14-45 vs. 12-35 vs. Zeiss 12-120

Hi,

I've got a BMPCC with the 14-45 Panasonic Lens 3.5-5-6. However, I'm shooting a music video this weekend with many int. night time low light shots and I'm worried that my lens is neither wide or fast enough, so I've been thinking to rent the Panasonic 12-35 2.8 instead.

But now I'm worried thats just a waste of money, since it's not that much faster and not very much wider, or is it ? Does anyone know how to calculate the difference in FOV between 12 and 14 mm ?

Another option that might be available to me is to rent a 12-100 Zeiss PL Mount Zoom T2.4 which obviously is quite a bit faster, but more expensive and I'm worried it will be harder to get smooth shots without IS (I am using a shoulder rig, but still)

Does anyone have any wise advice ?

Thanks a lot
Palle

Its the difference between 36mm and 42mm on a 5D or a 24mm and a 28mm on an ASP-C camera.
http://www.abelcine.com/fov/

2/3 of a stop brighter at the wide end and 2 stops brighter at the tele end. That a fair amount of extra light.

Thanks a lot Adam, that's really helpful.

Actually starting to consider the Zeiss zoom now, does anyone have any experience using this lens with the BMPCC?

The Zeiss is heavy, which will probably help keep the camera stable. It's also parfocal which means it stays in focus as you zoom, which the other 2 wont. The focus throw is much longer so focusing is much easier.

But the BMPCC has a rolling shutter and the OIS in the other lenses can be a huge help dealing with jitters that you get from rolling a shutter.

The 12-35 is an excellent lens. I use it often. The difference between 12mm and 14 roughly translates to 36mm and 41mm. The lens optics as well as OIS was designed and crafted especially with HD Video in mind so saturation may not be as sharp as the Canon and Nikons, but it does deliver excellent details and a smooth rolloff which brings it closer to the CP2's though its nowhere near the Zeiss
You can always move a foot or so back if distance is not an issue.

Also pining the focus can become a real issue with the BMPCC, esp. for music video where light is low and changing, the Zeiss with a good external monitor can really help you here.
Good luck with your Shoot

Thanks a lot Adam, that's really helpful.

Actually starting to consider the Zeiss zoom now, does anyone have any experience using this lens with the BMPCC?

I used an Optex converted 12-120. Works fine on the BMPCC and is plenty heavy but a big lens. Really easy to use because it's a cine lens but compared to the other lenses you mentioned it's a good bit different, all manual etc. and as has been mentioned stays in focus through the zoom. I like the little bit of softness you get with it, for me it's more cinematic than the ultra sharp lenses of today. 12mm is wide enough and it's also a faster lens @T2.4. I don't think F3.5 is good enough for low light.

I can't for the life of me understand why people on forums always compare angle of view to 5D's.

Full frame is a photography standard, Super 35 is a cinematography standard.

I can't for the life of me understand why people on forums always compare angle of view to 5D's.

Full frame is a photography standard, Super 35 is a cinematography standard.

+1 here. I think the problem is that the mayority of BMCC and pocket cam users come from dsrl and many of them Canon 5D users, that's the only explanation I can find. Full frame is NOT a cinematografic format, my 2 cents.

No one has said Full Frame is a "cinematografic" format. It is however a common format for shooting video.

A lot of people buying BM cameras are coming from DSLRs or MFT. They shoot on 5D or 7D or GH1/2/3 and are trying to understand what FOV they will get on the BMCC and BMPCC. Crop Factors are a simple way of explaining that.

In film days when Super16 and Super35 were king there was no "crop factor" you simply knew that if you wanted a "normal" FOV" you would use a 35mm on Super35 and 16mm on Super16. No need for any conversion as there were really just 2 standards (yes there were others, but these were king).

A Super16mm prime set often consisted of: 9.5, 12, 16, 25mm
A Super35mm prime set often consisted of: 18, 25, 35, 50, 85mm

Today we have so many format that shoot video. Full Frame, ASP-C, Super35, MFT, BMCC, Super16, 1/2", 2/3", etc. So it's more complicated.