Tight budget, full pack; any advice on glass?

[User]

17 hours ago, jhnkng said:

I own both lenses, and I just shot a quick test at home. I won't post those (the wife would not be pleased) but there's not a lot in it between those lenses at the same aperture. The Sigma is sharper at 18mm 3.5 (not surprising given the Canon is wide open there) but at 5.6 there's no practical difference. My 18-135 is the Nano USM version and optically it's pretty good. A bit soulless maybe but once you accept the compromises it does a good job paired with the C100mk2. 

The way I use it from 18mm to 30-ish it's an f4 lens, and from 35-135 it's a 5.6 lens. It actually doesn't click over to 5.6 until 85mm, but it hurts my brain to keep all that in there when I'm shooting. Face tracking works great for solo interviews, though it's not as good as the C200, and the C100mk2 is so clean even up to 12800 that I'm ok cranking ISO and keeping that lens on indoors as well. I like the extra range for fast moving jobs, and I don't know if it's the lens that does it or its the DPAF that does it, when you zoom in it it automatically changes focus to keep the same plane of focus -- so it's kinda parfocal. You will see the focus change and snap back in, but it's quick and doesn't hunt so it works very well.

I find the AF on the Sigma 18-35 works pretty well, it's a little slower but accurate. I was surprised how well DPAF worked even at 1.8, I love being able to do a pan and slide shot and have the AF track focus on the subject, it's like magic. 

Thank you for your test and insights jhnkng, I appreciate it. The comment on the the compromise between soulless vs good job (in focus) fits as I'd expect. At the end of the day, focus wins. I'll take another look at this lens in the days to come... the focal range is fantastic for apsc... face tracking is just another great bonus. Let me ask, how well does the face tracking work when tracking a subject who is on the move... say walking in the streets?

Another question? Every once in a while I hear folks say things like "the C100mk2 is so clean even up to 12800" but I'm often shooting in very dark conditions and never push past 6400 as the image gets too muddy for my liking. After 6400, if there is not too much movement in the subject matter, I'll drop the shutter down - as long as it doesn't introduce flicker from light sources - rather than take the ISO gain hit. How is it that pushing past 6400 still holds up for you as clean? In asking this, I understand that everything is subjective.

[webrunner5]

With a ISO range of 320 to 102,400* expanded in 1-step or 1/3 step increments with the C100 mk II compared to 320 to 80,000 in 1-step or 1/3 step increments on the C100 mk I, it looks to me the mk II has gained a stop, maybe 1 1/2 stops in ISO. So 12,800 Ought to be doable with no real penalty.

[User]

Apologies to further derail the OP...
Appreciate the effort Webrunner.
In the early tests comparing the MkI with the MkII, I remember that there was a slight difference image quality and ISO, but NOT 1 1/2 stops.
I could never understand how folks were saying that they could shoot beyond 6400 and still be happy with the degradation... unless they used a Denoiser/ Neat Video... but I never went past 6400 so as to see if applying noise reduction helped much. Maybe jhnkng can clarify further.

[Trek of Joy]

On 5/29/2018 at 11:33 PM, Mirocco52 said:

Hi Community, 

Your mission if you accept it is to devise the master plan to spend my money and guide my journey in videography!

The challenge: Blend speed, focal range, pack weight and budget for a globetrotting videographer who wants low-light and bokeh bliss out of 2-3 lenses max. 

I want to learn more about great composition, and think some hi-qual fixed primes can help. I also want to get into event/ wedding videography later this year.

The current gear: GH4, Oly 12-40 2.8, Ikan 3-axis stabilizer and Manfrotto fluid tripod head. 

The budget: I have a $300 credit at a great used/ pro camera shop in town. Was offered another $360 for my Oly lens and could potentially put that $660 into 1-2 faster primes for no/ little money out of pocket such as:

Samyang 12mm F2 $340; Voightlander 25mm .95 $480; Sigma 30mm 1.4 $340, Olympus 45mm 1.8 $230; Pana 12-35 2.8 mark i $550; Pana 35-100 2.8 mark i $650; Pana 14-140 4-5.6 mark i $250

Many video shooters SWEAR by the OIS and ease of use of the Pana 12-35, 35-100 f2.8, and using stabilized zooms for events. That`s where I am stuck: Should I scoop up some lo-light higher-quality image primes for my interests and rent zooms for events (if needed), then build my kit when I drop anchor? Or should I get the used mark i Pannys and soldier on with weak lo-light/ bokeh characteristics? Keep the Oly 12-40 and grab a prime? If so, which one?

I embrace the idea that learning more about subject/ background separation, carrying a light, gorilla pod etc will help with many of these challenges. But sometimes the moment dictates all the parameters.

Any recommendations beyond these listed and all advice is greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

I can speak about this from actual experience. Lots of random thoughts that I will assemble into a travel blog at some point...

I've spent the last year and a half traveling around the world non-stop, visiting 55 countries on 6 continents (my wife and I scraped and saved, sold our house and everything we owned just to make this happen). I've used a mix of Fuji (aps-c) and Sony (FF). I went with a mix of wide angle, standard and tele zooms with a 16-35, 24-70 and 70-200 equiv and then went with one fast prime at 28mm, my favorite walk around FL. My tripod is just a small Siuri CF travel tripod that weighs about 1kg for long exposure stills and static video shots, it also makes a nice faux-steadicam counterweight when shooting video and walking around. I've shot 30k stills and tons of video, most handheld, so IBIS or stabilized lenses are an absolute necessity for me.

Personally I'd ditch the gimbal and the fluid head and get an IBIS body. Seriously, when you go to places like any museum or the Taj Mahal they won't even let you in with a tripod or a gimbal, so avoid carrying unnecessary gear and the hassles of checking stuff with a crush of people waiting behind you. You can cut your bag weight in half just by doing that alone. The A7r2 or GH5 can be had for less than $1500 USD. Move to an IBIS body and a couple zooms with a fast prime. If you're sticking m43, I'd go with a Olympus EM1.2 or GH5, the 12-100/4 or the 12-40/2.8 and a fast prime like the 17/1.8 (or the Panny equivalents for dual IS), plus a cheap backup body (crucial). Last thing you want is to be in Namibia and have the shutter in your camera seize without another option to shoot the one time in your life you get to see a sunrise over the amazing sand dunes. I saw that happen to one person, ouch. Also two bodies means fewer lens changes and less dust, this is a big deal across Asia, Africa, South America, Central America, China and so on - because they're all incredibly dusty and it gets everywhere - so I never change lenses in the field, I just carry two bodies.

For everyday stuff the zooms are fine, if you're visiting landmarks like the pyramids in Egypt, Borobodur in Indonesia, the Forum in Rome and so on, you're limited to daylight hours anyway, so absolute speed isn't necessary and shallow DOF is silly when you're standing in front of one of the world's great landmarks. Getting there first thing when they open is more important -- always try to beat the crowds. Travel photography is less about subject separation and more about composition and when/where to finding the best light or best locations to shoot from.

Make charging as easy as possible, the fewer things that need batteries, the fewer chargers/adapters you have to carry. I carry a universal plug adapter with 4 USB inputs. My wife and I can charge a phone, iPad, my computer and my cameras on one outlet. Many places we only have access to a single plug, so being able to charge everything from a hub makes life a lot easier.

I carry the 70-200 with the a7r2 specifically because I spent a few months in Africa with multiple safari's and trips self-driving through wildlife sanctuaries, so I wanted more reach. Beyond that I mostly used the 16-35 (10-24 with Fuji) and the 24-70 (18-55 in Fuji). If you're not shooting wildlife you can probably skip longer FL's. For lowlight with Sony I have the 28/2, with Fuji its the 23/1.4 and 56/1.2.

Here are photo albums from most of the counties I've been to so far, I'm a little behind (47 of 55 posted so far), but you get the idea. All of my gear, 2 bodies, 4 lenses, a MacBook,a GoPro, a portable HD, Rode Video Micro, batteries, chargers and so on fit in a Lowepro Flipside Trek 450 AW. Total bag weight was 8kg and the bag fit on every plane (including small regional jets), train, car, bus, Tuk-Tuk and so on. 

https://www.facebook.com/pg/trekofjoy/photos/?tab=albums

Cheers

Chris

P.S. Things like extra batteries, chargers, cards, plastic bags for bad weather, a blower for dust (its really dusty everywhere that isn't paved, which is most of the planet), lens cleaning cloth and so on are a given. Plan accordingly.

P.S.P.S. Traveling and shooting weddings/events are two different things. I wouldn't try to gear up for extended globe trotting with the same gear I use to shoot events (something I also do). With events your total kit weight is less of a concern since you're not lugging gear all day, every day - trying to check it on flights (weight + size), fit in cramped overhead bins on trains and so on. The dual camera strap is what I use at events, I'd never walk around in India (or anywhere else) with one because of the attention it would draw from police and gawkers. Plus its not secure at all, you'd be ripe for a slash and run.

YMMV.

One last thing - budget for insurance. A few hundred dollars will cover all your gear for a year. To risk losing everything is unwise, shit happens. Be protected.

[kye]

@Trek of Joy great post - out of likes for today though.

[1Ale82]

On 5/30/2018 at 8:33 AM, Mirocco52 said:

Should I scoop up some lo-light higher-quality image primes for my interests and rent zooms for events (if needed), then build my kit when I drop anchor?

I don't know your travel plans, but if you are traveling a lot and you are considering renting lenses as an option, I don't think it's a economically wise decision. Just consider the amount of time/travel it will take you to find a rental supplier each time you reach a new and unknown town (if the thing you need is available at all). If you budget a rough estimate of 50 euro between 1 day more of hotel and travel to/from the rental place, you do this 4-5 times and you easily reach the cost of a new lens, a new lens you could have from the beginning and keep it as yours and use it as long as you want.

If you have budget considerations and don't want to drop large amounts of money in some kind of gear, you can also considering buying 2nd hand stuff, use it as long as you want and then resell it. I have done it several times, bought and sold lenses and other gear after a few months of use for more or less the same amount I paid. Just consider this trade as a "free rental" from yourself. It works well with mechanical stuff (manual lenses, general stuff), a little less with electronic stuff (the latest brand new camera for example).

Another consideration. I don't know where you are from but if you are traveling a lot, especially in foreign countries, keep in mind that some things cannot be find easily in some places. Have a backup plan for those little things that look like a nuisance but can turn into a real problem when things go wrong: hdmi cables, battery chargers (with different plugs and AC voltage),  the proper sd cards, etc.

 

On 5/31/2018 at 7:05 AM, kye said:

I'd suggest working backwards from what you're trying to do.  

1) Work out what types of shots you are likely to want for your style of film-making - it can be useful to look at your previous work and look at what ended up in the final cut

I agree. If you use some database software (like Adobe Bridge), you can analyze your images and easily see what focal lenghts you prefer.

Anyway, a simple rule of thumb for focal lenght coverage says that you are covered well if you double the focal lenght of your primes: 25, 50, 100, ecc.

If you have to go light, you can triple it: 15, 50, 150, ecc.