Hi so I have a question.... I shoot wildlife and my situation is that I normally film with Canon long lenses like the 500 or 100-400 stuff like that. I really like using Image stabilisation all the time as it helps the steadiness especially in windy moments. The problem is, I'm thinking of switching to a long Sigma lens (150-600) and after tests, I noticed that the IS doesn't work on the epic but it does on everything else. The camera mounts the same so why won't 3rd party lenses work with epic? Not sure how it makes sense? Is there something i'm missing or maybe an adapter I should get?
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IS works/not... why?
- Thread starter AlexJones
- Start date
Sigma lenses are not identical to Canon lenses - they reverse engineer the Canon lens communication & power protocol which works well until Canon tweaks their firmware for newer lenses which can end up breaking compatibility.
Similarly, Red does the same (unless they have convinced Canon to license the protocol to them) so until Red updates support to take account of that particular lens it may not be supported at all, or only partially supported e.g. control of iris, but maybe no AF or IS).
Similarly, Red does the same (unless they have convinced Canon to license the protocol to them) so until Red updates support to take account of that particular lens it may not be supported at all, or only partially supported e.g. control of iris, but maybe no AF or IS).
Michael Hastings
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On my BMD camera with EF mount it has worked (including IS) with every Canon lens I've tried - including the new STM lenses that have to have power to be able to focus.
There may be a licensing or legal issue that holds Red back, or maybe they just haven't put much engineering effort into their protocol, but it does seem a little strange that there isn't at least basic functionality with almost any EF lens.
There may be a licensing or legal issue that holds Red back, or maybe they just haven't put much engineering effort into their protocol, but it does seem a little strange that there isn't at least basic functionality with almost any EF lens.
Doug Laurent
Active member
I did often ask Red for technical support of various Sigma and Tamron lenses, it seems to be tricky to achieve. Nevertheless i remember i recently testet the Tamron 15-30/2.8 VC and 24-70/2.8 VC again and stabilization did seem to work. Just when you switch stabilization on the lens off and then back on, it won't work anymore. All Canon lenses do work, except at least the first STM zooms like the 18-135 and 55-250, who had major problems all over aside from not having stabilization and were pretty unuasuable - which is pretty sad, as the 55-250 could be the most leightweight stabilized 400mm lens on a Red camera. Aside from the fix announcements in new builds i think it's always worth it to test the lenses over again and hope for a surprise. By the way - i wouldnt use the Sigma 150-600 anyway, as its stabilization is pretty weak even on canon cameras. The Tamron 150-600 does a much better job, it's just not as sharp wide open at 500/600mm. The best solution might be the new Canon 100-400 anyway.
Scott C
Well-known member
What firmware are you running? I have the Tamron 15-30 and VC doesn't work for me. Do you start the camera with it switched on? what about AF?
Doug Laurent
Active member
it looks like the Tamron 15-30/2.8 VC does only have a stabilization effect when AF is turned off on the lens (AF doesnt seem to work anyway), and VC is turned on AFTER the Red camera is turned on. But once you switch VC off again while the camera is on, returning to VC on will not bring the stabilizer effect back! So you need to follow a strict procedure from start. I remember i once by accident had found out a configuration where i saw the stabilization effect with the Tamron 24-70/2.8 VC as well, but yet i have never been able to reproduce that.
Scott C
Well-known member
Do you lose aperture control and lens metadata when you switch on VC? I haven't updated to v6.x.x firmware yet so curious if that changes.
Doug Laurent
Active member
Aperture control etc does work fine, just no AF it seems. I hope there would be a solution by Red for the Tamron 24-70/2.8 VC soon, as for certain situations that need a lightweight 2.8 zoom, there is no alternative on the market. And it would be great if Red could make the Canon STM lenses work, as they go crazy when you try to use IS or AF.