6:13 I worked as a tech at a rental house in LA for a while, and when you're working on a set with lenses that are rentals, or in my case as a tech/ Ac who has no financial ties to a set, there absolutely is no reason to compare cheaper glass as you've stated. I've been on a total of one set with the Athena set, and I can say I'd never recommend my DP to use them when Cooke, ARRI, Panavision, Zeiss exist (and that’s obviously not counting the massive list of old glass and boutique manufacturers) . So the comparison only exists in the owner-opp market. While I don’t know if the houses will want these lenses I wouldn’t be surprised to see them on the menu.
Glad you finally got a hold of the lenses. Love the points you made! Thank you again for your honest approach at sharing what you have observed from your findings!
Glad you got your hands on these. The anticipation has been killing me. They look great. I’m planning to add these to my ever growing DZO collection. They’ve become my favorite modern and mostly budget friendly lens manufacturer. They pair perfectly with RED cameras.
Yes, they are awesome. I’ve been thinking about what kind of set I would recommend for people to purchase if they can only get one or two Arles lenses, but still want a broad range of options. In some cases, it may be a good idea to purchase one Arles lens, and then a couple Vespids to supplement it.
Thank you Zac! I can tell you that every time I use these lenses, I love them just a little bit more. I think the weight is easily worth it in this case.
lenses are good for what you need to shoot. no lens set performs perfectly in every scenario. Owning a lens set vs renting a lens that costs 100x more is more about the value of the image you're creating vs the cost of creating that image. For me...personally...DZO has demonstrated the kind of nuanced approaches to lenscraft that the industry simply cannot ignore. they're good. period. and they perform in a way that brings professional filmcraft to a price point that any owner operator can afford to consider owning their own lenses and lens sets. Thanks for your insights
Hi Nick, when you get a chance - a quick question? Since you mentioned it, what's the correlation between f-stop number and bokeh ball size? (i.e. do the balls get larger as the f-stop gets smaller or vice versa?)
Yes, wider apertures (smaller f-stops) make blurrier backgrounds and larger bokeh circles. The size of those circles also depends on the ratio of distance to subject compared to distance to background. The closer your subject and the farther away your background in comparison, the blurrier the background and the larger the circles. Also focal length makes a difference. For an equivalent f number and the same subject-background ratio, a longer focal length will create a blurrier background and larger bokeh circles. Also your format size plays a part. For an equivalent field of view, f number, and subject-background distance, a larger format will produce a blurrier background.
Thanks! Do you mean the piece to camera (me talking into camera)? I shoot those on the little Canon plastic RF lenses. In this case it was the 35mm f1.8, but sometimes I use other ones. I love those tiny little lenses, and did a video about them here: th-cam.com/video/PZoaNjrcVJ8/w-d-xo.html
Love the images. You were right about twice the price and twice the weight. I’d love to see a comparison but as you said, I wouldn’t necessarily expect to see a 2x improvement between 1.4 and 1.9🤷🏻♂️ Have you seen the new Laowa T1 Argus full frame lenses they just released? Those look interesting as well. They fall between the NiSi’s and the Arles lenses in both price and weight. Images look great too. But T1? Wow. Happy with the NiSis though for now.
I assume the Laowa lenses are just rehoused versions of the f0.95 stills like they’ve had for several years. The flares I've seen in demos from the cine ones look cool, but overall they’re just not quite at the same level as Arles - sharpness, cleanliness, usability in a broad variety of circumstances. I have the 45mm Argus stills lens and even dressed it up with gears for cine use, but I never reach for it. For the money, again, I’d just save up and get Arles.
only 1:00 into the video so if you already did this in the video sorry haha just excited for the set!! If you could make a video just full of real world lens test that would be so amazing, thanks for showing these off!! edit: the excitement got to me haha great video!
Not to worry. Charts and brick walls are NOT my jam. Those things are useful, but I don’t enjoy shooting them. It’ll be real world footage only from me.
I did make a crude measurement of each entrance pupil and calculated the f numbers. The 50 was f1.28 and the 100mm was f1.33 (the pupils were 39mm and 75mm respectively). But allow for some error in those measurements.
Great work! I would love to hear more about these rear filters you talked about :) Are they only NDs and mist filters or really something like the Arri ones that can change the bokeh?
Well I had only a limited time with the Cooke lenses. And I’m getting an extended look at the Arles set. For the way I like to shoot, the Arles set is very compelling and fits my sensibilities very nicely. So for me, Arles is tough to beat. But take the caveats seriously (just my opinion, just my shooting style, and limited experience with Cooke).
With a mirrorless body it would be pretty easy if you have a long enough plate. On my V-Raptor, that's gonna get a little hairy - very close to the max weight, but probably possible. We'll see.
Any tips on what t number to film what kind of shots? Do you use the lowest one whenver you shoot people. Even if its a full body outside walking shot? What t stop you use for longer distant landscape shots?
What a great question! I think it often comes down to taste. As you can see, everything I shot here was at T1.4, every single shot. If I was shooting a broad landscape, I might want a lot more in focus, and so I would choose a much smaller aperture like T8. It all just depends on what you want your final image to look like. Much of the time, I like to use focus as a way to direct the audience’s eye, and to make subjects stand out against the background. That’s why I love super fast lenses, because they help do that so well.
Haha thank you Hector! It’s nothing fancy, just something I’ve been working on in spare time. I have another short video about it. I’ll explain more in a future video once I’m a little more solid with it.
@@nick_salazar Well whatever you're cooking up is wild. Totally fell in love with those flares. Appreciate the breakdowns on these lenses. Happy you got to get your hands on these awesome lenses. It's definitely a wonderful time to be a video creator.
The “don’t compare” requirement is odd but whatever. I have an Athena set and have an order in for the 3 additional lenses due out next month. And these Arles lenses look fine in their own way. Maybe I will own a few down the road for that extra shallow look though I tend to think there’s more visually interesting glass around for that look.
Yeah I didn’t explain that very well. It wasn’t specifically about Athena, but rather that they knew that Athena is my primary lens set. If I was a rental house I’d be able to compare against the broader variety sets against which Arles is designed to compete. But as an owner operator, if my ONLY comparison is against a low budget set with very different specs, that could be unhelpful for DZO.
Not sure if you know, but your smile while looking into the camera sometimes feels murderer-esque. I don't hate it. I'm just taking note. 😁 Oh, but the lenses look pretty rad.
I’ve been told some version of that comment on various youtube videos about a dozen times. “Manson orbs,” or “sociopath stare,” and now you’ve added the brand new “murder-esque smile.” Ah, the kindness of strangers ;-)
I'd put it differently. Xeen is basically rehousings of Rokinon's stills lens line, which were developed 10-15 years ago as a low-cost competitor to the Canon L-series stills glass of that era. The Canon stills were rehoused into the CNE line, and the Rokinon lenses became Xeen. Same optical formulas, just different housings. But Arles is definitely a more modern offering - everything is better corrected, you're going to have fewer aberrations, better sharpness and resolution, cleaner bokeh, and that slightly faster speed. I'd say Arles is trying to be a lower-cost competitor to things like the Sigma Cine FF line, the Zeiss Supreme Primes, Tokina Cinema Vista, and ARRI Signature Primes. You're right that Xeen is in that same general space, but it's such an older design that it doesn't really hold its weight against Arles. Over the past six months or so it looks like the price of Xeen and Xeen CF (same optics just different housing) have been dropping, as they try to stay competitive against newer and more refined designs like Arles. At the moment, there's nothing else precisely in this space. The closest would be Sigma FF, at about double the price of Arles. Does that all make sense?
@@nick_salazar absolutely! And thanks for your detailed response. I hadn't thought of it in terms of punching up towards the supreme or signature lenses. I noticed and the prices drops with the cf and your response gives good context. I think what you mentioned actually gets lost in the sea of knowledge outside specs which could be brought up more is the intent of lens design and approach. What I remember being discussed from most lens reviews is how clinical a lens family is, consistent across lenses, and the bokeh and flairing effects. Liked this video and thanks for your response.
Asking you not to compare them kind of sounds like the NISIs are more worth it. Can you recommend a good PL to EF adaptor for the NISI so I can use the meike drop in ND with the red komodo? Thanks
I didn’t explain this properly. The request wasn’t specifically about the Athenas, it’s because DZO knew that Athena is my only other primary set of complete primes, and Athena are very much budget lenses. That’s not the space they’re trying to compete in with Arles - they’re aimed squarely at the top tier of the market. So it was like "if all you have in your area is budget fast food, please don't put that in a video against our fine steakhouse." I don't think it's fear of comparison, it's just not the association they want to make. To be clear, having used both I like Arles MUCH MORE. But, to your question - adapters for Athena, I think you mean PL to RF, as there is no EF Komodo. The only PL-to-RF drop in VND adapter that will work on the Athena lenses on your Komodo is the Breakthrough DFM. It's what I have and use with them. Other adapters will interfere with the rear protrusion on the Athena set.
@@nick_salazar Thanks!, do the meike ones intrude too, breathrough's is very expensive, might as well get the arles for the combined price. What exactly do you prefer about the Arles? Does the size of the arles put you off at all when working handheld?
@@sonnyjostins6158 the Meike FF primes protrude about the same amount, so it's not a real difference there. What do I prefer? For one, the larger aperture is a big deal for me. I REALLY love shallow depth-of-field, and the difference between T1.4 and T2 is MASSIVE in my opinion. But the faster you get, the harder it is to make a decent lens. These are perfectly usable wide open, very smooth and well-corrected bokeh, no wild aberrations or glare or ghosting wide open (which is how I shot everything in this short video). If you don't care about fast speeds, there are lots of great options (NiSi Athena, DZO's own Vespid series). But if you care about fast speeds, your list of clean and modern lenses that won't break the bank is ... basically just this set. Next step up is Canon CNE and Sigma FF primes at $3000 per lens and up (both sets have their benefits, but also drawbacks), then Tokina Cinema Vista at $8k per lens (I personally dislike that set), and then above that you're at $14k per lens and above with things like Cooke, Zeiss, and ARRI. Arles is the only super fast, super shallow DOF, modern/clean/sharp set that exists at the $2k a lens price point.
@@nick_salazar sorry not talking about meike primes. I meant the meike pl to rf drop in nd filter mount instead of the breakthrough to use with the komodo and the nisi PL lenses. I get that image quality wide open is good but the chances are il only leave it wide open at very low light conditions. Im run and gun handheld and hoping most people cant tell the difference in the day time shooting at 2.8 on the nisi compared to the arles.
@@sonnyjostins6158 if you don't shoot faster than 2.8, and you prioritize run-and-gun gear, you may want to look at some 28-70mm zooms. Tokina, Sigma, Laowa, etc.
Your enthusiasm is quite contagious - and I (as always) appreciate your knowledge sharing, thank you!
Thank you so much!
6:13 I worked as a tech at a rental house in LA for a while, and when you're working on a set with lenses that are rentals, or in my case as a tech/ Ac who has no financial ties to a set, there absolutely is no reason to compare cheaper glass as you've stated. I've been on a total of one set with the Athena set, and I can say I'd never recommend my DP to use them when Cooke, ARRI, Panavision, Zeiss exist (and that’s obviously not counting the massive list of old glass and boutique manufacturers) . So the comparison only exists in the owner-opp market. While I don’t know if the houses will want these lenses I wouldn’t be surprised to see them on the menu.
Very true! These are also exciting for indie filmmakers because the weekly rental could save alot of money for production
Glad you finally got a hold of the lenses. Love the points you made! Thank you again for your honest approach at sharing what you have observed from your findings!
Thank you Theodore! It has been a delight to make videos and get such kind feedback from folks like you. Thanks for watching!
Great video once again sir. So excited to see your film. Expect me to be the first pre order
THANK YOU! That is so kind.
Glad you got your hands on these. The anticipation has been killing me. They look great. I’m planning to add these to my ever growing DZO collection. They’ve become my favorite modern and mostly budget friendly lens manufacturer. They pair perfectly with RED cameras.
Yes, they are awesome. I’ve been thinking about what kind of set I would recommend for people to purchase if they can only get one or two Arles lenses, but still want a broad range of options. In some cases, it may be a good idea to purchase one Arles lens, and then a couple Vespids to supplement it.
Great video and loved the way you handled that business relationship.
Thank you Zac! I can tell you that every time I use these lenses, I love them just a little bit more. I think the weight is easily worth it in this case.
You got them!! That’s was fast!
Just got the 25mm Arles. Good God........such a great champion lens. Heavy suckers though......
lenses are good for what you need to shoot. no lens set performs perfectly in every scenario.
Owning a lens set vs renting a lens that costs 100x more is more about the value of the image you're creating vs the cost of creating that image. For me...personally...DZO has demonstrated the kind of nuanced approaches to lenscraft that the industry simply cannot ignore. they're good. period. and they perform in a way that brings professional filmcraft to a price point that any owner operator can afford to consider owning their own lenses and lens sets. Thanks for your insights
Hi Nick, when you get a chance - a quick question? Since you mentioned it, what's the correlation between f-stop number and bokeh ball size? (i.e. do the balls get larger as the f-stop gets smaller or vice versa?)
Yes, wider apertures (smaller f-stops) make blurrier backgrounds and larger bokeh circles. The size of those circles also depends on the ratio of distance to subject compared to distance to background. The closer your subject and the farther away your background in comparison, the blurrier the background and the larger the circles. Also focal length makes a difference. For an equivalent f number and the same subject-background ratio, a longer focal length will create a blurrier background and larger bokeh circles. Also your format size plays a part. For an equivalent field of view, f number, and subject-background distance, a larger format will produce a blurrier background.
@@nick_salazar Awesome! Thank you so much! :-)
These cine lens look phenomnal. Loved your review... But I'm also interested in the gear you used to shoot this review. What lens did you use?
Thanks! Do you mean the piece to camera (me talking into camera)? I shoot those on the little Canon plastic RF lenses. In this case it was the 35mm f1.8, but sometimes I use other ones. I love those tiny little lenses, and did a video about them here: th-cam.com/video/PZoaNjrcVJ8/w-d-xo.html
Love the images. You were right about twice the price and twice the weight. I’d love to see a comparison but as you said, I wouldn’t necessarily expect to see a 2x improvement between 1.4 and 1.9🤷🏻♂️ Have you seen the new Laowa T1 Argus full frame lenses they just released? Those look interesting as well. They fall between the NiSi’s and the Arles lenses in both price and weight. Images look great too. But T1? Wow. Happy with the NiSis though for now.
I assume the Laowa lenses are just rehoused versions of the f0.95 stills like they’ve had for several years. The flares I've seen in demos from the cine ones look cool, but overall they’re just not quite at the same level as Arles - sharpness, cleanliness, usability in a broad variety of circumstances. I have the 45mm Argus stills lens and even dressed it up with gears for cine use, but I never reach for it. For the money, again, I’d just save up and get Arles.
You’re really selling these lenses for me
great video, very nice lenses!
only 1:00 into the video so if you already did this in the video sorry haha just excited for the set!! If you could make a video just full of real world lens test that would be so amazing, thanks for showing these off!!
edit: the excitement got to me haha great video!
Not to worry. Charts and brick walls are NOT my jam. Those things are useful, but I don’t enjoy shooting them. It’ll be real world footage only from me.
These lenses look gorgeous. Wish I hadn’t just bought the Irix set now! :)
You can still definitely make great work on the Irix set!
Have you calculated the f-numbers? I would also be very interested in them 😆
I did make a crude measurement of each entrance pupil and calculated the f numbers. The 50 was f1.28 and the 100mm was f1.33 (the pupils were 39mm and 75mm respectively). But allow for some error in those measurements.
@@nick_salazar Interesting! That is pretty fast 😅 Thanks!
Great work! I would love to hear more about these rear filters you talked about :) Are they only NDs and mist filters or really something like the Arri ones that can change the bokeh?
Oh and do you have any idea when the other focal lengths will get released?
I think they said later this fall. See the interview I did at Cinegear, he might have answered there.
Now that the dust has settled, which would you prefer Arles or Cookes?
Well I had only a limited time with the Cooke lenses. And I’m getting an extended look at the Arles set. For the way I like to shoot, the Arles set is very compelling and fits my sensibilities very nicely. So for me, Arles is tough to beat. But take the caveats seriously (just my opinion, just my shooting style, and limited experience with Cooke).
I Wonder how well they will Balance on a RS3Pro / RS4Pro Gimbal compared to the Vespid primes, since they are almost Double the weight
@Nick Salazar ooooh I see a low hanging fruit video in our future?
@Nick_Salazar ooooh! I see a little hanging fruit video in our future? :-)
With a mirrorless body it would be pretty easy if you have a long enough plate. On my V-Raptor, that's gonna get a little hairy - very close to the max weight, but probably possible. We'll see.
Waiting for them to release some 1.5X anamorphic :-D
Cool review. Patient wife lol
Any tips on what t number to film what kind of shots? Do you use the lowest one whenver you shoot people. Even if its a full body outside walking shot? What t stop you use for longer distant landscape shots?
What a great question! I think it often comes down to taste. As you can see, everything I shot here was at T1.4, every single shot. If I was shooting a broad landscape, I might want a lot more in focus, and so I would choose a much smaller aperture like T8. It all just depends on what you want your final image to look like. Much of the time, I like to use focus as a way to direct the audience’s eye, and to make subjects stand out against the background. That’s why I love super fast lenses, because they help do that so well.
@@nick_salazar thanks! Are you focusing manually and handheld?
Manual focus, and most of these shots were taken on a tripod.
What are you using for the janky flare filter? It looks incredible!
Haha thank you Hector! It’s nothing fancy, just something I’ve been working on in spare time. I have another short video about it. I’ll explain more in a future video once I’m a little more solid with it.
@@nick_salazar Well whatever you're cooking up is wild. Totally fell in love with those flares. Appreciate the breakdowns on these lenses. Happy you got to get your hands on these awesome lenses. It's definitely a wonderful time to be a video creator.
Wonder if they work with EF speedboosters.
The “don’t compare” requirement is odd but whatever. I have an Athena set and have an order in for the 3 additional lenses due out next month. And these Arles lenses look fine in their own way. Maybe I will own a few down the road for that extra shallow look though I tend to think there’s more visually interesting glass around for that look.
Yeah I didn’t explain that very well. It wasn’t specifically about Athena, but rather that they knew that Athena is my primary lens set. If I was a rental house I’d be able to compare against the broader variety sets against which Arles is designed to compete. But as an owner operator, if my ONLY comparison is against a low budget set with very different specs, that could be unhelpful for DZO.
@@nick_salazar Okay. Got the picture.
Not sure if you know, but your smile while looking into the camera sometimes feels murderer-esque. I don't hate it. I'm just taking note. 😁
Oh, but the lenses look pretty rad.
I’ve been told some version of that comment on various youtube videos about a dozen times. “Manson orbs,” or “sociopath stare,” and now you’ve added the brand new “murder-esque smile.” Ah, the kindness of strangers ;-)
Would the Xeen lens set be a closer comparison both in price and focal length?
I'd put it differently. Xeen is basically rehousings of Rokinon's stills lens line, which were developed 10-15 years ago as a low-cost competitor to the Canon L-series stills glass of that era. The Canon stills were rehoused into the CNE line, and the Rokinon lenses became Xeen. Same optical formulas, just different housings. But Arles is definitely a more modern offering - everything is better corrected, you're going to have fewer aberrations, better sharpness and resolution, cleaner bokeh, and that slightly faster speed. I'd say Arles is trying to be a lower-cost competitor to things like the Sigma Cine FF line, the Zeiss Supreme Primes, Tokina Cinema Vista, and ARRI Signature Primes. You're right that Xeen is in that same general space, but it's such an older design that it doesn't really hold its weight against Arles. Over the past six months or so it looks like the price of Xeen and Xeen CF (same optics just different housing) have been dropping, as they try to stay competitive against newer and more refined designs like Arles. At the moment, there's nothing else precisely in this space. The closest would be Sigma FF, at about double the price of Arles. Does that all make sense?
@@nick_salazar absolutely! And thanks for your detailed response. I hadn't thought of it in terms of punching up towards the supreme or signature lenses. I noticed and the prices drops with the cf and your response gives good context. I think what you mentioned actually gets lost in the sea of knowledge outside specs which could be brought up more is the intent of lens design and approach. What I remember being discussed from most lens reviews is how clinical a lens family is, consistent across lenses, and the bokeh and flairing effects. Liked this video and thanks for your response.
Yessss there's that 50mm
😙👌
The only way to truly make it in this market is to have a time machine and endless do overs! Opportunity cost is a bit#$! :-)
Is there any anamorphic adaptor that can be used with iu
They should work with most adapters (front or rear).
Asking you not to compare them kind of sounds like the NISIs are more worth it. Can you recommend a good PL to EF adaptor for the NISI so I can use the meike drop in ND with the red komodo? Thanks
I didn’t explain this properly. The request wasn’t specifically about the Athenas, it’s because DZO knew that Athena is my only other primary set of complete primes, and Athena are very much budget lenses. That’s not the space they’re trying to compete in with Arles - they’re aimed squarely at the top tier of the market. So it was like "if all you have in your area is budget fast food, please don't put that in a video against our fine steakhouse." I don't think it's fear of comparison, it's just not the association they want to make. To be clear, having used both I like Arles MUCH MORE.
But, to your question - adapters for Athena, I think you mean PL to RF, as there is no EF Komodo. The only PL-to-RF drop in VND adapter that will work on the Athena lenses on your Komodo is the Breakthrough DFM. It's what I have and use with them. Other adapters will interfere with the rear protrusion on the Athena set.
@@nick_salazar Thanks!, do the meike ones intrude too, breathrough's is very expensive, might as well get the arles for the combined price. What exactly do you prefer about the Arles? Does the size of the arles put you off at all when working handheld?
@@sonnyjostins6158 the Meike FF primes protrude about the same amount, so it's not a real difference there. What do I prefer? For one, the larger aperture is a big deal for me. I REALLY love shallow depth-of-field, and the difference between T1.4 and T2 is MASSIVE in my opinion. But the faster you get, the harder it is to make a decent lens. These are perfectly usable wide open, very smooth and well-corrected bokeh, no wild aberrations or glare or ghosting wide open (which is how I shot everything in this short video). If you don't care about fast speeds, there are lots of great options (NiSi Athena, DZO's own Vespid series). But if you care about fast speeds, your list of clean and modern lenses that won't break the bank is ... basically just this set. Next step up is Canon CNE and Sigma FF primes at $3000 per lens and up (both sets have their benefits, but also drawbacks), then Tokina Cinema Vista at $8k per lens (I personally dislike that set), and then above that you're at $14k per lens and above with things like Cooke, Zeiss, and ARRI. Arles is the only super fast, super shallow DOF, modern/clean/sharp set that exists at the $2k a lens price point.
@@nick_salazar sorry not talking about meike primes. I meant the meike pl to rf drop in nd filter mount instead of the breakthrough to use with the komodo and the nisi PL lenses. I get that image quality wide open is good but the chances are il only leave it wide open at very low light conditions. Im run and gun handheld and hoping most people cant tell the difference in the day time shooting at 2.8 on the nisi compared to the arles.
@@sonnyjostins6158 if you don't shoot faster than 2.8, and you prioritize run-and-gun gear, you may want to look at some 28-70mm zooms. Tokina, Sigma, Laowa, etc.
🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥🔥
You’ve just get me burned 👌
What?
comparison between Sigmas would be nice ;)
I just hate the look of DZO bokeh, but for the price... who can complain.
I actually think these look absolutely gorgeous and nothing like sad the vespids.
Soooooo much money these people.....
nisi Athena sont trop clinique je préfère largement DZO avec ma RED Komodo