The more sophisticated the current digital film cameras become, the higher the resolution of the sensors and the more perfect the technical reproduction, the more many DoPs seek to regain their own influence on the film image in order to give it something like “character”. Since the chemical film with its different properties is as good as no longer available to DoPs as an option to achieve a certain look, the focus here increasingly shifts towards lenses. The spectrum ranges from anamorphic lenses to the rehousing of vintage optics and the decoating of lenses to newly developed lens series that deliver controlled and consistent flares across all focal lengths. We discuss these different approaches and find out what demands from the imaging industry are placed on lens manufacturers and how they meet them with their portfolio.

In addition, many filmmakers are faced with the challenge of still delivering above-average quality with increasingly short shooting times. Among other things, this has led to a revival of zoom lenses – not to use zoom drives in a creative way, but to save the time for changing lenses on the set. How do manufacturers see this trend and how do they use their findings in their strategic planning?

With Gerhard Baier (P+S TECHNIK), Christophe Casenave (Carl Zeiss AG), Carey Duffy (Cooke Optics), Thorsten Meywald (ARRI), Arne Stadler (Canon Deutschland) hosted by Uwe Agnes Editor-in-Chief Film & TV Kamera