Tim McC

Thanks!  Glad you liked it.  Tone is definitely a challenge within the constraints of a music video.  This was cut a lot quicker than I would have otherwise, but I needed to match the song's tempo and duration. 

After months of testing, I finally made a short subject with my Iscorama Cinegon. 

 

http://vimeo.com/55805847

 

"Death You're So Cold" by Warren Jackson Hearne & Le Leek Electrique.

NO!!  don't do it.  do it dry.  with rubber gloves if it is tight.  wd-40 is NOT for lenses:)  

I thought not, but the ring IS tight.  I'll go buy the rubber gloves.  Thanks!

Not the jar way - the focus ring part with the ribbing and printed focus scale is a solid part. you need to remove the the ring (with the "isco-gottingen iscorama anamorphot 1.5 - 36" printed on it) on the inside of the 72mm thread. as you twist it, it unthreads from the same thread as you would attach diopters. you cannot physically grasp the ring due to it being recessed into the thread so you need to press against it while trying to twist it at the same time - in the same direction you would untwist a diopter from the 72mm thread.

QuickHitRecord had to use some rubber gloves in order to allow him to spin the ring - otherwise there isnt enough friction. mine came away slowly by hand, but it would have been quicker if I had used some rubber gloves. Make sure you mask off the front element with some masking tape to be sure you dont scratch the element.

 

OK, now I get it.  Thanks for your help!  I'll try it soon.  Would the application of lubricant like WD-40 help, or would it potentially harm the optics?

Removing the plastic ring is the part that worries me.  Are we talking about the flat ring with the iscorama label printed on it only (recessed into the 72mm threaded lip)?  Or do you grip the focus ring on the outside and unscrew it like the lid of a jar?  (It seems to be one solid piece).  I'm mostly concerned about applying too much pressure and breaking something.

 

The rest of the instructions seem straightforward.

Can anyone post some pics of the Iscorama surgery? 

 

Wow!  This looks fantastic!  It's going to take me a while before I work up the courage to try it myself, though....  Thanks for the great info!

Does the mod include a removal of the coatings? This would explain the flares...

Well, it's news to me, so thanks for the info! I had heard that Panavision lenses were only rentals, never for sale anytime anywhere, but I'd never heard of the 16mm Superama version...

Tony Wilson: After doing some research, I would be inclined to agree. There's an interesting discussion from a year ago on the Vimeo forum:
[url="http://vimeo.com/groups/anamorphic/forum/topic:236632"]http://vimeo.com/groups/anamorphic/forum/topic:236632[/url]
Riot Unit has the same lens, and it looks nice, but yes, appears to be not especially different from a Sankor. Nice flares, though!

QuickHitRecord: Yeah! Now I am excited! Does anyone know how much it is to rent a Panavision Anamorphic (per day)?

Or so it would appear: [url="http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190714240783&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en"]http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190714240783&fromMakeTrack=true&ssPageName=VIP:watchlink:top:en[/url]

Wonder if this is legit...

Yeah, I noticed that. Why have a starting bid of $2000 AND a reserve price?

Just saw this Iscorama 54 on ebay. $2,000 starting bid. No bids so far.

[url="http://www.ebay.com/itm/200810742974?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649"]http://www.ebay.com/itm/200810742974?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1438.l2649[/url]

Nice!  I love the look of the Lomo, but I have to say that I prefer the ease of the Isco.  Can't wait to see more of your videos...

Great set-up.  Do you have any test videos to show us?  Did you have to buy a separate OCT-18 adaptor to mount it to the GH2?

[quote author=QuickHitRecord link=topic=802.msg6105#msg6105 date=1339766947]

I think that it is lost on many people that anamorphic shooting by it's own nature is an image-destructive process. [/quote]

Anamorphic is destructive in the way that 24fps is destructive.  It's a stylized version of reality that has less information than what our eyes normally perceive, yet we interpret it as being more "cinematic." 

The Iscorama is not [i]better[/i] than other forms of anamorphic, but it is much easier to use, which is probably why it is in such demand.  It certainly produces a superior look to the Century and Panasonic shoot-through filters (they can't really be called lenses). 

A few weeks ago, he was starting bidding at $10,000.  No joke.  Needless to say, there were no bidders.

Well, there's a 36 on ebay, but the bidding starts at just shy of $5,000.  So....

What anamorphic lens are you using?  Or are you just cropping this in post?

Great!  Thanks!  The Iscorama Cinegon is like a 36 without the coating (it's an older model) so perhaps the 5D's larger sensor might make the best use of its optical properties.  I just ordered a nikkor 50mm pancake lens from ebay, after seeing the results you got when pairing it with your 36.  Now I'm thinking about trading in the 60D for a 5D...

Andrew, you have stated that you feel that simpler, older glass (for the taking lens) is better for shooting anamorphic, such as with the Iscoramas.  But which camera body captures the right look for anamorphic?  Canon 5D (mark ii or iii) or GH2 or something else?  Would the softness of the full frame 5D better suit the anamorphic aesthetic, or is the higher resolution of the GH2 better suited?  Right now I'm shooting with a Iscorama Cinegon on a Canon 60D, and wondering if I should upgrade. 

[quote author=Andrew Reid link=topic=728.msg5406#msg5406 date=1337176168]
...an acute filter and taste is necessary and he certainly has that! Kubrick famously said that he didn't always know what he wanted, but he ALWAYS knew when he saw it.
[/quote]

Very True!  Walter Murch (sound designer on the Godfather films) said in his book "The Conversations" that the director is more than anything the immune system of the project, strengthening the elements that should be there, and eliminating those that should not be there, regardless of their individual qualities.  And like the body's immune system, the director's sense of what belongs doesn't necessarily operate on a conscious level...  Without this healthy immune system, a work lacks bodily integrity, such as when you get a movie that seems to be cobbled together from parts of other successful movies, or from data gleaned from focus groups.  It seems like it should work on paper, but the finished product is a pitiful behemoth that can barely stand on its own legs...

Excellent article!  Your commentary is as insightful and useful as Coppola's, maybe even more so...

BTW, that's Gordon Willis, the cinematographer of the Godfather films, pointing something out to Mr. Coppola in the first pic, to anyone who didn't know.  Coppola really is listening to and learning from his cinematographer!  That indeed is collaboration of the most fruitful kind.

Liked and Followed.