Cooke Brings Its Legendary S4/i S35 Lenses to Full-Frame Cinema Cameras

Cooke Optics, a legendary name in cinema lenses, has announced the S4 FF/i series of cinema primes. These are “invigorated” new full-frame versions of Cooke’s iconic S4/i S35 lenses, and all six of them feature fast T2.0 apertures.

The new Cooke S4 FF/i lens series includes 18mm, 25mm, 35mm, 50mm, 75mm, and 100mm primes, all with a unified design. All six lenses have 87mm front diameters, 75 degrees of iris rotation, and 270 degrees of focus rotation. They also have unified control positions, making them easy to swap in a rig. They also each have 82mm front filter threads, except the 18mm T2.0 lens, which has no filter thread. It still works with a matte box, though.

The 50mm T2.0 is the lightest lens of the bunch, weighing 1.45 kilograms (3.2 pounds). The heaviest is the 18mm T2.0 prime, at 1.8 kilograms (nearly four pounds). Lengths range from 89.3 millimeters (3.5 inches) for the 75mm prime to 124 millimeters (4.9 inches) for the 18mm T2.0 lens.

Cooke has placed heavy emphasis on the close-focusing performance of its new cinema prime lenses. The company describes the minimum focusing distances as “class-leading across the set,” averaging around 385 millimeters (just over 15 inches) across the board. The 25mm and 35mm primes can focus as close as 280 millimeters (11 inches), while the 100mm T2.0 focuses to 650 millimeters (25.6 inches).

Another key area is flare. Cooke says the S4 FF/i flares are “layered and complex.” The company wants noticeable, characterful flare that doesn’t overpower the entire frame. Veiling flare takes on the light source’s color, while flare reduces contrast without making the image too hazy, per Cooke. Each focal length offers a slightly different flare, of course, but the overall character stays consistent across the set.

The same is true of overall rendering. The set promises the S4/i S35’s natural skin tone rendition and subtle warmth. They also promise a slight glow and bloom that can make color pop.

Falloff in contrast is “very gentle” and true to human vision, Cooke says. The company promises edge-to-edge sharpness, noting that full-frame performance and consistency are key to what separates its lenses from entirely vintage ones. They each promise similar character and look, but Cooke says its modern optics are more reliable.

Since these are all fast T2.0 lenses, bokeh matters a lot. The speed is a key selling point of the new primes. Each lens has a nine-bladed iris with curved blades, delivering soft, smooth, circular bokeh in the middle of the frame and cat’s-eye-shaped bokeh near the edges. The curved blades help keep bokeh round as the lenses are stopped down.

Pricing and Availability

The Cooke S4 FF/i lenses are available to preorder now for $15,000 each. They come standard in Arri PL mount.

---

Image creditsCooke Optics