By site editor Dan Chung:
Zeiss Compact Primes and Compact zooms are very popular with documentary shooters these days, it seems. The combination of sharp imagery, reasonable cost, precise focus, good bokeh and ready rental availability endear them to directors and shooters. The EF mount option means they can be mounted directly onto cameras like Canon’s 5D, C300, C100 and 1D C. Additionally, thanks to Zeiss designing these lenses for larger sensors, you can use them with a Metabones speedbooster to get a ‘full-frame’ look on Sony’s FS700 and other NEX cameras (except with the 18mm CP lens).
There is a catch, though: cine-style lenses like the Compact Primes often need filters – mainly for Neutral Density but also sometimes for protection from the elements. Unlike most stills lenses, which give you the option to simply screw on a circular filter, most cine lenses are not threaded for filters and have much larger diameters. The traditional solution is to use a mattebox, but in real world shooting there are times when a full-sized mattebox and accompanying support bars are simply too cumbersome and impractical, ruining the advantages gained by using smaller cameras like Canon’s 1D C or 5D. Another DIY solution is to gaffer tape filters to the front of the lens – OK for the occasional shot but not a viable daily use solution.
Enter the new Zunow combination lens shade and filter holder, distributed by Dutch company Alphatron. A simple yet ingenious design clamps onto the front of a Compact Prime or other cine lens, but remains light enough to not need support rods.
We first saw a prototype of the hood at Broadcast Asia in Singapore last year, but the new version has been tweaked for the larger Zeiss Compact Primes. It clamps onto the 114mm outside diameter (OD) of those lenses and can also be used on 95mm OD lenses with a step down ring.
It takes a single 4×4 filter tray and the hood provides reasonable protection for the front of your precious lens. It is, of course, reasonably large to allow for wider angle lenses to be used without vignetting – though just how wide you can go with this hood needs to be confirmed.
Price is set at $515 US and it should be available now from Alphatron.
