JordanWright

I'm currently putting together a set of the smaller, more uniform Contax Zeiss Lenses, I'm going for the 28mm 2.8, 35mm 2.8, 50mm 1.4, 85mm 2.8. (all MM) You could add the 135mm 2.8 if you want something longer, its really cheap... Although It can get expensive if you need the wider lenses. They might not be a fit for you as you like larger lenses. Part of my reasoning for choosing these models is that they are all really well built, fully metal and have long focus throws. They all have a 55mm filter thread, Similar in weight (+-30g) and they are very similar in size. They also all have the same speed. (I'm treating the 50mm as a 2.8, as i've read its slightly soft wide open and the others are quite sharp, so it'll match better.) So far i've got the 35mm with the 28mm on the way to me and found them under £200 each, I've seen the 50mm go for a similar price and the 85mm go for slightly more but Ill need to get some more work in before I pick those 2 up haha. Include Leitax conversion mounts into your budget though as those cheap adapters are as good as useless. Mine are on the way now. Tilta sell seamless follow focus gears in all sizes for £2.50 each! Haven't tried them yet but can't go wrong at that price. You could convert them all to 77mm but my plan is to keep them all at 55mm and take advantage of the small size and really cheap filters.

Looks like the first colour is shipping on Friday, kinda crazy that these will be shipping to customers with barely any released specs & very little sample footage... I guess the Red guys have a lot of faith in the product. At least it looks like the wheels are finally in motion for the camera to get in the hands of users so we can actually see some footage shot. For me the interesting thing about this camera is that it has a global shutter and close to Helium's claimed '16.5+' dynamic range. It'll be interesting to see how it actually stacks up. The form factor looks great too, small but easy to rig.

A few stills from a shoot last night all on the Pocket 4K XL and CZ 35mm 2.8.

Just ordered 2 Leitax Adapters (spare one for the 85mm 2.8 that i'll inevitably buy) & The screwdriver Leitax recommend. Ive been told by Leitax it could be up to 10 days until dispatch & up to 2 weeks postage time... fingers crossed its a bit quicker than that! Hopefully I don't strip the screws. Would be very interested if anyone has any experience changing the mounts themselves, Simmod lenses recommend heating up the screws with a soldering iron before unscrewing to melt the glue... time to source one of those I guess haha!

I found the hairspray trick to work quite well

Anyone know anywhere in the UK to get Contax Zeiss lenses permanently modded to EF?

Just picked up a Contax Zeiss 35mm 2.8 MM for a great price on eBay. Will post some sample images when it arrives! Anyone have any experience with the F2.8 Contax Zeiss set? Will likely try to build and cinemod out a set if I like it... This good deal could end up costing quite a lot haha

The Tokina is the lens I always seem to go back to. I think this is my 3rd copy, I'll probably never let it go again. I paid much less than £200 each time. I sold the Sigma zooms because I rarely used them after my most recent copy. Mechanically it's a dream at its price point. The lens doesn't extend and the focus ring has hard stops. It would make a great cine-mod lens. It also has a short throw, good for handheld pulling. The zoom ring is quite stiff, you won't be zooming mid shot. It feels well built, it'll survive a few knocks. The AF system seems to be broken on every one of these I've used, but that usually means they sell at a cheaper price. Optically, it's not the sharpest lens in the world but also not noticeably soft even wide open on a SB. This is where I sort of miss the sigma zooms. It also doesn't focus very close (0.7m) 28mm on the lens really sings when filming people, really wish I could get a bit closer. The lens also isn't par focal, but its not far off, it only needs minor adjustments. Breathing is very well controlled. On the wide end, the lens distorts a touch more than a modern lens, but I quite how it falls off. The lens flares really change through the focal length, I always experiment with the zoom when there's flares. Around 35mm if one of my favourites, you get some cool thin red rings. The lens flares very easily, I like it for narrative stuff but always have some black wrap or gaff tape on hand for corporate shoots. It's such an all rounder zoom lens to have in the bag, just enough character for narrative work but can also clean up when it needs to.

More Tokina 28-70 2.6-2.8

Wow that makes it a tempting upgrade from the 4k

Improved start up time is very noticeable. My 4k goes from switch on - ready to record in about 2 seconds.

If you pick it up, it would be great to see some sample stills & footage on the P4k! I've been eyeing up a few of the ZE classic lenses

If anything i've seen the 6k used at crazy low prices, even CVP have had a few between £1600-1800.

Check out the Fxlion Nano One & Two. I got to see them at a trade show last year and they are incredibly small and can be charged via usb-c