Test done a few months ago while preparing a feature film.
We were interested in testing/comparing some Zeiss Ultra Primes and Cooke S4’s characteristics.
The follwoing are “frame grabs” from Arri Alexa, ProRes 4444, Rec709.
Zeiss Ultra Prime 1.9/50mm at T/2 (to match Cooke S4 aperture).
A) Focus/out of focus test
Zeiss UP
Cooke S4
B) Flare test (interior)
Zeiss UP 50mm T/2
Cooke S4 50mm T/2
Zeiss shows no flaring ghosts.
Cooke shows a blue flare opposite to the lamp, on the left side of the frame.
Note: If I can recall correctly the lamp was over T/45, the lenses T/2.
C) Flare test (exterior)
Zeiss UP 50mm T/22 (no filter in front of lens)
Cooke S4 50mm T/22 (no filter in front of lens)
Cooke S4’s flare quite a bit under this situation, not particularly flattering…
And yes, that’s the sun…
D) Focus/out of focus (exterior)
Zeiss UP 50mm T/5.6 (ND1.2 + ND0.9)
Cooke S4 50mm T/5.6 (ND1.2 + ND0.9)
This particular set of Cooke S4’s rendered sharp images at any given aperture, but it was more prone to flare and added a slightly yellow/green cast to the images compared to the Zeiss set (could be easily corrected in post).
The quality of the out of focus blur (bokeh) was less noticeable than what I expected, though the specular highlights do show the difference in iris/lens design from each manufacturer.
Forced to choose? both are excellent glass, choose upon the demands of each particular project.
Model: Federico
ramiro civita (adf) 