image plane and 3’11” close focus from the front of the lens. True to Cooke style, the color and contrast will match the rest of the series.

A Strong Optical Personality

Mon, 04/04/2016 - 11:08 -- Nick Dager

When director of photography Julián Apezteguia, ADF (La Asociación de Autores de Fotografía Cinematográfica Argentina — Argentinian Society of Cinematographers) got the chance to work with director Pablo Trapero for the second time, on the director's latest film El Clan — a dark story set in the 1980's about a family of kidnappers and murderers — they used a full range of Cooke Anamorphic/i lenses to give the film a “strong optical personality.”

Fujifilm Introduces New PL 20-120mm Cabrio Zoom

Mon, 04/04/2016 - 10:50 -- Nick Dager

Fujifilm North America is introducing the Fujinon PL 20-120mm Cabrio XK6x20 zoom, designed for the video production and PL cine markets. The lens features a T stop of T3.5 end-to-end, a 20-120mm focal range at an affordable price. It is also equipped with a unique detachable servo drive unit, making it suitable for use as an ENG-style or standard PL lens.

Shooting Widescreen

Mon, 03/21/2016 - 12:38 -- Nick Dager

Cinematographer Adam Stone and director Jeff Nichols have been close collaborators since film school and share the same sensibilities, particularly with their preference for the anamorphic format. “Not knowing any better, we shot our first low-budget indie, Shotgun Stories (2007), in widescreen,” Stone said. “That film did better than expected, and we attributed some of its success to the format—widescreen added a weight and elegant stateliness to the story.”

Pages

Subscribe to Lenses