Zeiss has added 18mm, 40mm, 65mm and 135mm lenses to the Supreme Prime Radiance range.

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Zeiss: 18mm, 40mm, 65mm and 135mm lenses have joined the range

The 18mm and 135mm focal lengths add telephoto and wide-angle specialties to the seven focal lengths available to date. The 40mm and 65mm lenses enhance the standard range, meaning that the series now covers all possible applications for high-end film production.

Supreme Prime Radiance lenses offer a distinctive look with consistent flares that can be controlled at all times. The T* blue coating was developed especially for this series to allow users to create this look across all focal lengths – without having to sacrifice contrast or light transmission.

“The Zeiss Supreme Prime Radiance lenses began as a variant and complement to our existing Zeiss Supreme Prime lenses and have now evolved into a high-end cine set in their own right,” explained Christophe Casenave, who is responsible for the cine portfolio at Zeiss. “Their sophisticated, artistic design has been so well received by the cine community that we are proud to expand the line with four new lenses, offering a comprehensive set of focal lengths for all kinds of artistic demands in cine productions.”

Among the first to use Supreme Prime Radiance lenses was Emmy award-winning director of photography (DOP) Dana Gonzales, ASC. For the fourth season of the series Fargo, it wasn’t just the costume design, production design and colour palette that had to convey the look of the 1950s, but above all, the visual imagery. To portray this Kodachrome look, the Radiance lenses worked perfectly for him.

According to Gonzales, it is the pleasant softness that particularly sets Zeiss Supreme Prime Radiance lenses apart: “I use quite a bit of diffusion, but they are still very sharp with a soft fall-off, reminiscent of vintage lenses. I always embrace them and love the organic way the Radiance captures them. The flares always feel right and not forced.”

Supreme Prime Radiance lenses are said to offer all the attributes of a state-of-the-art cine lens – with an image circle diameter of 46.3mm they cover current large-format cine sensors and are compatible with camera models such as the Sony Venice, the ARRI Alexa LF and Mini LF, or the RED Monstro.

Incorporating a uniform front diameter of 95mm and consistently positioned focus and aperture rings, they feature smooth and reliable focusing, simplifying the task of changing lenses on set. The lenses’ average weight is about 1,600g (3.5lbs).

The lenses are equipped with the Zeiss eXtended Data metadata technology, meaning they provide frame-by-frame data on lens vignetting and distortion in addition to the standard metadata provided by Cooke’s /i technology protocol. This simplifies and speeds up workflows, particularly for VFX and virtual production.

The new focal lengths are now available for purchase as a set of four lenses. Deliveries will start in Q3, 2021.