Pull a credit card out of your wallet. The shorter side is about 52mm long. That is roughly the same as the flange focal distance (FFD) from a PL mount lens to the image plane of your camera.

So, what would happen if your lens FFD were off by 1/100mm (10 microns)? Let’s go to a movie theater to find out. If the screen is 10m wide x 4m high, then the projected image has to be magnified 278x.

And so, a 10 micron error in your lens shimming would result in the equivalent of a 30cm (more than an inch) error in the projector’s calibration.

That’s why rental houses and repair facilities need lens projectors—and especially the new DENZ MFC65. It tests all photo and cine lenses with image circles up to Ø60mm — from 8mm, 16mm, Super 35, Full Frame 35 up to Alexa 65 format.

The MFC65 has been designed from the ground up for speed, accuracy and avoidance of mistakes while working — one of the main reasons why ARRI Rental has selected it as the test projector for their facilities worldwide.

The lens projector’s universal mount has an 87mm Ø diameter and an extremely short flange depth of 10mm. This makes it compatible with almost any lens mount now in existence, and ready for some of the new mirrorless mounts just announced. Currently, DENZ supplies PL, LPL, PV, Canon EF and Sony E-mounts, as well as unique rotating mounts and camera intermediate mounts.

The reticle mount is built to last, in a massive frame that is hard-mounted with no springs or clips to break or wear. For setup and alignment, the MFC65 has an integrated distance finder and bubble level.

There is also an extra proprietary set of rods to add extra support to the ARRI standard rods. Supporting those very big lenses is no longer a headache requiring wedges and precious time.

Reprinted from Film and Digital Times September 2018 Edition #89-90