Blackmagic Forum

I am happy to start sharing some footage I've shot with the new DZOFilm Vespid Primes. These little videos were shot with sample lenses sent to me by DZOFilm to test out. I have more shoots to come, and have additional footage to still edit. But so far I'm absolutely loving the lenses. I'll be doing a full video review on these lenses towards the end of the month.

DZOFilm Vespid Prime Lenses that I have: 25mm T2.1, 35mm T2.1, 50mm, T2.1, 75mm T2.1, 100mm T2.1, and 125mm T2.1. I don't have the 90mm T2.8 Macro, but am curious to test that out in the future as well.

These videos are shot on the URSA Mini Pro G2 in BlackmagicRAW.

1-Minute Instagram Video for Model:


2-Minute Guinness Pour Video for Fun:


I'll be sharing more videos here soon demonstrating these lenses. They are really awesome considering how affordable they are. Be prepared for these to make a significant impact on the market. Can't wait to shoot more content with them.

DZOFILM VESPID LENSES:
Where to buy: dzofilm.com/products/0.html
DZOFILM YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UC8Cndtgz0OGPG_A1mfNuPpA/featured
DZOFILM FB User Group: facebook.com/groups/2796667497030914

The DZO lenses looks good. When this pandemic settles and work starts picking up, definitely want to get a few of them. I was getting so thirsty watching that glass of Guinness fill up so slowly. LOL!

Ellory Yu wrote:The DZO lenses looks good. When this pandemic settles and work starts picking up, definitely want to get a few of them. I was getting so thirsty watching that glass of Guinness fill up so slowly. LOL!

Haha! I got quite drunk doing that. Because of the pandemic I did it as a quick and easy test. But by doing it by myself I had no assistant to share the drinking responsibility. So I drank 3 beers over the course of shooting it in a very short span of time.

Granted the other shoots made me very thirsty because of shooting in the Florida heat. Still high 80s (Fahrenheit) when operating the Steadicam and then for the beach shoot. The beach video will be shared soon. Waiting on the model to approve it.

For what is called an APO by DZOFilm looks to have a lot of chromatic aberration. Looking at lettering on can. Would like to see this lens in 35mm vespid compared with the Tokina cinema vista 35mm T1.5

Jeffrey D Mathias wrote:For what is called an APO by DZOFilm looks to have a lot of chromatic aberration. Looking at lettering on can. Would like to see this lens in 35mm vespid compared with the Tokina cinema vista 35mm T1.5

Weird, I don't see any chromatic aberration on the lettering on the can. But I'll further test the lenses to see if I can bring out any CA.

As for the comparing the lens against the Tokina Cinema Vista... I don't personally know anyone with those lenses. I know someone with the Cooke S4 lenses, so will likely test the Vespid lenses against those.

Jeffrey D Mathias wrote:For what is called an APO by DZOFilm looks to have a lot of chromatic aberration. Looking at lettering on can.

I don't see CA. I do see softness from it, almost like the Xeens and Rokinons cine lenses, but not as soft.

Try 00:40 - 00:50 and 00:55 - 00:58 the white lettering on black can... edges look to have have color fringes. ... and I am looking at Vimeo full screen 2K.

I am shopping for a 35mm - fast, no breathing, no CA and hopefully under $5K and am leaning toward the Tokina 35mm T1.5 Vista.

I am also waiting to see the Tokina 20-70 T2.9 cinema zoom when it comes out spring 2021.

A question to Tim since you have a set of the Vespid. Do any stand out as a bit better image quality wise? For example I have the Sigma FF 20mm T1.5 which has almost no breathing but not the others in that line - as tested by Lens Test Home.)(which is why I have ruled out the Sigma FF 35mm T1.5)

Tim thank you for the tests. Because of you I bought the Dzo Zooms. Really good lenses.

Good videos, Tim.

The lenses do a good job controlling Chromatic Aberration. Jeffrey, I can see a very small amount on the lettering, that can be expected, even Master Primes can deliver subtle CA. High contrast

Personally, the Zeiss Otus Collection can’t be beaten, in my opinion, when it comes to value and quality.

Great job Tim. Looking forward to more videos with these lenses.

Jeffrey D Mathias wrote:...
I am also waiting to see the Tokina 20-70 T2.9 cinema zoom when it comes out spring 2021.

If the lens is anything like the Tokina 11-20mm, it will be a very compelling lens as long as you are careful in situations where flare may be too prevalent. I’m sure Duclos Lenses will be offering a special for that zoom. Can’t wait!

Here's the next video. This was a beach shoot. Shot in 4.6K 2.4:1 Window. Variety of the Vespid Primes, mainly sticks and handheld.



I'll answer some of the questions and comments above in the next few posts.

Jeffrey D Mathias wrote:A question to Tim since you have a set of the Vespid. Do any stand out as a bit better image quality wise? For example I have the Sigma FF 20mm T1.5 which has almost no breathing but not the others in that line - as tested by Lens Test Home.)(which is why I have ruled out the Sigma FF 35mm T1.5)

At the current moment the 75mm is definitely standing out as a favorite, but for no particular technical reasoning. I'm just loving the focal with regards to a lot of shots tight on my subject.

Otherwise, I find all the lenses are equally well crafted and have consistent and amazing optical quality. It feels like they all have similar little to no focus breathing, but I haven't conducted a truly scientific test with that regard. I'll probably be doing one soon now that I've gotten a lot of great looking footage. But I have more shoots coming up that are pure shoots and not scientific tests.

Donnell Henry wrote:Tim thank you for the tests. Because of you I bought the Dzo Zooms. Really good lenses.

That's great to hear! I do love my DZOFilm Pictor Zooms as well, and find that they match up well with the DZOFilm Vespid Primes. I find that I'm going to be recommending both zooms and primes to a lot of people.

Filmobsession wrote:Good videos, Tim.

The lenses do a good job controlling Chromatic Aberration. Jeffrey, I can see a very small amount on the lettering, that can be expected, even Master Primes can deliver subtle CA. High contrast

Personally, the Zeiss Otus Collection can’t be beaten, in my opinion, when it comes to value and quality.

Thank you! As far as Chromatic Aberration I do find these lenses do an amazing job of controlling it. I'm having a very hard time finding it in a lot of the images. There's some more video content coming that might illustrate this further. Need to do the post work on that footage. But as I've said I still have shoots ahead as well. But when it comes to CA if it's not obtrusive and just slightly subtle I can accept that. So far these lenses are in that category of handling the CA so well that it's not even on my mind when looking at the images.

The Zeiss Otus is definitely a very good lens. I've seen a lot of incredibly well shot footage with those. But very different look and character compared to these Vespid Primes.

Ryan Earl wrote:Great job Tim. Looking forward to more videos with these lenses.

Thank you, Ryan! More videos are coming. I just posted a beach one above.

timbutt2 wrote:Here's the next video. This was a beach shoot. Shot in 4.6K 2.4:1 Window. Variety of the Vespid Primes, mainly sticks and handheld.

I love your work, thanks for sharing Tim.

How would you rate the DZOFilm primes against the new DZOFilm Zoom set that you have? To my eyes they look very similar. Also, may I ask what stick(s) you are using? Your shots are very smooth. As a newbie, I am trying to get new ideas. Your look/shots are very similar to what I am trying to do for music videos, short films, and interviews. I own a DJI Ronin MX, that I use for my Sony mirrorless camera, but it's too much work to get the G2 to work on it.

Derfla wrote:I love your work, thanks for sharing Tim.

How would you rate the DZOFilm primes against the new DZOFilm Zoom set that you have? To my eyes they look very similar. Also, may I ask what stick(s) you are using? Your shots are very smooth. As a newbie, I am trying to get new ideas. Your look/shots are very similar to what I am trying to do for music videos, short films, and interviews. I own a DJI Ronin MX, that I use for my Sony mirrorless camera, but it's too much work to get the G2 to work on it.

Thank you, Derfla!

I would rate the DZOFilm Vespid Primes a perfect match for the DZOFilm Pictor Zooms. They are both great sets of lenses. And, they match and intercut perfectly. So it comes down to a matter of whether you want to use a prime or a zoom for any given shot. The zooms have their purposes, just as the primes have their purposes. I would definitely fly the primes on a Steadicam or Gimbal more often. And, also since the Primes are faster they are slightly better for lower light situations.

The Primes are VistaVision/Full-Frame compatible, so they can go on larger sensor cameras like the ARRI LF. Meanwhile the Zooms are for Super 35mm sensors only.

As to the tripod I'm using: Sachtler FSB-8 with Flowtech 75. In the continuing debate of what gear I'll invest in next I do have the Sachtler Aktiv head on my wish list. That is pretty much a newer replacement for the FSB-8 model.

But, as usual, I also plan on adding more lights to my kit, replacing/updating grip equipment, and getting a new matte box. So the Sachtler Aktiv head is potentially going to have to wait. I first have to pay off the credit card debt I have for the new computer, the lenses, and other accessories I have bought.

Nice work. Unfortunately the client spotted a lot of lint on the glass in the beer shot and wants you to reshoot it.

They are really awesome considering how affordable they are. Be prepared for these to make a significant impact on the market.

So how affordable are they? There is no such thing as light cine glass but how would you rate these vs other cine lenses you have tried? My main interest from a weight perspective is the 25.

Thanks for sharing.

My review video (or an early preview) is out in the public. I may add footage and BTS from tomorrow's shoot if I feel inclined, but it's not pivotal to the video at this point. So enjoy. And, especially enjoy the rare sighting of me in front of the camera.

Hey Tim thanks for the reviews. Would you recommend the primes over the zooms? I do plan on doing more gimbal work with my pocket 6k, but without that in consideration whats your opinion?

James Harkness wrote:Hey Tim thanks for the reviews. Would you recommend the primes over the zooms? I do plan on doing more gimbal work with my pocket 6k, but without that in consideration whats your opinion?

Hi James! You're welcome. It's still on the road map to do a review on the Pictor Zooms, I just have to shoot my on camera part and haven't had time to do that yet.

I've recently shot a good amount with the zooms, and have also used the Primes on some recent projects as well. I do intersperse and combine them a good deal.

For gimbal work I'd say the Primes are hands down the go to lens. I just did a Steadicam shot on the latest music video I shot that is releasing on the 20th of April. That music video was all shot on the primes with the exception of one zoom shot to accomplish a zoom in. That's the best advantage of having both because they match each other so well. The 25mm Vespid on the Steadicam was a great use for me because I didn't tire even when we did a lot of takes to nail the timing perfectly. Then I flew the 35mm Vespid on the Steadicam for one set up as well. It all felt wonderful flying the primes over the zooms.

But, I do tend to use those zooms quite often for the speed. I can quickly change focal length with just a zoom set in my CineBag for run and gun shooting situations. It really enables me to pack light. So, I can't recommend one over the other because for my workflow I like to utilize both.

If I had to suggest starting with a lens I'd start with the zoom for the multiple focal lengths you get in one lens, and then build the primes kit. So the Pictor Zoom 2-Lens Kit is worth it's money to give you a full focal range that the Vespid Primes also give you, but you get that fast set up time for a shot. The Primes do mean more lens changes for changing focal length. But, if you have that time then it is totally worth working with primes.

Again, I love this new music video and can't wait to share it. I'll also try to put together the Pictor Zoom review video to release soon as well. Maybe will do a DZOFilm FAQ video as well.

timbutt2 wrote:

James Harkness wrote:Hey Tim thanks for the reviews. Would you recommend the primes over the zooms? I do plan on doing more gimbal work with my pocket 6k, but without that in consideration whats your opinion?

Hi James! You're welcome. It's still on the road map to do a review on the Pictor Zooms, I just have to shoot my on camera part and haven't had time to do that yet.

I've recently shot a good amount with the zooms, and have also used the Primes on some recent projects as well. I do intersperse and combine them a good deal.

For gimbal work I'd say the Primes are hands down the go to lens. I just did a Steadicam shot on the latest music video I shot that is releasing on the 20th of April. That music video was all shot on the primes with the exception of one zoom shot to accomplish a zoom in. That's the best advantage of having both because they match each other so well. The 25mm Vespid on the Steadicam was a great use for me because I didn't tire even when we did a lot of takes to nail the timing perfectly. Then I flew the 35mm Vespid on the Steadicam for one set up as well. It all felt wonderful flying the primes over the zooms.

But, I do tend to use those zooms quite often for the speed. I can quickly change focal length with just a zoom set in my CineBag for run and gun shooting situations. It really enables me to pack light. So, I can't recommend one over the other because for my workflow I like to utilize both.

If I had to suggest starting with a lens I'd start with the zoom for the multiple focal lengths you get in one lens, and then build the primes kit. So the Pictor Zoom 2-Lens Kit is worth it's money to give you a full focal range that the Vespid Primes also give you, but you get that fast set up time for a shot. The Primes do mean more lens changes for changing focal length. But, if you have that time then it is totally worth working with primes.

Again, I love this new music video and can't wait to share it. I'll also try to put together the Pictor Zoom review video to release soon as well. Maybe will do a DZOFilm FAQ video as well.

Thanks man appreciate the feedback. I ended up going with the Vespids because I am not going to be buying both and want to fly on a gimbal easily. Also because I do multi-cam setups of 3 or more cameras often and this way I will have a bunch of DZO lenses to use.

Do you notice any sharpness different in the primes, as you would usually see in other prime lenses?