View Full Version : Which lenses for the ex3?


Marcus Martell
September 5th, 2009, 01:54 PM
Hola chicos, maybe in a couple of months i'll upgrade my gear with a brand new XDCAM.The z1 served good stuff but it's time to change, do u think that the ex3 hd files are much better than my old z1?
My question is: The good thing of the ex3 instead the ex1 is the chance to change the lenses but now i'd like to know what kind of lenses do u suggest to use?
thx

Steve Phillipps
September 5th, 2009, 02:07 PM
A production company I work for has just got the wide angle zoom for the EX3 and it's lovely! Lots of other people have said the same - and at £2500 or whatever it is, it's an absolute steal.
After that it depends what you want to do with it. If you want macro lenses or telephotos there's a massive range at reasonable prices from Nikon, Sigma, Canon to cover all bases. Just get one of the adapters that are available now - even for AF lenses!
Steve

David Issko
September 5th, 2009, 04:04 PM
I bought the XS 17x Fujinon lens for my EX3 when I bought the camera. Swapped out lenses immediately. Very happy with the results as well as operational advantages of EX3/XS combo. Pretty much doubled the investment amount but worth it for me.

Dave McCallister
September 5th, 2009, 04:42 PM
David:

Does your Fuji 17x lens mount directly on the EX3 or did you need any kind of adaptor?
Thanks!

Dave McCallister

Doug Jensen
September 5th, 2009, 04:55 PM
David:

Does your Fuji 17x lens mount directly on the EX3 or did you need any kind of adaptor?
Thanks!

Dave McCallister

The adapter that allows you to use any 1/2" broadcase lens is included in the package when you purchase an EX3. I use a Fujinon 18x5.5 lens as the primary lens on my EX3 and I love it. I would not say that the overall picture quality is noticably better than the stock lens but it's a lot easier to use and makes my EX3 feel jsut like every other broadcast camera I've used for the past 30 years.

Doug Jensen
September 5th, 2009, 04:58 PM
do u think that the ex3 hd files are much better than my old z1?

ABSOLUTELY!!!

I still own a Z1U and there is no comparison between it and my EX1 and EX3. The EX cameras are closer in quality to the new $40,000 PDW-F800 than they are to the Z1U.

And don't overlook all the advantages of going tapeless.

Joe Yaggi
September 5th, 2009, 06:11 PM
Hi Steve,

Would you have the model number on this wide angle lens?

Best,

Joe


wide angle zoom for the EX3 and it's lovely! Lots of other people have said the same - and at £2500 or whatever it is, it's an absolute steal.
Steve

Joe Yaggi
September 5th, 2009, 06:14 PM
Hi Doug,

Could you tell me the model number of your 18x5.5? That's a 1/2 inch lens?

By the way, I bought your warm cards, slates and EX3 DVD/Handbook last time I was in the states. Great stuff, thank you.

Best,

Joe


The adapter that allows you to use any 1/2" broadcase lens is included in the package when you purchase an EX3. I use a Fujinon 18x5.5 lens as the primary lens on my EX3 and I love it. I would not say that the overall picture quality is noticably better than the stock lens but it's a lot easier to use and makes my EX3 feel jsut like every other broadcast camera I've used for the past 30 years.

Joe Yaggi
September 5th, 2009, 06:20 PM
Hey Doug,

I know this is a bit off topic but why, do you think, didn't Sony make the PDW-700 or F800 so they could record any higher than 50 mbs? There's a BBC report out that I read months ago that put 50 mbs at the bottom of acceptable full HD... I was keen to buy the 700 (wrote it into a project that would have covered about 1/4) and was actually relieved the client chose mid-range (EX3) literally for that reason of the 50 mbs ceiling...

Any ideas?

Best,

Joe



the new $40,000 PDW-F800.

Doug Jensen
September 6th, 2009, 06:27 AM
Hi Doug,
Could you tell me the model number of your 18x5.5? That's a 1/2 inch lens?
By the way, I bought your warm cards, slates and EX3 DVD/Handbook last time I was in the states. Great stuff, thank you.
Best,
Joe

Joe,
The lens I have owned for the past 3.5 years is the Fujinon HSS18x5.5BRM. However, if the model with a 2x converter had been released when I needed to by the lens, I would have bought this one instead: Fujinon HS18x5.5BERM with 2x.

I used to use this lens on my F350, but I never use the F350 anymore so now it resides full-time on my EX3.

Thank you for the nice comments about our products. I'm glad you like them.

Doug Jensen
September 6th, 2009, 06:40 AM
Hey Doug,

I know this is a bit off topic but why, do you think, didn't Sony make the PDW-700 or F800 so they could record any higher than 50 mbs? There's a BBC report out that I read months ago that put 50 mbs at the bottom of acceptable full HD... I was keen to buy the 700 (wrote it into a project that would have covered about 1/4) and was actually relieved the client chose mid-range (EX3) literally for that reason of the 50 mbs ceiling...
Any ideas?
Best,
Joe

I can't say why Sony does what they do, but they probably didn't feel there was any reason to give the F800/700 more than 50 Mbps and 422. It's beautiful. They probably felt that if someone really needed something better than that, they'd jump to an F35, F23, and record 444 uncompressed. The F800/700 will more than meet the needs of of 99% of the people it is targeted too. I'm thinking about getting an F800, but to be honest, it's hard to justify because it's too good. I don't really need a camera that good right now for what I'm shooting. But it is very tempting.

Also, don't fall into the trap of comparing Sony bit rates to the bit rates of Pansonic or other manufacturers. They are not the same thing at all. Panasonic's high bit rates are necessary jsut to try and keep up with Sony's more efficient compression. I've seen the difference side-by-side, under controlled circumstances, and the difference is amazing.

You might be interested in this: http://pro.sony.com/bbsccms/assets/files/micro/xdcam/solutions/MPEG-2_Long_GoP_vs_AVC_Comp-Strategies.pdf

Steve Phillipps
September 6th, 2009, 10:10 AM
Hi Steve,

Would you have the model number on this wide angle lens?

Best,

Joe

Hi Joe, it's Fujinon XS8x4AS-XB8. £1900 in the UK.
Steve

Steve Phillipps
September 6th, 2009, 10:21 AM
Hey Doug,

I know this is a bit off topic but why, do you think, didn't Sony make the PDW-700 or F800 so they could record any higher than 50 mbs? There's a BBC report out that I read months ago that put 50 mbs at the bottom of acceptable full HD... I was keen to buy the 700 (wrote it into a project that would have covered about 1/4) and was actually relieved the client chose mid-range (EX3) literally for that reason of the 50 mbs ceiling...

Any ideas?

Best,

Joe

BBC are OK with the 50 mb/sec though, and the EBC approved it too. One reason not to make the data rate too high would be that it'd start to compete with the even higher-end machines like HDCam SR. Another reason would be that it'd push the price too high for the target market.
You could always put a Nanoflash on one and get huge data rates - a really inviting option, particularly as they have overcranking on the way.
Stev