Iscorama Pre-36 Version - Risky buy?

[Newtonian Films]

Hi,

Found this Iscorama pre-36 on ebay and currently its *very* cheap with a day and a bit to go.

According to the seller (who's been very helpful) the optics are clear but I don't think they've tested it. The plastic is very faded suggesting its been sitting in the sun for long periods or exposed to chemicals?

Worth the risk?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/191639075985?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Cheers for your advice in advance.

[dahlfors]

It's not in "good condition" as ad claims. Here are photos of my Iscorama: 

http://imgur.com/a/562Vf

The main questions are: does the focus and alignment even work? Why does the lens have that faded gray look? Is it possible to clean or not?

I have no idea, but it certainly looks like the fade isn't a reflection, but something on the lens elements.

[Nikkor]

The price is not going to stay low, specially if you keep posting the link on forums

Anyway, with the kowa and the slr rangefinder around ,who knows how high bidding on a compromised iscorama will end.

[Andrew Reid]

The faded grey is just some kind of age related reaction, a coating over the plastic and on mine it even scraped off after a while, though stubbornly. You can clean it up.

It actually looks in very good condition. Optics clean and all intact even with the original detachable prime. It screws off that and you can use it on a better lens of your choice.

[richg101]

I'd be very wary of disregarding the Iscorama purely based on recent products.  So far I've not yet seen a single result from the new units that come close to the Iscorama for overall compactness, optical quality, character, etc on a full frame sensor.   A pre 36 rama and a single coated 50mm lens on full frame is a wonder and delivers the widest proper anamorphic option available, and also the sharpest and most refined.  

[richg101]

[Volker Schmidt]

Here´s some footage of this pre-36 version, recorded with the Panasonic GH2:

I loved this lens! It´s far more accurate than any other anamorphic lens (from other manufacturer) I know!
 

[Andrew Reid]

Lovely stuff Rich and Volker. The Iscorama will always be a gem.

It is 1.5x though so quite a different look to 2x anamorphic.

Imagine a single focus 2x version of the Iscorama. That is what the Kowa 16H turns into with the Rangefinder attachment

First test went well, was sharp at F4, sometimes at F2.8 but definitely usable at all apertures aside from F1.4, but then the Iscorama is quite mushy that fast as well!

It focusses closer than the Iscorama, as essentially it has a variable diopter on the front.

The flare was very pleasing, oval streaks and blue hexagons. yum yum yum.

No breathing either.

Only weakness so far is the chromatic aberration, it is quite strong at close focus when you have a backlit subject. The light creeps in and puts a veil over the edges of your subject sometimes.

And yeah, Iscorama still smaller - but the Kowa, ironically, is now easier to focus... butter smooth and light, no stiffness.

PS - chances of Iscorama going down in price due to the Rangefinder = zero. It's still too rare and too good to depreciate. In fact it is now getting extremely rare compared to 2 years ago.

PPS - I sent my pre-36 away to Van Diemen to be rehoused for more practical focus with gears along with some others like Andrew Wonder and we are still waiting for them to finish it, cost me £1800. SLR Magic have given me the close focus, easy focus, cine focus all in one small adapter for $599... and done it quicker than Van Diemen could even get the CAD drawing to us... Says a lot.

[Newtonian Films]

HI,

Thanks to everyone for their advice.

For some reason I didn't get your responses in my inbox. 

The guy said the glass look very clean but he hadn't tested it which wasn't a great sign. 

@araucaria  - It went for ~USD1500!

Anyway I ended up grabbing one in near mint condition (perfect glass and only some smears on the housing) with original caps for $2750 which was a pretty good price (still painful) but also makes it much easier to resell if it doesn't work for my needs.

@andrew - I personally really like the look of the 2x Kowa BH (which I've got but yet to test properly) and as much as I like the idea of single focus (SLR Magic rangefinder), the results so far don't look fantastic. I'll be keen to see what it looks like in controlled lighting situations, wide open with quality taking glass etc.

Also I agree I'd be very surprised if the Iscorama magically drops in value. Most serious DPs are still using the Panavision C/E series which are from around the same era (Alan will correct me no doubt). Also new rehoused Pvintage (old glass, new housings) is in vogue. Just a pity Iscorama isn't 2x stretch.

If anyone is curious about the new Zeiss Anamorphics - check out A Most Violent Year. We could never afford (even to rent) them, but it shows you how 'perfect' modern glass has become. Personally I much prefer the Panavision C.

 

 

 

Volker - I meant to add your Minolta Rokkor tests on Vimeo (I have a full set up to 135mm plus zooms) with the 5DIII were amazing!

(sorry andrew wrong place)