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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 :)

Contax Zeiss Survival Guide

Jonathan Grevsen said:
Has anyone done a cinemod on the 60mm macro? Love that lens, but seem difficult to add lens gear ring as the lens extends quite alot when focusing.
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Very nice lens for underwater work.
 

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Brice, what Field of View are you getting on that camera body with the 18mm? 90 degrees or more?
 
Hi All,

First time poster here, amazing work from all of you and really fascinating resource to pore through. Currently contemplating building up a set of AE Contax lenses and wondering if anyone has any thoughts! I currently have a 50mm 1.4 Contax AE and love the ridiculous flares I can get off of it, hence my trying to build an AE set.

My thinking is a 5-lens kit:
15mm f3.5 AE
25mm f2.8 AE
35mm f1.4 AE
50mm f1.4 AE (currently owned)
85mm f1.4 AE

I might fill out the long end later on but my main worry is I might not have enough steps in the wide range? I see a lot of you favour the 18mm f4 and wondering if anyone can speak to it vs the 15mm (I love me some ultrawides and shooting mainly on a crop frame camera (a C300 Mark II) I'm thinking to go as wide as possible). Am I being flippant by getting the 25mm f2.8, instead of a 21mm f2.8 and 28mm f2.0?

Thanks in advance, and to Nick for all the info!
 
David Tang said:
Hi All,

First time poster here, amazing work from all of you and really fascinating resource to pore through. Currently contemplating building up a set of AE Contax lenses and wondering if anyone has any thoughts! I currently have a 50mm 1.4 Contax AE and love the ridiculous flares I can get off of it, hence my trying to build an AE set.

My thinking is a 5-lens kit:
15mm f3.5 AE
25mm f2.8 AE
35mm f1.4 AE
50mm f1.4 AE (currently owned)
85mm f1.4 AE

I might fill out the long end later on but my main worry is I might not have enough steps in the wide range? I see a lot of you favour the 18mm f4 and wondering if anyone can speak to it vs the 15mm (I love me some ultrawides and shooting mainly on a crop frame camera (a C300 Mark II) I'm thinking to go as wide as possible). Am I being flippant by getting the 25mm f2.8, instead of a 21mm f2.8 and 28mm f2.0?

Thanks in advance, and to Nick for all the info!
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Id get the 21 over the 15!!
 
Nick Morrison said:
Id get the 21 over the 15!!
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Interesting! Am I right in saying that the 21 comes in MM only, and not AE? Wondering if there's much point in getting a 25 if I have a 21 in the set replacing the 15, it would probably make more sense to go the 21/28/35 to cover the wide angle side more evenly. Plus I did a bit more digging and saw the posts on how it's been difficult putting 80mm OD rings on the 15 or the 18.

I will miss the ultra-wideness of a 15/18 though being crop frame only...

Another quick q; any locations in Australia that help with Contax modding? Or any feedback on how straightforward it would be to ship to RP Lens or similar internationally?
 
David Tang said:
Interesting! Am I right in saying that the 21 comes in MM only, and not AE? Wondering if there's much point in getting a 25 if I have a 21 in the set replacing the 15, it would probably make more sense to go the 21/28/35 to cover the wide angle side more evenly. Plus I did a bit more digging and saw the posts on how it's been difficult putting 80mm OD rings on the 15 or the 18.

I will miss the ultra-wideness of a 15/18 though being crop frame only...

Another quick q; any locations in Australia that help with Contax modding? Or any feedback on how straightforward it would be to ship to RP Lens or similar internationally?
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Most 21s are MM yes - still worth getting though.

21 also much sharper than the 15 - its a far superior lens. Accepts 80mm step up rings too. 15 almost impossible to filter.
 
I have spoken to a lens specialist in Sydney (city - Cumberland St rings a bell) who is quite confident with Contax so a quick search should find them. I use Contax on a 'crop' camera too via a focal reducer but every time I'm reviewing my pictures in the studio after a Contax shoot and I go 'wow!' - sure enough, it's the 21mm. 90 degree FoV and dead flat right across. Thing is, it's a wide lens but it doesn't 'look' like a wide lens because there's no distortion - for me, that's its great appeal.
 
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Craig J Marshall said:
I have spoken to a lens specialist in Sydney (city - Cumberland St rings a bell) who is quite confident with Contax so a quick search should find them. I use Contax on a 'crop' camera too via a focal reducer but every time I'm reviewing my pictures in the studio after a Contax shoot and I go 'wow!' - sure enough, it's the 21mm. 90 degree FoV and dead flat right across. Thing is, it's a wide lens but it doesn't 'look' like a wide lens because there's no distortion - for me, that's its great appeal.
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Thanks for that Craig, any clues as to the name of the store or the person themself? A quick google leads me to http://www.cameraservicecentre.com.au/ but not sure if that's the mob you're referring to!
 
David Tang said:
Another quick q; any locations in Australia that help with Contax modding?
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Hey David, I've been using Whilton Camera (Elizabeth Street, Sydney) for lens repairs and maintenance for years. They have also de-clicked all my Contax & Leica-R lenses.

http://www.whiltoncamera.com.au

I've never asked them about cine-mods (apart from de-clicking) but you could always ask.
 
I've had some of my Contax lenses serviced in Japan and Taiwan as I shoot there regularly but yes, I think it was Camera Service Centre in Sydney but as Tristan suggests, try Whilton.
 
Craig J Marshall said:
Brice, what Field of View are you getting on that camera body with the 18mm? 90 degrees or more?
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@ 6K WS I would say more.
Do you have a scientific methode to calculate an acurate angle of view ?
Then I can put the 18 and do the test for you.
Best
B.
 
Hi Brice, There are a number of Field of View calculators available on line but the specs for the 21mm say 92 degrees (diagonal, if I remember correctly) on a full frame camera. I shoot S-35 with an optical focal reducer so I get roughly the same FoV (and DoF) as with FF so I've found that is wide enough for my day to day needs. However, for those trying to achieve a similarly wide FoV on a S-35 sized sensor without a focal reducer, (eg: Speed Booster) the 18mm or 15mm would be necessary.

The Contax 18mm should give about 100 degrees diagonal Field of View (90 degrees horizontal) when fitted to the original 3:2 format SLR is was designed around so I'd be keen to know your FoV achieved in those published photos. That depends on the actual sensor size of the RED camera you are using.

Edit: Here's a link to one handy FoV calculator: http://www.scantips.com/lights/fieldofview.html
 
Hey guys, here's some recent work shot on Contax glass!



AMERICAN ORIGINALS - DUNKIN' DONUTS
A branded piece for History. The Dunkin shots were shot on a Contax 28-85 and 100-300.

The 100-300 is an AMAZING piece of glass. Amazing.

https://vimeo.com/166914396



VIKINGS S4 - INSIDE THE EPISODES
Also for History, we shot the interviews with Michael Hirst, creator of Vikings. Shot on Contax primes - I beleive the 50mm and 100mm f2 (MM's). We used Black Pro Mist 1/8 or 1/4, to match exactly the diffusion they use on the show.

https://vimeo.com/166914377



CHILD GENIUS S2 - SHORTFORM
Shot this for Lifetime, with Tungsten lighting. Shot on 50mm and 100mm as well. This clip is one of many.

This shoot is what made us realize that our Tungsten shooting could improve with 80C filters.

https://vimeo.com/166908807



SHORE FLIP w/ Snooki
We shot this for FYI. Snooki was a blast to work with. Shot on a Standard Prime 24mm, and a Contax 85mm 1.4 (MM). Not sure which take plate they went with for this GFX spot:

https://vimeo.com/166907898



EDUCATIONAL Hip Hop
We shot 10 music videos like this - super fun, great for kids. I believe we used both our short Contax zooms - the 35-70, and 28-85. The 16 fisheye was used at the top.

https://vimeo.com/169724346



A+E AWARD TAPE
We interviewed the top 10 exects at A+E, including the CEO...for an award tape. All interviews shot on an 85mm and 135 2.8 (great lens!). Shot with Digital FX 1/4 or a 1/2 - a great, clean diffusion.

https://vimeo.com/167970719
 
So based on the Abelcine calculator and if I've configured it correctly, a Contax 18mm on the 6K RED Dragon sensor delivers a 75.4 degree Field of View. Wide but not as wide as the 21mm's 81 degrees on a Full Frame camera. Consequently, to achieve the 'look' of the original 21mm (on a Full Frame SLR) you would need to fit a 15mm prime on the Dragon which would achieve a wide angle of 85.6 degrees - slightly wider than the 21mm. Now, that would be something to see...
 
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