Angenieux was showing a prototype of their new Optimo prime lenses at Cinegear 2019. The Angenieux Optimo Primes finally allow cinematographers to capture that signature Angenieux look in a complete 12 lens set that will match the companies range of zooms.
Why make prime lenses?
It’s not like Angenieux doesn’t have any experience making prime lenses. Way back in 1951 Angenieux built the 8.5 mm f/2.2 (T2.5), their first 35mm Cinema Lens.
The company has been the defacto standard for cine zooms, but up until now, they have never made a full set of cine primes, so why now?
That’s a good question, but Angenieux told me that a lot of customers were requesting a 12 focal length prime set that intercuts seamlessly with the companies zooms.
The development of the Angenieux Optimo Primes is a fairly recent undertaking by the company. With so many full frame cameras coming to market Angenieux thought it was the right time to start making primes.
Meet Optimo Prime
The Optimo Primes provide larger than full frame 46.5mm image circle coverage with all focal lengths featuring a 1.8 T-stop. The Optimo Primes have fully interchangeable mounts including LPL, XPL, PL, Canon EF, Nikon F and Panavision XL.
The lenses are actually a lot smaller than I thought they would be. I thought they would be the size of Cooke S7/i lenses, but they are significantly smaller.
The lenses are said to capture the essence of classic Angenieux glass. This glass has been paired with the most advanced modern optical engineering to make a lens that is claimed to be unlike any other.
Engineered as smart lenses, Optimo Primes will support both Cooke/I and Arri LDS; and feature common gear size and position across the entire 12-lens set.
Focal lengths for Optimo Primes consist of:
- 18mm
- 21mm
- 24mm
- 28mm
- 32mm
- 40mm
- 50mm
- 60mm
- 75mm
- 100mm
- 135mm
- 200mm
The initial 6-lens production run is scheduled for delivery in Fall 2020. The complete 12-lens set will include 18mm, 32mm, and 100mm lenses will be delivering in Winter 2020. The 24mm, 60mm, and 200mm that complete the 12 lens set won’t be available till Spring 2021.
Pricing
The lenses will range in price from around $23,000 USD- $31,000 USD each depending o the focal length. This certainly puts them firmly out of the reach of most owner-operators. These lenses will primarily be rental only at these prices.
