Sigma 18-35/50-100 PL with Laowa 1.33x Rear Anamorphic + FF expander?

[Zack Birlew]

Hey, everybody, just a quick question, has anybody tried the Sigma 18-35 and Sigma 50-100 Cine PL versions with the Laowa 1.33x Rear Anamorphic or their 1.4x FF Expander? I'm looking into lens options for a potential project and I enjoy my Sigma 18-35 on Nikon F mount and the idea of using the cine version with the 50-100 to cover us sounds like a foolproof lens plan. However, we also thought about adding anamorphic flares either by an adapter or Schneider filter and our camera options might move us towards full frame so since we already have one of each of Laowa's rear adapters from a sale a year or two ago I thought I might ask in case someone has tried these combinations before? Any help would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Howie Roll]

As long as you never rack focus. I rented the 50-100mm last week for a shoot and the amount of focus breathing cant be overstated. I have zero muscle memory with the lens so half the time I thought I was grabbing the zoom ring when I was grabbing the focus. Then again anamorphic defects or “character” is often desirable.

Good Luck

 

[Stephen Pruitt]

As good as the 18=35 f/1.8 is, that's how bad the 50-100 is. It breathes like it has advanced COPD! It's a great look so long as you NEVER want to change focus!

 

[Zack Birlew]

In regards to the breathing, I was considering trying out the Rapido FVD-35A variable diopter on the Sigma 50-100 for that very reason. The other option is to throw on a Letus 1.8x Anamorphic adapter or even a Kish Optics 2X Mesmerizer to take care of our anamorphic needs and to cut down on focusing the main lens so much. The rear adapters would be easier to handle if they work but it just depends. It's not like we aren't considering a set of Laowa, Sirui, SLR Magic, or Great Joy anamorphic lenses but if we could get the Sigma clarity and two-zoom usefulness wrapped in an anamorphic workflow then that would be a nice alternative. Also, as mentioned, we already have the Laowa rear PL adapters so it could be a nice savings to just use what we have.

 

[Robert Hart]

No doubt you may be already aware but just in case you are not onto it, the 1.33x rear anamorphic adapter behaves optically like the expander and the lens field-of-view is slightly narrowed. It also loses a little light. This is unlike a 1.33x front anamorphic adapter which acts a little like a focal reducer, broadens the field-of-view slightly and increases the light transmission slightly.

I have tried a Sigma 28mm f1.8 prime lens and Laowa's own 12mm f2.8 prime lens on the Laowa 1.33x rear anamorphic adapter and both worked fine. The caveat with my tests was that I had made a new barrel for the anamorphic adapter with a Nikon F-Mount on the front. It is doable - just. You would need the likes of Jacek Zakowitz of Optitek or Matthew Duclos of Duclos lenses to build one, assuming they would want to.

If your Sigma lenses are PL-Mount and the rear dimension of those lenses pass a clearance test with the profile that Laowa published for their rear adapter, your lenses I expect would be fine. Because a narrower field-of-view is conveyed to your sensor, there may be a small loss of sharpness. You might have to fine-tune the backfocus of the adapter for focus through the full range of zoom movement to be obtained. The lens will not be as fast and may become softer with a wide-open iris.

If there is a pin-cushion distortion effect or corner stretch effect (rectilinear lenses), the anamorphic adapter may make it more apparent. Please heed the advice of folk with better brains and ability than my own.