DIY anamorphic lens

[mfeidler]

Yes, 130" wide is huge! I love it. That was the reason I decided on the Panasonic projector so I wouldn't see the pixels. I like to feel like I'm at a theater.

I may end up adjusting my zoom and doing a Horizontal Stretch to get the 130" x 55".

So many decisions.

Mike

[Mark Techer]

Originally posted by Bud Bray
I have a 61"x130" sheet of MDF as my screen but i'm projecting a 55" height image so my CIH image will be 55'x 130". My 16:9 is 92 wide & 107 diag. Thinking of dropping down to 53" height, just to keep the brightness a bit higher.

Bud,

I would suggest to get two "rips" of 3" MDF, paint them black and use then for top and bottom masking. 3" or 75mm is a good width for a frame. You then make side masking (more MDF or curtains) to allow differnt ARs...

The last screen I build like this used speaker grill clips to hold the masking on and it it not rattle

Also by securring the screen to the wall (behind the removable masking) will allow you to fix the centre hard, then add timber (wedges) behind the ends to allow the screen to flex should you need to correct barrel...

Originally posted by mfeidler
My screen is going to be 130" wide in a 16:9 format. I think I might like to do a verticle compression. Is this possible with these Prisms? Any pictures of the orientation of the prisms for a VC?

Mike, it is possible to turn the lens around 180 degree (now becomes a HC) and then lay it on its side (now becomes VC). I have tested this and it works quite well, but you will have to tilt the lens down, or you may end up with a ceiling reflection...

But in the end, the beauty of CIH is to have all ARs bigger not smaller. When HD DVD and or BrD (or some other 1080P format) replace DVD, your going to have 811 lines (and maybe one day 1080 lines) to rescale on your 720 panel all of the time, so why not make the bigger picture bigger...

A 130" diag 16:9 image is about 2800mm wide, and I have seen a 3m wide CIH that just rocks (using the Prismasonic H1200R) and even the 16:9 image is huge.

I am working on a room that will have a 3600mm wide CIH screen and masking because the guy does not want to reduce his screen height

That is 3600mm (a bit over 141") x 1500mm (59") (aprox 2.40) curved screen with curtains for side masking in a totally light controlled room...I've already run a light test to confirm the image brightness with his projector and it should be very impressive...

Mark

[andy238]

Ok, a VC makes sense then. A 130" wide 16x9 using an HE lens would be a ginormeous 2.35 image!

I agree with James though 130" is really stretching (no pun intended) the AE900 brightness wise. But hey, if you're happy that's what counts!

I did the paper test and it looks like the smaller prism will work out fine. So I think I'm going to go for the small and medium size prisms. Does anybody have an enclosure design for these yet?

[Mark Techer]

Click HERE and scoll down to the second image...

Mark

[Steve Scherrer]

Originally posted by andy238
Ok, a VC makes sense then. A 130" wide 16x9 using an HE lens would be a ginormeous 2.35 image!

I agree with James though 130" is really stretching (no pun intended) the AE900 brightness wise. But hey, if you're happy that's what counts!

I did the paper test and it looks like the smaller prism will work out fine. So I think I'm going to go for the small and medium size prisms. Does anybody have an enclosure design for these yet?

The enclosure is actually pretty simple, as you can see in Mark's picture. I am currently working on dial-in capabilities, much like the Prismasonic. My idea is actually very simple, and utilizes about $10 in materials from the local hardware store. If I ever get the other small lens (hopefully today), I will be able to get everything together. Since I have a SVGA projector, I am attempting to have three dial in settings: Pass through, 16:9 and Cinemascope (if I can get it to stretch that far without distortion). Those with 16:9 projectors wouldn't need the cinemascope setting, so it would work easily with only the two settings.

Once I get the thing up and running, I will try to post on how I did it.

[z2895]

Nice pics Mark. Could you post some pics of your whole theater room and setup, I'm just curious. I think I'm going to try 2 smaller lenses, if that doesn't fit I can just order 1 more medium one. Currently I have a Da-Mat screen I made, it is awesome and very clear, but the black levels could be improved IMO, I am condering using a HC Da-Mat for my next one. I think I have the extra brightness to pull it off. If anyone is using the HC Da-Mat I would be interested to hear your results.

James

[Steve Scherrer]

Originally posted by z2895
Nice pics Mark. Could you post some pics of your whole theater room and setup, I'm just curious. I think I'm going to try 2 smaller lenses, if that doesn't fit I can just order 1 more medium one. Currently I have a Da-Mat screen I made, it is awesome and very clear, but the black levels could be improved IMO, I am condering using a HC Da-Mat for my next one. I think I have the extra brightness to pull it off. If anyone is using the HC Da-Mat I would be interested to hear your results.

James

James: I should be getting my smaller lens today, in which case I would have a medium one left over. If you think you might need a medium one, I could sell this one to you.

[andy238]

Nice pics, Mark. Thanks for the link.

Steve, the dial feature is great. I was thinking the same thing; try and duplicate the commercial version You're way ahead of me though. Yes, please post pics of your creation

[Bud Bray]

Got my prisms today. Nice cases too.
Here are some pix...

[Bud Bray]

OK, how to you post pix???
Did the attach file. Says max size 100k. that is the pic size...trying to get DECENT size post
Hang on...