Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

Thierry, What adaptor mount are you using on those Sigmas and Tokina lenses? I ordered Nikon and Canon adaptors from MTF weeks ago but never heard back about shipping dates.

I'm looking at the Nikkor AF-S 300 ED-IF but it's autofocus design probably necessitates a short focus throw. Long throws is a rarity in newer lenses - suggestions anyone?

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

I got the last Nikon to F3 adaptor MTF had in stock. They are having an other 100 batch being made so, I assume things are a bit jammed up. Too much success.

Thierry.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

Brian, simply send them an email asking for at ETA. They are very good at responding within a day or two.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

Thanks Andrew. Mike Tapa replied they will ship this Friday, fingers crossed.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

I've been out shooting some footage around Iceland today with a Tokina ATX-Pro 28-70 and a Nikon 18-135 DX lens. Both lenses have produced excellent images, but the lack of iris ring on the Nikon DX lens makes it hard work. The Tokina has a traditional iris ring, so I can see what the f-stop is and thus have a rough idea of my DoF and where I am in the relative to the lens's optimum performance. I can also judge when it might be a good idea to change the amount of ND I'm using. With the DX lens, I have no idea of what the f-stop is, so have to best guess everything.

Not buying any more lenses without iris control on the lens body.

Of course PL lenses have nice big iris rings!

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

That's helpful for me Alister, I've been debating whether to buy a Nikon 28-70 which has an iris ring or to bite the bullet and spend more for the 24-70 which offers the wider image but no ring.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

I just bought a couple Zeiss ZF.2s, 50mm F1.4 and 85mm F1.4. Mostly for sitdown interviews. Pretty darn nice and very smooth focus ring.

Thierry.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

I compared my old AIS Nikon primes 28 f2, 35 f1.4, 50 f1.4, 85 f1.4 and 105 f1.8 to some Zeiss and the Sony's on an F3 and was disappointed to find they didn't hold up wide open, by 2.8 they were great, but I'm going for the ZF's as well. The 80-200 f2.8 was great as are all those f2.8 Nikon ED zooms.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

Where did you order the Canon EF mount from for the sony? I talked with mtf and they said they only have the FD Canon mount. Let me know cuz I want one!

Sigma 50-150 2.8
 

I'm been using a Sigma 50-150mm 2.8 zoom for interviews. I had to hold my nose when I bought it--Sigma lenses aren't generally my favorites-- but this is the only 50-150mm I could find.
It's sharp enough at 2.8, and, in a normal size room I can get a decent medium shot and a close up without moving the camera. Plus, it holds focus. The physical length of the lens doesn't change when you zoom. And it was only $500. Hopefully, it won't fall apart, like my last Sigma did.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

What Sony adapter are you using and which Sony lenses do you have?

On a side note, can you guys provide situations where you use a 135mm lens? My favorite lens of all time is a Sony 135mm STF (Smooth Transition Focus), but at $1300 and an effective length of ~200mm, I am having a hard time justifying purchasing it for video use (TVCs & Docu).

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

I have the MTF adapter Nikon to Sony F3. The Sony's were just the kit lenses. I'm not sure if I was clear before, the Sony's were sharp , it was the old Nikkors that were weak when wide open.

Jim, never considered the Sigma 50-150 before but it is a perfect length for interviews. I've use my 80-200 Nikon f2.8 in the past on 35mm adapters and its beautiful, but the additional width would be nice. Are you happy with the Sigma? Have you compared it to a high quality Nikon?

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

The Red 50-150 is this Sigma rehoused. Coupled with the 18-50 it's a handy pair, and yes, it's great for interviews. It's the tight shot in those grabs I posted in the other thread.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

The Ruby 14-24mm from Focus Optics is a beautiful rehoused Nikon but it's priced close to a F3 body. Yeah love the big focus scales marked $$$$$.

Re: PL or stills glass - my 10 cents
 

Jim, never considered the Sigma 50-150 before but it is a perfect length for interviews. I've use my 80-200 Nikon f2.8 in the past on 35mm adapters and its beautiful, but the additional width would be nice. Are you happy with the Sigma? Have you compared it to a high quality Nikon?[/QUOTE]

For what it costs, and what I'm using it for, the Sigma is OK. The most important test is whether my clients like the way it looks. So far, they do. I'm shooting with it between 2.8 & 4, to keep the backgrounds soft.

I've compared this lens to the Nikon 70-200, but not with charts. Just swapped them out, while looking at a field monitor. One thing: the Sigma flares more. But, with interviews, flare isn't usually a factor.