Schneider True-Streak Rainbow Filter For The Anamorphic Look

Lens Filters

by Tim FokFebruary 13^th, 2018

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Schneider has announced a new filter called the True-Streak Rainbow. Just like the current True-Streak line, this type of in-camera filtration is designed to mimic anamorphic lens flares – this time a blend of eight ‘brilliant’ colours.

Mimicking is something of the norm in filmmaking – digital to film, small budget to big, spherical to anamorphic.

A while back, Schneider announced a set of coloured streak filters (aptly named True-Streak) that helped filmmakers with the latter: a filter that added a coloured horizontal streak to blooming areas of your image; similar to the way an anamorphic lens flares.

The True-Streak line was, and still is, available in a variety of colours. This new one however, has them all.

The True-Streak Rainbow filter is about as self-explanatory as it gets – a streak filter with an array of eight coloured strips across the surface.

How does a Streak filter work? Easy:

“Rainbow Streaks are made with a colored interlayer sandwiched and sealed between two sheets of crystal-clear SCHOTT water-white glass to maintain consistency and durability”

The results are interesting – I can certainly see a time and place where you’d want a bit more pezaze in your shot.

Why in-camera, why not Post?

There are always advantages of doing things in-camera. In post, you are dealing with a flat plain, any effects like this happen across the board. In-camera, on the other hand, deals with real 3D space, so in-camera effects like this can be controlled to background/foreground much more easily.

The Anamorphic Look

If you are looking to go solely for the anamorphic look, there is much more to imitating the aesthetic than just adding some streaky flares – Bokeh shape, depth of field, aspect ratio all need to be taken into account. If you’re looking to do this here is an interesting DIY tutorial on the budget Anamorphic look.

Back to the filter, here’s what Cinematographer Adam Beck says:

“The beautiful transition of colors within the flare gives the image another layer of complexity to my shots. It’s a uniquely creative tool that I want to have in my arsenal, allowing me greater control over the image in the camera.”

The first True-Streak Rainbow filter will be available in industry standard 4X5.65” size, shipping mid-March. Other sizes will be available as a special order part.