Blazar Expands Anamorphic Remus Series With Four Full-Frame Primes

Sep 04, 2024

Jeremy Gray

A collection of eight professional camera lenses of varying focal lengths is displayed against a warm, gradient orange background. The lenses are metallic with black rings and are neatly arranged, showing different focal length markings such as 3.6, 4.6, 6, 8.5, 10, 12.5, 16, and 25 mm.

Blazar, known by videographers for its affordable anamorphic lenses, has announced a new set of Remus lenses. The Remus B set adds four new focal lengths to the collection, joining three full-frame Remus anamorphic lenses released last year and a separate 35mm T1.6 Super 35 lens released later.

Last December, Blazar launched Remus 1.5x anamorphic lenses in 45mm, 65mm, and 100mm focal lengths. Now, with the Remus B set, the lineup has been expanded to include 33mm, 50mm, 85mm, and 125mm focal lengths. The four full-frame lenses have the same 1.5x squeeze factor and are available in PL or EF mount, although as CineD notes in its coverage, the mounts are interchangeable.

A lineup of camera lenses displayed against a glowing orange background. The lenses are silver with black rings, arranged in a staggered formation, showcasing varying sizes and focal lengths. The overall presentation has a sleek and professional appearance.

Each of the four new lenses has different light-gathering capabilities. The 33mm T1.8, 50mm T2.0, 85mm T2.8, and 125mm T4.0 lenses all share the same focus rotation — 150 degrees — but employ different aperture ring rotations, ranging from 85 degrees for the 33mm lens to just 71.7 degrees for the 85mm lens.

Although the lenses have different lengths, they share a unified gearing position, front diameter (80mm), and filter thread (77mm). Further, they are all relatively close in weight. The new 125mm T4.0 lens is the heaviest Remus lens yet, weighing 820 grams (29 ounces), but it is not dramatically heavier than the lightest lens, the new 50mm T2.0, which weighs 716 grams (25.3 ounces).

A table comparing different lenses with varying focal lengths. It includes specifications like aperture, lens mount, close focus, focus rotation, aperture rotation, weight, iris blades, front diameter, filter thread, image circle, and lens flare options.

There is one outlier in the eight-lens Remus collection — the 35mm T1.6 mentioned above. This lens, released after Set A, has Super35 coverage, rather than the full-frame image circle of the seven other Remus lenses.

As cinematographers know all too well, cinema lenses can be costly. However, in recent years, there has been a slew of new affordable options, many of them from Chinese manufacturers like Blazar. However, even by those standards, the Remus 1.5x anamorphic lenses are pretty cheap.

Photographer and cinematographer Cam Mackey is a big fan of the original Blazar Remus set and has gone hands-on with the new lenses. His detailed hands-on video below offers more information about the latest lenses, plus some real-world testing.

The entire seven-lens Remus set of full-frame 1.5x lenses is $5,498, while just the new Remus B set is $3,298. Each lens is also available separately, ranging from $899 to $999. The 33mm T1.8 lens, currently on sale for $899, will increase to its standard price of $1,199 on September 11th. Each lens is available in one of three flare colors: amber, blue, or silver.

A silver camera lens with black detailing and various markings, including "33" and "T1.3," is centered in the image. The lens appears to be resting on a surface with a warm, orange backlight creating a soft glow and gradients in the background.

Complete purchasing details, including limited-time promotions on select bundles, are available on Blazar’s online store. Blazar Remus lenses are also available from B&H.

Image credits: Blazar