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Cooke mini s4 or canon cne? One set of nice glass

francisco santos

francisco santos

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Okay so looking for some pro insight canon cne primes or Cooke mini s4i I shoot mainly music videos and commercials.
 
Funny I was about to post if anyone had experience with the Cooke 12mm S4/i

I personally love the Cooke "Look". I too am wondering the same thing you just asked. I'll be checking back often to hear the results of others.

One of my favorite shows is Suits on USA. I emailed the DP (his name escapes me right now) and he told me they use Cookes on that show. So if you haven't seen it check it out. Some of the most beautiful imagery I've seen on TV. They just have a depth and a sexiness to them.
 
I'm a bit of a Cooke man, but there are many factors that go into lens choice. I would recommend researching the characteristics of each lens and choose what is important to you. As for why I prefer Cookes as opposed to Canon glass:

1)The coating. The flares are subtle on the coated Cooke's and gives a subtle warm push to the image. Canon is a bit stale (for lack of a better word) for my taste.

2) The focus. Cook's focus rolls off gradually and has a bit of a milky feel to it. This has a bit more of an organic feel IMHO, but again, this is all taste.

3) The bokeh. I am a fan of Cooke's bokeh. It is nice and round (slightly more ovular the further away from the center of the frame you get) wide open, and has an unmistakeable octagon Bokeh as you stop down. I particularly like the octagonal shape in the flares. It's quite a nice character.

Canon's primes are not bad. They are actually pretty great, I just prefer the characteristics that you get form the Cookes. Canon knows what they are doing and has more of a technically neutral look that might please you more.

I hope this helps.
 
Cooke in my opinion has a better overall look. The Cooke mini S4i lenses are 2.8 and the Canon primes are T1.5 for the most part of the set. Honestly I hate Canon lenses but I have used the CNE primes and I think they are pretty good. I would use them again on a music video or a budget commercial. Personally if I had the choice I would sacrifice the extra stops for a better overall image.
 
Bear in mind CNE's cover full frame and VISTA VISION Weapon, whereas Cookes top out at 6K Dragon (by all accounts they have excellent Dragon coverage...but still not same as being full frame).

Something else to consider.

CNE's may not be as pretty, but may be more versatile...especially within a RED universe.

For that kind of $$$, you could also look into a set of GL Optics Rehoused Leica R's or Contax (giving you full frame coverage, vintage look, and excellent mechanics, all in one).

best
 
just pulled the trigger on a set of cookes 25, 50 and 75 that should cover what I need ;) thanks for your insight.
 
For anyone else considering a similar fate, you should look at the Illuminas. Fantastic lenses. I wouldn't trade them for a pile of Ziesses.

Nick
 
holymoly! so I got my cookes in today and wow I cant believe the difference from my rokinons and l series glass. Its like a whole new world of depth! Ill post some stuff up soon Red Epic MX and Cooke is definately a winning combo!
 
Francisco please do! Can you post some side-by-sides from you Rokinons? I personally don't have Cookes but that is what I have heard from everyone I've talked to about them. They just have a depth to them. They're definitely on my wish list. I'm glad you are happy with them. I can't wait to see your results.
 
Mike,
Its crazy how going from a nikkon ais, canon, rokinon lens can really change the feel of an image. I def dont need another set of lens for a while. 2.8 sucks in some scenerios but Ill take the look anyway. Loving my results can want to post some samples in a few.
 
Look below how she pops off the screen on this 75mm you can touch her!!! man I swear to god It was so worth the money!!! this was quick and dirty but OMG these lens are worth there weight in gold!!!!

https://vimeo.com/128327079
 
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francisco santos said:
holymoly! so I got my cookes in today and wow I cant believe the difference from my rokinons and l series glass. Its like a whole new world of depth! Ill post some stuff up soon Red Epic MX and Cooke is definately a winning combo!
Click to expand...
Maybe you got this depth because they are so slow hahahaha..;-)
 
Adam Rook said:
Very filmic. Gosh those look great! Can't wait to see more.
Click to expand...

the only thing I can say is that it makes what in focus pop…Not an anamorphic pop either more of a 3d pop Im going to upload a r3d trip so you can see.
 
Francisco,

Would love to see a shot against your Nikons, I always thought the Nikkor AI / AIs look great for narrative work and I´m surprised you say that there is a huge difference.
I hope that´s not asking too much and would be very much appreciated, thanks in advance.

Cheers,

Ulf
 
Ulf Krentz said:
Francisco,

Would love to see a shot against your Nikons, I always thought the Nikkor AI / AIs look great for narrative work and I´m surprised you say that there is a huge difference.
I hope that´s not asking too much and would be very much appreciated, thanks in advance.

Cheers,

Ulf
Click to expand...

Hey Ulf,
I would love to do this unfortunatly I am selling my ef mount so wont be able to test them. With that being said the nikkor ais can produce an amazing image I have shot 100's of music videos with them and with great results. I can assure you this being someone who shoots alot the difference is very noticeable. The way it resolves on screen in a 3d matter is amazing. I will upload some nikkor r3ds I can find and some latest shots on the cooke's btw I havent even tossed any light on. Lets put it this way I have a whole kit of Nikors ais for saie if you want them ;) hahaha
 
Hi Francisco,

Ok, thank you for your answer. Still looking for some affordable cine glass, as you are so convinced it seems I have to rent the Cookes and see if they do the same magic for me ;-)

Cheers,

Ulf
 
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