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NiSi ATHENA PRIME 18mm T2.2 Cine Lens with Filter Holder, Leica L

SKU: IAATH18L MFR: NIC-ATH-18L
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Key Features

  • Capture stunning visuals with the NiSi 18mm Cine Lens' wide angle perspective.
  • Achieve beautiful bokeh and shallow depth of field with its fast T2.2 aperture.
  • Enjoy exceptional build quality; this Leica L mount lens is made for durability.
  • Get creative with the built-in drop-in filter mount for enhanced light control.
  • Experience smooth, precise focusing with the lens's 300-degree focus rotation.
  • Full-frame coverage ensures your cinematic vision is fully realized with this lens.
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Reviews about this item

Review Summary

2024-10-30T08:52:54

Rated 5 out of 5

Great lens + great price = happy customer!

Love these lenses, this makes my second Athena Prime. I'm running them on my C70 with DJI Focus Pro for making it autofocus, the footage is ??

Josh B.

2024-08-20T08:21:54

Rated 5 out of 5

Great quality lens

Amazing lens for the value. Paired it with a C70 and the DJI Lidar system. Love the colors and sharpness of this lens. I was hesitant at first, since the brand is new to the market- but I'm considering another focal length soon.

Josh B.

2024-07-12T09:36:52

Rated 4 out of 5

Budget lens

Great budget lens, currently using with the DJI lidar/focus pro system. Unsure if this is chromatic aberration - subject outlines with pink color were noticeable when filming low-light with blue (240) 300w key.

NICHOLAS M.

2024-02-07T02:03:00

Rated 5 out of 5

Nisi Athena 25mm

This lens is cinematic and sharp. I love it. The best budget lens by far. I done shoot short film and music videos for quite a while. And over the years I experienced many lens. The image quality from this lens is amazing. I shout in the red Komodo and the drop in filter turns your red camera into the perfect compact cinematic solution. I recommend this lens

DASHAWN S.

2024-01-03T05:11:51

Rated 5 out of 5

Sharp glass

I've been hunting for some sharp glass for a good while. This small set of primes are just what the production doctor ordered!

SCOTT B.

2023-12-29T10:25:41

Rated 5 out of 5

An absolute Dream for Modern Cinema!

As an independent owner-operator, I'm always lusting after some of the top-shelf gear that I may never get to own. I've been looking far and wide for a solid cine lens set. I considered IRIX, Dulens, DZO, Meike, and Canon CN-E, but ultimately settled on these for their combination of low price, tiny weight, and bright aperture. At the end of the day, these are fantastic and I'm delighted with the choice. The entire set is sharp, fast, light, and consistent. The coverage is excellent, easily hitting full-frame and beyond with very little vignetting. The small size makes them convenient in a variety of setups, and ultimately they are just a ton of fun to use. The one drawback is how far they protrude behind the PL mount, which makes them incompatible with most drop-in filter systems. However this is a small price to pay in exchange for getting near-ARRI-level performance at 95% lower price and 50% smaller size and weight. Also, the Breakthrough Cinema DFM adapter *does* supposedly work with these, so I'm interested to try that out. In any event, I expect to keep this set for a very, very long time. At this price, the set is absolutely unbeatable. It provides s a very clean, neutral look which can be easily manipulated in post. I might go chase some vintage looks in the future, but I doubt I'll ever get rid of something this reliable, usable, and overall just FUN to shoot with as these. ONE THING TO BE AWARE OF, however. When I first got these lenses, I was shooting on the Canon R5 C. These lenses delivered very similar performance to what I was previously getting out of my native RF glass, what I called my "Mini Cine" kit. Those lenses are also extraordinary and largely overlooked. In fact, if you turn on the automatic corrections in camera, the RF set delivers an almost identical image to the Athenas, just that the RF glass is a little bit softer. In fact, the Athenas are SO sharp that on the Canon R5 C it was a bit too much, and made things look really harsh in some cases. This can be mitigated in post, or even in-camera if you aren't shooting RAW. But there's something in the nature of Canon's sensor or OLPF stack which was making for some unpleasant over-sharpness in some cases. But I recently added a RED V-Raptor to the arsenal, and the Athenas produce a much less harsh image on the Raptor. It's still sharp, but much more smooth and much more pleasant. The point is, just be aware that your camera's sensor can play a part in how the image comes back. You can manipulate things in post, of course, but for those who like to get a good image quickly without much manipulation, make sure to check your sharpness settings etc. Just do some tests, do your homework, and these lenses will reward you. I absolutely love them.

Nick S.

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NiSi ATHENA PRIME Specifications

  • Focal Length

    18mm

  • Lens Mount

    Leica L Mount

  • Lens Format Coverage

    Full Frame

  • Image Circle

    46mm

  • Maximum Aperture

    T2.2

  • Gear MOD & Pitch

    Focus: 0.8 MOD / 32 Pitch

  • Gear Rotation

    Focus 300 Degree

  • Filter Thread

    77mm

  • Focus Scales

    Metric, Imperial

  • Electronic Communication

    No

  • Image Stabilization

    No

  • Aperture Blades

    10

  • AOV for 36x24 Format

    Diagonal: 101.3 Degree
    Horizontal: 90.3 Degree
    Vertical: 67.1 Degree

  • Front Diameter

    3.1" (80mm)

  • Length

    3.2" (81.3mm)

  • Weight

    1.92 lbs (875g)

  • UPC Code

    6972949379155

Models
NiSi ATHENA PRIME 18mm T2.2 Cine Lens with Filter Holder, Leica L
$1,349.00

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NiSi Aureus Prime 24mm T1.4 Cinema Lens, PL Mount

SKU: IANIC24PL

MFR: NIC-AUREUS-24PL

$2,299.00

In Stock

DJI DL PZ 17-28mm T3.0 ASPH Lens

SKU: DJICPZM01

MFR: CP.ZM.00000148.01

$1,339.00

Temporarily On Backorder

Although this item is temporarily on Backorder, you can order it now and it will ship as soon as it arrives. Your card will only be charged once item is shipped.

Special FeaturesIncludes Filter Holder--
Kit StyleBaseBaseBase
FormatFull FrameFull FrameFull Frame
Lens TypeWide AngleWide AngleWide Angle
Fixed Focal Length18mm24mmNA
Lens MountL MountPL MountDJI DL
Maximum ApertureT2.2T1.4T3.0
Zoom Focal LengthNANA17-28mm

About NiSi ATHENA PRIME

FEATURED REVIEWS

Great lens + great price = happy customer!

By Josh B.

Love these lenses, this makes my second Athena Prime. I'm running them on my C70 with DJI Focus Pro for making it autofocus, the footage is ??

Great quality lens

By Josh B.

Amazing lens for the value. Paired it with a C70 and the DJI Lidar system. Love the colors and sharpness of this lens. I was hesitant at first, since the brand is new to the market- but I'm considering another focal length soon.

After extensive research and development, we present the NiSi 18mm ATHENA PRIME Full Frame Cinema Lens T2.2 (L Mount), a groundbreaking addition to our esteemed ATHENA lens collection. This lens is meticulously engineered to seamlessly integrate with the original Athena Prime series, maintaining consistent weight, focus, and iris ring positions for a harmonious operation.

Immerse yourself in the world of cinematic brilliance with the ATHENA PRIME's unparalleled image quality. Superior micro-contrast control and minimal chromatic aberration ensure sharper, more vibrant images that accurately reflect your artistic vision. The lens's wider T2.2 aperture excels in isolating the subject from the background, creating a soft, captivating bokeh that enhances the atmospheric quality of your shots. This is ideal for crafting scenes with a deep sense of space and depth.

The 18mm ATHENA PRIME lens is designed to significantly reduce focus breathing, ensuring a stable field of view as you adjust focus. This feature is crucial for filmmakers who prioritize smooth focus transitions and a consistent visual narrative. The lens's compatibility with the rest of the Athena Prime series allows for effortless lens swaps without the need to rebalance your gimbal, thanks to the uniformity in weight and dimensions across the series.

Standout features of the 18mm ATHENA PRIME include its 77mm filter thread, 80mm clamp-on size, and standardized aperture and focus rings. These features enhance the ease of using additional lens accessories. The focus ring, marked by 300 degrees of rotation with fluorescent focal scales, offers precise control for sharp, dynamic captures, even in challenging lighting conditions.

The Athena Prime Lens Series (L Mount) comes equipped with a drop-in filter mount, providing a more flexible workflow and creative control for filmmakers. This feature allows for easy addition of ND filters, polarizers, or other filters to achieve your desired look without attaching filters to the front of the lens. It also facilitates quick and efficient filter swaps, saving time and reducing the risk of lens damage.

The NiSi 18mm ATHENA PRIME Full Frame Cinema Lens T2.2 (L Mount) is perfect for a wide range of cinematic projects, from large-scale feature films to intimate documentaries and vibrant music videos. This high-quality lens is designed to unlock new dimensions of image quality, versatility, and artistic expression. Embrace the future of filmmaking with NiSi and bring your unparalleled vision to life.

The lens boasts a 46mm image circle for full-frame coverage and a focal length of 18mm in the NiSi Athena range, covering super wide-angle to portrait focal lengths. This allows you to capture a wide variety of subjects. The lens also features a fast aperture of T 2.2, soft bokeh for beautiful background separation, ultra-low chromatic aberration, and micro-contrast control for unparalleled image quality with finer image details. The Athena Prime lenses are designed to minimize focus breathing, ensuring a small change in field of view when adjusting focus from the minimum focus distance to infinity. The L mount models also feature a drop-in filter slot and 300-degree focus rotation with fluorescent focal scales for precise focus pulls.

NiSi ATHENA PRIME Features

  • Full-frame and 46mm imaging circle
  • Maximum micro-contrast control and ultra-low chromatic aberration for unparalleled image quality
  • Large aperture of T2.2 and soft bokeh for beautiful background separation
  • Drop-in filter mount for a more flexible workflow and creative control for filmmaking
  • Minimizes focus breathing for a consistent field of view when adjusting focus
  • Matched in weight and size to other NiSi Athena Lenses, eliminating the need for rebalancing on a gimbal when switching between lenses
  • 77mm filter thread and matched aperture and focus rings across the range for easy use of lens accessories
  • Focus ring features 300 Degree of rotation with fluorescent focal scales for precise focus pulls
  • Ideal for shooting feature films, documentaries, or music videos
  • Offers unparalleled image quality, flexibility, and creative control for filmmakers

Warranty Information

This product has a limited warranty of 12 months.

Key Features

  • Capture stunning visuals with the NiSi 18mm Cine Lens' wide angle perspective.
  • Achieve beautiful bokeh and shallow depth of field with its fast T2.2 aperture.
  • Enjoy exceptional build quality; this Leica L mount lens is made for durability.
  • Get creative with the built-in drop-in filter mount for enhanced light control.
  • Experience smooth, precise focusing with the lens's 300-degree focus rotation.
  • Full-frame coverage ensures your cinematic vision is fully realized with this lens.

What's in the box:

  • NiSi ATHENA PRIME 18mm T2.2 Cine Lens
  • Drop-In Filter Mount (Built-In)
  • Front Lens Cap
  • Rear Lens Cap
  • NiSi 1 Year Limited Warranty