DSLR (still) lenses for the big screen.

Kosh

Kosh

Hello everyone. I must apologize if this topic has been discussed in great detail here but I have searched this site and a few others on the internets and need some help. I currently have a Zeiss 50mm 1.4 lens because when I jumped into the DSLR game I wanted to get a lens that would show well on the big screen (I have festival aspirations in a big, big way). I want to build on my arsenal before I shot my first short this summer. PROBLEM: Holy expensive Batman!, is Zeiss glass expensive. I cannot afford two lenses (21mm and 85mm) and have much left over to do other stuff this summer.

So I want to supplement my lens collection with affordable yet very good glass that will work with the Zeiss but most importantly carry well on a big screen. Here are some of the lenses I am looking at right now:

Sigma 30mm f/1.4 EX DC HSM
Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X116 Pro DX Digital Zoom Lens
Canon EF 24mm f/2.8 Wide Angle Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
Canon EF 85mm f/1.8 USM Medium Telephoto Lens for Canon SLR Cameras
and maybe some macro (Canon 100mm/60mm)?

I am not going to buy all of these lenses (I wish, plus if I had that kind of green I'd just stick with the Zeiss) this is just the group I know to look at right now (based on my research). So for those of you who have been successful enough to make the festivals - will these lenses do the job? If not any recommendations? Thanks in advance for any help on this.
 
Sort by date Sort by votes
I'll say it, and if Phil UK sees the thread I'll know he'll agree haha:

Buy Rokinon or Samyang! Same lens, branded different overseas.

Extremely affordable, fast, beautiful glass. Matches Canon L quality glass for video at a fraction of the price. I own the 85mm 1.4 and it only costs $279 brand new. You're paying for glass only, not a motorized aperture or auto focus or image stabilization. Basically you turn a ring for the aperture and you can't use autofocus in video mode anyway.

For real, fantastic glass. My next lens purchases will ne the 35mm 1.4 and the soon to be released 24 1.4.

The Tokina is great glass too. Those three are the next to buy for sure. I've projected the footage from the Rokinon on a theater screen via blu-ray and it looked great. It really stands out from the mid-range canon glass and vintage glass and a cheap Tamron 17-50 2.8 that's held me over on must-have really wides. Selling it here soon though.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Sweet! Thanks for the info, Paul. I did a little recon on these (and I will be doing much more) but they seem to be the solution, price, very manual (which I like), fast glass with superior optics for price. Me likey.

One thing though, I was reading about "de-clicking" these types of lenses with manual aperture rings and it makes sense actually. Did you de-click yours? Any recommendations on a good affordable place to get this service done for me? (I live on the east coast so perhaps somewhere in the Philly or New York area would help me save some buck-a-roonies).

Thanks again, Paul. I really appreciate your help.

Sam
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
Sure thing man. I haven't declicked mine and don't really plan on it. When you're going indoors to outdoors it's nice to be able to smoothly iris down, but we do a lot not multi camera stuff so the exact aperture helps us match cameras.

Not site how much it costs, but if it's expensive look into a Fader ND filter. $300, but it gives you most any of the ND you'd ever want and you can rotate for a
Smooth iris up/down feel without the DOF changing.
 
Upvote 0 Downvote
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top