Cooke Adds to Venerable Full Frame Lens Lines

Created in 1971, the Cooke Optics Panchro line of full frame lenses has steadily expanded over the years to encompass a wide range of prime focal lengths, while the Varotal/i line looks to manage a constant speed no matter how the camera is capturing the image.

These robust lenses are the newest Cooke has made in the 50-year history of the line.

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“Fifty years after the launch of the first Varotal lenses, we are proud to bring these new Varotal zooms to our customers. They are now able to choose an entire color-matched Cooke line, for their full-frame productions,” said Tim Pugh, Cooke Optics CEO, in a statement.

Looking at the steadily growing legacy of the Panchro line, Cooke has grown its prime offerings starting at 18mm, 21mm, 25mm, 27mm, 32mm, 40mm, and 50mm, covering the prime range, while adding a 65mm MACRO, 75mm, 100mm, 135mm and 152mm fill the entire range with no optical alterations needed.

Meanwhile, the Varotal/i line is getting two new zooming additions that sport ranges from 30–215mm and a constant aperture T-rating of 2.9. The Panchro line enjoys a range from 18-152mm.

In addition, you get the constant T-rating and iconic “Cooke Look” of warmth, texture, and beautiful skin tones. The latest Varotal models also transmit lens metadata into the video file for reference during post-production.

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The lenses are designed for not only camera platforms that are locked down, but are more than capable of handling movement through Steadicams, gimbals, and other handheld configurations.

The focal lengths of the two new models include 30-95mm and 85-215mm respectively, and can be chosen with either PL or LPL mounts.

All lenses maintain the same look over the entire focal length and enjoy consistent performance at full aperture with superior control of flare, distortion, and spherical aberration. With a large lens barrel diameter and focus markings calibrated and engraved on both sides of the focus barrel, the new lenses allow for an increased number of focus markings, particularly at close focus.

Both Panchro/i and Varotal/i lines are available for pre-order at cookeoptics.com.

Both will be showcased at CamerImage 2021 starting Nov. 13.

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Correction, Nov. 11, 1 p.m.: There is a 25mm and no 35mm for the Panchro/i Classic FF range.

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Understanding Film Gauge: From 8mm to 70mm

The No Film School guide to different film gauges—how, when, and why to use them.

In the modern age of digital cameras, it's easy to forget the beautiful edge shooting on film stock can add to your visuals. Many successful movies proudly shot on film were released this year, from indie darlings like Strange Darling to bigger budget fairs like Sean Baker's Anora, Luca Guadagnino's Challengers, and Jeff Nichol's The Bikeriders.

If you're a filmmaker, you already know shooting on film is cool—it's just a heck of a ton more expensive (in most cases) than the much less labor-intensive production styles that come with shooting on digital. No need to buy extra film stock or worry if you make a tiny mistake, you could compromise that stock. That being said, if you have the skill and budget to pull off a successful film shoot, the quality of your picture will more than certainly be worth the stress and money.

On top of shooting on film, there's also the question of projecting on film. Quentin Tarantino famously loves screening projects on film, owning two theaters in Los Angeles, The New Beverly and The Vista, that project films exclusively on film—The New Bev focuses on older restorations, while The Vista does double time with a film currently in theaters and fun midnight screenings and matinees.

It can be extremely daunting if you're interested in film in any capacity—shooting with little experience or even just curious to know more. What do all the different millimeters mean? It can be quite intimidating, so we're here to help. Below, you will find a quick brief of film gauges, as well as a breakdown of the most common formats—8mm, 16mm, 35mm, and 65mm.