Steve Crow
Forum Replies Created
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Just as a last note – you may want to check out my Flipboard magazine on DSLR Filmmaking as I recently linked to several articles on lenses, including some new options in the cinema lens category that may (or may not) be out of your budget range but are none the less very interesting. I can’t afford owning them myself but I like knowing they are available.
Go to:
https://flipboard.com/section/hd-dslr-filmmaking-byqgog
Steve Crow
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Oh and if you want to be one of the really cool kids 🙂 then buy an old vintage lens (are there “new” vintage lenses?)
They will most likely be all manual so you will set focal length, focus and aperture all by yourself but there have been many experienced cinematographers who swear by the old glass and the unique looks they are able to achieve with them.
Frankly, a lens I am excited about doesn’t even work on a DSLR type camera – it’s made for the iPhone and gives you an anamorphic perspective just like big budget movies from Hollywood. (check out Moondog on Google)
Steve Crow
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The first question to ask is what will you be filming? Sports? Documentaries? Dramas?
Outside of shooting sports, I think a great first lens would actually be a either 35mm or 50mm prime lens. I’d first get a 50mm as that is the “classic” movie focal length and is very versatile , in my opinion, and then get something wider to go with it – either the 35mm or maybe even a 24 (25?)mm for your wide shots. There are many models to choose from that will fit the bill. Yes, they can get expensive and so budget is going to dictate your choices.
Canon is very well respected for their lenses but you have other manufacturers to select from. You will have to get an adapter to fit non-Sony brand lenses on your A7s but those are available and relatively inexpensive.
To start off you can always just get a 50mm prime and then rent whatever else you may occasionally need.
I’m not against zooms at all, in fact many would probably point out that a 24-70mm is a great option for lots of uses and if you are shooting sports then a zoom would make a lot of sense. Ideally you want a lens with a constant aperture of say 2.8 or wider. If you have a zoom lens, then a constant aperture model won’t darken the image as you zoom in. For a prime lens you’re obviously not zooming.
Steve Crow
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Hi Sharad,
I downloaded the image and viewed it in photoshop and even with contract and brightness adjusted all the way to the extremes I couldn’t see the lines you are talking about. There may be some noise in the blacks but otherwise no I couldn’t see anything.
Steve Crow
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oh one last thing to consider if you can afford it, ditch the Nikon as your “A” camera and rent a Sony A7s and lens kit, that thing can shoot in a cave at night and still come up with a reasonable image. The GH4 is also said to be a great camera in low light.
Steve Crow
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I tend towards the prime, since you are in complete control of the set you can easily move the camera closer and further away at your convenience between shots. I’d double check with the rental house to make sure the lens is compatible with the DX sensor size in your camera but more than likely it is.
Steve Crow
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Regarding lens aperture, remember what you are looking for are ones with the LOWER numbers (as in F2 is more open than an F4) lower aperture numbers represent bigger/wider openings through which more light can pass
My old stand by is a Canon 50mm 1.4 prime lens but because my camera has an APS-C sized sensor (as does your most likely, I’d have to double check that) the lens actually gives the approximate image that an 80mm would on a full frame camera. But I deal with it simply by moving the camera back a few more feet. So if you have an APS-C sized sensor too and can afford the rental price, see if you can find something like a 35MM or 24mm prime lens (ideally) with an aperture of 2.8 or lower – again lower means more open.
ps I just checked and your Nikon has a “DX” sized sensor which is equivalent to an APS-C
You could go with a zoom lens too and there are some excellent ones in the 24-70mm range – it’s up to your individual artistic preference, shooting style, budget etc. I’d be very careful about lenses that are that cheap to rent, they may be old manual lenses which can still technically work with your camera but the you’ll have to set the aperture and focus rings manually and some other functions might not work. Many people love to work with these old lenses because of the look but they also have lots of experience and it sounds like you are not yet in their shoes
Steve Crow
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It’s hard to give specific advice without knowing exactly what you are going to be filming and where. A few general ideas:
A lens with more open aperture, saying something in the 2.4 area, will let more of whatever light is present hit your sensor but that brings it’s own challenges, like your depth of field will be very shallow and can make keeping things in focus a problem. Look into renting.
As I said, It all depends on what you are trying to light but certainly some external lights that you can attach to batteries is a solution I have used in the past but now you are talking about a lot of money. Those you can rent too.
I am wondering if you could you use your car headlights in some way – I would think about maybe bouncing the light from the headlight using some sort of bounce board or reflective material, that would be a much softer, less direct light and way cheaper too – the cost would be some very cheap bounce boards and stands – but you could rent the correct c-stands to hold a bounce board and save yourself from purchasing. Don’t run the car engine because it will make a mess of your sound but at the same time be very careful about not draining your car battery 🙂
Steve Crow
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Oh this is being caused by the fluorescent lighting in the room and the interaction between your camera’s frame rate and the electrical system 100v or 220v.
There have been many discussions on this issue here on this forum and elsewhere, just do a search on fluorescent light and horizontal banding and you should come across those posts. One of the most frequently asked questions here for sure.
Steve Crow
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Ok, I thought you could apply standard Lightroom “preset looks” to video files but I could be wrong, so next I would do some research into the tools use by DIT Technicians on movie sets who often do simple edits and color grade clips right on set.
One such tool I found is a free player/grader app called Assimilate Scratch which you can read about here:
https://www.assimilateinc.com/products/scratch-play
but I’ve only “scratched” the surface, so do some research and let us know what you find, it’s an interesting problem.
Steve Crow