FUJIFILM/Fujinon has unveiled the new Premista series of cinema zoom lenses to serve the growing market of full frame cinema cameras including the ARRI LF, Sony Venice, and Canon C700 cameras.  For 17 years, Fujifilm has been making high-quality optics for Super-35 sensor cameras including the very successful FUJINON Premier, Cabrio and MK ranges of lenses. Fujinon is now answering the call for zoom lenses that not only cover the image circle of the new large sensor cameras, but also provide high optical performance and versatility.  They are said to maintain the superior quality of the Premiers, but are in a form factor and price range closer to the Cabrios, (less than $40,000US per lens).

Fujifilm will first release the FUJINON Premista 28-100mmT2.9 (“Premista 28-100mm”) in summer 2019 (USD $38,800), followed by the launch of the FUJINON Premista 80-250mm T2.9-3.5 (“Premista 80-250mm”) before the end of 2019. Together, the lenses will cover the most frequently used focal lengths from 28mm to 250mm. While 28mm might not seem very wide for the wide-end of the focal range, it would be an equivalent field of view of roughly 19mm compared to Super35, making for a very workable range.  The Premista 28-100mm has a constant T2.9 speed across the entire zoom range and the Premista 80-250mm has a constant T2.9 speed from 80-200mm, before gradually ramping less than full stop to T3.5 between 201-250mm. Both lenses cover a 46.3mm image circle, which covers all current large format digital cinema cameras available for purchase.

A new 13-blade iris allows for a pleasant bokeh effect and a wide dynamic range of light can be captured thanks to dedicated optical design to suppress unwanted flare and ghosting as well as its large-diameter aspherical lens elements and new focus/zoom system.