Angénieux Optimo Primes may be the least contrasty of the modern Large Format lenses. These lenses are the result of a partnership with IB/E, who manufacture the body and mechanics. They render a pleasing image perceived as a natural look. There are 12 focal lengths with a consistent 95mm front, apart from the 200mm (at 114mm). They use the industry standard M.8mm pitch on the iris and focus gear rings with consistent placement for ease of lens change. Most of them weigh a bit over 3 pounds, apart from the 18, 135, and 200mm at over 4 pounds each.
Optimo Primes are compatible with ARRI LDS and Cooke/i metadata systems. They comfortably cover the Red Monstro & V-Raptor, Venice 1 & 2, Alexa LF / Mini LF, and Alexa 35 Open Gate, as well as Alexa 65 in 5K crop mode.
Optimo Primes offer an Integrated Optical Palette (IOP) allowing for permutation of iris sub-assembly and internal filter. A rear filter design allows further choices. A lens technician takes about 15 minutes to swap the elements, but it is not recommended in open-air or dusty environments. These lenses are not filters, and it might change the air gap and lens curvature.
For the lenses 50mm and above, you have a choice of an S35mm block or a Full Frame block. The Full Frame block improves corner resolution in larger formats. The rear filter of the S35 block is 40.5mm, and 46mm for FF. Note that you cannot use these lenses with rear filters on reflex film cameras with a shutter; the filter will hit the mirror, making this one of the most expensive mistakes that can be made since most shutters are no longer produced.
Their classic 9-blade Angénieux iris has a classic look but is not too harsh. Flares are pretty controlled until you get to 135mm. You can easily get rainbow flares, and with out-of-frame sources, you can create grazing flares to mimic vintage lenses. The wider focal lengths have a touch of barrel distortion. This is not surprising, considering these are wide-angle, full-frame primes. The distortion is nearly gone past the 40mm until a very slight pin-cushion creep toward the longer focal lengths.
The resolution of the Optimo Primes is excellent and resolves to the center of every lens, even when wide open. They also match very well with each other, and you won’t have to worry about Chromatic Aberration changing across different lenses.
Optimo Primes are a good match for the entire range of Angénieux Optimo zooms, including the new Ultra 12X and Ultra Compact 37-102mm.
