Zeiss Contax 2x Oval Lenses (Anamorphic alternative)

Описание: 📸   / robbiefatt  

Anamorphic lenses create some of the most unique and interesting looks in cinema. I’ve been looking for some cheap alternatives for a while now and I think that I've found something incredibly close for a very cheap price.

So these are Zeiss Contax lenses, with a 2x oval installed and pretty much what is involved in the process is that the normal oval iris is removed and a fixed oval iris is installed. This iris’ maximum aperture is usually about half a stop less than the normal aperture wide open. So they’re technically still spherical lenses, just with oval bokeh to kind of mimic the anamorphic feel.

The reason why I think that Zeiss Contax lenses make a great choice for modification is because they are much older glass, and so their unique character makes them much softer than other modern lenses. Zeiss contax lenses are also relatively cheap, and I think that they have great images at a much cheaper price point.

One of the interesting things about these lenses is however that you still need to crop to get a widescreen frame. There is no desqueezing process and so you don’t get extra resolution by using these lenses but you actually lose resolution like you normally would when shooting spherically for a widscreen aspect ratio.

I’ve had to use a variND however to nail the exposure since it is a fixed iris and that’s what you need to do if you want to shoot wide open.

I got my lenses modified here in Australia from a guy called Dom Jaeger who charged about $400 per lens. You could actually do the modification yourself if you know how to remove an iris and reinstall it.

Overall though, I really love how good the look is for such a cheap price point. I’ve used them on a variety of projects and I have seen them been used on high end commercials as well.

Shot on a Varicam LT and a Blackmagic Ursa Mini 4.6k.