Best M 4/3rd interview lenses

IS2

Hey,

I'm looking for a great interview lens for my Panasonic GH2 and have become a bit stuck.

I got the Canon FD 50mm lens, but that's the equivalent of a 100mm on the GH2, so I have to be too far away from the subject for my liking.

I've been reading good things about the Panasonic 25mm 1.4 (equivalent to 50mm). It's a bit pricey for me, but I'm hoping to invest in a solid lens that will meet my needs and not require me to purchase another lens for quite some time. I need it to shoot interviews, with individuals and groups (bands), which will quite often be in low light venues.

I've heard the AF on the 20mm 1.7 is quite noisy for video, so I'm unsure that that's the right lens for my video interviews, but I've also heard that this is improved on the 25mm lens.

Are there any other options? Will the 25mm being a prime cause any problems? Will the 25mm be a decent general lens for walking around shooting too?

Thanks for any help in advance,

IS2

Vitaliy_Kiselev

http://www.personal-view.com/talks/discussion/4902/what-is-the-best-portrait-lens-for-m43/p1

griplimited

If you want to stay with m4/3 native lens, 12-35 and 35-100mm works darn good. However, I just jumped on the sigma 18-35mm and by far amazed with it. Now on the hunt for a Nikon mount version.

With the 20mm, it may be noisy on focus but if it's sit down interview then you'll pre focus all your shots beforehand.

vicharris

What V said. Plus a 25mm is still a 25mm in terms of what it does to the face. Use a 85mm lens or there abouts and back up.

Vitaliy_Kiselev

Plus a 25mm is still a 25mm in terms of what it does to the face. Use a 85mm lens or there abouts and back up.

If you are talking about m43 lenses, it is not correct. It is your position that does anything to face, and 25mm lens is same as 50mm FF. 85mm is really hardly usable in m43 for such tasks.

vicharris

Ok.

If he continues this conversation in the correct thread, I'll back my point.

peaceonearth

I used the GH2 with the 25mm Voigtlander for medium shots or american MCU quite often and I like it very much. If you use ND you can open open aperture and get a nice shallow depth of field. Much better than with the 12-35 and also nice embedding into the ambience. In my interview shots it is mostly requested to show ambience what the person is talking about

e.g.:

I rarely use longer lenses than 50mm for interviews on a native 4/3rd sensor.

Your mileage may vary ;-)

Rambo

I use 20mm f1.7 Panasonic ( focus locked) with ND for interviews mostly, I see interviews and portraits as two different things. 20mm gives a nice head and chest shot from around 2 1/2 to 3ft and close enough for good audio from a camera mounted ext mic if required ( Rode Video Mic Pro). I've not noticed nor has anyone ever complained of face distortion with this lens, it's there, but you can only see it if do A/B comparison with an 85mm. It is noticeable if you shoot closer, say just a head shot, but head/chest is fine.

http://m43photo.blogspot.com.au/2011/01/comparison-lumix-14mm-vs-lumix-20mm.html http://www.stevehuffphoto.com/2011/02/16/the-panasonic-14mm-2-5-micro-43-lens-review-by-steve-huff/

stoney

Samyang or Rokinon 35mm 1.4 on m43 would be nice for interview.

rockroadpix

I'm not usually a fan of using primes for interviews. The Voigt 25 is a great all rounder and I like it in a pinch, but I'd rather have a range instead of having to break off the MB, pull the lens, etc...

I do have a Zeiss 35 that I rarely use. I may have to break it out more often.

vicharris · Screen Shot 2014-01-21 at 4.01.40 PM.png

GH2 and Rokinon 85mm.

vicharris · Screen Shot 2013-11-02 at 11.05.25 PM copy.png

BMCC and Rokinon 85mm

vicharris

Yeah, an 85mm is crap for CUs and talking head stuff :)

astraban

It's not crap, you just need the room to use it (not always the case on some crappy office where I'm forced to shoot no matter what I say about scooting for a better place) :-) But when you have the room, it's aesthetically perfect (and less impressive for the talent)

stoney

85mm on m43 looks good for the close up shot (neck and face). 35~50mm on m43 seems good enough for medium close up shot (chest up). I meant the shortest focal length with very negligible perspective distortion. But I see the point of Rambo about 20mm 1.7.

Rambo

It also depends on the situation. If you have heaps of setup time in a controlled environment etc then sure go for it, use the technically correct equipment. However if the situations like, you've just leaped off the back of a jetski with your 2nd camera is deep inside 3 waterproof bags, you whip in out, rush over to the interviewee and say "hey can I talk to you about what you just did before you head off for a warm shower" a 20mm with variND and external mike works well in that situation, as it's opportunistic instantaneous live video capture and the interviewee won't walk off while you're fumbling with a big lens from 15ft away and wireless audio setup. For live events, it's ideal, but so is a camcorder. Just don't ask me to shoot a wedding, those guys have my respect.

vicharris

@Rambo Bro, all I can say is all of your experiences and work habits far exceed anything the regular guy does on a daily basis! You just get what you can when you can get it without a second just but still make it look damn good. :)

RatLabProductions

For sit down intv nothing handles the human features as well as an 85mm. Anything wider than 50mm can distort the human face depending on distance to subject. Even with the 2x crop factor I always try to get the longest focal length I can to avoid wide angle face distortions.

vicharris

/\ :) I use a 24ish or 35mm for the wide and the 85mm for the CUs. Of course these are not mft lenses.

SeekingHeartwood

this is overkill for most small gigs, but i was working on a feature doc and wanted as many options as possible, so i used 3 cams for every interview, the panasonic/leica 25mm for a wide, an old zeiss contax 50mm f1.7 for a tighter shot, and finally the olympus 75mm for a really tight face shot for emotional close ups, etc. this sample image from the press kit shows some of the variety.

vicharris

/\ Yet again I'm proven wrong :)

Rambo

@vicharris, yep, don't ask me why i chose this style of work, it pays peanuts and ruins gear, but it is fun. Actually had the 20mm - 85mm scenario on the weekend in Perth WA. Here is a snapshot from the video with 20mm panny and the other a 85mm Canon on a 60D from another guy. I was 3ft away, the Canon guy was approx15ft. His audio failed so he borrowed mine, i had VMP on GH2 flashmount and separate backup audio Zoom H1 with Cheap lav stuffed down the guys shirt. You can see my hand in the frame on the right hand side of his shot. Canon looks soft hey?

vicharris

@Rambo Always the up most respect sir!

As far as the ft difference, I get about 8ft at the most with an 85mm but like I said, we live in two different worlds :)

goanna

It's not a portrait. To stick with the one-on-one interview genre, use something close to a 60mm equiv. Shot just over the interviewer's shoulder, it flatters the face nicely and gets an eyeline close to the interviewer's POV while still conveying the impression of being close to the talent.

In micro 4/3, I like a Sigma 30mm. Yes, the Samyang 35 should be excellent.

vicharris

@goanna If you're talking about non mft lenses, that 35mm is just on the cusp of usable in terms of distortion. You're still going to have all the characteristics of the lens and nobody would ever use a 35mm lens on a 5d for example for MCU or CU interview stuff. If he's only going to use one and move back and forth, wouldn't a 50mm be a safer bet? I shot a pilot last year and when I went handheld, I wanted to of course go wide for stability but the widest we could go was the Rok 35mm on the BMCC due to it distorting faces and I was pretty far back, say maybe a medium on three people standing up.

Now if all the MFT lenses are designed just for the smaller sensors and the standard 35mm format and lens distortion does not apply, then that's a different ball game.

goanna

Just as listeners can tell how close a microphone is being held to a sound source, the focal length is also a dead give-away. Each interview has a genre. A wide lens for @Rambo style (reality TV?) genre, A really long lens for a vox pop in the street where the subject needs to be isolated and the passing strangers blurred. Two seated people talking a metre and a half apart need the A camera pretty close with a 60mm equivalent lens. ENG crews in the field learn to get into this snug position within seconds and do it all day - with a zoom lens, of course, but almost always around the 60mm setting - and that's the look we associate with television news.

A M4/3 DSLR needs all the control it can get: if possible a 2-camera shoot, seating and a tripod, perhaps with a slider - And a good prime.

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