Lenses

[kye]

4 hours ago, Mattias Burling said:

Imo there is so much more to a lens than aperture.

Absolutely.  I've bought fast lenses for my GH5 to improve it's low-light just as much as for shallower DOF, but there's limits to the practicality of shallow DOF.  I'm attracted to adapting FF or MF lenses because I can get a brighter image for the same DOF, which would make focussing easier for the same levels of noise.

[BTM_Pix]

17 minutes ago, leslie said:

exchange rate... what exchange rate.... its pure extortion from this side of the ocean. bought some plastic  folding crates from england sunday night for a project not sure how the postage jumped from 30 pounds to 50 pound after the sale finished but by the time currency was converted i owed $140 austrailan . not sure what happened.

The value of the £ is somewhat, erm, "fluid" depending on where we are in the shambles on any given day but even so it shouldn't have lurched that much !

[leslie]

Just now, BTM_Pix said:

The value of the £ is somewhat, erm, "fluid" depending on where we are in the shambles on any given day but even so it shouldn't have lurched that much !

i have very specific size requirements, which is why i was interested in these particular ones from england. and the fact they were 2nd hand which should have made for a good deal. God save the queen and all, but im thinking it will be awhile before i buy from england again.

[leslie]

been looking at a lens that i can leave on the camera, kinda sold on the olympus 15mm body cap lens. Ok their not leicas and they seem a little quirky if thats the right word. what intrigues me is that theres a few of these from taiwan at about half the price of new from, say japan, so i am wondering if you think theses are legit or not, just seems odd that they are alot cheaper than new from any other country https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Olympus-Body-Cap-Lens-15mm-F8-BCL-1580-white/323564607003?hash=item4b55f4161b:g:3wEAAOSwhyZbtzCd&frcectupt=true

second hand lenses seem to go for about the same price as these new lenses from taiwan,, so i should probably buy a new one in theory

 

[BTM_Pix]

4 hours ago, leslie said:

been looking at a lens that i can leave on the camera, kinda sold on the olympus 15mm body cap lens. Ok their not leicas and they seem a little quirky if thats the right word. what intrigues me is that theres a few of these from taiwan at about half the price of new from, say japan, so i am wondering if you think theses are legit or not, just seems odd that they are alot cheaper than new from any other country https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Olympus-Body-Cap-Lens-15mm-F8-BCL-1580-white/323564607003?hash=item4b55f4161b:g:3wEAAOSwhyZbtzCd&frcectupt=true

second hand lenses seem to go for about the same price as these new lenses from taiwan,, so i should probably buy a new one in theory

 

They are quite cheap in the UK too 

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-Olympus-M-Zuiko-Digital-15mm-1-8-0-F8-BCL-1580-Body-Cap-Lens-White/123095987776?epid=1708126927&hash=item1ca917b640:g:X9UAAOSwXrBa3ico

I find that the quirkier coloured lenses like white ones (and silver for quite a few as well) tend to be sold off cheaper. 

[meudig]

4 hours ago, leslie said:

been looking at a lens that i can leave on the camera, kinda sold on the olympus 15mm body cap lens.

I contemplated getting it back when I had the bmpcc, never bit the bullet tho.

 

 

Can't help but think it makes a lot of sense for the pocket cam, this video kinda gives that 16mm home video feel.

[noone]

13 hours ago, kye said:

Absolutely.  I've bought fast lenses for my GH5 to improve it's low-light just as much as for shallower DOF, but there's limits to the practicality of shallow DOF.  I'm attracted to adapting FF or MF lenses because I can get a brighter image for the same DOF, which would make focussing easier for the same levels of noise.

Not sure what you mean by that?     A M43 150mm  2.8 lens would be the same as using a MF 150 2.8 lens if both used on a GH5 for instance (assuming you could find such lenses).   The difference would be the individual lens quirks but not how bright an image is or DOF.    Using a focal reducer on the MF lens will change the lens effectively but then it would just be the same as another M43 lens (again, assuming there is one).

13 hours ago, leslie said:

been looking at a lens that i can leave on the camera, kinda sold on the olympus 15mm body cap lens. Ok their not leicas and they seem a little quirky if thats the right word. what intrigues me is that theres a few of these from taiwan at about half the price of new from, say japan, so i am wondering if you think theses are legit or not, just seems odd that they are alot cheaper than new from any other country https://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Olympus-Body-Cap-Lens-15mm-F8-BCL-1580-white/323564607003?hash=item4b55f4161b:g:3wEAAOSwhyZbtzCd&frcectupt=true

second hand lenses seem to go for about the same price as these new lenses from taiwan,, so i should probably buy a new one in theory

 

The 15mm Body cap "lens" can be fun but it isn't something I would want to use very often.      Better thought of as a body cap you can shoot with rather than any real lens.     It was more fun for me using it with a FF Sony A7s with a bit of clear zoom to remove the vignetting (and no different using it since it is focus free - three positions plus off).     Still they can be found really cheap after people have tried them and put the away.     Not something I regret selling (unlike the GX7) though it was fun at times.

[kye]

1 hour ago, noone said:

Not sure what you mean by that?

Ah, crap - looks like I had confused myself.  I just did a quick exposure test and here's what I found.

Konica Hexanon 40mm at f1.8:

Helios 58mm on 0.7X SB using aperture to match DOF:

Helios 58mm on 0.7X SB at F2:

So, it looks like the the 58+SB combination is actually slightly darker when set to match the DOF, but would be brighter and have less DOF at a similar aperture value.  I had to move the 58mm back slightly to match the FOV, but that's what you would do anyway if you were using the lens in the field, so it's not a technically pure test.

We learn something every day!

[Mattias Burling]

Today I got a message from Viltrox saying that a firmware fix is indeed in the making. Not that I doubted they would, but still reassuring.
Also, I saw both the Auto Focus version for Sony and Fuji available for preorder at my local camera shop and this is one affordable lens.

As a comparison it cost less than even the 27mm.. Straight from the source online its going to be even cheaper.

 

[webrunner5]

A different way to clean a lens.

 

[mercer]

I found this video online as I was researching Samyang/Rokinon lenses. According to the description, it was shot on an FS7 and the Samyang 24mm 1.5 cinema lens.

So obviously this look or quality isn’t all about the lens but I think it’s pretty obvious that the 24mm holds its own. 

[BTM_Pix]

8 hours ago, mercer said:

I found this video online as I was researching Samyang/Rokinon lenses.

I'm not sure I'm going to get that used Samyang 135mm tomorrow after all.

After discovering two, admittedly pretty old, 135mm lenses that I forgot that I had in an old camera bag I realise that I may have a slight addiction problem with 135mm lenses.

So much so that I am going to have to do a World Cup playoff tournament next week to eliminate at least half of them before I can bring another one home !

[mercer]

@BTM_Pix I am fairly certain your collection puts mine to shame, but if I was more into photography, I would keep a lot more lenses... I mean buy a lot more lenses. 

Is 135mm your favorite focal length and which is the best you’ve ever used... if you had to pick one off the top of your head?

I’ve been eyeballing the Nikkor f/2 but it’s such a huge lens and goes against my desire to only own small lenses. I may buy a Samyang 85mm to test against my Nikkor because I think the Samyang is considerably smaller. I’ve even thought about buying that Canon 70-200mm f/4 L lens but the size is turning me off.

But I digress... I’m not even sure I own any 135s... hmm... I used to have a couple but never fell in love with them. I may have an old Rikenon or late Canon FL/FD when they issued the rubber grip but before the new bayonet mount.

While I have you, how are the Samyangs outdoors? Do they flare a lot?

[BTM_Pix]

2 hours ago, mercer said:

@BTM_Pix I am fairly certain your collection puts mine to shame, but if I was more into photography, I would keep a lot more lenses... I mean buy a lot more lenses. 

Is 135mm your favorite focal length and which is the best you’ve ever used... if you had to pick one off the top of your head?

 

You'd think I was fanatical about them considering how many of them I've got but its just a legacy of being old enough where you started with a 50mm with your SLR, then got a 24/28 and then a 135mm. And then stopped buying lenses

Over time my needs changed (tricky to shoot football with a 135mm) so I don't actually own an AF one and my collection are all old and cheap ones that I have picked up along the way.

I'd have to say that I don't really have a favourite as most 135mm lenses are pretty good but they are all usurped by the Nikon 105mm f2.5 that I re-bought last year.

We'll know more after the World Cup next week though

2 hours ago, mercer said:

 

While I have you, how are the Samyangs outdoors? Do they flare a lot?

The fisheye one does, not unexpectedly !

The 14mm too when the conditions are right (ie wrong) but no more so than my Nikon 14-24mm so its always been something I've shot around anyway.

I'll do a bit of a test next week.

[thebrothersthre3]

12 hours ago, mercer said:

I found this video online as I was researching Samyang/Rokinon lenses. According to the description, it was shot on an FS7 and the Samyang 24mm 1.5 cinema lens.

So obviously this look or quality isn’t all about the lens but I think it’s pretty obvious that the 24mm holds its own. 

Only issue with that is production quality can eliminate a lot of issues you might have with a lens. You also don't know the aperture, as most lens perform pretty nicely stopped down. 

[mercer]

1 hour ago, thebrothersthre3 said:

Only issue with that is production quality can eliminate a lot of issues you might have with a lens. You also don't know the aperture, as most lens perform pretty nicely stopped down. 

Well, I’d agree about production value and I’d agree with lenses in our price range, however I wouldn’t necessarily agree with professional cinema lenses. Cookes and Primos and Super Speeds are used for specific productions for specific reasons, so I don’t think stopping it down will mitigate that.

But yes, in this instance, it is a valid point and since I found this video from this old thread...

... there’s a good chance that the director did just that as he describes stopping down his lenses to get the best resolution when shooting ML Raw.

But as we all know, it isn’t easy pulling focus on a 1.4 lens, so if you can get this type of quality stopped down to f/4-5.6 with a super fast 24mm 1.4 that costs less than $400... then I’d say that’s a pretty good lens to have in your arsenal.

[thebrothersthre3]

8 minutes ago, mercer said:

Well, I’d agree about production value and I’d agree with lenses in our price range, however I wouldn’t necessarily agree with professional cinema lenses. Cookes and Primos and Super Speeds are used for specific productions for specific reasons, so I don’t think stopping it down will mitigate that.

But yes, in this instance, it is a valid point and since I found this video from this old thread...

... there’s a good chance that the director did just that as he describes stopping down his lenses to get the best resolution when shooting ML Raw.

But as we all know, it isn’t easy pulling focus on a 1.4 lens, so if you can get this type of quality stopped down to f/4-5.6 with a super fast 24mm 1.4 that costs less than $400... then I’d say that’s a pretty good lens to have in your arsenal.

Yeah I was talking about cheaper lenses. I'd imagine most lenses classified as cine lenses would be great even wide open.

I rarely shoot wide open but its definitely nice to have that ability. I think like anything else it comes down to the laws of diminishing returns.

A big advantage of rokinon lenses is the option to get the cine versions which are pretty inexpensive.

[BTM_Pix]

Might sound like a Samyang fanboy but its worth bearing in mind that its MY far more expensive lenses its making me a look a bit silly with by more than competing with them in these tests

The 24mm was up against a bona fide ten times the price cinema prime lens in that last test and it wasn't exactly getting humiliated wide open.

Cinema lenses are great for continuity of performance across a set etc but for the rest of us the cost of those diminishing optical returns even on ONE lens are way better invested in other areas in my view.

 

[mercer]

2 hours ago, thebrothersthre3 said:

Yeah I was talking about cheaper lenses. I'd imagine most lenses classified as cine lenses would be great even wide open.

I rarely shoot wide open but its definitely nice to have that ability. I think like anything else it comes down to the laws of diminishing returns.

A big advantage of rokinon lenses is the option to get the cine versions which are pretty inexpensive.

I think I’d rather have the still version... same glass with a better focus ring... I don’t use a follow focus and I don’t care about a clickless aperture. Plus they’re cheaper.

But I’m still on the fence about them. I’ll probably pick up an 85mm eventually, since that seems to be the cheapest option into the Rokinon/Samyang line. 

[thebrothersthre3]

Yeah I almost got one, they go for fairly cheap used. Went for the Nikon 85mm 1.8 instead, can't say I am dissapointed with the choice.