NATURAL HISTORY CINEMATOGRAPHY

[Humberto Ramos]

Humberto - re advice on longer zooms: I have the Nikkor 50-300 4.5 which is a really useful lens. I've not used the Sigma. I also have the Nikkor 80-400. Of the two, I favour the 50-300 - it has greater zoom range ( 6x vs 5 x) and mine is par focal. Depending on the individual lens they can be decently sharp - mine resolves 140 lp at 300mm and the build quality and all-metal construction are in its favour. I find critical focussing with the 80- 400 much harder, although it is pretty sharp. I also have a number of 300 2.8 primes ( both Nikon F mount and PL) and a 500 f4 - but I find I use them far less often because of the time involved in the lens change.
I haven't used the 50-300 with an extender, so can't comment on whether it fits, and would probably go 500mm or 300mm plus x2 if I needed the extra length.

Thanks Mark, The problem on 50-300 is that 300mm is not enough for me, I thing until I have money for a 500mm or even a 300-800mm will have to buy a sigma 50-500mm, I,m filming with a sigma 400mm f/5.6 (old one and very cheap) and the images are good, at 2K is a bit soft, but probably in 2K will be soft with every lens...

 

[Hussain Neissi]

Beautiful stuff, Christian

 

[Alan Peterson]

I'm going to be starting production on a long-term bird-heavy documentary project soon, and am looking for advice on extreme telephoto solutions. I'm shooting with a Canon 150-600mm right now, but it's not quite long enough to get the framing I want on small birds, distant nests, etc. Due to its older coatings, its sharpness and contrast barely make for a good 4K image without an extender, so I'm looking to either replace it or compliment it with another telephoto lens.

What solution do you use for 800mm and beyond focal lengths?
Do Nikon 500/600/800mm AI-S lenses hold up well with a doubler on them, or should I hold out for something more modern?
How well do the Sigma 300-800 and 120-300 perform with extenders on them?
Has anyone tried using a spotting scope with an SLR adapter? How well did it work?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Sabyasachi Patra]

Alan,
It is better to go for the new Canon telephoto lenses. The optics is great. I use the older Canon EF 400mm f2.8 L IS USM with 2xII TC so it becomes 800mm optical focal length. Couple that with the S35 sensor of my C300, it becomes around 1200+ and I get sharp images. I have also tried using both the 1.4x and the 2xII TC coupled with the 400mm 2.8 IS lens, however, the quality suffers a bit. Though people won't immediately notice. I have not shot this with 4K. I use the C300 as I shoot a lot in the night or in dawn, with just a spot light or torch light at times.

Best is to get the new Canon 600mm and use a 2x TC with it. That will give you an optical focal length of 1200mm at f8. An 800mm plus 1.4x will give you 1120mm at f8.

I have seen results from Spotting scope with SLR and the quality is not good. Better to drop that idea.

 

[Alan Peterson]

Thanks for the pointers, Sabyasachi.

I should clarify that anything I get that's autofocus will be F mount, since I have a Nikon SLR and already have a bit of a collection of Nikkors (the Canon zoom I'm using now is a PL mount conversion). I will pass your advice on to my partner in this project who shoots Canon, though.

After that answer and a bit more digging, I guess my questions are narrowed down to:
-How well do the Nikon AIS 600/4 and 800/5.6 perform with extenders?
-Does the Sigma 300-800 give a decent image with a 1.4X extender?

If neither of those is a solid option, I'll probably go with a current or previous generation Nikon 600/4 and the compatible extenders.

 

[Christian Munoz D]

My original idea when a started this thread was to try to keep our fellow wildlife filmmakers in one place to share our experiences and technical knowledge, so, seems like it is working. Thank you everyone for contributing on this thread and helping to keep it alive!!!
I am back home in the US from the field and finally with some time to share a few frames of the footage I got in Atacama, Patagonia and Antarctica. I shot everything with my Epic primarily at 5k and some shots at 2K mainly to get higher fps. Within a week or so I will share a short video featuring the project I was working on. Please enjoy!!

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 600mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 150mm - ISO 800

2K HD - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 600mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 600mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 450mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 150mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 250mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 150mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 300mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 600mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 600mm - ISO 800

2K HD - Canon FD 150-600mm F 5.6 PL Mount @ 600mm - ISO 800

5K 2:1 - Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8 L Canon Mount @ 200mm F6.4 - ISO 800

5K 1.9:1 - Canon FD 500mm F 4.5 L Canon Mount - ISO 640

5K 1.9:1 - Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8 L Canon Mount @ 200mm F25.7 - ISO 500

5K 1.9:1 - Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8 L Canon Mount @ 200mm F28.1 - ISO 500

5K 1.9:1 - Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8 L Canon Mount @ 70mm F9.1 - ISO 640

5K 1.9:1 - Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8 L Canon Mount @ 200mm F9.1 - ISO 500

5K 1.9:1 - Canon EF 70-200mm F2.8 L Canon Mount @ 200mm F13.4 - ISO 500

5K 1.9:1 - Canon FD 500mm F 4.5 L Canon Mount - ISO 500

5K 1.9:1 - Canon FD 500mm F 4.5 L Canon Mount - ISO 500

5K 1.9:1 - Canon FD 500mm F 4.5 L Canon Mount - ISO 500

 

[Clark Dunbar]

Christian - beautiful images! - look forward to see the video samples!

 

[Solomon Nero]

Gorgeous! Awesome work! Cant wait to see the video!!

 

[Christian Munoz D]

Thank you guys, I will post the video as soon as possible...:smilewinkgrin:

 

[Phil Holland]

That's really lovely work Christian. Would love to hear a bit on your lens selections here if you have a moment.

 

[Christian Munoz D]

Thanks Phil, I will add the lens and shot details asap under each frame grab.

 

[Phil Holland]

Thanks Phil, I will put the lens and shot details asap under each frame grab.

Much appreciated. Also, your processing is wonderful and really lands that extra punch. Great stuff.

 

[Christian Munoz D]

Not much processing Phil, it is jut a first-light......a bit contrast, some dark in the shades, 1,2 - 1,3 saturation....and all set. We hope to do a nice color correction for the final work.

 

[Christian Munoz D]

I just added some info about the lenses, exposure, etc. I used on those shots.

 

[Steve Gibby]

You out there Gibby? Kennan Ward? Others?

Yup, I'm here

I've been tracking this thread all along. Some very beautiful images displayed throughput the thread. Sorry for not contributing to the thread - but I've been super mobile and slammed with work for a long time now. When I can slow down a bit I'll post up some lens thoughts and frame grabs.

I work in many genres of production, one of which has always been natural history. To me natural history camera work is at the very top of the most challenging camera work someone can attempt. Only those who have never tried it would dispute that. But that's precisely why it is so emotionally and professionally rewarding - because the good images can be stunning, and also extremely hard to capture! Its all about preparation, experience, patience...and a bit of luck sometimes too

This is the kind of thread that keeps me coming back to Red User - and natural history images are among my very favorite images to shoot. There is nothing quite like getting fresh air, experiencing a myriad of shot choices, using a good camera/lens combination, and then seriously documenting the natural world.

Again, great thread, and super work everyone...

 

[Mauricio Handler]

Michael
Excellent reels- beautiful work! congratulations on your vision!

 

[Mauricio Handler]

Welcome back Christian! I am sure it was tough leaving Chile again! Great images from your ongoing project! Did you get the kill?

 

[Michael Dalton]

Images from a recent trip up Kilimanjaro.

 

[Christian Munoz D]

Welcome back Christian! I am sure it was tough leaving Chile again! Great images from your ongoing project! Did you get the kill?

Thanks Mauricio, yes was hard to leave my country, but still more trips ahead to work with the Pumas.... No kill yet, very close though!!!

 

[Kennan Ward]

Checking in from field work!

Checking in from field work!

Some VERY NICE work being shown on this forum!!!!

Karen and I are a little shy to share this small three minute airing of a Bobcat on Discovery, as we know many of you have entire series, feature films, and huge projects going. This series features a lot of great Natural History filmmakers and tremendous talent in this seven part series.

The only reason we feel compelled to share, is after so many years, it is hard to find anything never before seen or filmed, let alone on a Red camera at 4K, 120 Frames per second!

The fourth episode in the North America series featured our footage of Bobcats hunting Gulls. Karen and I filmed in the WILD! It took us over a year to discover and ultimately film. Never been seen or filmed before, this time it is true. Other episodes in the North America series also features many other talented filmmakers! We also provided, grizzly bear footage and aerials.


Best, Kennan & Karen Ward


http://kennanward.com/2013/KWBobcatTeaser062013WM/Resources/KWBobcatTeaser062013WM.mov

http://kennanward.com/2012/KWBobcatOceanBlind/Resources/KWBobcatOceanBlind.mov