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  • 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 :)

Cooke Speed Panchro 18mm?? Anyone use one?

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thx-1138

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Hi All

Has anyone used a Cooke Speed Panchro 18mm f/1.7/(T2) on their Red?

I have one I use on my Bolex and as I've just started shooting Red I want to know if it's worth it to upgrade the lens with a PL mount.

Any opinions or links to grabs would be helpful.
 
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There are no markings on the lens that indicate i ii or iii.

So I don't really know what series it is.

Here's a photo of whai I have.

6456_1226303709.jpg


I did find a SerIII on line but it ws a T2.2 not a T2 like I have?????
 
Hi,

Are you sure it's F1.5?

Stephen
 
Hi,

I would guess you have a SIII which was F1.7, T2 sounds about right, from memory the SII lenses vary between T2.1 & T2.2

The lens will porthole due to its design, hopefully not as badly as on a P+S adapter

Stephen
 
Im interested in this too. Apart from Port holeing how good is it on Red, also what about the other S2 and 3 panchro's ?

thanks,

Dave
 
daveb said:
Im interested in this too. Apart from Port holeing how good is it on Red, also what about the other S2 and 3 panchro's ?

thanks,

Dave
Click to expand...

Hi,

The lenses should produce very beautiful images, the focus marks are rather close together relative to modern lenses.

Stephen
 
thx-1138 said:
There are no markings on the lens that indicate i ii or iii.

So I don't really know what series it is.

Here's a photo of whai I have.
http://www.myspace.com/rrflfilm
6456_1226303709.jpg


I did find a SerIII on line but it ws a T2.2 not a T2 like I have?????
Click to expand...

hi, your lens is a MKII, the way you cantel is from the fron element, if it is not flat it's a MKII, but from what i remember, cooke designed the MKIII in response to S35 they had to make it slightly slower at F2 T2.2 and it has a completely flat front element. I have own a full set of these lenses, re-housed by Century, van diemen also did some excellent conversions, and also 1 japanense compan and 1 german company who i cannot remember at the moment. I have not had any problems using the 18mm on my RED. Cooke also rleased a SERIII 25mm in response to the S35 format. You can view a trailer of a feature i m shooting using mainly cooke SERII/III optics here www.myspace.com/rrflfilm
I love these optics, lets face it they have been used for long enough to shoot many of the classic films that we today use as benchmarks. Very beautiful and i think very underestimated glass. The few sets that are here in the UK are nearly allways out of the rental houses.
 
Hi Bob,

The Ser III were released in the 1950's, S35 was not a common format so I doubt there was any connection. I shot some S35 in the 1980's for optical work, but it was very very rare before DI's became common.

Best,

Stephen
Bob.H said:
hi, your lens is a MKII, the way you cantel is from the fron element, if it is not flat it's a MKII, but from what i remember, cooke designed the MKIII in response to S35 they had to make it slightly slower at F2 T2.2 and it has a completely flat front element. I have own a full set of these lenses, re-housed by Century, van diemen also did some excellent conversions, and also 1 japanense compan and 1 german company who i cannot remember at the moment. I have not had any problems using the 18mm on my RED. Cooke also rleased a SERIII 25mm in response to the S35 format. You can view a trailer of a feature i m shooting using mainly cooke SERII/III optics here www.myspace.com/rrflfilm
I love these optics, lets face it they have been used for long enough to shoot many of the classic films that we today use as benchmarks. Very beautiful and i think very underestimated glass. The few sets that are here in the UK are nearly allways out of the rental houses.
Click to expand...
 
"In 1954, design began on the 18mm Series III Cooke Speed Panchro. Two years later, the new lens, of inverted telephoto construction, achieved an angular field of 80 degrees and f/1.7 while maintaining the modern standard of definition and resolution required for wide screen presentation. The other Speed Panchro to share the Series III distinction was the 25mm, again of reverse telephoto construction and also released in the mid-1950s."

This is from the cooke website, yes it wasn't in response to super35 but wide screen formats, similar idea though, i just knew i had read something somewhere about why they had re-designed the 18 and 25mm, seems the f1.7 is MKIII as well, there is some dialogue about the quality of the 18mm,s i remember talking to Le Bosher about it, the F1.7 has more distortion i think, i'm pretty sure there is a small mistake on the website there with regard the SERII/III ( DARE I SAY IT ) as the newer lens i know corrected that distortion. Also all the 18mm lenses that i have ever come across that have been re-housed are the F2 version, i find it hard to believe that the choice would have been to re-house earlier glass , given the choice between them. Also the serial numbers for the ser III are starting up in the 7's whereas the SERII are 5's etc...anyway regardless, i love mine :biggrin: "
 
I like it

I like it

I have cooke panchro SER-III 18mm/T2.2 (F2.0) of Arri mount.

I like cooke lens.
IMO, it have smooth bokeh than zeiss.
I don't know the PL lens. it's Arri mount both.

Anyway, the 18mm lens has vignetting very much. and close focus are 1feet.

best
 
pensound said:
I have cooke panchro SER-III 18mm/T2.2 (
Anyway, the 18mm lens has vignetting very much. and close focus are 1feet.

best
Click to expand...

Hi,

On film no vignetting is seen, so I am fairly sure it's portholing. Does it reduce or increase as you stop down. Vignetting would increase as you stop down.

Best,

Stephen
 
Ok here are 3 comparison JPEGS, 25mm cooke, 19mm Leica FF, 18mm cooke, all wide open, camera plonked on my table. No fuss, lighting etc. All PL mount. 4K 16:9.





cooke25mm.jpg


Leica19mm.jpg


cooke18mm.jpg
 
Stephen Williams said:
Hi,

On film no vignetting is seen, so I am fairly sure it's portholing. Does it reduce or increase as you stop down. Vignetting would increase as you stop down.

Best,

Stephen
Click to expand...

hello,

this vignetting change the color. It was mysterious..
but, Mr Bob's comparison jpegs can see change color of cooke.. reason by CCD?

btw,
I bought sigma 20mm/F1.8 (nikon mount) today. it have not vignetting. but cooke is fine..

best,

Yoji
 
Change of color is from me messing with color settings in camera , that is all it has nothing to do with the glass I will post some more grabs for you today. Bests. Bob
 
The 18mm f1.7 is in Arri standard mount that rotates. This can be a problem with some Arri S to PL adapters.
 
chuck colburn said:
The 18mm f1.7 is in Arri standard mount that rotates. This can be a problem with some Arri S to PL adapters.
Click to expand...

Hi Chuck,

All the Cooke panchros were arri standard mount (some were later converted to BNC some converted to PL), and they all rotated inside the mount, Les Bosher does make a cooke adapter for standard to Pl that has a small lug that inserts into the mount allowing the inner to roatate while inside the PL mount, he basically creates a mount within a mount. My lenses have been completely RE-housed by century optics,
 
Nice set of lenses.
Someone else has a Arri standard and S/B adapter that allows rotation of the S mount. It uses a snap ring that falls in the groove at the rear of the S mount to allow it to turn. It all so mounts the bayonet types.
 
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