SLR Magic Anamorphot 1.33x 50 Anamorphic Adapter

I didn't get the typical anamorphic oval bokeh that one would usually expect and desire of an anamorphic lens. I am now using a projector lens and the SLR Magic Range Finder.

Love this thing!!!

This lens is awesome! I haven't experienced the same issues that other people have mentioned in previous reviews. So far I've used this lens on three different projects and ithas worked perfectly. This lens works really well with the Canon EF 2.8 40mm pancake lens. I would definitely recommend buying this lens if you're looking for a cost effective way to achieve an anamorphic look without having to crop your image and adding artificial lens flares or using an anamorphic plug-in.

I am starting to get a small collection of anamorphic lenses and fittings for SLRs, and I figured that perhaps it was time to try something a little more convenient than a 10lb projector lens that requires an entire rail setup. I had seen reviews for the Anamorphot go both ways, but I pulled the trigger.From what I've heard, this guy works the best on the Canon 40mm "pancake" lens. The optics seem perfect, and the size makes it the size of a normal lens. I read all instructions carefully, put on my step adapter, lined up the Anamorphot, and screwed in the thumb screws. Crap! One of them broke in half as I was tightening it. Ugh. I move on to the next one, 2 in a row! I leave the 3rd untouched. The focus ring is loose and doesn't change anything. It actually wobbles back and forth. I initially figured that there was some feature I was missing, as I have macro lenses that require snapping the focus ring back to prevent accidentally losing focus. This is not the case, it just is...broken?I figure this has something to do with the screws. I try to find out what size they are so I can quickly replace them and end up seeing people on Twitter asking SLRMagic the same question (this screw thing is a common problem). They won't tell anyone the screw size, but instead suggest that you spend $20 for 3 tiny, worthless, fragile thumbscrews from them or Adorama. I emailed SLRMagic, wondering if I had gotten a bum product. No response. Nada. I have an $850 desk weight. Luckily I paid with Paypal, so this can, at least, be disputed.But here's the thing. I was going to bring this out on a week long video shoot. It couldn't survive the work area in my home where I repair electronics. I may have gotten a dud, but really, if there is NO support whatsoever other than a Twitter message telling you to buy more crappy screws, then why pay the premium to buy from an independent company like this?I'm truly bummed, because I really, really was excited to shoot with this adapter, and I payed a huge premium to be able to. But, assuming I have a dud and all of the focus rings aren't this fragile, do you still want to be using a product that is held onto your lens via screws that disintegrate from the strength of your thumbs? Do you want to bring this out into the field?At least the giant, heavy, antique $300 anamorphic lenses can survive a shoot because they're built like tanks. I was hoping this would be the best of both worlds, but it's the worst.Update: After posting this review and on Twitter, I finally got a response from customer support. They told me it is highly unlikely that there's a problem with the screws, and I would have to send the anamorphot to China for repair on my own dime. So that confirms that they're not even quality controlling these things. They're Chinese lens adapters that cost the price of 3 German made anamorphic lenses.My advice is to wait until Neewer or Cowboy Studio makes one. It'll be the same quality and cost $39.

Here's my impressions so far. I'll continue to update and revise the review for a while as I learn more.I'm using this on a Canon 5d Mark iii and the Canon 40mm f2.8 pancake. I have a few other step downs on the way to try some other lenses.Set screw mechanism is junk. Within the first 5 minutes I managed to destroy the threads on 2 of the 3 set screw holes. The screws are good, the lens housing is too soft for this small of a screw. The difference between tight enough to keep it from spinning and you've just dethreaded the hole is a very fine line. If I keep it, I see myself having to drill new set screw holes and use a bigger set screw.It's really too heavy to just be supported by screwing into the filter and included adapters (at least with the 40mm f2.8). There's noticeable sag from gravity which I don't think is doing the image quality any favors. A more traditional rails style mount is probably appropriate for long term or heavy use.My first few experiments resulted in really soft images. Stopping down the 40mm helped and I'm sure there's a learning period here.Easy to align. I set the camera on a counter, turned on it's LCD, and then used the LED on my phone to align it by the horizontal flare.Update 1:I got some step down rings and have tried it on a few other lenses.Canon 24-105mm f4, heavy vignetting and soft focus.Rokinon 85mm f1.4, medium vignetting and soft focus. Best focus of the 3 longer lenses.Canon 100mm f2.8 macro, medium vignetting and soft focus. Least vignetting of the 3 longer lenses.Sigma 50mm f1.4 (sadly not the art series), heavy vignetting in the far corners, but brightens quickly, and good focus.Canon 40mm f2.8, medium vignetting and good focus.If you're looking at the Anamorphot without the Diopter Set, you really do need them to focus closer than a couple of meters, but they vignette massively (at least on the 40mm f2.8) when on.I've got another complaint about construction. There's a layer of grease between the threaded portion and the rotating ring that locks it down. On mine there was quite a lot oozing out between the edges. I managed to get some on the rear element when trying to wipe some dust. It took about 15 minutes of wiping and buffing to get it clear again.The sag I mentioned on the 40mm f2.8 doesn't happen attached to the other lenses. On the 40mm the front element and the filter rings move and that's just not as stable as a fixed front element. It was the sharpest focus through the Anamorphot so I don't think it's hurting it as I thought it would initially.Update 2:I've been using this for video more and have some additional observations.For the most part the vignetting in the lenses list above is not an issue when shooting 16x9. I've also been shooting in raw crop mode using magic lantern on a 5D Mark III and since it's using the center of the lens a lot of the smeary mess from the outside edges gets cleaned up.Some of the lenses will focus better at different distances, so for example the 100mm f2.8 is very crisp at 4 meters, but at 8 looks terrible. There's a lot of trial and error. I feel like I need to keep a sheet of notes for each lens (e.g. usable at 3-6 meters in crop mode).Another note, that in crop mode lenses that are outside of SLR Magic's focal length range limits become nice choices. For example both the 16-35 f2.8 II and the 24mm TS-E II focus nicely. Full sensor they are terribly vignetted, but in 3x crop mode they have no vignetting or fringing, and are very sharp. So depending on your needs, a 16-35 in crop mode might be a better choice than a native 85mm.I'm still unhappy with the flimsy set screws, but have bumped the rating a notch to reflect the better luck I'm having with image quality as I learn it's quirks.