Lenses

[Andrew Reid]

The official EOSHD discussion thread for all things lens related!

[andy lee]

good news - I think I will be on here alot!

[Henry Gentles]

You guys are the best!!

[Kasper Mols]

Love the new sigma 18-35mm for sharpness and convenience.

 

But worked as an AC for a DP with leica lenses. Darn that 100mm was tasty!

[JBraddock]

Do you guys know any other lens other than Panasonic 14-50mm F2.8-3.5 OIS that Andrew mentioned in his latest article which has image stabilisation and is not as expensive as the native offerings.

 

Panasonic 12-35 f2.8 and Olympus 12-40 f2.8 look good but they are out of my budget. Still the problem is that four third to micro four third adapters are not very cheap. They are some generic adapters on Ebay but I am not sure how good they are. I don't really care about auto focus but I would like to have image stabilisation. Any suggestion?

[maxotics]

I have a Panasonic 14-45 with the external button for OIS (good for Blackmagic) and got it used for $170.  The lens feels very plastic-y but the images are very good.  I compared to a Nikon 24mm and couldn't see any difference.  As for the f-stop. Having the lowest possible is nice, but you shouldn't lose any sleep over it.  Except for shallower DOF with a wider lens, you can still use any lens in low light at 3.5, say, you just gain a bit of noise.  A little time with noise reduction will probably get you to where you were with 2.8 with no work.

 

Also, lenses that say that they go 2.8 through out the range, for example, are not exact in that--at least not in my experience.  Of course, we'll wait for Andy to bring the truth down from mount Panasonic :)

[nahua]

@EOSHD Maybe instead of a thread, a real forum section.  I'd like to discuss specifics - Micro 4/3rds lenses, vintage lenses, full frame lenses, etc.  I'm just worried that specific topics would be lost in a single discussion thread.

[andy lee]

maxotics - this weekend I was out filming in the glorious UK sunshine (quite rare!! it usually is raining)

 

I've been using a very good f2.8 constant aperture zoom.

 

The Bourne Lens - the Nikon 28-70mm f2.8 IF-ED, this was used to shoot a large part of THE BOURNE ULTIMATUM

its a steller lens - razor sharp very little focus breathing (less than the Carl Zeiss Compact Zoom CZ.2 28-80mm T2.9 which $19,000 lens)

I can see why they used this lens for the movie ...it is superb! it covers a big useable range so you can shoot quickly without changing lenses , its fast so bokeh heaven cinematic narrow DOF , also can close focus to about 30cm which is useful .

 

It is heavy so I have made a new Tecoir shoulder rig for it with an Arri matte box.

it is constant apperture through out the zoom range.

 

now with a Lens Turbo speedbooster on my G6 it becomes a monster lens

approx f1.8 20-50mm

 

So I have been shooting outside at f1.8 in full bright sunlight with staked Tiffen NDs (20) and its looks amazing!

 

I have read about this lens for awhile especially in American Cinematographer Magazine , Paul Greengrass /Barry Ackroyd have  used it on the movie Captain Philips too as its small and light.

 

 

[maxotics]

Andy, can you put some links up to any interesting footage shot with the lenses you recommend?  BTW, I now have a Canon 24mm TS-E II, which I hope to share some footage with the a7 shortly.

[dafreaking]

Guy could you recommend a few zoom lenses with long focus throws. Compatible/Adaptable to EF mounts. Preferably with faster apertures, though I don't think to many manual lenses were very fast.

 

Out of the Modern ones I hear the Sigma 18-35 has a focus throw of almost 180 degrees. Is this true? What's the Focus throw like on Nikon D lenses (Modern lenses with aperture rings)

[andy lee]

Nikon D lenses have a 45 degree focus throw - so people get them re housed like they did for Bourne, Casino Royale and Captain Phillips all used rehoused Nikon D lenses with a longer focal throw

 

True Lens  TLS in Leicester UK did the rehousing for Arri

 

Back in 2005 TLS were asked by ARRI Media in Uxbridge to re-design the Nikon 80-200mm/T2.8 that ARRI Munich had originally converted for Oliver Wood for ‘The Bourne Ultimatum’ in order for it to be used by Phil Méheux, B.S.C on the then upcoming 2006 Bond reboot ‘Casino Royale’. Back in 2005 TLS were asked by ARRI Media in Uxbridge to re-design the Nikon 80-200mm/T2.8 that ARRI Munich had originally converted for Oliver Wood for ‘The Bourne Ultimatum’ in order for it to be used by Phil Méheux, B.S.C on the then upcoming 2006 Bond reboot ‘Casino Royale’.

 

here is their Morpheus 80-200mm F2.8 Nikon D rehoused

http://www.truelens.co.uk/index.php?webpage=product_detail.php&product_id=484672&cID=52369

 

 

also GL Cinemod do some rehoused Tokina f2.8 zooms have a look here

 

http://www.glcinemod.com/english.html

[dafreaking]

Thanks Andy, but what about lenses us mere mortals can buy? 

[Julian]

Do you guys know any other lens other than Panasonic 14-50mm F2.8-3.5 OIS that Andrew mentioned in his latest article which has image stabilisation and is not as expensive as the native offerings.

 

There are no other OIS lenses for M43 than the Panasonics. There is a cheaper Pana-Leica 14-50mm f/3.8-5.6 OIS but I don't know how it compares to the new 14-42mm kit lenses for example (they aren't bad at all, but don't have much character and the f-stop sucks :))

 

I'm in the same boat. Looking for a affordable general purpose lens with OIS and AF for the GH4.

The New 12-35mm 2.8 is kinda expensive. Sigma 18-35mm + speed booster (focal reducer - cheap) is very tempting, but I think OIS is very useful for a general purpose lens, and AF for stills.

 

Also I'd really like to know how the 14-50mm 2.8-3.5 performs with an anamorphic lens. I know zooms aren't ideal and the front element is big... but with the SLR Magic it might work, especially with the extra crop in 4K I think you should be able to get a nice reach (20-50mm maybe?).

 

I'm hesitating to just jump the boat. The lens isn't cheap, also the adapter isn't... I'd buy a Sigma 18-35mm in a heartbeat, will retain its value and fits multiple systems. But I can't really afford both... choices, choices :)

 

p.s.

 

Andy, can you put some links up to any interesting footage shot with the lenses you recommend?

 

^ this.

[noone]

Do you guys know any other lens other than Panasonic 14-50mm F2.8-3.5 OIS that Andrew mentioned in his latest article which has image stabilisation and is not as expensive as the native offerings.

 

Panasonic 12-35 f2.8 and Olympus 12-40 f2.8 look good but they are out of my budget. Still the problem is that four third to micro four third adapters are not very cheap. They are some generic adapters on Ebay but I am not sure how good they are. I don't really care about auto focus but I would like to have image stabilisation. Any suggestion?

Panasonic's current list of stabilized lenses.

http://www.panasonic.com/au/consumer/imaging/lumix-g-lenses.html?browsing=params&facets=T3B0aWNhbCBJbWFnZSBTdGFiaWxpc2F0aW9u&sort=Featured

 

EDIT that is the Australian site with Australian prices.

EDIT 2 for some reason the Australian site does not list the newest OIS lenses like the Nocticron 42.5 or the 12-32 kit zoom (listed but not in the list of stabilized lenses).

[JBraddock]

 

I'm in the same boat. Looking for a affordable general purpose lens with OIS and AF for the GH4.

The New 12-35mm 2.8 is kinda expensive. Sigma 18-35mm + speed booster (focal reducer - cheap) is very tempting, but I think OIS is very useful for a general purpose lens, and AF for stills.

 

Also I'd really like to know how the 14-50mm 2.8-3.5 performs with an anamorphic lens.

The problem with the Sigma for me is the weight. It is 800g :) I want to travel as light as possible with my GX7 and a gorilla pod. Panasonic 14-45 seems like a good option but f5.6 makes me worry.

 

14-50mm 2.8-3.5 is around £300-350 on Ebay and with the adapter we are looking at ~£400. Not sure about its performance but this seems to be the cheapest option in the similar focal length and f-stop. Here is an extensive review of the lens. This is from the summary section:

 

Pros:

• solid and stylish casing,
• splendid image quality in the frame centre, independent of the
• aperture and the focal length values used,
• good image quality at the frame edge,
• low chromatic aberration at longer focal lengths,
• low distortion,
• negligible astigmatism,
• good work against bright light,
• efficient autofocus.

Cons:

• too high chromatic aberration at 14 mm and at 50 mm and maximum relative aperture.

Leica is renowned for the high quality of its optical products and we can confidently say that the Vario-Elmarit 14-50 mm f/2.8-3.5 Asph Mega O.I.S. doesn’t disgrace its producer. Quite the opposite in fact – for a zoom lens with a 3.6x multiplier it fares really well. There are no serious reservations about its resolution in the frame centre and the frame edge; most of optical aberrations are corrected very well or at least properly; what’s more, the lens features an effective autofocus and the stabilization which is more efficient than that of the camera’s sensor. 

 

So far I've only seen Andrew and Andy Portch over Newsshooter using this lens on m43.

[Shane Essary]

Bit the bullet and finally just bought a used Voigtlander Nokton 25mm.  I've really liked renting it in the past and found one at a decent price.  I thought hard about the SLR Magic version, but I keep reading they're hit or miss on QA and I really don't have the patience shipping things back and forth in case I get the bad penny.  At least there's a local Voigtlander dealer I can work with. 

[Caleb Genheimer]

I'm sitting tight until I save enough to get into either an Iscorama or a set of LOMO squarefronts. I'd prefer the squarefronts, but only time will tell. I currently use a Kowa 16-H with Redstan clamps and the almighty Tokina ATX diopter, which I shan't part with any time soon. 

 

When I rent, I rent old Zeiss. Standards, or Supers if the budget allows. If it doesn't, then I've got a set of Tamron Adaptall-II primes that perform adequately in most scenarios. 

 

I hate fly-by-wire with a passion.

 

I am not a zoom man (mostly because they're all fly-by-wire AF these days).

[Mozim]

Alright, as posted in another topic earlier today, I'm looking for a fast manual 50mm prime. 

 

I can pick up the Yashica 50mm f/1.7 very cheap. How does this lens compare to the Yashica 50mm f/1.4 when stopped down to the same aperture? 

 

Right now I have a Canon 50mm f/1.8 and a Rikenon 50mm f/1.7. Both are very prone to purple fringing when shot wide open and are fairly soft. The Canon relies on electronic communication so it's fairly pointless on my GH3 and there's no stops between f/1.7 and f/2.8 on my Rikenon. 

 

A fast, manual 50mm lens that has stops between f/1.8 and f/2.8, is sharp when stopped down slightly and fairly usable wide open and has a nice feel to it would be fantastic, so any suggestions are welcome!

[Henry Gentles]

I just got a Carl Zeiss Pancolar 50/1.8 for $100 and it's just freakin awesome, sharp throughout all stops, loads of contrast, Zeiss bokeh!! My Canon FD 50/1.8 is pretty good too, very sharp, best skin tone too for video/film.

[andy lee]

if you like the 50mm Pancolar which is a very good lens I love it !!  ........wait till you get a Carl Zeiss 50mm Planar f1.7 in C/Y mount - its even better ! much sharper and serious bokeh tastic very rich warm colours and good contrast and blacks

 

 

the Planar for me is king of all 50mm - nothing comes close