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Video-Friendly Lenses for Lumix DSLRs
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  • @LPowell

    Yes I was talking about the m4/3s lens. I didn't realize that the 4/3s version was the one we were talking about. I sure wish the m4/3s lens didn't do it.

  • Got hold of the 4/3 Olympus 14-35mm, its a really, really amazing lens. Yes, the iris flicker is a drawback, but I do not zoom around anyways. (Thanks for the info about 2.8, did not recognize that!) Focus breathing is very low and even at 14 mm you can get your subject devided from background which is gently and elegantly blurred. Well, you know the specs from above.

    Now on the two real drawbacks:

    This lens is huge and very heavy. You don´t believe it until you hold it in your hand, this thing is like a brick. The cheap MFT mount plus the adapter add quite some play, so don´t even think about using this lense with a FF without an additional mounting point in the front. You could try to focus by hand, but due to the play you will as well easily add shaking to the picture. Sadly there is no matching lens support from Olympus available, at least none that encircles the lense completly and keeps it tight in position. So you will either need to buy one of those.. http://store.zacuto.com/studio-19mm-locking-lens-support.html .. of get one crafted as we did. Now this thing gets into the way if you want to use another, shorter lens, so you have slide of mattebox to get it out of the way on lens change... well, you get the point.

    The second drawback is the amount you need to rotate the focus ring to get from closest to infinite. While on many foto lenses the way is much to short, on the 14-35 it is really a bit to long. So you need 1.5 full turns on FF to get from closest to infinite. This can not be done with one hand. Might get a bigger gear wheel for the FF, but you still you run into problems if you want to do fast move from something far away to something really close.

    Beside these drawbacks I would really recommend this lens. Its a working horse indeed!

  • I recall the Tokina ATX Pro 28-70/2.6-2.8 is basically the same lens as the Angenieux AF 28-70/2.6-2.8 that only came in Nikon mount. I have the Angenieux 35-70 and 70-210 zooms in FD mount. A few years ago, they were very cheap, until collectors drive their prices up unfortunately.

  • GH2 Lenses with Adapter and Auto Focus?

    It has been mentioned on this topic that all the lenses listed  by DPowell work with auto-focus. However, all these lenses with the  exception of the Panasonic, require adapters. How is it possible that a lens requiring an adapter can work GH2 in  auto-focus? Could you clarify this for me. I'm really confused about. Thanks 

    --

  • @willianaleman Not all the lenses listed have autofocus in the first place. For those that have it working on the GH2, it's because there is adapters with electric contacts (4/3 to m4/3) from panasonic & olympus - even cheap chinese one, cf. http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/1612

  • astraban, thanks a lot for your response clarifying this. I really appreciate it. Now can purchase one being more confident about it.

  • Hi People... Just ordered: Tokina ATX-PRO 28-80mm 2.8 Aspherical Nikon mount

    (Will report back here- purchased for zoom work - should be par focal... and for low light theatre work) Fingers crossed!

  • Ok... I just received the Tokina ATX-Pro 28-80mm 2.8 Nikon Mount lens:

    http://lensbuyersguide.com/en/lens/show/Tokina/AF28-80mm_f2.8_AT-X_PRO

    • Manual aperture ring: Yes
    • Direct-coupled focus ring: Yes
    • Proper focus ring rotation: Nikon direction
    • Non-rotating outer barrel: Yes
    • Non-extending outer barrel: Yes
    • Constant field of view: 80 Yes, (Closer to 28 breathing is noticeable)
    • Constant f-stop aperture: Yes
    • Rotational zoom ring: Yes
    • Parfocal zoom: Yes
  • Well, if it's Nikon, focus is the other way 'round.

  • Fixed... Got a bit too overexcited... Really nice lens...Will be using this lens in the theatre for sure.

  • @alcomposer Thanks for the evaluation of the Tokina 28-80mm f2.8, I added it to the list on page 1 of this thread. With Tokina zooms, the focus ring rotation is determined by the type of lens mount - so Nikon F-mount lenses rotate in the Nikon direction, and Canon EF-mount lenses rotate in the Canon/Lumix direction.

  • Well I would like to get mine serviced before I cast a final verdict. The lens 'is' Parfocal with focus holding all the way through the zoom range, however the zoom is not as silky as I would like. (Read: its silky - but I want it to feel like an air hockey table) Just me... :-)

    Also my copy feels like its been well used... (optics perfect but F mount is down to base metal)

    PS: this lens is a composite lens- very light compared to even the 35 Samyang... next on my list: 80-200 Parfocal (Nikon mount whatever brand - as long as Parfocal don't care) Super Wide Zoom, (most probably 11-16 Tokina) Something Fisheye...

  • AFAIK the good old 70-210mm 1:4 Minolta Rokkor is parfocal, at least it's constant aperture (a clever mechanism is counter correcting the aperture). Have a look at this list: http://digitalrokkor.altervista.org/minoltalens.html They made it for Leica too…

    But you won't find any photographic zoom in that range which is not changing it's length, and quite a bit!

  • @nomad

    "But you won't find any photographic zoom in that range which is not changing it's length, and quite a bit!"

    Its crazy enough that the 28-80 Tokina is an internal mech!

  • "Canon EF-mount lenses rotate in the Canon/Lumix direction"... but you can not control aperture on EF mount without the active 500 $ adapter. What a sad combination! Is there any mount known that focuses in the "lumix" direction and offers manual aperture? What about the pentax versions??

  • Canon FD, Pentax, M42, Minolta – most anything but Nikon focuses in that direction.

  • Anyone know if the tokina 80-200 1:2.8 is parfocal?

  • I've went ahead with the sigma 20mm 1.8 based on all of this information, for my GH2. Nikon mount, and a nikon to m3/4 adapter. Though I'm curious how it would measure against the panasonic 25mm 1.4 prime.

  • Hi @LPowell and everybody,

    Need your advice very much.

    I have a hacked GH2 with 14-140. Though it's parfocal and breathing is not visible, it's pretty ugly to see how the light in your scene changes (and not very "softly" !!! ) during the zoom process.

    Could anyone here advise me - is there a wide zoom lens (cinema friendly for using with GH2) for about <$2000? I mean a wide (starting from 12mm, 14mm or 17mm) fast zoom lens that has all the "YES" marks mentioned below?

    • Manual aperture ring: Yes
    • Direct-coupled focus ring: Yes
    • Proper focus ring rotation: Yes
    • Non-rotating outer barrel: Yes
    • Non-extending outer barrel: Yes
    • Constant field of view: Yes
    • Constant f-stop aperture: Yes
    • Rotational zoom ring: Yes
  • The Tokina 11-16 lacks a manual aperture ring (you would have to use a Nikon G-adapter which wouldn't show aperture size), but there is a Duclos modded version, but it would set you back $3500...

  • @Gabel,

    Thanks. I suppose I shouldn't hope there's a lens that will match my requirements mentioned above... Sad...

  • However with a Nikon G adapter, you still adjust the aperture, you just can't see the opening. On a wide-angle this is much less important, as depth-of-field is fairly big and wouldn't make too much of a difference.

  • @Gabel, does the Rayqual Nikon G-adapter actually work, do you know? Do they have that adapter for only Nikon lenses?

  • I have a Canon EF 50mm f1.8 legacy (assuming it's manual focus) -- and they have EF to M43 from Fotodiox. I shall check it out and see what it can do for my GF2 (I'd have to 'shoot without lens').

    How about a Canon FD 50mm f1.4 would it be parfocal as well and will it work with my GF2?

  • I use a canon FD mount 50mm 1.4 quite successfully. With the cheap fotodiox adapter even.