What We Do

We test lenses, then don't stop
talking about them.

CineTraits sits between the people who manufacture the glass and the filmmakers who shoot with it. We borrow, purchase and lease optics, and put everything we discover into one of the most discoverable visual lens databases in the world — along with shouting about everything we discover on our social channels.

Where the glass comes from

Lenses reach us from rental houses, lens manufacturers and filmmakers — and stay with us anywhere from four days up to about three to four weeks.

We are very flexible about how long we hold on to optics, but the longer we have them, the more we can do with them.

What happens while we have them

A lens on loan is rarely doing one job. The same optics feeds the lab, the library, the database and the content we publish.

Comparable lab tests

Every lens goes through the same controlled, comparative lab tests. Same setup, same conditions, same parameters — so what you see is the lens, not the test.

Open the Lens Test Library

Creative lens library

Wherever we can, we shoot for our Creative Lens Library as well: real footage, real scenes, so you can see how the optics actually look in the world.

Open the Creative Lens Library

Projects & local filmmakers

When we have a project of our own, or exciting filmmakers nearby have one, the optics go out on loan with the owner’s permission. In return we get access to the footage for the Creative Lens Library and for marketing.

Deep dives & social content

We produce deep dive videos and social content on every lens and lens set we test — plus tech talks on kit and equipment across film and TV.

Behind the scenes

Dual Purpose Collaboration

We add lenses to the database so filmmakers can find them, and we create media and content all about them.

The database

Every lens, documented and discoverable

A comparative, searchable record of cinema and photo lenses — tests, character traits and comparisons — built so a filmmaker can find the right optic for the job in minutes.

The content

Media, deep dives and tech talks

Video deep dives, the Creative Lens Library, social content and tech talks on all things kit and equipment in the film and TV industry — for the lenses we test and the gear around them.

For every level of the industry

The same database serves a solo videographer shooting a wedding and a Hollywood crew prepping a feature. That is deliberate: our experience sits at both ends of the industry, so we understand what each side is actually looking for.

And it is not only about who the database is built for. Our media, content and tech talks are tailored to everyone working in those markets too — the rental houses, retailers and manufacturers supplying the gear, as much as the people shooting with it.

Junior videographers & solo shooters

Plain-English character notes and real footage, so you can see what a lens will do to your image before you hire or buy it.

Cinematographers, DoPs & production crews

The measured, comparable detail — tests, coverage, breathing, colour — that a DoP, AC or VFX team needs when choosing a set for a large-scale production.