dr5chrome

Anyone know the production years of the various Sankor scopes? .. 16, C,D,F,M ? THANKS. DW

I just tried this adjustment with a Kowa 16-s. Unlike the sankor 16D, the kowa had no play in the tabs. Since the 16s looked new it seemed like 2 of the tabs were glued in some fashion, though the screws came out. The brass tabs would not even pry out [sharp exacto]. I didnt want to risk damage, so I returned the scope. The alignment was way off. 😔

Hello all. Has anyone done an alignment tune on the PROSKAR-ISHICO PROSKAR Anamorphic-16 ? Does the focus adjust work like the Sankor scopes? Thanks a bunch!.. regards, dw

So.. I bought a very pristine copy of the 16s based on reviews... my copy, very clean, almost new,but deadly out of alignment! It also dose not align like other scopes. TOTAL disappointment..

Hello - I have been studying anamorphic the past 8months after stumbling into one of Titos youtubes. As he explained, that he made many financial errors in the beginning. While i was skeptical, it turned out he was 100% correct. I did waste lots of money with total experiment stuff I now would not use for anything. But I guess one has to find his or hers own path. What works for one may not work for another. I was the same So the 1st debate - How much did you waste in the beginning? #2 - which setup did you find the most appealing? #3 - For me the KEY ELEMENT is sharpness. I cant afford a 20K scope, so dual focus it must be. Flares are secondary. Ive found That the scopes touted as the sharpest just were not - the ULTRA-STAR red and gold. Many of the older and less champined scopes I found to be sharper. I have not yet found a KOWA/B&H or the KOWA 8z to test.. With that, what scope surprised you that was unexpected? Best regards - Dave w

Can anyone gave feedback on the KOWA PROMINAR ANAMORPHiC HOKUSHIN how does it compare to other kowas? Sankors? The one I've seen has no number indication (16)... thanks

hello - I know this is an old topic. Anyone know what the mm size/rear is on the 8mm scope ??

Hello all - anyone have experience with the "iscomorphot mc 16 2x scope" ? Your thoughts are appreciated. Thanks, dw

Hench. My sankor 16D is having a focus issue, but not an infinity. I believe it is alignment. On the 16D do I align this scope at the rear or is the front adjustable? thanks. dw

So I have been in the photographic field since 1985. My work in shooting has been mostly still. My only experience with cinematography has been numerous cinematographers who shoot film for an art service I provide, in its 22nd year as a service. I am making a transition back to shooting after putting my cameras down in 98. I got the strange idea to use anamorphic lenses for a shooting project by studying old projection lenses adapted for still shooting... So here I am. In all my years I had no notion of anamorphic [guess you can teach an old dog new tricks]. Scouring the web is how I ended up here. Thus far it has been trial and error. This project requires Sharpness! The 1st lenses I bought were ISCO. To shorten the story, I picked up a RED ultra-star. My research indicated that this lens was the sharpest [Modern anamorphics are out of my price range]. My tests indicated a sharpness issue with this scope. Was it just like that? Image samples online indicated no, It was a tack sharp scope. There was a post some years back on the KOWA and focus tweeking, but the ISCO red wasn't the same and I could find little info online to service these scopes. For normal cine use I suppose my scope was ok, it was just out of focus. This condition was bothersome for me. I could find no one to provide the information I needed to adjust this scope, nor could I find anyone to service it. After a few off the cuff replies, someone replied by email that the rear element might need adjusting, then went on to another discussion. I took this brief comment seriously, because I never heard it before. I am mechanically inclined, so I took the risk and dismantled the scope. The following is that adventure. My dangerous tinkering was successful and I post it here in case it helps someone else with the same problem - this info is not on this forum that I could find. First I took the front focus ring off. It is held in my a few small screws in the focus tube. Be careful when you slide the tube off. There are a small springs and ball barrings. The focuser dial is held in by a large retaining ring with a set screw. The focuser ring screws down off one of the brass guide plates. NOTE - The focus issue was not in this location on this scope, but should one need to put new grease in you would simply unscrew where the small guide brass plates are. I am fairly certain that focus issues with this ISCO involves the rear element alignment. This was the case with my lens. On the rear there are about 5 small set screws. Loosen them all up, but don't take them totally out [very small - easy to lose]. When loose the rear element holding dial becomes free. I discovered that this rear element is very critical in the focus, of not just this scope but likely most if not all scopes. The rear alignment is very critical for focus. [Ill assume that when manufactured this setting is dont on some fancy divise to set the focus.] At first I thought I might have ruined my lens until i realized that the placement was very crucial. Be sure you have a small screwdriver in hand with your camera on live-view, and make sure your adapter clamp is the kind you can slide the scope off easily. With the rear element loose, move it very slightly. Put it on the taking lens w/live view. Taking it on and off moving it either direction until the sharpness is tack-on. Set the closest set screw when the live view is sharp. Remove the scope and tighten the other set screws - Reassemble the scope. I hope this helps someone out. Thanks for reading. Dave Wood

Hello again. I have 3 scopes that I am testing with, the Singer 16D, an ISCO ultra star-red, and the very large older ISCO. I did the infinity test. Only the very large older ISCO was razor sharp. The other 2 were not quite where I expected them to be and they both behaved the same. Through the viewer they seemed sharp but the taken image was soft [in the center]. My taken lens is a biotar or a takumar 55. The ultra star red was the worst. The closest infinity focus was far off the mark on the scope where it was sharpest. The 16D was not as bad but was still off. Anyone have a tune up direction / disassembly for the 16D and ultra star-red? I am mechanical but have not experience with these lenses. Thanks. dw

Hello - I was curious if this technique works for other scopes..? Sankor? ISCO? Thanks. dw

Thanks. I'll try that today.. but I don't have a variable diopter

Hello all. I picked up a decent singer 16d. I've been testing it the past several days. I understand that the 16d and taking lens need to be distance matched. But in practice the 16d and taking lens never jive (numbers). I don't care if the edges are soft, but the center is another matter. I can't get this scope sharp, no matter what taking lens. Seems it is sharp in the viewer, and the camera says it's in focus, but the taken image is far from in focus Is this 16d just not sharp? Is there something wrong with it? ..if so is it fixable? Thanks for the help!.. dw

Hello all - some advice from anamorphic users out there. I am currently working on doing anamorphic stills. I will be using full frame and APS-c format for now [pentax, nikon and sony]. I am having trouble finding the proper desqueeze ratio numbers and only find a very few conflicting numbers online. I have currently two 2x anamorphic lenses, both ISCO [one big one smaller lens]. In these both 3:2 formats, my question is what is the simple math calculations involved. When I open photoshop / image size - at the top box-width, What is the x factor on the width?? On some sites they say x1.33. Others say x2.0 [if I do 2x the image is distorted too wide] Thus far I have had to do by eye. Id rather have a math # for accuracy. Thanks for the help. regards.. dw