Vertical video has become a standard deliverable for social platforms, and camera makers are adjusting their tools accordingly. The Sony FX5, Sony's Cinema Line camera released in 2026, introduced Open Gate recording, which captures the full sensor area and gives editors more room to output both horizontal and vertical cuts from the same clip. Paired with an anamorphic lens built with vertical shooting in mind, the FX5 becomes a practical option for creators who need to deliver widescreen and vertical content from a single shoot. The SIRUI Saturn V2 is one of the few full-frame anamorphic lenses with a built-in mechanism for switching between horizontal and vertical orientation, making it a relevant match for FX5 shooters working across formats.
What Makes the Sony FX5 Suited for Vertical Video?
The Sony FX5 supports Open Gate 3:2 recording, which uses the full width of the sensor and lets editors crop both landscape and vertical versions from the same footage. The camera also applies real-time desqueeze correction for anamorphic lenses.
This Open Gate mode is what makes the FX5 relevant to vertical content workflows in the first place. Rather than shooting a separate vertical pass, editors can pull a 9:16 crop from the same 3:2 file used for the horizontal cut, which keeps the production process to a single take. Sony's desqueeze correction covers 1.3x, 1.5x, 1.6x, 1.8x, and 2.0x squeeze factors, so footage from an anamorphic lens is displayed correctly in the monitor and viewfinder without a separate LUT. It's worth noting that a dedicated vertical-shooting interface is listed on Sony's firmware roadmap as a planned future update rather than a feature available at launch — the vertical workflow described here relies on Open Gate cropping, not a built-in vertical shooting mode.
How Does the SIRUI Saturn V2 Switch Between Horizontal and Vertical Shooting?
The Saturn V2 has a physical rotation mechanism built into the lens: a switch is flipped, the lens barrel rotates 90°, and it locks into place with an audible click when it reaches the vertical position.
This is a hardware-level solution rather than a software crop. Because the rotation happens at the lens itself, the anamorphic squeeze is applied correctly to the sensor regardless of orientation, instead of relying on digital rotation of a horizontally-squeezed image. The lock at 90° is a physical detent, so the lens stays fixed in either orientation during a shoot without needing to be taped or manually held in place. The carbon fiber housing keeps the added mechanism relatively light for handheld and gimbal use on a compact body like the FX5.
Why Pair the Saturn V2's 1.6x Squeeze with the FX5's Desqueeze Options?
The Saturn V2 uses a 1.6x anamorphic squeeze factor, which is one of the desqueeze values the FX5 supports natively in-camera. This means footage can be monitored correctly on set without an external LUT or a separate desqueeze pass in post.
Matching squeeze factors between the lens and the camera's monitoring options removes a step that otherwise has to be handled manually — checking framing and focus through a desqueezed, undistorted image while shooting. For vertical output specifically, the anamorphic characteristics (oval bokeh, horizontal flares, wider field of view compressed into the frame) carry over into the cropped 9:16 version, giving vertical clips a visual character that differs from footage shot on a spherical lens and cropped the same way.
What Should You Consider When Shooting Vertical Anamorphic on the FX5?
Composition needs to account for both the horizontal and vertical crop at the time of shooting, since Open Gate delivers one file rather than two independent takes. Framing for the center of the sensor generally works for both outputs, but wide horizontal compositions may need adjustment.
A few practical points for this setup: reviewing both a horizontal and vertical framing guide in the monitor during the shoot (where the camera supports it) helps avoid discovering framing problems only in the edit. Since the Saturn V2's rotation is physical, switching orientation mid-shoot takes a few seconds rather than being instantaneous, so it suits planned setups more than fast run-and-gun switching between formats. The Saturn V2 is a full-frame E-mount lens, which matches the FX5's full-frame sensor without a crop factor to account for.
Final Thoughts
The combination of the FX5's Open Gate recording and desqueeze support with the Saturn V2's physical vertical-switching mechanism and matching 1.6x squeeze gives creators a way to produce both widescreen and vertical anamorphic content from a single setup. It's a workflow aimed at users who need to deliver across formats — social content, mixed-aspect-ratio projects — without switching lenses or shooting separate passes.
FAQ
Does the Sony FX5 have a dedicated vertical shooting mode?
Not at this time. The FX5 supports Open Gate 3:2 recording, which allows vertical crops to be pulled from the same footage as the horizontal cut. A dedicated vertical shooting interface is listed on Sony's firmware roadmap as a planned future update.
What squeeze factor does the SIRUI Saturn V2 use?
The Saturn V2 uses a 1.6x anamorphic squeeze factor, which matches one of the in-camera desqueeze options supported by the Sony FX5.
Can I switch the Saturn V2 between horizontal and vertical without tools?
Yes. The switch is flipped by hand, the lens barrel rotates 90°, and it locks into place with an audible click — no separate tools are required.
Is the Saturn V2 compatible with the Sony FX5's E-mount?
Yes, the Saturn V2 is available in a full-frame E-mount configuration that matches the FX5's E-mount and full-frame sensor.
Saturn V2 Series T2.9 1.6x Full-Frame Anamorphic Cine Lens
- Full Frame | T2.9-T16 Aperture Range
- Rotates 90°, Horizontal/Vertical Switch
- 2.84:1 from 16:9, 2.4:1 from 3:2 Frame
- 2:4:1 & 2:8:1 De-Squeeze Aspect Ratios
- Neutral Streak Effects, Oval Bokeh
