JohnBarlow

Actually if you put a smaller aperture in front of the lens and not too far away, it will act like stopping down. So it doesn't only take away light transmission, it also widens the dof. You can try this out.
 
Let's see what John comes up with, he got the guts to do it.

Don't listen to the low-squeeze heretics, 2X squeeze is where it's at :-)

I'm really excited, but I need to see how well it holds up at wider apertures, with shallower DOF, when pulling focus.

Could this be adapted to other projection anamorphics? If so, the Kowa 8Z/16-H is IMO the best 2X out there. It goes the widest, and is very clean and sharp.

Also, if you can, a more professional-looking clamp/rod riser setup would be awesome. I'm not saying yours is bad, but I'd definitely drop a couple hundred dollars extra for a premium setup. I've always thought that it'd be cool to have the anamorphic mounted to the rods on its own riser, with a nifty little elastic drawstring cloth at the back that goes around the front of the "taking" lens to block out light.

Also, PM me if you want advice on electronic follow focus devices. I've sunk around $1K into building a wireless follow focus from scratch, so I've got some experience.

Hi Cal,
 
Yes sir, it really really really is single focus, its the real thing. You can pull focus, follow focus and get in really close. Furthermore you can use a zoom as well as your favourite prime glass.
 
Its not only that of course - its CinemaScope just like the movies and it is a professional tool with minimum focus of 0.65m (thats 2ft imperial), no dioptres required, focus throw of 195 degrees, comes with a Steam Punk support rig for 15mm rails and works with prime lenses and zooms in the range 50mm to 200mm and it weighs just 500g (just over 1lb imperial). The mumps are almost undetectable.
 
It is not just a conversion - it is a completely custom developed optical prescription using vintage scopes. The vintage look digitally remastered through a process I call Revisioneering.
 
It is laid out here
transferconvert.co.uk/cinemania/rectilux-3ff.html

I cant give out too much information as I have to protect my IPR, but yes there is a multi-element focusing front end which performs all the magic. Supplier information on optics and precision metal fabrication is sensitive business information.
 

 
 
 
However if you fancy a trip down the East Lancs Road, we could meet up at the Hard Days Night for a pint and you could try it out with your GH4 and shoot some amazing scope if the weather is good. PM me if you want to set this up.
 
Dont forget your wallet :)

Yes he did, I don't know the specifics but I have been in contact with him for months about this. It is old anamorphic lenses with new custom made optics that allow for single focus. I believe it is somewhat similar to a Isco where you have the anamorphic block fixed for infinity focus and then a variable power diopter in front, you set your taking lens to infinity and focus with the adapter. Although I believe the optics are different but the concept is probably similar.
 
This one works the same way but I believe that the this adapter is not fixed at infinity focus so you can get closer focus. Set the focus on the lens and anamorphic block to infinity and focus with the new focusing system and you can focus infinity to say 2 meters. Set the anamorphic block and taking lens to 2 meters now you can focus from 2 meters to 1 meter. 
 
This is somewhat speculation on my part from my conversations about this lens in the past, the website so far has not been super clear to me on exactly how it works but I am sure John will pop in here soon and clear things up. Over all it looks like a very high quality and very flexible option.

Oh I nearly forgot to tell you that the beautiful colour tone seems to be a result of using gold filter ND optical glass.
 
I got mine here
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/110676899420?ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1423.l2649
 
The 62mm size is a perfect match to the Rectilux 3FF and the gold filtration has in my opinion a pleasing effect on the imagery, even though the listing says there is no effect on colour balance - there is - but it is very nice.

It looks beautiful !
If it's posible I would like to see also 2x original image. I like a lot 3.55....
Best and congrats!

Ok John, I saw it.
Looks amazing. You know I have also the moller 32x. 
I wanted to check sharpness with your single focus system. My reference is my own footage in 3.55 aspect ratio.
Your rectilux perform fantastic.
If I were in England I would like to try it for sure....
I know you are busy...but I would like to see some more footage in a tripod with rack focus , maybe in some more "cinematic condition" and also would like to see bokeh...I'll be patience :-)
I know your target is more standard 2.41 aspect ,but I'm sure there be more people also who will be fascinating with 3.55 single focus system.
 
Best!

Hi Andy
 
It is not too dissimilar from the way the focus on a zoom works see here
 
http://www.adaptall-2.org/articles/InsideZoomLens/InsideZoomLens.html

This thread is dedicated to the discussion and testing of Rectilux FF single focus CinemaScope adapters   For product specification, pricing, availability and business matters please visit my web site below as a matter of courtesy to our host.   http://www.transferconvert.co.uk/cinemania/     The vintage look digitally remastered...    revisioneered   I have a vimeo channel set up for the tests here:   hxxps://vimeo.com/channels/rectilux              (passwords are on the web site)   I also have a flickr account set up to view stills, which is the best way to evaluate sharpness etc   www.flickr.com/photos/125986580@N05/sets/72157646313357302/   I will shortly have a blog up and running, but you are very welcome to discuss these breakthough products here.     Blog now set up at   http://www.rectilux.com        

and yes one of the tests will be a shootout with IscoRama 1968,
keep watching ;)

This thread is dedicated to the discussion and testing of Rectilux FF single focus CinemaScope adapters   For product specification, pricing, availability and business matters please visit my web site below as a matter of courtesy to our host.   http://www.transferconvert.co.uk/cinemania/     The vintage look digitally remastered...    revisioneered   I have a vimeo channel set up for the tests here:   hxxps://vimeo.com/channels/rectilux              (passwords are on the web site)   I also have a flickr account set up to view stills, which is the best way to evaluate sharpness etc   www.flickr.com/photos/125986580@N05/sets/72157646313357302/   I will shortly have a blog up and running, but you are very welcome to discuss these breakthough products here.     Blog now set up at   http://www.rectilux.com        

Well done Seb, l liked the car chase stuff, very Luc Besson-esque  ;)

22 means the diameter of the rear optic is 22mm

22 means the diameter of the rear optic is 22mm

One of my favorite jokes about economists.
 
Man walking along a road in the countryside comes across a shepherd and a huge flock of sheep. Tells the shepherd, "I will bet you $100 against one of your sheep that I can tell you the exact number in this flock." The shepherd thinks it over; it's a big flock so he takes the bet. "973," says the man. The shepherd is astonished, because that is exactly right. Says "OK, I'm a man of my word, take an animal." Man picks one up and begins to walk away.
 
"Wait," cries the shepherd, "Let me have a chance to get even. Double or nothing that I can guess your exact occupation." Man says sure. "You are an economist for a government think tank," says the shepherd. "Amazing!" responds the man, "You are exactly right! But tell me, how did you deduce that?"
 
"Well," says the shepherd, "put down my dog and I will tell you."
 

I just picked up a brand new, boxed EOSM with 18-55 for €145 inc shipping from Germany.
 
Looking forward to running MLRAW on this

The 10-18 is on my hit list too :)

I've been going through an architectural photography phase and bought a Sony 10-18mm for the a6000.  It will also work, with some cropping, on the a7.  Unfortunately, I haven't had much time.  I shot some test footage, which is completely ungraded and boring, but if you're interested in the field of view of the 10-18 on the a6000 then it should give you an idea.
 

 
Photographically, the 10-18 on the a6000 is a monster wide-angle solution.  Great sharpness, contrast and color.  
 
I did a little comparison with the GM1.  The GM1 continues to amaze me with it's clean low-ISO footage.  The a6000 is superb camera, but I don't think they'll ever get APS-C sensor as sharp as MFT in 1080.  I think it impossible to completely fix the aliasing/moire issue with having pixels more spread out on the sensor, vs the MFT.  What Sony seems to have improved is the chromatic aberrations, which is certainly the most annoying aspect of that problem.  In short, not sure 1080 will get much better from APS-C camera.  
 
However, I can get a shallower DOF with the a6000 that I can't get with the GM1.  It's a tradeoff.  
 
I have a Sony 35mm 2.8 which I hope to do some test footage with soon.  

Got the sony A7s while back in Hong Kong for vacation, full user experience and review coming soon, be sure to let me know what you would like to know about the camera so i can put it in the review. I was fortunate enough to listen and talk to Den Lennie about the sony a7s, which has helped me greatly in understanding the camera.

This camera has amazing low light capabilities as claimed, some of the shots in this video were pushed to 64000 iso and still produced a usable image, around half of the shots were filmed in Slog-2. Say goodbye to the mushy canon dslr footage, the 1080 xacvs footage is detailed and has a good amount of wiggle room in post.
Some stills from the film
 
 

Beware, the front optic is probably glued in with optical cement.

A world of pain.
 
If you are unsure, I'd say maybe leave it alone...resell it with a clear description of the focus stiffness for a buyer to allow an informed choice on repairing it or not.
 
If this does not interest you, and you fancy attempting a repair yourself -I'd say the best shot to try first is to carefully go in from the front, using a proper tool (spanner wrench to unscrew front retainer ring).This will allow removal of the front optic and allow access to the innards. By unwinding the helicoid you may be able to get access to the movement and thin the old grease with a TINY amount of lighter fluid and swab away some of the old grease with Q-tip/ cotton bud. Then some fresh helicoid grease added. The front optic will have to be orientated back again once you are done, which if you have not done before can be very time consuming and risky - as the edges of the optic will chip very easily.
 
Basically I would not recommend trying anything if you are unsure, it sounds like a full disassembly/ clean and re-lube would be needed to sort out the issue properly, by someone who knows their onions.

What about naked ladies?

Went out to play with the Trump before sending it off for a few weeks. Tom was nice enough to demonstrate balancing these Rocks by the beach. Nice guy and I got to shoot into the sun for a bit.
 
Nikon D800
DSO Trump 58 with 2X Oval Anamorphic aperture
DSO TERRY NORTON’S FLARESEX MODULE  

This guy does it: http://www.focalpointlens.com/
 
But it's quite expensive, time-consuming, and there is a small risk that the glass could fracture in the process.