Suarez Lenses: Peppe Badalamenti Suarez!

🎥 SICA Special Technical & Lens Premiere Event – Detailed Summary

Hosted by Southern India Cinematographers’ Association (SICA)

The SICA technical and knowledge-sharing event held at Prasad Lab Theatre witnessed excellent attendance and vibrant participation from cinematographers and students.

The programme was formally inaugurated by National Award–winning cinematographer P. C. Sreeram, ISC, whose presence added exceptional prestige to the gathering.

Event Details

Venue: Prasad Lab Theatre, Saligramam, Chennai

Date & Time: Sunday, February 8, 2026 | 2:00 PM – 6:00 PM

Host: Southern Indian Cinematographers Association (SICA)

Opening & Welcome

SICA President – Karthikraaja

warmly welcomed the gathering and set the tone for an evening focused on technology, collaboration and creative evolution.

SICA Treasurer – Sakthi Saravanan

coordinated the technical flow of the event and later led the hands-on demonstrations.

Nirav Shah- Vice President

introduced the international guest to the SICA members and positioned the session as a rare opportunity to interact directly with a lens designer and cinematographer.

🌟 Agenda Highlights

1. Felicitation of Tamil Nadu State Award–winning cinematographers

2. Premiere presentation of custom-tuned SUÁREZ Beauty Lenses

3. Hands-on technical session with Blackmagic URSA 17K 65 camera and Leitz Thalia 65 lenses

(Courtesy: RCS Media Equipments Rental)

🎬 Guest of Honour & Technical Presenter

Peppe Badalamenti Suárez

Founder – LVX

Peppe introduced himself to the SICA community and delivered a deeply personal and emotional presentation titled:

“The Story Behind the Glass”

Images and video references were projected through a DCP projector, allowing members to directly observe optical behaviour, texture and flare character on a theatrical screen.

The Philosophy Behind SUÁREZ Lenses

Peppe shared that the SUÁREZ lens collection is dedicated to his mother and carries a profound personal meaning.

The word “SUÁREZ” originates from Hebrew roots – “Shua Resh”, meaning:

“The leader who answers the cries for help.”

This philosophy directly connects to LVX’s vision as a socially-driven company, positioning lens design not merely as engineering, but as a human and healing process.

He openly spoke about:

His life struggles

And how filmmaking and lens design became a personal healing journey

“Designing lenses has been a very personal journey – full of mistakes, challenges and beautiful moments, just like life itself.”

LVX, meaning “Light” in Latin, represents not only optics, but hope, recovery and creative renewal.

Technical Development Process – SUÁREZ Beauty Lenses

The SUÁREZ lenses are built on the optical foundation of Canon Sumire lenses.

Peppe and his team spent nearly one full year studying:

modern cinema lenses

vintage optics

classic projector lenses

inside their own projector evaluation room before finalising the design language.

Key optical design goals:

Lower acutance and contrast without losing resolution

Richer colour presence with added warmth at the diffusion point

Extremely smooth focus roll-off for creamy subject separation

Balanced halation that complements bokeh behaviour

Strong control over geometric distortion

A deliberately “cosmetic” and beauty-oriented rendering style

Core Technical Specifications (Presented)

Image circle: 46.7 mm (full-frame / large-format coverage)

Resolution capability: suitable for 8K capture

Focus design: internal focusing with near-zero breathing

Focus rotation: approx. 300° for precise pulling

Aperture range: T1.3 / T1.5

Resolution profile: high centre resolution with carefully designed fall-off

Controlled distortion to preserve facial and spatial integrity

Distinct Visual Character Observed

During the projection and tests, members noted:

A very organic image structure

Smooth and graceful edge fall-off

Controlled yet expressive flare streaks

Balanced halation that never overwhelms highlights

A subtle and pleasing magenta bias in skin tones

Strong and consistent rendering for both dark and fair complexions

Peppe described the philosophy as:

“Imperfection is beauty – but it must be well balanced.”

The goal is not clinical sharpness, but emotionally readable images that still maintain technical reliability.

Beyond Glass – A Human & Creative Perspective

Peppe spoke about:

storytelling through light

imagination and drawing as the earliest tools

directing stories even at home without a camera

and how lens design became his new obsession to ‘show the light’ he believes in

He emphasised:

Lenses should not only capture light —

they should capture what exists within the human soul.

🔁 Anamorphic Experience & Research Background

He briefly discussed his long engagement with classic anamorphic systems, including:

Bell & Howell

Kowa

projector-based optics

Nikkor elements

and clarified that:

SUÁREZ lenses are intentionally designed as a different category –

not vintage replicas, but a new emotional-cosmetic optical class.

His overall research and experimentation spans nearly 10 years.

Collaboration with India

A key announcement during the talk:

Peppe expressed strong interest in collaborating with Indian cinematographers and productions and clearly stated:

less individual branding

more collaborative lens development

His long-term vision: Every film should have its own customised lens identity.

Hands-on Testing Session

Following the presentation, SICA Treasurer Sakthi Saravanan invited members to physically test the SUÁREZ lenses.

Several cinematographers including:

Loganathan Srinivasan

Naga Saravanan

along with many other SICA members participated actively.

Practical tests focused on:

against-light behaviour

flare response

fall-off profile

centre resolution

facial rendering under mixed light sources

Sakthi Saravanan personally conducted extensive checks for:

flare structure

fall-off design

highlight handling

resolution consistency across the frame

Observations from the Floor

Members consistently observed:

distortion-free images

interesting and controllable flare streaks

skin tones carrying a distinct flavour and separation

natural rendering for both darker and lighter skin tones

pleasing highlight behaviour without aggressive bloom

Closing Note

The SICA event at Prasad Lab Theatre successfully blended:

international lens innovation

emotional storytelling philosophy

and practical on-screen evaluation

into one cohesive professional learning experience.

The evening stood out not merely as a technology showcase, but as a rare interaction where optical engineering, personal life journey and cinematic emotion met on the same stage — reinforcing SICA’s commitment to continuous learning and global collaboration for Indian cinematographers.

Article drafted by

CJ Rajkumar

Author/ Cinematographer