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A New Kind of Filmmaking
- Author: David Heuring
Leitz and Cine Visuals Offer Hektor Primes
Leitz Cine just made another splash in a long line of exciting innovations in optics. On September 10, Leitz introduced a brand new set of small, compact prime lenses designed to work with cameras using mirrorless mounts – bringing their high quality standards to the more affordable arena of less expensive nontraditional cameras.
Of course, the new Leitz Hektor Primes will be available for rental at Cine Visuals. The two companies have had a very close relationship since Cine Visuals began in 2013 as a boutique cine lens rental house. In fact, in the beginning, Cine Visuals specialized exclusively in Leica glass – with top technicians servicing and shipping top-shelf Leica glass around the globe, and even teaching classes on the ins and outs of servicing their lenses.
That deep relationship continues to pay off for Cine Visuals clients, as Leica brings their long history, ingenious design and attention to detail to the exploding number of filmmakers and content producers using mirrorless and other nontraditional cameras. And it’s not just influencers and daytime TV. Netflix’s hit miniseries Adolescence just took home six trophies at the Emmys, including Outstanding Cinematography for a Limited or Anthology Series or Movie for cinematographer Matthew Lewis. It’s an eye-opening development in the cinematography world, especially considering that the category’s other nominees included perennial Oscar contenders like Emmanual Lubezki and Bruno Delbonnel.
Adolescence focuses on a 13-year-old boy who was arrested for the murder of a girl at his school. The first four episodes of the show were each shot in one continuous take. Lewis shot with Cooke SP3 prime lenses and the DJI Ronin 4D camera, which incorporates an integrated stabilization system. The decision to use such a camera – and now the Emmy win – is considered a significant development in the use of nontraditional camera and lens systems in high-end narrative production. The times they are a-changin’.
The DJI Ronin 4D camera is not mirrorless in the traditional sense, but it does have a swappable mount that accommodates various third-party lenses, including Sony E-mount and Leica M-mount options. It’s a realistic option for solo creators as well as professional productions, depending of course on the content and the filmmaking style.
Leitz Hektor Primes dovetail perfectly with these developments, hitting the market with fortuitous timing. Small cameras, lightweight but precise lenses with cinematic flavor – there are echoes of the faster Super 16 film stocks behind cinema verite and the New Wave revolutions that rocked global cinema in the 1960s.
According to Leitz, the look of the Hektors was curated by examining lenses from the past 100+ years of cinema and photography history. It’s inspired by classic M lenses from the 1930s and 1950s, as well as Petzval lenses. Pleasing characteristics like dynamic flare, field curvature and spherical aberration contribute to a feeling that is unique, yet feels familiar. Non-aspherical designs bring these characteristics naturally. Modern touches include coatings that control veiling glare better than older lenses, as well as significantly reduced chromatic aberration.
The Hektors are designed and built in Germany by the same teams behind the SUMMILUX-C and HUGO lines. They come in six focal lengths: 18, 25, 35, 50, 73 and 100mm, all T2.1. The user interchangeable mount options include E, L, RF and Z for maximum flexibility. The name HEKTOR is a reference to the original Leica Hektor lenses created in the 1930s by legendary lens designer Max Berek for Leica’s original screw mount 35mm cameras. The new HEKTOR series pays homage to the inspiration they provided with a silver anodized finish and the inclusion of a 73mm, an iconic lens in the original line.
Cine Visuals is the natural home for the brand-new, yet steeped in history Leica Hektor Primes. The Hektors take their place in the Cine Visuals inventory alongside every other type of cine lens Leitz makes, including their Elsie Primes, Hugo Primes, Leitz Primes, Summicron-C, Summilux-C, and Thalia lines, the GL Optics Leica R series, and more specialized lenses like the exclusive Leica 180mm T2.0, the Leica M 0.8, the TLS Leica R/Cinescope, the TLS Noctilux 50mm, and Leitz Zooms.
The Leitz Hektor Primes may not be the cheapest, but they make the highest quality optics available to less expensive modes of production. And like the most sought-after lenses in filmmaking, they deliver compelling images rather than the bland reproductions of run-of-the-mill, budget lenses. The results are new visual possibilities.