I am a new owner of the recently released Anamorphic

I am a new owner of the recently released Anamorphic Research AR-2 lens. I wanted to write
this testimonial not only to the quality of my new lens, but also to praise the customer service at
Anamorphic Research. When I first preordered my lens, Randy contacted me right away to
make sure my setup would be compatible with their product. From that point, he stayed in
constant communication with me until the lens and accessories were ready for delivery, which I
very much appreciate. I was getting updates a few days in advance of their blog, and all my
questions were swiftly replied to.
In addition to the AR-2, I also ordered the manual lens slide and the lens plate adapter. Randy
had recommended a Chief® Mounting solution for my projector, because the Anamorphic
Research lens adapter plate is designed to be compatible. After he sent me a picture of the lens
plate, I was convinced it was the best solution out there, rather than rigging something on my
own.
When the products arrived, everything was well packed. When I unpacked everything, my initial
observation was the quality of the construction. The aluminum gives a sturdy heft to the
products, everything is machined very neatly, and the powder coating of the aluminum looks
great (and matches the Chief® mount perfectly). The slide is great, ball-bearing so it slides
quietly and smoothly, with just enough resistance to hold the lens in place. And speaking of the
lens, I am very satisfied with the construction and the optics. The prisms remind me of a camera
lens, and are thick and heavy – and according to AR, they are coated too, which helps with
reflections. What I like the most is that, considering its budget-oriented price point, it is already
calibrated out of the box. There is no play in the prisms or adjustments to the glass necessary.
Once I mounted it to the manual slide, I put a 2.35:1 test pattern up and started adjusting the
placement. In very little time I had everything to my satisfaction with minimal pincushioning.
Then I was ready for my test, and picked ‘Hero’. The images look great in scope, and while
there is some chromatic aberration, it is not intrusive and I only really see it when I look closely
for it. I don’t have serious complaints about the focus either; I found a good point where the
images are acceptable with and without the lens in place. I also plan on installing the
astigmatism correction lens in the future, which should help a lot.
In conclusion, Anamorphic Research has released a great product at a very competitive price.
Thanks to their AR2, I am able to recreate the cinema experience with Cinemascope movies
without losing resolution by zooming. And by choosing an anamorphic lens, I leave myself open
to almost any projector of my choosing when I upgrade in the future, instead of being forced to
choose one of the few with zoom memory (or having to re-zoom and re-focus manually every
time I watch a Cinemascope movie).
Mike P.
Purchased January 2010
Review submitted March 2010
Unboxing the accessories (left) and AR-2 (right)
Lens adapter plate and manual slide in place on Chief mount
AR-2 mounted in front of a Sharpvision XV-Z10000U
Lens in place for Cinemascope movie!
Lens out of the way for HDTV
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, standard projection @ 96” diagonal.
Note: Multiple exposures and digital manipulation were used to capture this image, but actual movie image is unaltered.
Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince, with AR-2 lens and vertical stretch @ 120” diagonal.
Note: Multiple exposures and digital manipulation were used to capture this image, but actual movie image is unaltered.
Jim Broadbent in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Image projected without AR-2
Jim Broadbent in Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Image projected with AR-2 in place.