UW just published a piece I shot last summer in Montana. It’s about a young woman who grew up on a ranch in a remote part of the state, who is well on her way to becoming a doctor, thanks to a UW Medicine program that helps train rural doctors.
This project was the second that I’ve shot primarily with Fujinon MK18-55 & MK50-135 T2.9 Cine-Style Lens Kit (E-Mount) on the Sony FS5. However, I haven’t shot another one since. Not because I don’t love these lenses, but because I miss image stabilization.
If you’re working quickly, without much crew, there really is no substitute for image stabilized lenses. When I sat down to edit this piece, I had to reject way too many clips because they had uncontrollable jitters. I had to post-stabilize a ton of the rest, with less than perfect results in a couple of cases. Nevertheless, I’m proud of how this story came together in the edit.
For those jobs where you have the time to work from a tripod or other stabilization, I’d highly recommend the Fujinons. They make tracking and holding focus easy, even when subjects are walking directly toward camera.
Did you shoot these handheld with the fujinon lenses? Also, what was the 1st video you shot using the fujinon lenses? Thanks.
Hi Christopher,
No, I avoid shooting handheld with the Fujinon lenses, because they lack any IS. I really can’t shoot handheld without it, I’ve discovered. The first piece I shot with Fujinon lenses is this one: https://vimeo.com/215202449. It has some shots that were handheld, but many that I couldn’t use because they were too jittery.
Hi Dan:
Nice job on the “Montana to Medical School Video”! With you comments about the lack of IS on Fujinons have you considered using Sony’s 18-110 F/4? I also currently use the 17-55 but sometimes need the extra reach, really miss the Zeiss 10-100 F/2 on my ARRI SR days…..
Also good to see other FCPX user!
Jeff
Thanks Jeff! I have used the Sony 18-110 f/4, and it’s a really nice lens for certain types of projects. I like it for when you know you need to shoot quickly in a variety of well-lit situations. The IS isn’t as good as Canon IS, though, and at f/4, it’s too slow for any kind of low light situation in my view, where f/2.8 is absolute minimum in my book.
The Zeiss 10-100 f/2 sounds totally epic. Is it possible to adapt that lens to Sony mounts?