A set of Cooke or ARRI cinema lenses will set you back around $75,000, but this budget-friendly set of cine lenses from Sirui costs just $1,000. I have to say it’s an exciting time to be a filmmaker! In this review, I’ll cover the Sirui Night Walker Cinema Lens set, which includes three Super 35 T1.2 cine lenses: a 24mm, a 35mm, and a 55mm.
These lenses have uniform dimensions, making them ideal for gimbal work, and they all share a 67mm thread size for easy filter or matte box swaps.
In full-frame equivalence, these translate roughly to a 35mm f/1.8, a 50mm f/1.8, and an 80mm f/1.8.
For this review, I’ll use Super 35 and T-stop terminology.
Build Quality and Features
Constructed from lightweight yet strong aluminum alloy, each lens weighs about 500g. The build quality is solid, with smoothly rotating focus and aperture rings. The focus throw is quite long, with a rotation angle of 270 degrees, allowing for buttery smooth focus pulls and aperture adjustments. Optically, these lenses rank among the best in any affordable cinema lens set. Let’s evaluate their image quality through some test footage.
Overall Impressions
After using these lenses, I would describe their image as having a slightly warm tone, consistent across all three lenses. The image is detailed but still retains character. The chromatic aberration and softness of the Sirui Night Walker lenses are not as pronounced as in vintage lenses, yet the image isn’t as clinical or sharp as modern mirrorless lenses. It strikes a nice balance, offering a filmic look without being overly soft and mushy.
Detailed Lens Reviews
24mm Lens
Examining the 24mm lens, we see minimal focus breathing, smooth bokeh circles, and detailed image retention, even in close-ups.
Colors are consistent, and barrel distortion is minimal. This lens performs admirably, especially considering its price.
35mm Lens
The 35mm lens offers a detailed image, maintaining clarity even when shooting wide open at T1.2. The bokeh quality is impressive, providing excellent subject separation without completely melting the background. Focus breathing is controlled, and color consistency matches the 24mm lens. This lens strikes a good balance between sharpness and softness, giving a cinematic feel without looking overly digital.
55mm Lens
While the 55mm lens is not my favorite due to its tight focal length, it remains optically consistent with the other two lenses. It’s ideal for close-up detail shots, maintaining the same image quality and characteristics.
This lens is a valuable addition for capturing tight shots and offers versatility in editing.
Conclusion
The Sirui Night Walker Cinema Lens set, priced at $1,000, offers excellent value for money. Each lens can also be purchased separately for $350, which is just slightly more per lens than buying the set. The final verdict is that this set of lenses provides amazing value for money that many budget conscious filmmakers will most definitely appreciate.
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