Apple's iPhone models and other high-end smartphones are increasingly regarded as serious tools for film-making, generating a market for movie-centric smartphone camera accessories. Last year premium lens makers Moment launched an anamorphic lens for smartphones, now rivals Sandmarc follow suit.
The Sandmarc anamorphic lens for iPhones comes with a multi-element design, multi-coating and anti-reflective glass. It uses an aluminum body and can be attached to most recent iPhone models via a dedicated case or a lens clip.
The company says the lens has been designed to create the same kind of image flare you see in movies and, like other anamorphic lenses, captures more horizontal information by squeezing the image.
The end result is a cinematic look with ultra-wide aspect ratio and black bars at top and bottom. The lens is available for the iPhone 7/7Plus and later on the Sandmarc website. The package will set you back $160 and comes with the lens clip and a dedicated case for your iPhone.
This concept of using anamorphic lenses for digital imaging confuses me. The purpose of anamorphic lenses was to use greater amounts of film stock in one direction, as the resulting projection from the negative would have greater magnification in the orthogonal axis to offset the magnification in the negative, and ultimately achieve greater detail in the final display rather than exposure of a negative in the dimensions of the final output.
Camera sensors are of fixed size in cellphones and the image or video resolution is not free for the user to determine. So just how are you going to use this anamorphic lens to achieve more detail in your final output?
You are right about some aspects of it. However, anamorphic lenses produce oval bokeh, specific out of focus feel, distort the edges and create flares. So you are here after the quirks or a specific feel to your images. This isn’t that obvious at 1.33x stretch but it’s gorgeous and cinematic at 2x stretch.
Btw, my handy smartphone mod allowing use or regular circular threaded camera filters... NDs to smooth out motion in videos in bright conditions and polarisers to make clouds, greenery etc. pop in your photos.
Wait, the whole point of anamorphic is to produce a wider horizontal FOV and a higher aspect ratio while still using the maximum resolution of the film (sensor). That advantage is completely lost when you have to computationally compress the image into the format of a fixed-pixel viewing medium, i.e. smartphone and TV screens. You might be able to capture 3840x2160 video with a wider AR, but to view it on anything without an anamporphic lens (short of an 8K TV), you'll be downsampling it.
People complain a lot about downsampling, but when you have, say a 4K sensor with a three colour filter (e.g. Bayer), 2/3 of the final image is interpolated anyway. So if you wanted to be honest to yourself, you'd want to downsample anyway.
I shoot videos with Iphones using DJI mobile. I generally shoot both with Moment Anamorphic lens and without it. Almost all my friends, we are not professionals, like my videos shot with anamorphic lenses. They just look more cinematic!
Putting all these little lenses on phones and poncing about with adaptors etc, maybe someone should invent a device solely for photography and enable it to mount better lenses more simply.....oh wait...
The price of a decent anamorphic lens is pretty crazy. For $160 this makes it much more affordable to create dynamic content that would be great for web and FB banners. I crop from my 4K footage already so I can fit in those aspect ratios. I think the huge benefit of something like this is making it affordable for low budget content creators for social banners and the like. It's not for everyone, but it has my attention.
A $160 anamorphic lens for an interchangeable lens camera would surely find its market. The last one whose launch was reported by DPR would set you back $3,250, or twenty times as much as the phone lens! It's also a whole lot less pocketable.
Looks like there is sort of a sweetspot, though, combining the Sony RX0 with a Moondog Labs lens and adapter for a total of $240 added to the cost of the RX0.
Well, MoondogLabs have been the first, waay before Moment. Their lenses are also integrated into FilmicPro and it is not even mentioned here?? Soo bad...
Why do you assume it's meant to be used horizontally for widescreen? It's for vertical use! Theatres are being converted everywhere for "Warner Bros Tallscreen!"
iphone owners have gotten wise to Apple's game. If we have to choose between $800 for a new iPhone or $49 for a new battery that will make the phone perform like new, it's not a hard decision.
I had an iPhone 6 Plus for 4 years up until last month. I changed out the battery last year and it ran most things very well. Only upgraded because I wanted to get more memory.
Think of it this way, you can get a used 7plus for about 250 dollars so for a relatively small investment you're shooting widescreen just like they do at MGM.
I have the 7 Plus because I don't like Face ID (I want to unlock the phone leaving it on my desk while I work) and until Apple can match the Pixel 3 or Huawei P 30 Pro for stacking and night photography there's no reason to upgrade.
the lens should only be used in landscape mode "..........wow
this rules out the shooting behavior of over 90% of cellphone video users according to cellphone "footage " seen in leagal news you tube personal or any other type of cellphone video
vertical video seems to be the new mindless video paradigm , and ive even have had people here defend its use when its come up
why not read and understand the point of my post before commenting
why would anyoone shoot vertical video ? because simply that is one of the mindless things cellphones bring to the photography table ...
secondly the video actually warns not to use it vertically why would they except to counter the fact that 90 percent of cellphone videos are shot this way?
the video above brings this up at the 2:31 mark : "one more important point ... the lens should only be used in landscape mode ".. so whos being ridiculous ?...lol
I think the point s1oth1ovechunk was making is that people will just remove the lens for shooting vertical. This lens is a specialized tool for creating a cinematic effect, not an all-purpose solution to phone video.
Also, vertical video will always have its place for two basic reasons:
(1) Smartphones are the dominant video consumption medium. People like the convenience of not having to pivot their phones back and forth from horizontal to vertical on a regular basis.
(2) When viewed on an appropriate screen at the appropriate distance, vertical video can create a sense of immersion and 'thereness' because people are so used to seeing a vertical preview of the world through their own phone cameras. Obviously it isn't optimal for most types of shooting, but for conveying a first-person experience I think it can be uniquely engrossing.
people are used to using their phone vertically so this is the new comfortable way of viewing the world ??? holy rolly polly and slowly hwolly and goalie
god help us all .... i was not being ridiculous , the future of photography itself is now gripped by idiocy
a pacifier is uniquely engrossing to a 3 month old baby lego blocks are uniquely engrossing to a 6 year old
im pretty sure this is the first time maker of a high quality anaorphic lens ever warnd not to use it in vertical orientation.......... or needed to ....lol call cellphones are damaging the very visual sense of young thinkers raised on an idiot slab ... as unsophiticated untrained artists and filmakers are given tools once reserved for actual content creators and filmakers
its as if the maker of a pistol had to warn to not pull the trigger when the barrel in pointed at you face or unsatisfactory performance may result
I'll grant you that shooting square images with a 6x6 Rollei is the only truly acceptable way to take pictures, but the creative possibilities of other formats are there.... What about a documentary on skyscrapers? If you had a theater where you could draw the side tapes in far enough to create a vertical screen it would be a mesmerising experience. Or you could project it onto the side of a building in a trendy Brooklyn neighborhood.... There are lots of uses.
who shoot over 90 percent vertically ... thats who it a mistake waiting to happens for those who phone vertical orientation has oriented their visual sense ....not joking the lens maker felt it merited a warning and so do i
Vertical video for vertical subjects like people standing up doing things. Just because a full size tv can’t be rotated doesn’t mean modern videography needs to be constrained to a horizontal layout.
not at all .... as someone who loves still photography i realize the value of portrait mode and use it as subject and artistic intent dictates
it is clearly a very sensible orientation for many artistic and subject shape needs
the widespread use of vertical orientation video from cellphones is something else, and results either from laziness, lack of awareness , artistic nonobservation, or sheer stupidity
i will be the first to defend it when its done with purpose cogitative intent or aesthetic need.
, here is a shot of 5 small dogs peering out of a rainsoaked window at their owner who dashed thru the rain to retrieve some chinese takeout
but here peering thru a window in lower manhattan into a federal building at night at a vertical flag with 2 underneath ..between strong vertical columns
@desert You're right, it doesn't have to be horizontal. But some ideas are original not because people didn't think of them. Cars don't have square wheels. You could argue it's a different esthetic, one made for a phone, but I turn my phone sideways because everything else I watch is horizontal
it it happens from purpose or artistic intent ... ok ...
.but good luck sharing it outside the world of the cellphone
most vertical cellphone video is the result of ignorance and unsophistication ... or habitual single hand holding or the visual mind itself being shaped due to the excessive time spent consuming content vertically
I'm not going to argue about landscape vs portrait video.
I agree that video should never be shot in portrait mode.
What I don't agree with is that there is someone that exists that will buy an anamorphic adapter for their phone and then shoot in portrait mode.
It sounds to me like you want to argue with people about portrait video, not about whether or not there is someone who is interested in anamorphic lenses for their phone so they can shoot even taller portrait video. Those people do not exist.
Stick to the topic at hand. This product is not for people who shoot video in portrait mode. These are completely disjoint sets: portrait video shooters, people spending money on this product. Do you not agree?
chuck , i only made the point firstly almost tongue in cheek, that the danger existed for some cellphone shooters to use it in vertical .... i am not the first to consider this as the lensmakers mentions not to do it in the video at about 2:31 in ...
as to the idea that no one would be so clueless as to use it vertically ? well im not so sure ..... as the overwhelming majority of video shot and shared on cellphones is done vertically ... further a person who get this as a wide angle solution but remains a loyal vertiical shooter ? well do the math
someone will be doing it ... it is the preferred orientation in the world of cellphones , and i do not consider the community of cell phone only shooter to be very educated or savvy photographically
[ present readers excluded obviously ]
i could see a newbie thinking "well this will let me get more it the shot " and then using it vertically if only to se what results and its possible utility
to be clear i didnt say anything in order to argue with anyone ... as the first and only comment it was simply an observation about a specialized lens only used horizontal orientation being made for the world of cellphones where people almost only shoot vertically ... a clear possibility and a conflict of orientations
but some chose to argue the point with me ... if you read carefully , i hope i respectfully engaged them
perhaps this lens will do some good and help cellular videographers realize that video should almost never be shot vertically unless a reason exists
i can imagine a fireworks display standing figures full length by a waterfall or a rocket launch might be enhanced by vertical orientation much like stills .... but most everything else is weakened and almost made foolish by committing to vertical to no other reason that one is used to it
There is no right or wrong, there is only good or bad execution. 16:9 portraits? Ever hear of a guy named Gustav Klimpt? Or any of the great triptych artists? Modern day equivalent would be a triptych of someone's three kids, or two kid with the parents in the middle, or three partners in a law firm...Three great redwood trees... The list goes on forever.
Each photo you shoot as a 16x9 and then put the three of them on the wall. But I'm not an art expert. What do you call three images mounted side by side as we see in churches and other houses of worship?
I understand the effect. My question was rhetorical. The point was that the 9:16 portrait is so weird, the only way to make it normal is to put two other images on either side. I'm still not seeing where this is a case for 16:9 portraits by themselves. 3:2 is almost already to tall IMHO.
Yes, 16:9 is a modern bastardization. The only acceptable way to shoot portraits is on Tri-X with Nikon's 105mm f/2.5 manual focus lens and then print them in the 8x10 format, borderless to the edge of the mounting board, dry mount (with your mom's iron), and glue 3/8" blocks of wood to the back so the photo stands proud of the wall.
Anamorphic is different from wide angle. Anamorphic lenses give you a look that's unavailable anywhere else including unique bokeh and the fact that horizontal and vertical lines don't focus in the same plane. In other words you can either have your horizontals in focus or your verts but not both.
a serious absurdity for those serious about irrational spending or is it like yo let me whip out mah seriously cinematic anamorphic lens camera in mah pocket so i kin post it on me instagross and facebutts get those likes and thumbs up ya'll
I kindly disagree. If shot well and post-produced by experts, 90% of the audience wouldn't be able to tell the difference. And if it has a great plot, I wouldn't mind the lower resolution, I'll just write it off as a retro look. ;) Picture clarity isn't everything. A lot of old movies are still watchable today despite being sold in SD. Would they benefit from higher resolution? Absolutely, but that doesn't break the deal.
: Moondog Labs made one 3 years ago (I have one and it's fabulous though you need a cage) special case for it), Moment made another (the same thing) 2 years ago, and now yet another one. And this one is more expensive that the prior two. What's the point?
I mean this is a stupid lens but not for this reason. Your lens isn't useless if it can't handle an ND filter. Also they could just attach a matte box to their phone.
Actually, @its_a_knife it is pointless for that reason. If you're actually going through the trouble of shooting anamorphic one would presume you also want motion blur which is probably more important anyway.
If you can't shoot at 180 degree shutter (so 1/48, 1/50 or 1/60th) your movie won't look quite right. With a f/1.8 phone lens and a minimum ISO of 20 that's anything brighter than Twilight (Ev 10). I have Filmic Pro on my phone (I do like 2.39:1, probably why I'm posting here), but shutter speed is a real limitation.
P.S. I watched both of their videos and checked the specs on their website and they don't mention filter use, alas. (It does look like it could support one though).
P.P.S. I'd much rather it was 2x (per the slip in one of their videos) and you shot at 4:3, it's a nicer effect.
This looks like a great tool for existing iPhones, but I wonder if the new three lens models will obviate the need for it, including an ultra wide lens with the image correction computational algorithms built in.
Other than wide angle, and possibly liking oval bokeh and the artistic use of image lighting aberrations, what are the other benefits of an anamorphic lens on iPhone?
Anamorphic isn't wide angle. You can have a 70mm anamorphic lens. You get more picture with anamorphic because of the way it captures a scope image on a full aperature sensor.
Wow that was some serious horizon curvature. Is that just inherent to wide anamorphic, or could a larger/better versions of this lens theoretically address that?
No, it was not unimaginable a few years ago. Read the following about an award-winning film shot with an iPhone and the Moondog anamorphic lens in...2015!
The point is this is NOT an innovative product, a good quality anamorphic lens for phones has been available for years. And, btw there is one for the Sony RX0 ii, so you can shoot anamorphically with a real camera cheaply.
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