VIDEO DESCRIPTION:

Play, download and edit the free video Anamorphic - Sankor 16F.

Shot in V-Log with a mixture of 4K 24FPS 10-bit 4:2:2 4:3 anamorphic mode and 4K 60FPS 10-bit 4:2:0 16:9 2x desqueeze on the Lumix S5 primarily on the Helios 44-2 58mm f/2. Footage outside of a color grade is not altered in terms of sharpness so you can see how it looks out of camera. Some of the shots have missed focus, other times it's just because I had to shoot wide open. I've played around with sharpening in Resolve and it can be sharpened well enough to match the sharper shots I got.

0:00 initial testing
0:19 spec commercial by Summer Ward
1:35 pfocus testing (w/ flares)

edited in Premiere Pro, graded in Davinci Resolve

McCaffrey focuser: youtu.be/PBUxA1J2iPQ
Pfocus: youtu.be/VdiuNXBOR0o

Music: "Miami Sky" by White Bat Audio

STORYTIME
So for the past few months I've been testing out and building a reliable anamorphic setup. After I bought one for cheap without realizing what I was getting myself into, I did some research and wanted to build a reliable setup before my coming semester. After settling on the Sankor 16F and a Helios 44-2 as my primary taking lens, I played around with trying to build a single-focus solution that Tito Ferradans from Anamorphic on a Budget built designed by Chase McCaffrey. That was my go-to for a while, including when I visited New Jersey.

I was visiting my girlfriend and we spent two days shooting a small spec commercial for fun. Because I never used it in the field I decided it'd be a perfect opportunity to test out my anamorphic lens with my new camera, the Lumix S5. We only had one light, the Aputure MC, for night shooting. I also didn't bring my usual rig, just a cold-shoe top handle, because I wanted to try to shoot as bare bones as I could to experiment using as little equipment as I possible.

The McCaffrey focuser worked amazingly except for the fact that I couldn't focus to infinity. Also because of a weird ghosting when wide-open, I'd either have to stop down or take off the focuser off for some shots. That wasn't a big deal outside of nailing dual-focus, but it was an interesting experience. The focuser creates a fun falloff at the edges I was a big fan of for some shots, but the cons of shooting with it made it so I'd need something for reliable for upcoming narrative work. But the shoot was a success.

I hate having to dual focus but at the same time shooting with it I love the look the lens creates without the focuser. In 16:9, I get the full frame no vignetting with the Helios. I could shoot wide open and not worry too much about a significantly softer image. But dual focus wouldn't work for focus pulling. Luckily I was already working on building the Pfocus by Lucas Pfaff. Once I returned from my trip all the materials were ready so i just assembled it and...all issues I had prior were gone. With the Pfocus I could shoot wide open if I wanted to at f2 (mind some softness), it was sharper overall, and it focused fairly close to infinity. You can really see a difference in the footage when compared to the previous shots. It obviously wasn't perfect compared to professional solutions and I may have taken some liberties when assembling it but it's exactly what I needed. I haven't shot anything big yet with it but I'm looking forward to it and will hopefully be posting it for viewing.

Flaring on the 16F is a good balance for me. It doesn't flare too dramatically but it can under certain conditions or lights, which is fine by me. My 16F seems to have a blue coating unlike the amber coating I see others have, so I guess I may have gotten lucky. I’ve considered potentially removing the coatings to increase flaring but for now I like it how it is. I think the Pfocus and the Black Pro Mist 1/8 I have on may be helping with flaring but I'm not sure. Anyways I'm excited to see what projects I'll get to shoot anamorphic and what improvements I'll get to make to my setup. It's been fun learning the history of them and being able to get closer to that look that would otherwise cost me like 50x more than the $400 it cost me to make this.

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