M2/Microx Encore Lens Recommendations

[Brian Carter]

When I wrote dop above I meant dof.

[Olof Ekbergh]

You may want to consider a Canon 5DmkII instead.

I have one and I love it. You can use Canon Nikon etc. lenses. It is quite inexpensive and you get a fantastic still camera too.

AS far as lenses go for either choice. 50mm f1.4 Nikons are cheap and really good. 85mm f1.2 or f1.4 are really fantastic for shallow DOF.

I also really like the 70-200mm f2.8 zoom range, I use the Canon but Nikon makes a good one, a 24mm or 28mm f1.8 or faster is very useful.

To start with I would get 28mm 50mm and 85mm, but that is just me, these are really useful for most shooting of people street scenes etc.. Super wide and Tele lenses can be added later.

Unless you do a lot of wildlife, then you may consider getting a Nikon adapter for the EX3 body, there is a 5.5 multiplier factor, so a 300mm lens is a 1650mm lens, you would need really solid sticks.

Olof Ekbergh

[Joe Tyler]

Nikon. Absolute best bang for the buck. I run a Letus adapter on my EX3. Between ebay and a few new purchases I’ve got an entire series of 35mm lenses for under $2000. 28mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm & 105mm all between F2.5 and F2.0.

Are they F1.4, No, but I shoot most of my interviews etc at F2.8 So they are acceptable, especially for the price. IF you have about $3500 to spend. Check out RP Lens – Great but a little over my price range.

You need to do some serious homework and research before buying. Nikon has a pretty crappy way of identifying the lenses. There are hundreds of Nikon Nikkor lenses and they can be night and day different. Check the serial numbers or handle the lenses before purchase.

Hope that helps,
Joe

http://www.killianthered.com
DP in the Washington DC Area
EX3 Owner

[Brian Carter]

Thanks Olof. As far as the camera goes, I already have 2 ex3s that I want to add accessories onto.

These are great suggestions. I’ll look into each of them.

This multiplier factor that you are talking about. How can I learn more about how it works?

[Brian Carter]

Thanks Joe and Olof, you’ve got me off in a good direction.

[Olof Ekbergh]

1/2″ chip is a lot smaller (5.5 times) than a full 35mm imager. This means lenses made for 35mm imagers (Chips) will be much longer.

A 24mm Canon or Nikon slr lens is very wide on a slr. But on a 1/2″ chip camera it is actually about a 135mm telephoto’.

The standard EX3 lens is 5.5mm to 85mm I think. That is roughly equivalent to 30mm to 460mm in 35mm slr terms.

You get the Idea.

Olof Ekbergh

[Jeremy Wilker]

You can get some decent Canon FD lenses pretty cheap since they do NOT work on current digital cameras. If you go that route, you’d only be able to use them on your adapter. Be wary of the Canon SSC lenses (with the silver twist-lock ring) as I saw some play (looseness) when used on the Letus Canon mount. The regular Canon bayonet(?) mount lenses were solid when I used them. Seems like most folks go for Nikon glass with 35mm adapters, though.

[Brian Carter]

So I am ready to purchase. I am going with the letus adapter with nikon lenses to start. Went to BH Photo and realized I don’t know the answer to a stupid question. Can I get autofocus lenses and use them manually? My assumption is yes but I wanted to make sure. The only lenses that fit the descriptions above such as 50mm f1.4 are autofocus lenses.

[Michael Palmer]

Brian

Have you seen my posts and videos using the EX3/Nano/Red Rock Encore?

If you are using the EX cameras then the new Encore with the new achromat (designed specifically for the Fujinon stock lens) from Red Rock Micro is a extremely solid solution and I really love this new tool. I too use the Nikon lenses and would love to own the Zeiss prime.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UYeQOlWxdoc&feature=player_embedded#

https://kateearl.com/

I borrowed an auto focus lens from a friend and I needed to push a pin and close the iris down before mounting the lens, I was only able to open the iris while it was mounted but you it work, however I would recommend manual lenses.

Good Luck
Michael Palmer

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[Brian Carter]

I have not. I’ve seen the redrock stuff at NAB and was very impressed. However, when I tried to call their salespeople they stated that they are an internet based company, and that I should just go to the site, pick what I wanted, and order it. When I tried to get into some detail as to what the best group of products might be, they once again told me to go to the website and pick out what I wanted.

I am a professional videographer but there is still A LOT about adapters and lenses I don’t know. This aspect is new to me because I have shot exclusively with the stock ENG lenses and only now am stepping out into the broader, 35mm adaption for these cameras. The lady I talked to at Redrock seemed almost irritated that I didn’t know exactly what I wanted (needed) and that I was wasting her time. The reason I called was to get help from them, but as they are an “Internet Company” (her words), there is no structure to help me build my lens adaption package. I wanted to buy the full package from them, including matte box, follow focus, rails etc. but was so turned of by the phone call I have not considered them since. I am always amazed out how some salespeople can be, especially when the customer has money in hand. I don’t know, maybe she was just having a bad day, or was losing at solitaire or something.

Yet I digress. Anyway, I have read great reviews about the Letus from Phillip Bloom and others so have chosen that route.

My main question still stands. I am assuming that I can use the Nikon autofocus lens manually. They are the only ones that I can find at BH Photo that match Olaf’s specs. Any help on this?