I was watching one of those really helpful videos the other day. The sort that put the icing on this already multi layered cake.
The video was entitled “make cheap cameras look cinematic”, cheap meaning DSLR or Mirrorless, not RED cameras.
It was about the third in a row from Mark Bone, who is really good at rubber-meets-the-road advice. All three points made sense;
use a handle-already ordered as it turns out and researching its use is how I found this vid,
use ambient light that will not over stretch your cameras dynamic range (don’t be afraid of the dark),
and finally use old lenses for their character.
Old lenses, like the huge array of old Canon, Contax, Pentax, Olympus, Nikon and Minolta and other glass that has passed through my hands over the last 30 years, but are now pretty much all gone.
With one exception.
I have finally found a use for the ancient Pen 25mm f2.8. Not only is this lens sharp, but wide open it has very little contrast (auto “flat” mode?), it’s almost hazy but sharpens up nicely. One stop down it is very sharp and the contrast comes back with that old lens look (cool contrast and interesting Bokeh).
An actual aperture ring, good focus throw and a some decent heft. All good features for a cine lens. The Pen F will have to make do.
Unique Bokeh and beautiful colours. The swirls add to the pop of the in focus elements.
Funky flare wide open (quite well controlled stopped down) and some decent, but pleasant enough CA :).
Quite striking colour and contrast. This wall has slightly lighter and warmer colour in real life. The way the lens reacts to a modern Olympus sensor reminds me of Canon colour or Kodachrome 64 slide film. It will look different on the Pana, but that just gives me two palettes to work with. I am hoping that on the Pana it will take on a perfect balance, but if not, the EM1 I have used for video will be rigged out with this lens alone.
My lens kit for the new G9 is the Olympus 12-40 f2.8 (which has become less utilised with the arrival of the 8-18), the 17 f1.8 Olympus with its handy bokeh and again an older lens look, the character filled 45 f1.8 and the old 25. All of the lenses can be extended in video without quality loss.. Olympus lenses are also a good match for Panasonic sensors if you want a middle ground between cool/hard and warm/light colours.
The Osmo 1 comes with a 26mm f2 equivalent ideal for general use.
More than enough, probably too much.