Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Log in
  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Red Primes

R

RedPICK

New member
Joined
Nov 19, 2007
Messages
3
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Does anybody know an estimated ship date on the Red prime lenses?
 
RedPICK, I noticed this is your first post. Welcome to the Red Forum! I hope you enjoy this community. :)

One other thought about lenses. While waiting for the Red lenses to be released, some Red Users like myself are converting our PL mounts to Nikon to take advantage of a wider range of lens options available now. Of course you lose the common features of cine lenses, like geared rings.

Phil
http://www.artbeats.com
 
what I was told was q1 of 2009
 
Who is actually making them?

Who go the sub-contract?

I've heard either Ekran in Canada or Optima Elite in Russia.
 
I'll add to that rumor. I heard from a guy that ran a Russian camera/lens website (a Dutch guy now in Russia) that he had been contacted by Jim Jannard through his website with a request for contact information about the Optica Elite company.

Wouldn't it be funny if the reason Optica Elite doesn't seem to be able to deliver any of its own lenses is because they are too busy making Red lenses?

Now, I can't speak for whether or not the website guy was actually contacted by Jannard, but I know he told me this in an email exchange about Russian lenses.

So I would say the rumor is only partially baseless (or at least non-confirmable). But as vague rumors go, its pretty good...

Of course anybody with a web browser can find Optica Elite's web page, so why would Jannard have to contact this guy? That takes some of the beef out of the rumor. Who knows?

And I would have to add that Ekran is the name of a Russian company that made lenses, not a Canadian company. Pretty good lenses too.
Rob Gardner
 
Morning Rob,

It was you who told me Ekran was Russian, right?
Leitz (Leica) use to fabricate cameras and more so lenses in Canada under the name ELCAN ( Ernst Leitz Canada) but I believe they sold that divison to Raytheon.
 
Yes, Ekran lenses are Russian. You're right about Leica making cameras and Lenses in Canada, though I think they no longer do.

I think it would be funny if it turned out that Red lenses were Russian (son-of-LOMO). Or more accurately Son-of-Optima. We had a couple Optima lenses we got from Able Cinetech for our super16 Arri SR back when we used to shoot everything on film and they were fine lenses.

I think there are lots of reasons Red might consider a Russian source. The big Asian companies might not be interested in tooling up for the relatively small numbers Red would be purchasing, and the design work for cine lenses (both the optical and mechanical design) would have been done already and the quality of Russian optical glass is quite good, their coatings are good and their design work is quite good.

The down side in the past (LOMO particularly) was not in the quality of the glass or optical design, but in the build quality and the mechanical issues that come from a lower level of quality control in the Soviet system (vodka fueled technicians on the assembly bench). But that was a long time ago and modern Russian lenses seem to be quite good.

This is an interesting rumor and some people (probably Mitch Gross, for instance) who have experience working with Optica Elite, probably know the real story. But they are not talking...

I hope somebody else can pour fuel on the fire of this rumor...

Rob Gardner
 
At NAB everyone seemed very proud of the fact they are now designing all their lenses in House, and that they had a very knowledgable lens guy in house. But then again you hear lots of interesting things at NAB.

The whole russian thing doesnt make any sense, many people have tried to run buissness from Russian suppliers and I always notice the #1 problem is supply delays because of multiple reasons, not to mention customs and QC issues.

But it is ironic with the whole RED and Russian rumor.
In order to keep the prices and control that RED needs to meet
you are talking about lots* (not whole) Automation and little hand made manufacturing.

Its all about the balance of quality and cost, ie: having cast parts instead of machined RED accessories.



Ernesto Lomeli
 
Just guessing, but from the design of the lenses I have a feeling Cooke is somehow involved. Maybe different (cheaper) lens coating or pressed lenses. Nothing confirmed, just my own guess from a design point of view
 
Now, to be fair, LOMO continues to stay in business in Russia, selling microscopes and nightvision scopes and so on internationally. And many post-soviet places (Lithuania, the Czech Republic, what was once East Germany) have managed to attract big foreign investment and provide a variety of competitive goods and services. And Russia today (the big cities) is a very different place than it was once. But who knows?

The Russians used to make their lenses pretty much by hand. They lacked a lot of the computers and computer controlled machinery that we in wide use in the West. They had good optical mathematics and science because of their military and space programs. On the other hand, there are work-ethic issues in these places and business issues relating to customs and shipping.

I like it as a rumor though. Red Lenses from Russia (fade up "the Volga Boatmen")...
Rob Gardner
 
I think it does not makes sense to design a new lens from 0. And it would be very expensive to do so ($5000000.- per Lens?!). Better idea would be to buy the copyright of a good already existing optical Design (Maybe from Zeiss the Ultraprimes Design, which have the same aperture like Red intend to offer) and produce it with a new Outside Design in a factory which is highly capable to produce it at a good price point in larger quantities and outstanding quality (like Sigma, Tokina).
Just my (like you guys always say) 2cents.
Marc
 
kaplooee said:
At NAB everyone seemed very proud of the fact they are now designing all their lenses in House, and that they had a very knowledgable lens guy in house.
Click to expand...

So maybe they are in-house designs, and produced by, let's say, Cosina. Seems more likely than Russian OEM, IMO. And more appealing.
 
I guess we'll just have to wait until someone drops one and sees what it says in side...
 
My bet is on Cosina as a partner for design and assembly. If that were the case I would be VERY VERY happy. They are hands down producing some of the best lenses in the world right now. Another reason it's a logical choice is the guy who runs their optical side is a Lens nut much in the same way Jim is.
 
All in all there is a big difference in contact and contract. Whatever the phonecall might have been about. I once made a phonecall to someone without us starting an optical factory.

Johlan
 
Mike Prevette said:
My bet is on Cosina as a partner for design and assembly. If that were the case I would be VERY VERY happy. They are hands down producing some of the best lenses in the world right now. Another reason it's a logical choice is the guy who runs their optical side is a Lens nut much in the same way Jim is.
Click to expand...

I hope so too... Check out some of the weird and wonderful lenses they make for the Voigtlander:

http://www.cameraquest.com/inventor.htm

Any Redusers near Nakano who can check in on this ?

Matt Uhry
www.mattuhry.com
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top