This is the least explored topic in the whole canon of articles, blogs and reviews on DSLR kit. Everyone’s so keen to discover what they can or can’t add to the camera to support it, view it easier, shoot in sunshine they kind of forget that the camera is really just an image capturing computer. Now, in stills photography, where you can take a 5k image and see all that stunning lens ability the quality of your glass makes a massive difference. While I’d love to tell you that a huge investment in lenses is worth every penny I have seen beautiful work shot on cheap ass lenses and you really have to think about where your work is going to end up. If you’re shooting for the web then it’s really up to you how much you fancy paying for a lens. The first lens I bought was the kit lens 18-135 variable aperture IS. And I shot stills on it and I really enjoyed it until I saw what my next purchase, a 24-70L series lens could do. For stills at least. For video, it’s a different story. The L lens is still better of course, but it really isn’t so noticeable at 2k with H264 encoding.
So what does this mean?
It means this – DON’T STRESS OVER LENSES – just get what you can afford and get shooting. I’ve seen great video shot on the kit lenses and it didn’t suffer the way a still photo would have done. This is the great conjuring act of moving image. Our eyes simply don’t work fast enough to process the higher image quality of a better lens on moving image work the way they can with a still image. Now I’m not saying L glass isn’t worth the money because it genuinely is. I wept salty tears of pure love when I saw what mine did to the human face in particular, it’s a lovely lovely piece of glass, it’s just that our beloved DSLRs aren’t capable of translating that performance for moving image yet.
So what should you buy?
Buy the kit lens. Get the 18-135mm zoom lens and buy it as a bundle with the 7D for the cheapest price you can find. Why? Three reasons. Firstly it will teach you the discipline required to shoot video on a stills camera without killing your wallet. Secondly it’s an IS lens which means your pictures will look much more stable handheld than someone shooting on the 24-70L that I have. Believe me that makes a huge difference. Thirdly, it’s a lens you can smash around because it’s cheap and in my experience video cameras seem to take a lot more abuse than stills cameras in everyday operation and I really don’t want my L lens to get killed thank you very much.
A good lens collection is a lifelong obsession and there will be many pieces of glass with exotically low maximum apertures that tease you and tempt you. For shooting video none of that actually matters. For stills your quest is for perfect image quality. For video it is not. For video your quest is for the best journey point to point, through image, through sound, and through story. Therefore, your image is sharing space with your sound and your narrative thread, which does take the load off somewhat. Sure we respond well to stuff that looks gorgeous but your job is to deliver more than that. Which is why I say don’t stress about lenses. If you can’t afford an L lens you probably won’t be able to compete as a stills photographer, but as a videographer you’re right in the game.
My own research led me to a number of conclusions about what I needed for video. Firstly you absolutely have to have a zoom lens of some description. For the 7D I would recommend the EF-S 17-55 because it’s image stabilised or the EF 24-70L they are fantastic for both video and stills, but the 17-55 edges it out because of the IS. If you’ve ever shot with a big video camera like a digibeta, dvcpro HD or shoulder mounted DV camera like the DSR-450 then you’ll be familiar with the J11 lens, an absolutely stunning (and expensive) wide angle lens which barrels out at the extremities and makes events, steadicam filming and other stuff just look so impressive. The Tokina 11-16 f2.8 is a (relatively) cheap lens that accomplishes the same job and it’s one of the best lenses I’ve ever bought. The Tokina is also important because it’s designed for the APS-C sensor. If you’ve got ambitions to move up to the 5D at any point (and I would suggest that the 5D Mk3 will be the one that changes everything) for full frame imaging then buy EF fit lenses because it’s a great investment. With the 1.6x crop factor however all that glass goes longer down the tube so it’s absolutely vital to have a nice wide option in the bag. You always need a wider lens shooting video for some reason.
PRIMES VS ZOOM LENSES
Primes every time, they rock. L series primes, Zeiss ZEs (swoon), Leica R, Nikkor AI… you could spend a lifetime working out which glass you prefer but frankly at the level most people work at a decent set of primes is a fairly monumental ordeal. You won’t get a zoom any faster than f2.8 so primes give you the opportunity to get proper shallow, and really rinse the low light capability of the camera. However, once you start buying primes you need to keep buying the same type so that they’ll have a chance of matching when you switch between them. That can get pricey. So – first question, what are you shooting? If you’re shooting drama, or music videos then get yourself a set of primes and fall in love with just how phenomenal this camera really can be. Primes are better, full stop. My own experience of working with both is that primes just resolve a lot better and give you far less H264 blockiness. In an ideal world you’ll be getting full manual lenses, like the Nikkor AI series. These put the iris on the barrel, and if you’re really hardcore you can get the clicks taken out, lens gears pressed on and 80mm step-ups screwed on the front for ultimate lenses. Shane Hurlbut, the man, the legend, has written an excellent comparison of the various lenses you might be looking at. Zeiss ZE/ZF primes are the standout lens choice but they come with a hefty price tag. I’ve worked with material shot on the Nikkor AI lenses and I absolutely love it. Dig around for good second hand bargains and there’s plenty to be had. Glass from the 70s and 80s has an absolutely beautiful look to it and those Nikkors are incredibly well made. Worth every penny in my book and they’ll travel with you as you migrate from body to body. If you’re shooting more videographer style then obviously a zoom lens is going to be your best friend. Get an IS lens. Do yourself a massive favour and just do it. The EF-S 17-55 IS is a fabulous lens and it has that all important stabilisation. It also has a massive focus ring, like a traditional video lens and it’s not so absurdly expensive that it’s completely out of reach. I own the 24-70 L which is an EF lens and it’s a ridiculously tricky lens to get good results out of. Not impossible but I wrestle with it constantly and haven’t cracked it yet.
I have a cheapo lens for beating the crap out of and being a general purpose go anywhere lens. I also have a Sigma 30mm f1.4 because it’s fast, good in low light, and at that length it’s wide enough to follow people without getting sick, but still allows me to get in close. The super shallow depth of field makes footage more intimate and it’s turned out to be great for ob doc, who’d have thought? I also have a 50mm f1.8, and at less than £80 it’s a pretty easy purchase to justify. I’d also like the 70-200 f2.8 IS because it’s just a fabulous lens, with that awesome long zoom and you cannot go wrong, but it’s pricey and I’ve run out of money. That happens. Like I said, experiment, and if it doesn’t work out, flog your lens to the army of hungry neophyte 7D users out there who are desperate for secondhand kit.
FOCUS
It’s worth now mentioning focus. Forget autofocus. In video mode you’re on your own. Video is dynamic and one of the great jedi tricks of good cameramen is the clarity with which they manage focus. Your lens is not setup for this. Add a follow focus and you can start to gain the control but it will be one of those things that becomes easier the more you do it, but you will need to do it a lot before you get even vaguely good at it. With the shallower depth of field approximate focus doesn’t cut it the way it would on a conventional video camera, and you have no aids, like peaking, to help you. I was speaking to a focus puller friend and he was moaning about the lack of travel on stills lens focus rings. Essentially you’re pretty much working on a 360 degree rotation or less, whereas with film cameras they’re often working on a 540 or even 720 degree rotation from close to infinity. I say they need to step up and get used to micro adjustments but it’s worth being aware of. I suspect the next generation of DSLRs will incorporate peaking and zebras into their screens but for now, you’re on your own.
So, what can we do to make this process easier? The follow focus definitely helps ergonomically but you’ve still got the problem that you’re trying to look at a tiny LCD screen and make critical focus judgements and it’s very easy to buzz past the optimum focus point. Your best bet is a viewfinder. As far as I can tell there’s only really three options here, conveniently stepped from cheap and cheerful, to better, to downright ripoff (and we all know who makes that…). The Hoodman Loupe (French for magnifying glass btw) is a pretty basic device that fits onto cameras via a couple of loops and magnifies the screen x2. Any review of it I read said it was cak so I left well alone, but if you’re on a budget… The next option is the LCDVF which is again a 1.2x magnifier, a bit more expensive and does a decent job. It attaches with a magnetic seal which makes me and lots of other people nervous but apparently it works pretty well. Your final option is the Zacuto [sigh] Z-Finder. Now, it should be clear by now that I think Zacuto clearly make very well engineered products, but that they’re stupidly overpriced and they should get real and make stuff that people can actually afford. The clear and only exception I will make to this is the Z-Finder which is idiotically expensive but it’s the best. I’m afraid that’s just the way it is. It doesn’t matter how beautiful you’re footage is if it’s out of focus. With a Z-Finder, you’ve got a 3x magnified image in your eyeball and suddenly focussing is back in your hands. Only downside, you can’t blame the piddly screen if you balls it up. So buy one. I’d also recommend buying a monitor, at some stage, but the Z-Finder will save your life. Plus it looks quite cool too.
Of course you can buy any lens you want, but I’d say this – don’t expect the mind numbing improvement in quality between lenses that you see with stills photography. Feel your way in with a cheap ass kit zoom, then tailor your lens requirements to the kind of filming you do. Don’t expect lenses to work the way they do when you take stills. Finally, it’s fortunate that there are a great many more stills photographers in the world than cameramen and that means second hand bargains are there to be had. Be patient and you’ll pick up a bargain. My L lens was one such bargain and it made me very happy. Dig and you shall find. Most people tell you what lens they shot on when they post on Vimeo. Do your research and don’t be afraid to ask.
For those of you looking to take a much bigger step up in the world (and can stomach the way he repeatedly goes on about his ‘Strategic Team’) and get into the movie way of things, then this is a very handy guide to lenses from the main man Shane Hurlbut:
http://hurlbutvisuals.com/blog/2010/02/06/still-lenses/
