Bioskop.Inc

There are a couple of good posts over at BMCuser in the Lens section that might interest you - a recent one about these Jena lenses & another about wider Russain options. Also, you never really mentioned which BM camera you were using, but am assuming its not the Pocket. You could try one of those cheap focal reducer adaptors, since a lot of the wider Russain lenses are quite soft on the edges, produce quite alot of distortion & aren't very fast (f3.5 mostly) anyway. Its a real shame that you don't like either the Nikons or the FDs, then you could have gotten a SpeedBooster...

Thanks for the reply & info - that must be a close one with the Helios 44-2, because at infinity my copy protrudes to nearly 98mm. Might give it a go after all.

Can you give me some info on this RJ model - they claim that protruding elements might be a problem on the M42 version because of the glass. Which lenses do you use & have you found this to be the case, if not could you tell me what the distance is between the top of the adaptor to the glass - thanks.

I am troubled that the glass, on the M42 adapter, seems very close to the aperture ridge/lip & they state that some lenses with protruding back elements (at infinity) may hit the glass - so obviously a no no. I've asked the question about the distance of the glass from the top to see if this will be a problem. But would be interesting to see some results before buying, but it is only $100 & the Metabones people are really dragging their feet getting an M42 or EF (which i understand is more difficult to make, apparently) adapter out there.

Ahh I see - you used to be able to haggle. So how is the Focal Reducer really - are there any other real downsides now you've had it a few days? Well that means they might accept - $80 must be their min limit, as my 2 [stupidly low] offers were declined almost a split second after hitting the offer button. V.rude not to even consider an offer!

$50 & $60 immediately declined! Must have been an automated response - whatever happened to good old haggling? Said i could only make 1 more offer - strange? Perhaps $80?

Yeah i was just messing about really so wanted to try different looks. I tried some LUTs but most just left me a bit...well, not really impressed. The only thing that spoke to me was Film Convert, but my wallet ain't having it! All this footage was done with available natural light, which isn't your friend with this camera - however, i do like the film-like noise. Those preset WB settings are shit!

So finally got around to playing with some BM Pocket ProRes (Film) footage. The edit is quick'n'dirty & was just trying to come up with different grading possibilities. All done within FCPX using the colour board and/or some of the presets - No LUTs. See what you think - do you really need LUTs? On an aside, I did try Film Convert & I was very impressed how it dealt with the footage, espcially the highlight/shadow roll off.

The first & probably only thing i would say/suggest is before doing anything: Try Magic Lantern out on your 5D2 - RAW video or Bit Rate hack & much much more. There's also that filter that gets rid of moire etc... As far as re-sale value goes, you've got one hell of a photography camera & you'll always be able to sell it. Also, you can't buy the GH4 yet & there is NAB coming.

FCPX I learnt on FCP5-7 & also did some stuff on AVID. PP wasn't ever an option back then, it was FCP for mac or AVID for PC. The thing i always felt was that both these NLEs were counter-intuitive - well FCP more than AVID. FCPX changed all that & it got better over time (& a few updates), especially once i realised that most of the missing stuff was in Motion & could be exported as user-made FCP effect plugins. It doesn't take long to learn - 30mins to be exact!

I was thinking more like $50/60 then i can always up it - the offer option is there, so would be silly not to take advantage!?

Good to hear & didn't realise there was an M42 version! My BM Pocket is screaming out for my M42 lenses - Metabones are just taking too long to produce something & pricey too. Did anyone make an offer - seems strange that there is that option on the ebay listing?

Or the original seller realising his mistake - both in France as well. I was going to buy them later that day when i got home - heyho!

The other day there was a listing for 2 of these in mint condition for 1000euros (could have been $) for the pair & they dissappeared very quickly!

Google is always your friend, so do use it. I would strongly suggest using MPEGstreamclip, lots of professionals use it & is hands down one of the best converters out there. x264 - just put the codec where your others are on your computer. Here are some useful links (all free): MPEGstreamclip (mac or win): http://www.squared5.com/ X264: http://www.videolan.org/developers/x264.html Interesting thread from REDuser about encoding: http://www.reduser.net/forum/showthread.php?69957-The-Art-of-Compression-and-Encoding/page3

You can use x264 in MPEGstreamclip & i did have a list of settings somewhere, to fine tune it. Also, can't remember but i think if you upload an MP4 x264 file its better than .Mov x264. If not find someone with FCPX, import your full res version into it & get them to export it directly to Vimeo - works better than anything else i've tried.

Damn, wish i'd kept hold of mine & got more money for it!

Wow, over 4 grand!!! Wonder how low he'll go on Make an Offer? Think prices might be going down because people can't/won't pay as much as sellers would like.

The only one that really springs to mind is the Helios 40-2 85mm f1.5 - wide open its dreamy soft & produces the best swirly Bokeh that you'll ever see! Stopped down it is really great & produces a star-like Bokeh shape. The Helios 40-2, the 44-2 & Tair 11a were the only 3 lenses I used to use. I recently discovered that they have halved in price & can be bought brand new (re-released in 2012 or just old new stock) in various mounts (Canon, Nikon or M42). This guy has a ton: http://stores.ebay.co.uk/moscowStore/_i.html?_nkw=helios+40-2&rt=nc&_dmd=1&_sid=92107522&_trksid=p4634.c0.m14&_vc=1 The other usual [Russain] suspects are: Mir 24 35mm f2 (MC in Nikon or M42) Mir-1b 37mm f2.8 Jupiter 9 85mm f2 Tair 11a 135mm f2.8 Also, seen some good things done with the Meteor 5-1 17-69mm f1.9 (a S16mm zoom lens) - anyone got one of these & got more info on its performance?

I haven't used/updated my version of ML for a while, but if i remember rightly you had to first install the stable Unified version of ML (get that working) & once that was done, you replace with the files which come in the Nightly Build.

Yeah i've noticed this too, especially good anamorphics being re-listed! I do think SLR Magic et al have created a little down turn, but there does also seem to be this gulf between what buyers are willing to pay. It feels like this 3-tier structure: - The cheap multi-coloured nasty things, for those clueless ones dazzled by pretty colours who are starting out that can't or don't want to spend much. - The SLR Magic crowd, that can't or don't want to spend as much as an Iscorama. - The Iscorama crowd, that either jumped on board early or are willing to pay the price for perfection (& you've got to remember that there isn't an everlasting supply of these lenses). The real winners will be the sensible ones that are just starting to get into anamorphics & can now pick up a Kowa etc... for very little & realise there are some bargins out there.

Thanks for doing this & the time/effort it takes to do it. Just out of interest, which camera are you using - scarlet or...? The Zoom thing freaked me out & i've seen a couple of posts where people have talked about using Zooms with the 54, but to get it from the horses mouth was reassuring. However, I wouldn't have thought it was that practical, since the 54 isn't the smallest lens & lens support is essential, especially with the tiny Super-Taks. So really need an internal zoom. >

Simple answer is, if using: FCP7 use 5DtoRGB FCPX don't bother

As I said the Super-Tak 55mm f1.8 & 35mm f3.5 are v.good for sharpness. The Russain lenses can be a bit of a crap shoot quality-wise & the Mir 1b does seem to be the weakest link (still nice though), but have you tried the Mir 24 35mm f2 (it comes in Nikon or M42 & is MC) its much better. The other Russains that i like are the Tair 11a, Jupiter 9 ( a 85mm f2 - dreamy wide open like the Helios 40-2) & the classic Helios 44-2. The Yashica ML lenses are good on a budget or if you've got the money Zeiss Contax (obviously). I've recently switched cameras to the BM Pocket & have been using a Nikon 24mm f2.8 ai-s which is proving to be excellent (will post a grading test soon), so am really tempted to go the whole hog & get a set. However, I love my Russain lenses & would rather wait a little to see if the Canon EF Speedbooster gets released. On a slightly different note, I got the chance to see the original box for the 54 & it did state that it was optimised to be used with Zoom lenses as well as Primes. So I've been really tempted to try this out with either the Angenieux 35-70mm + speedbooster or the Meteor 5-1 16-69mm f1.9 (a 16mm film lens) - probably the later as its way cheaper & Russain. The Helios 40-2 is a lovely lens & the swirly bokeh wide-open is to die for & a test chart isn't the same as actually filming with it - love it, just can't use it with the Pocket cam. I've got one of his Angenieux single +0.25, but your doublet really sharpens things up nicely - i was really tempted to get one. Anyways, nice test & thanks for the ProRes version!

Nice one Jae, that will make a good reference guide - since i have the same set up. Nice to see that the Focars hold up quite well in comparison to the Tokina. Which Redstan +0.25 do you have - is it a doublet? The only problem is that the Helios 40-2 is v.soft wide open (I love it, but for a test...), have you tried it with something like a Super-Takumar 55mm f1.8 - so far that seems to be my sharpest combo with the 54. Thanks again