Junior

Andrew, our body receives a natural telluric daily dose of 0,5 μSv per day. If you add to this natural one, the industrial, medical, cosmical etc it makes approximately 2,4 mSv/year (people get unequally 1,5 to 6,0 mSv/year in France - official numbers! Check it: http://www2.cndp.fr/themadoc/radioactivite/radioactiviteimp.htm ).
 
What the specialised guys told me yesterday is that even if it doesn't stay around your neck or on your chest for hours, (or under your bed), it's still dangerous because of lost dusts. One of the main risks is to let it fall and break it for example. Vacuum cleaner wouldn't help you there…
Once ingerated (accidentally of course), Radium 226 is known to stay on bones and in liver for life!
 
Maybe you think that if all this was true it would be a more widely reported issue? I agree, but you need to know that the famous firemen department where I was yesterday has just added my Mamiya in their "hot" database. Think about it. I've sent them some other links cause they asked me for. I don't know why it's not much more a reported issue… but it should be!
I had enough of contradictory forums that's why I took a train to get personnaly a real specialist. We made 3 different test and they were all very bad (results are in my top post). Takumar f1.4 is known to be worse than Mamiya, so what I say comes from pros, not from this rich but unreliable world wide web. Anyway, each one is free.
 
If it can help, my clean checked "vintage russian lenses" are:
- Helios 44m;
- Tair 11A;
- Jupiter 9 ;
- Mir 24M.
My Sankor 16D is clean too. (And modern lenses aren't concerned.)
Take care of 70's russian lenses.

Pilots and hostess have cancer increase. Radiologists are really protected and supervised). You Andy take plane maybe 5 times a year and go to the dentist (for x-rays) maybe once a couple of years, for 30 seconds. You can't compare! Aluminium won't help, just concrete or lead. Radioactive lenses is a very UNDERESTIMATED problem, espescially on photo forums. I know what told the geiger and the officers. I think we talk about health here, not bokeh.
 

Hi!
It's one of my first posts here but not the funniest I guess…
I'm not especially talking about a magic C-lens in particular here but about a very underestimated question: radioactive lenses!
One of my friends is a fireman captain and introduced me yesterday to one of his colleagues specialized in technological risks and chemical dangers (at Poissy, France : they're known to have very great equipments.) We made 3 different tests on all my Russian lenses which are all OK excepted the Mamiya Sekor 55mm f1.4 (M42).
Here are the results:
From 5 to 10 µSV per hour (by direct touch), and 1720 shocks per second.
Element involved is Thorium 232.
They told I really shouldn't keep it. Work with it more than one hour is dangerous. It must be gifted to specialized services and absolutely not be destroyed! Or thrashed! The most dangerous exposure isn't even radiations but dusts to inhalate or ingerate (when a lens gets old it disaggregates - it's something you can't always clearly see).
I'm lucky cause until today I kept it in my basement.
So, say it please to your friends and all potential Mamiya/Takumar users that you know via websites etc, it's a strong matter of health.

Anyone selling anytime soon? I want to buy one for my pocket 4k.

Hey folks,
I sent this message yesterday to Andrew and afterwards came to my mind to post it here too:
"Hey Andrew, maybe you can help. I own a Moller 30 and I am trying to track down further information on it. Also wrote Moller in Germany. My main interest: Basicly everything. What was it used for? What is the mount called? Synchro focus? What was the taking lens? Things like this. If you have an idea where to ask best,please let me know. Thanks!"

Any help is appreciated. 
I do have more specs and information to share, if somebody is interested.
cheers,
 

The blue part looks like a simple Double Gauss prime lens. Maybe Zeiss or Kinoptik. The grey tabs on top and bottom are probably the focusing levers. I can't guess from this schematic how the taking lens and anamorphic lens was synchronized, but if the helicals are cut right, a bridge between the focusing tabs might be able to pull off dual focus in one movement.
This is a Totalvision adapter (circa France 1960) that's similar in design and construction:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Totalvision-Anamorphic-Cine-Lens-made-in-france-/113426233375
It was used with a set of four Speed Panchro primes from 40mm to 100mm mechanically linked to the adapter via the focusing lever. I'm guessing that your Moller works similarly.
Either way, let's see a lens test!

It was almost certainly used with either Cooke Speed Panchro or Kinoptik taking lenses. Probably 40,50,75 and 100mm. All the early European 'Scope (Dyaliscope, Totalvision, CinePanoramic) systems used either one or the other. It's most likely pretty sharp since the glass is so big. Would love to see a test, both at infinity and close focus.

Here is mine, still working on how to get ND's filters. Not easy finding a cheaper mattbox that supports a 153mm rear opening. Any suggestions from any one who has rigged up a foton-A would be appreciated.

Long story short. Stay with the original ISCO if you plan to do a simple V1 modification. 
The close focus distance is the same as if you mod it by yourself.
The additional weight is a problem if you gonna try to screw it in front of a plastic Nikon pancake. You shouldn't trust that tiny lens to hold a heavy lens like the V1 will be.
So you will need a lens support.
The V1 does not vignette more than with the original design within the SAME focus range. The distances are the same. But if the front stays 72mm it will vignette at the new and closer close focus, because of the small front element that comes out further than on the original ISCO.
That's why i asked Christopher at VD to make a 77mm front to get a little less vignetting on the 50 pancake. So, it works.
And sometimes you want to slide the rear element into the front of a taking lens and stay more flexible in the selection of the lenses. That was the V1+ mod (77mm front and no screw-in rear element)
Yes, i did them all and even more. 
DIY mod, VD-V1, V1+, V2, V2+

The V2 is worth it. 77mm non rotating front, 85mm close focus! But at that prize … Sometimes I wish I had stayed with the original ISCO. Screw it on and ready to go.
But for serious tasks (first AC, FF motor, …) you'll need that rehousing. But for that prize you can rent everything without headache … It's like a dog chasing his tail – eternally … ?

 

BMPCC + Vistascope 8mm Anamorphic Adapter. Color grade based on my BozBMDFilm to Rec709 LUT. Download the LUT here: https://bulentozdemirfilms.wordpress.com/downloads/bmcc-bmpcc-bozbmdfilm-to-rec709-lut/
 

Heres some with the Minolta MC 85 1.7 - similar kind of flares as the 58 1.2 - perhaps not as crazy. A weird vertical flare is produced. Again stopping down helps sharpen the image but does loose that funky rendering - like a painting at times. F4 seemed to be a sweet spot. I think this would be a great portrait lens.

Heres a few lenses tested in stills mode - The Sony Zeiss 55 1.8 is sharp as - where as the Minolta MC 58 1.2 is loose and funky as hell. I need to get the Novoflex Minolta adaptor to iron out some of the issues - most of the funk lies at 1.2 - stopping it down reduces the life out of it - I think at F2 a happy medium can be struck although you loose those blacks which have that nice veiling flare.

Maybe not from 5 years ago...but these were the average US prices as of 1980 :

 

Thought it would be cool to have a place to discuss and share thoughts about this particular gem. 

I just recently acquired one, and have done some primitive testing with it on an a7s/helios-44m. Will share when I have something more than my backyard.


In the meantime I have some questions:

Have anyone tried it with (FF) wider than 50mm? Would it work with like a 40mm/45mm pancake?

How does it perform with the SLR Magic Rangefinder?

I can't seem to find proper focus closer than around 1,4m - is there a workaround I am missing?


Thanks in advance!
 

Hey everyone,
I've been watching these forums for years and contemplating when to jump on a anamorphic solution. I think my "patience" might have paid off as I just acquired this beauty of a lens that is just a BEAST of glass. From the little I could find about it online it seems to be one of the highest quality optics around made for 35mm film projectors on airlines back in the day. Currently it is still on its way to me so i'm hoping it arrives without any damage. Once it gets here i'm thinking of getting a Core DNA from Rectilux to make it a viable single focus solution. Any core dna useres out there that can vouch for it's quality? Might need to do some machining though to get the Core DNA to fit from what i've been told. 
Anyone on here have one of these bad boys that can shed some light on working with this setup feel free to share would love to know more about this lens! Will post actual pics when it arrives! 
Was able to find one for sale on ebay currently but feel lucky I found another source hah...how rare are these really?
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kowa-Anamorphic-35-1-75x-Lens-/282114577816?hash=item41af56d598:g:y8YAAOSwIgNXmI1D

Or some other vintage anamorphic you're particularly fond of. What would it entail? Could you legally produce it? Also, how did the Baby Hypergonar manage to be so tiny while something like the SLR Magic 2x is enormous in comparison.

Hi!
It's one of my first posts here but not the funniest I guess…
I'm not especially talking about a magic C-lens in particular here but about a very underestimated question: radioactive lenses!
One of my friends is a fireman captain and introduced me yesterday to one of his colleagues specialized in technological risks and chemical dangers (at Poissy, France : they're known to have very great equipments.) We made 3 different tests on all my Russian lenses which are all OK excepted the Mamiya Sekor 55mm f1.4 (M42).
Here are the results:
From 5 to 10 µSV per hour (by direct touch), and 1720 shocks per second.
Element involved is Thorium 232.
They told I really shouldn't keep it. Work with it more than one hour is dangerous. It must be gifted to specialized services and absolutely not be destroyed! Or thrashed! The most dangerous exposure isn't even radiations but dusts to inhalate or ingerate (when a lens gets old it disaggregates - it's something you can't always clearly see).
I'm lucky cause until today I kept it in my basement.
So, say it please to your friends and all potential Mamiya/Takumar users that you know via websites etc, it's a strong matter of health.

Andrew, our body receives a natural telluric daily dose of 0,5 μSv per day. If you add to this natural one, the industrial, medical, cosmical etc it makes approximately 2,4 mSv/year (people get unequally 1,5 to 6,0 mSv/year in France - official numbers! Check it: http://www2.cndp.fr/themadoc/radioactivite/radioactiviteimp.htm ).
 
What the specialised guys told me yesterday is that even if it doesn't stay around your neck or on your chest for hours, (or under your bed), it's still dangerous because of lost dusts. One of the main risks is to let it fall and break it for example. Vacuum cleaner wouldn't help you there…
Once ingerated (accidentally of course), Radium 226 is known to stay on bones and in liver for life!
 
Maybe you think that if all this was true it would be a more widely reported issue? I agree, but you need to know that the famous firemen department where I was yesterday has just added my Mamiya in their "hot" database. Think about it. I've sent them some other links cause they asked me for. I don't know why it's not much more a reported issue… but it should be!
I had enough of contradictory forums that's why I took a train to get personnaly a real specialist. We made 3 different test and they were all very bad (results are in my top post). Takumar f1.4 is known to be worse than Mamiya, so what I say comes from pros, not from this rich but unreliable world wide web. Anyway, each one is free.
 
If it can help, my clean checked "vintage russian lenses" are:
- Helios 44m;
- Tair 11A;
- Jupiter 9 ;
- Mir 24M.
My Sankor 16D is clean too. (And modern lenses aren't concerned.)
Take care of 70's russian lenses.

Hello Ian,
Very nice topic you made here, thanks!
Can I ask you please what diameter should I buy for my Recilux 3FF-W?
Have a nice day.

Rectilux Core DNA: Extras to get by Ian Edward Weir
I would highly recommend getting these extras to make the Core DNA ready for use.
 
1. M3/M4 Stainless Steel Nylon Head Grub Screw Plastic Brake Buffer Bolt Screws Hex
This is so you don’t scratch up the coating of your anamorphic lens or housing.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/281858121964?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&var=580836260280&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
 
2. 86mm UV filter to protect the front of the Core DNA glass.
 
3. Metal back cap for whatever size you end up using for your coupler if bigger then 75mm. 
 
4. A custom coupler made from this lens hood fits perfectly. “FOTGA Screw Mount 67mm Standard Metal Lens Hood for Canon Nikon Pentax Sony Olympus” 
http://www.amazon.com/FOTGA-Screw-Standard-Pentax-Olympus/dp/B009GFY858
Then a step down ring or step up ring for whatever the size of your front anamorphic thread is. I’m doing 77mm because this is what most of my front clamps are. I’m making a custom 75mm to 77mm coupler for Kowa 1.5x and Kowa 1.75x.
 
5. 86mm Fixed Spacer Ring
http://srb-photographic.co.uk/86mm-fixed-spacer-ring-5713-p.asp
You want a uv filter to protect the glass but having it on you can’t completely go to infinity. Lucky, even with the uv filter on and not being able to turn the Core DNA to infinity, I’m sharp for over 100 feet. This spacer is for clearing the full range of the focus and using filters.
 
6. You want to get some 86mm or higher diopters. You need them if you want to get sharp and close.
 

Yeah, now that I have moved into production mode with most of my quotes in, I am looking at an introductory special price on the 5FF and 7FF, 25 people would attract a significant discount as well as the built in weight saving.
 
I will be announcing something shortly as well as unveiling the first look at Rectilux 9FF Ultrawide Scope lens
180 = 1+ 8+ 0 = 9
Rectilux 9FF Ultrawide 180 deg FOV
 
Then followed by the new blue version of the Rectilux 3FF

I've now finished and posted my review of the ISCORAMA 42 for anyone interested http://www.vintagelensesforvideo.com/iscorama-42-review/

I'm talking with Panasonic UK about cameras for the movie I'm working on right now and Panasonic have denied there is a Gh5; when I asked them about the possible spec of this camera , they said the Gh5 does not exist .......

Lens-cyclopedia has been updated with a reference to this thread