KIPON BAVAYES 1.25x PL ExPANDER Announced – An Adapter for the ARRI PL Mount

Lens Adapter

by Jose PradaOctober 31^st, 2023

KIPON, the Chinese manufacturer known for their lenses and adapters, has announced the upcoming release of the KIPON BAVAYES PL to PL 1.25x Cine ExPANDER, an adapter for the ARRI PL mount.

The KIPON BAVAYES adapter offers a solution to enable the use of older Academy format zoom lenses that don’t fully cover the ARRI S35 sensor. Thanks to its 1.25x magnification, these lenses will now effectively cover the sensor resulting in only a 1/3 light loss. Academy format lenses were originally designed for a 28mm image circle, while Super35 sensors like the one in ARRI ALEXA S35 are 34mm. The adapter fixes this incompatibility thanks to its 1.25 conversion factor.

The KIPON BAVEYES ExPANDER, currently in the development phase, is expected to launch in the coming weeks. This release will provide ARRI users with increased flexibility in choosing their lenses.

Some zoom lenses that will work with the new adapter are:

• Angenieux 24-290mm Optimo
• Angenieux 17-102mm
• Angenieux 25-250mm HR/HP
• Cooke 18-100mm
• Cooke 20-100mm
• Cooke 25-250mm MkII/MkIII
• Cooke 20-60mm

The adapter compatibility is limited to lenses with a maximum depth of 17.5mm.

Availability of the KIPON BAVAYES ExPANDER

The adapter serves as a solution for owners of older Academy lenses or for those wanting to use S35 lenses in cameras with bigger sensors. As it’s an optical adapter, we would love to test the quality of the glass used and its effect on the final image. Still, it is a valuable tool that expands the life of those vintage lenses and gives us more options when combining old and new gear. Stay tuned for more updates about this adapter on KIPON’s Instagram profile.

What do you think about optical adapters? Do you use old lenses in new cameras for your work? Let us know your thoughts in the comments!