Cooke Optics will present its full range of miniS4/i, S4/i, 5/i and Anamoprhic/i lenses on Stand 11.D10 at IBC 2013, as well as the first production model in the new Cooke Metrology lens testing range. The company is also expected to reveal more details about the next generation of /i Technology metadata system.
Les Zellan, Chairman and Owner, Cooke Optics, said, “It’s been an incredible year so far for Cooke – we’ve received an Oscar® and so many other awards, we’ve launched our Anamorphic/i range to fantastic acclaim, we’ve introduced the Metrology line to raise industry standards, and we’re expanding our factory and workforce to accommodate the high demand for our handmade lenses. But the year isn’t over and we have no intention of resting on our laurels – as visitors to IBC will see.”
Cooke’s miniS4/i range now includes 40mm and 65mm focal lengths and is gaining impressive traction in the high-end drama and documentary sector. The size and weight of the lenses are useful for handheld work, they are economical, and at T2.8 they are fast enough for today’s digital cameras while providing the professional ‘Cooke Look®’ that cinematographers treasure. High-profile projects that have recently been shot with miniS4/i lenses include ‘Devious Maids’ (shot by William Wages ASC) and ‘The Client List’.
James Chressanthis ASC, cinematographer, ‘The Client List’, said, “The Cooke miniS4/i lenses share the same beautiful ‘Cooke Look’ of the larger S4s, I admire their balanced colour and smooth contrast. They’re sharp and give a real clarity, yet they are never brutal. They bring a consistent warmth to the colour which is natural and close to what the human eye sees. They’re great with today’s fast digital cameras and since they are extremely lightweight and compact, they’re ideal for handheld work and tight spots.”
IBC 2013 will see the first production model from the Cooke Metrology line that was introduced at NAB 2013. The new lens test projector is designed for today’s fast lenses and is so bright that it can be demonstrated in daylight, making it much easier to discern flaws and artifacts in fast lenses. Many current projectors cannot pass a beam correctly through lenses that are faster than T2.
In addition Cooke Optics is teaming up with Codex Digital and The Pixel Farm to develop and deliver the next generation of metadata capture for film and digital cameras. The system will build on the capabilities of /i Technology, the system originally developed by Cooke to record key lens and camera data to aid post-production teams.
Cooke Optics, other news is that they are set to team up with Codex, the manufacturer of high-end digital equipment for film and television production, and The Pixel Farm, the developer of image processing technologies, to develop and deliver the next generation of metadata capture for film and digital cameras.
The system will build on the capabilities of /i Technology, the system originally developed by Cooke to record key lens and camera data to aid post-production teams. /i Technology data streamlines both production and post-production, saving significant time and costs while eliminating guesswork. It allows monitoring and transfer of key lens data including focus distance, depth of field, focal zoom position and iris setting. DPs can also save and upload lens profiles onto memory cards for easy zoom lens swap, lens calibration, lens synchronisation, post-production analysis. More details about the new system will be announced in the coming months.
Les Zellan, Chairman and Owner, Cooke Optics, said, “We’ve been talking for a long time with our friends at Codex and The Pixel Farm about how we could improve both the physical and digital capabilities of /i Technology in order to further assist VFX teams – for instance, to help them solve difficult tracking shots. We’re thrilled to be working together again with these leading technology companies on the next generation system and hope to be able to reveal more later this year.”
Michael Lancaster, Managing Director, The Pixel Farm, said, “Having assisted Cooke in the development of /i Technology and subsequently being an early adopter of the technology, it is incredibly exciting for us to be a partner in a technological advancement that will really benefit and push forward post production.“
/i Technology has received wide support in the industry, with companies including Avid, Sony, ARRI, Thales Angenieux and RED adopting /i Technology within their own products.
See Cooke for more on their news and IBC 2013 lineup.