Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Log in
  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Something to consider...

Oh Man!!
this could be problem. If I have to remember red left, beta right for closer focus I might as well find the old Wendy's uniform.
 
Im using nikkors fo SHO!,
heres the bottom line..
most of the audience doesnt even know the difference between digital cinema and film..
not to touch on is film better than digital.. but the audience has no idea what is what.. and do you think if thats the case.. will they know whether you shot using cooke or zeiss vs nikon? We are thinking too much. nerding out way to much.. sure if you nit pick everything you shoot, you might notice lens breathing on certain shots.. but ill bet 1000000 bucks that the audience will not notice anything like that. I do plan on getting the RED prime set eventually because lets face it.. its an amazing deal! but nikkor will definatly give me an awesome picture for a lot less!
besides if its a name issue.. then hell, ill start rehousing nikkors in my own name brand lens that will specifically say "cine lens" on it. I dont think producers are that worried about which lens a DP wants to use. as long as your end product comes out looking good.. thats all that matters
 
Rodrigo Lizana said:
They won´t know for sure but they might feel something different. I guess...who knows..
Click to expand...

Hi,

A well known DOP shot some stills of his wife using a selection of motion picture lenses. Prints were made and they were passed among the wife's friends, lenses made by Cooke be it SII or S4 came out on top!

Stephen
 
Stephen Williams said:
Hi,

A well known DOP shot some stills of his wife using a selection of motion picture lenses. Prints were made and they were passed among the wife's friends, lenses made by Cooke be it SII or S4 came out on top!

Stephen
Click to expand...

if your comparing the photos side by side.. then yes, I agree with the wives.
But there is no comparing the same movie shot with 2 different lenses...

Theres no point to even go over this really. do cine lenses produce a better image for cine? as far as we know yes.. we havent shot still lenses on the red yet and that will be the true test.. BUTTTTT for the sake of my empty ass wallet after my red purchase,i think nikons will suit me just fine.. and if I need to shoot high end, Ill rent zeiss.
I dont think a client will not hire you if you dont own your own zeiss set.
I plan on getting in good with some rental companies here in LA.. let them rent my shit out.. they get a percentage.. i get a percentage and, im sure ill get hook up rates for any cine lens rental I want!
 
Stephen Williams said:
Hi,
Cooke be it SII or S4 came out on top!

Stephen
Click to expand...

PS.. I have a theory behind this choice..

cooke produces a softer image.. girls dont like sharpness
(on pictures of themselves)
the cooke lens made all the wrinkles and weird skin stuff to go away.. hence the choice..

THATS MY PHILOSOPHY
 
Guys,

Nikon lense quality can be fantastic, it can also be quite sloppy depending on the particular lense you use. They make many types with different build qualities and characteristics.

They can make superb cheap alternatives to 'proper' lenses BUT are an absolute pain in the behind to use. I use them with a 35mm adaptor. They are extremely hard to match, don't have a common 'stop' and are very difficult to focus.

Besides to get a good quality set second hand you will pay about $2k / $3k. By the time you get down to 20mm things get very sloppy. If you have a good project rent or buy. That's my two penneth worth.

Mike EC
 
If you buy the good ones you give up very, very, VERY little in image quality and yes you have to work a little harder pulling focus. I really don't find them to be a pain but when I can afford them I will buy proper cine primes.
Aloha
-A
 
I think it really depends what type of shooting you do and the expectations and experience of the director and crew. I find that we tend to limit ourselves in design when we know we are shooting with Nikon Stills primes, not due to quality, but merely to do with ease of use. Tracking the camera in relation to actors is very tricky due to the limited travel on the barrel making it hard to keep focus. There are only a certain number of times the director is willing to 'go again' when the performances are 'trailing off'. The focus puller tends to look at the reference monitor rather than rely on his/her spacial awareness. There is no 'trust' in the lense or it's markings. All adding to the difficulty.

Having said this we still shoot with them due to cost. It is a shame when creativity is second to technical considerations. I mean this in a basic manner pertaining to the above, not in general.

Having said all this all lenses have their 'characteristics'. I'm not a fan of Zeiss superspeeds, but they sure come in useful if you want to shoot ambient at night and they flare beautifully.

We have to bear in mind also what the end product is. I am sure that those who intend to project 4k in a large space are going to want to rent / buy cine lenses and lower budget jobs destined for the net or an LCD screen may not see the need for the extra expense.

Mike EC
 
my focus puller hasen't found it difficult at all to pull focus when using a redrock gear on my still lenses. For the television commercial budgets I work with It is a great solution.
Aloha
-A
 
zakaree said:
PS.. I have a theory behind this choice..

cooke produces a softer image.. girls dont like sharpness
(on pictures of themselves)
the cooke lens made all the wrinkles and weird skin stuff to go away.. hence the choice..

THATS MY PHILOSOPHY
Click to expand...

Hi.

Lots of DP's make a great deal of money because they share your theory.

Stephen
 
Stills VS Cine

Stills VS Cine

I have ordered 2 Reds. My plan is to buy the Red cine lenses and the Birger mount to use Canon EOS lenses. One camera/lens combination for the Ad Agency/Film crowd and one camera/lens combination for the indie/low budget crowd. But I do think that the Birger mount and remote follow focus system using the EOS internal lens motors may turn out to be a great thing. The Red focus assist may change the workflow for many of us. When you watch a network TV show on HD you'll see many of the close ups are out of focus, and they are using industry standard 35mm cine lenses and folow focus units with professional pullers. Red will (hopefully) give us much better conformation of focus before and after the shot than what is available to the 35mm film shooter. And one more advantage of the Birger mount is that the EOS lenses (or any 35mm still lens for that matter) are so light weight. Just imagine how heavy the whole Red rig is going to be with drives, battery and a heavy cine lens. I wonder after all is said and done if I'll be going out more with the EOS rig because it is just easier to handle. And as far as image quality, I can make really sharp images with my meager 20D.
 
Hi Guys,
I have a set of 35MK2 Zeiss Primes,12,16,20,24,28,32,50,85,135.
I've had most of em for about fifteen years, and they have paid for
themselves about 10 times over. My accountant can't believe
they still exist let alone still make money.
The 50mm needed a new front element, the 28mm got bent
and needed to be fixed,one time the 135mm needed to be cleaned
after a sandy shoot. Apart from that nothing.
My point is, getting high quality glass is an investment. These lenses
can be used on film or digital and may make even more money
for me in the future with something like a Red or 3perf S35mm film.
It's all about the glass guys and I've used Nikon long lenses and got
great results, but Nikon build quality and ergonomics come nowhere
near Zeiss motion picture lenses IMHO.
Sometimes you've just gotta spend the bucks in the right area but
it pays off in the long term. This should also apply for Digital.
Cheers Mezmo.
 
Hi guys! This is a very interesting thread. I just wanted to say that it all come down to what end result is needed. How high end is the production to be. If you're shooting an EFP production of some sort go with Nikon. If you're shooting an high end commercial you can't. If the shots are for cinema then it's out of the question, unless you can live with the breathing made by a still lens. It might seem like a small issue but when it's there and it's visible it's not. I generally only shot 35mm commercials and will gladly switch to RED but as a D.O.P for 10 years I know how important really good glass is and if you're having a 4K image infront of you then it's very prominent. It's funny that no one is really mentioning the RED lenses. From what I've seen so far they seem to be very superior and the price range is very competetive. As it is now I can't wait to get RED and to start to do tests on what lenses it works the best with. My guess is that it will be the S4's.
 
I'm stepping up to take my newbie beating. I've been reading this thread and the one thing that somehow shoots over my head is "breathing".
Now, I'd rather have someone clarify it just to be on the safe side rather then sound like an idiot later. Is breathing the term for how smoothly a lens pulls focus from one length to another or am I way off here?
Thanks in advance and not in the face please.
 
Breathing refers to a shift in the shot framing when focus is racked. There were a few demonstrations of this on the site but I can't seem to find them now.

and from wiki
"Breathing refers to when a lens' optics change the apparent focal length slightly when shifting the mechanical focus. Some (often more expensive) lenses are designed to lessen the degree this effect. Lens breathing does not prevent one from racking focus or following focus with this lens, but it lessens the desirability of any type of focus adjustment, since it noticeably changes the perspective and composition of the shot."
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top