Bold

Thanks guys!
Hell yeah! The real plan is to do a big comparison including the FM too, all of them paired with the same anamorphic

I love the Moller, I don't have one though. I'd pay a lot for it if it was single focus... I think it's the best baby for sure.
I'm the lucky owner of a Petit Cinevision. It's probably not the best baby in town, but I love this little lens. Since I picked it up in 2013 I have never seen one again and it is impossible to find something about it on Google. A real unicorn!

I really have to take my baby out sometime again...

Here are some images showing my quickly put together test.  literally ripped apart a m58 helicoid so it would slide over the original male thread of the original focus part.
 
The front element was fitted into the helicoid.  i'd meant to make it so the front element didnt rotate but in the process of reworking the helicoid I damaged it and therefore the front element rotates as you focus.  No big deal, but it is actually possible to do this mod and have the element non rotating.
As you can see in the pics the front part of the helicoid with the front element seated in place now unscrews.  I actually used a rubber o ring cut to the right length which i squished around the front element.  this naturally pushes it centre and is tight enough to hold the element in the front part.
 
two shots are show.  wide open at f2 on a 58mm lens on aps-c. (3:2).  one at infinity, one at around 3 feet.  rack from inf to 3ft is around 3/4 of a turn!
Closing to f2.8 sharpens stuff up drastically.  as does using on a smaller sensor - 4:3 4k mode on gh4 would be ideal for this lens
 
flares are wonderful by the way!  
 













 
NB.  
 this method of modifying the B+H was showed to me by the good man Nick (QuickHitRecord), who was actually going to be manufacturing focus units for the B+H design and made the concept public on this forum long ago.   It was unfortunate Nick never got this to the manufacturing stage but i feel he deserves a pat on the back for making this public.  Hopefully some other people can make a working unit like this one.

Bold. if you pull this off, let me know! I'd love to make a video explaining the process! Let's put these B&Hs to good use!

Hi Rich - Thank you for your response!!!  This certainly seems like a more affordable solution than finding a machinist to fabricate a new front element.  I made the following diagram to make sure I understand the process:

Transfer the glass from the B&H front element to a suitable helicoid (using step/filter rings as needed). The helicoid with the B&H glass then replaces the old front element and is joined to the rear assembly. The old front element is not needed and can be stored in case it's ever required again. Is this correct?  If so:
Which kind/brand of helicoid did you use (or would you recommend)? Will the helicoid require any adaptation or modification to join the rear assembly of the B&H? Which kind of step/filter rings did you use (or would you recommend) for the glass?  If you're able to go down to 58mm on aps-c with little or no vignetting, what would be the shortest lens usable on m43? 40mm-ish? And the million-dollar question: Since the B&H is doing the focusing and not the taking lens, can it be used with a parfocal zoom? Thanks again for the info,  I'm excited to reach the point where I can start putting this modification together and share some test footage.  if anybody else has anything they can share, it would be hugely appreciated - I'm hoping to consolidate enough info to add back to the Anamorphic Lens-opedia.
 
Cheers,
|. . | .|
 

you only need about 15mm of travel.  i recon a m58 helicoid will work.  TBH i cant even remember which unit i used, i just ripped it apart to get it to do what i wanted.  mine wasnt the right size so i had to modify/step down.  just measure the body with the front element housing removed and select a helicoid that will slip over that.  if needs be you can pack it with pvc tape for a tight fit.

selecting a suitable helicoid (you can get various units with various diameters and focus throws on ebay) is a great start.  grab one that will allow you to fit the front element into it, - maybe with some step rings + nd filter rings with the glass removed to mount the glass.  then attach it to the front of the b+h.  I successfully did this and its a great mod.  i get focus from inf to around 3ft in around 90degres.  its nt a razor sharp lens, but almost gives full coverage wit ha 58mm on aps-c.  a 58mm and a gh2/3/4 will deliver great things.  lovely flare and character.

​That's a cool idea, Bold, there used to be a guy who sold these (Amit), there are plenty of references of him around the web, but I couldn't find a single adapter for sale. If you push forward with this, let me know how it goes! I'd love to offer that option to people, instead of hacking step rings.

Thanks for posting this Tito, I like the footage!  I have the Century 1609 in a Canon Bayonet mount.  I've done the step ring hack, but I also acquired a Canon GL1 lens assembly which includes the bayonet.  I'm considering making casts of the bayonet (probably in brass) and fixing those casts to step down rings, to live on each of my lenses so each lens can be attached quickly by bayonet, as originally designed. (Though I'm still deciding if it's worth the cost/effort}

PREFACE: I have been doing some testing with this lens for a while now, but lately I have been swamped with work. Also, there has been some sadness surrounding the girl who appears in the demo video (and several other anamorphic tests of mine), so anamorphic shooting has been on the back burner for a while now. But I'm seeing now that someone else has had the same idea, and is trying to make an unrealistic profit from it. And so I feel that I must post this write up, because this isn't a $1400 lens.
 
The search for the perfect anamorphic lens is over (at least for me).
 

 
Some months ago, I saw a post here from a member named frerichs. He claimed to have purchased a Bell & Howell 2x 16mm Anamorphic Projection lens (not the excellent Kowa model) for cheap and discovered that it was single focus, like the coveted Iscorama. I was skeptical, but since they can often be had for between $75 and $150 on eBay, I bought one to try out for myself.
 
At first glance this lens does not look like a winner. It has neither the steam punk appeal of the Lomo square fronts, nor the timeless curves of the Iscorama. The impossibly long and narrow build of the lens suggests that this would never be viable match for anything but the longest taking lenses.
 

 
And yet it works. The front element is a -7 diopter that focuses the other two elements in the housing as the head is turned, similar to the Iscorama. Unlike the Iscorama, the lens takes about five full rotations to go from infinity to close focus, which is limiting for practical use. But I have been working with a CNC machinist to resolve this, and I now have a prototype that allows me to do a full range rack focus in a one and a half turns:
 

 
(Want to do this yourself? Ask a machinist to design a new front housing with a "multi-start thread" that will house the front diopter and screw directly onto the existing thread on the tube; this could also conceivably be done for Iscoramas to the same effect). 
 
We have also added a standard 58mm threading for easier filter mounting, and I've since installed a custom seamless ultra-wide delrin focus gear to add just a little torque for even easier focusing (not pictured).
 
The Bell & Howell projection lenses that originally shipped with this lens were f/1.2 and f/1.4, so it is designed to be sharp at faster apertures -- and I find that it is. Perhaps not razor sharp, but as sharp as I'd ever want an anamorphic lens to be. And once you've removed the two limiting screws from the "head" of the lens, you can focus as close as two feet without diopters. Too much closer than that and the head will screw right off, but it's just as easy to screw right back on.
 
Flaring is nice:
 

 
The lens is not without its drawbacks. For one, it focuses to about 40 feet, not true infinity. That's not an issue for me, but it might be for some shooters. It's all-metal construction makes it a bit heavy which combined with its length will benefit from a lens support (which eliminates the shake that appears in my rack focus test). It vignettes when paired with wider lenses, so it is a better fit for smaller sensor cameras or Canon DSLRs with Magic Lantern raw crop mode enabled. For instance, I can shoot 1600x1200 with a Pentax Takumar 105mm f2.8 lens on my 5D Mark III and I don't see any vignetting before f/8. I also tested it with a Nikkor 50mm f1.8 AI-S on my GH2, and it was vignette-free so long as I cropped my 2x image down to 1.5x.
 

 
So how does the footage look? Here's something that I shot with it: 
 

 
I am excited to add a sharp, easily rack-focusable, short minimum-focusing anamorphic to my arsenal. It won't be the right lens for every anamorphic user, especially those who want to be able to shoot as wide as possible, but for the price, it could make single-focus anamorphics more accessible to those who have not had a chance to work with them yet. 
 
Happy shooting!

here it is being used on aps-c and a ff58 with 1.5x oval.  Very lomo-esq!  the CA and softness i can live with.  PS.  this was decoated so flares up in a crazy way!

Forgot to update this thread for a few weeks!
Some more videos online, including a new series - Anamorphic Chop Shop - with shorter videos presenting tips and guides on how to tweak the lenses to your needs.
ANAMORPHIC ON A BUDGET - CENTURY OPTICS 16:9 RATIO CONVERTER.
http://www.tferradans.com/blog/?p=7670
ANAMORPHIC CHOP SHOP - CENTURY OPTICS BAYONET TO 52mm.
http://www.tferradans.com/blog/?p=7708
ANAMORPHIC CHOP SHOP - UNBOXING THE RECTILUX 3FF-W.
http://www.tferradans.com/blog/?p=7694

Thanks Bold, just a tripod with two legs, you can see it somewhere in the behind the scenes :
 

Hello there !
We had the opportunity and luck to be part of the "Dominica Film Challenge" this year, here is the result of our week in this tiny and lovely island from the Carribeans !
Hope you'll like it.
We mainly shot with a Red epic, but there is also some 5d III raw footage as we had troubles with our luggage (4 days to arrive..). There are also a few drone shots made with a phantom 2 and a gopro 4. 

Yes, it does appear to be the same lens referred to in the thread you mentioned. Keep in mind; the one used and mentioned by QuickHitRecord was modified to have a shorter focus throw instead of having to turn the barrel 5 complete revolutions to travel from infinity to close focus. Seems interesting and a rather convenient modification especially given the close focusing capability of this lens without the use of diopters.
Pricing seems to be all over the place as usual and I am sure a good deal could be found at some point. The ones I have seen under/around $100 tend to have little issues with the optics such a scratches or light fungus. So I think above that is realistic currently. Actually, there are a few online now ranging from $165-$499(overpriced for the latter IMO). As mentioned in the thread link above, some ask unrealistic prices and my feeling is that they are not really that rare at all.

lomo foton 37-140mm is exactly what you are wanting and even has an interchangeable mount. In fact it is designed to work with a anamorphic front as well. It is designed for s35 so not sure if it will cover the sensor. However with all lenses on a still camera there is the issue that you cannot adjust back focus. For a lens to be parfocal its flange focal distance must be correct which could be a problem. The foton does have a back focus adjustment as I recall.
 
I loved my foton before its aperture failed, they go for $600-$800.

olympus OM 35-70 f3.6 is supposed to be good. the front element does not rotate either. I haven't gotten around to buying one, so haven't actually tried it though
You can get one is nice condition for less than $100

Congrats on the anamorphic lens!
I had been wondering about that too, but after some searching I found an earlier Helios (the 44, not the 44-2) on eBay in great shape with a gorgeous golden coating.  My understanding is that there were a lot of different 44-2's manufactured over many years, some may have the same coating. But keep an eye out for the original 44 too.
Cheers,
-Bold

Congrats on the anamorphic lens!
I had been wondering about that too, but after some searching I found an earlier Helios (the 44, not the 44-2) on eBay in great shape with a gorgeous golden coating.  My understanding is that there were a lot of different 44-2's manufactured over many years, some may have the same coating. But keep an eye out for the original 44 too.
Cheers,
-Bold