[UPDATE, 20 April, 8am: added some thoughts on post-production as P.S. at the end of this post]
OK, so this is admittedly subjective but here are three about-to-be-released things that will create a lot of buzz at NAB–which I’m likely to buy for my budding boutique indie feature film studio here in Hong Kong:
- Red is going to show at NAB several of their new Pro Prime lenses (RPP), on a lens projector, at a Red User event at the Rio Hotel during NAB on 22 April. Jim Jannard has posted an FAQ on these lenses and more detailed specs and comparison charts will be up soon on www.red.com. Punchline (my words): these T1.8 lenses will be as good as (if not better than) Cooke S4s or Arri Master Primes; but a set of 5 prime lenses at just under US$20K will cost about as much as a single prime lens from one of those two sets.
Moreover, Red’s primes will be totally optimized for the Red sensor in both the current Red One and new Red S35 Scarlet and Epic. I’ve seen many hours of stunning footage shot by a couple of the top cinematographers in the world using Reds with Panavision lenses (more on this in the coming months). My layman’s conclusion: cameras are just boxes to capture the image; what glass you put on front is more than half the equation. So Red’s RPP lenses finish the democratization of shooting cinema. The RPPs are in production and start shipping next week to Red owners who ordered them back last year. Red is currently sending out emails to other Red owners giving us first dibs on placing orders. We have one week to respond. I haven’t received my email yet.There are 3 other noteworthy sets of prime lenses coming out, which I find less compelling than the RPP offering. Here’s my quick summary of each:
- Ilumina S35 Lenses T1.3 primes: 18, 25, 35, 50mm & 85mm T1.3 (so amazing in low light). Cost at US$32,500 is approx. 60% more than RPPs. But won’t begin shipping until at least September, 5 months after RPPs start shipping.
- New Zeiss Compact Cine Primes: US$40K for set of 7 very small & light lenses containing the same glass as Zeiss best-of-breed SLR lenses, but totally rehoused into cine-style lenses. But they start at T2.1, so not as good as the other primes in low light.
- IB/E German-made Rebel Primes: They seem to me to just underperform the RPPs in all aspects: cost 10% more, are T1.9 (not T1.8), and are not optimized for Red’s sensors (and have a cludgy industrial design, e.g., when you change focus the front of the lenses move forward/backward, which doesn’t happen on RPPs).
- The first time I saw a gearhead in action was when I watched Goddard’s Contempt which is about the making of movies. Here is Contempt‘s real cinematographer, Raoul Coutard, playing a cinematographer in the movie, smoothly panning and tilting by spinning the wheels of a gear-head while being pushed on a dolly (around 2:30 in the Criterion DVD):
And I said “aha”, so that’s how they get those smooth shots. I want one. Then I found out you you’d have to pay around US$200/day to rent and to buy is such a big ticket item that no one seems to list the price (but I’m guessing US$20K+). Now comes the Gearnex Gearhead, optimized for Red and for under US$4k. Sweet!
- And finally, the little camera I’m most interested in, in the near future is the Panasonic GH-1. Smaller than a small DSLR, has a sensor almost as big as the Red One and shoots 24P, for approx. US$1,500, including the cine-friendly 14-140mm zoom lens coming out 24 April in Japan.
Unlike the Canon 5D Mark II, it shoots 24p (or 25p) and has auto-focusing lens in video mode–which has been made ultra silent so there’s no motor whirr (although if the 5DII is enabled to shoot RAW soon, that’d give it a significant advangate). Since the GH-1 camera is the new smaller Four-Thirds standard (i.e., the now unnecessary mirror in DSLRs has been removed, allowing for a smaller body), it takes beautiful lenses, like Leica Ms via this Novoflex Leica M to Four Thirds adapter (US$270). If you’re not feeling rich enough for the US3,500 Leica Normal 50mm f/1.4 Summilux M then you could try the apparently very good Voigtlander Nokton 40mm f/1.4 M-Mount Lens which is analagous to a 20mm lens on 35mm SLR camera–nice shallow depth of field in very low light, albeit hard to focus and manual focus only.Now all you need is a Fig Rig and tiny gyroscope and you’re making filmic movies anywhere in the world without anyone realizing what you’re doing (or you could attract the cops’ attention with one of these conspicous albeit clever RedRock DSLR rigs). Check out Rodney Charters brilliant analysis at approx. 26:00 – 33:00 on this Red Centre #29 Podcast. I know, I know, Red’s fixed lens Scarlet is coming too–but it’s bigger and more expensive than the GH1 won’t be here for 6+ months, so I may get a GH1. My roadmap (assuming the underlying business model) is to trade in my Red for an Epic X S35, and get a Scarlet S35 (for a B cam), for indie features.
But, heck, if you’re going all the way to Las Vegas for the “honey I shrunk the trade show” event itself, check it all out for yourself using Darren Finner’s excellent 4-page map of NAB floor plan with most-important sectors and booths lovingly color-coded. The map has things prioritized for Red owners and users.
And here’s the the NAB “Ted Tracker” (aka list of places where Red’s main public face, Ted Schilowitz, will be speaking and doing demos.)
P.S. If it seems I’ve forgotten about post-production, I haven’t. It’s just that I haven’t heard about anything “new and very cool” mentionable. My Red post-production strategy is: don’t chase Moore’s Law. I had a 2-hour demo of the gorgeous high-horsepower Moore’s Law-chasing Baselight at Filmmart: for US$300,000 or so, you better hire 2-3 full-time salespeople to keep it busy. My strategy is to figure out fast and efficient workflows using normal high-end Mac Pros with reasonably priced hardware accessories (e.g., Kona3 card) and powerful inexpensive software tools (FinalCut, Color, AfterEffects, Cineform, etc.). I’m awaiting the FinalCut Studio 3 with Quicktime X–but seems that the full benefit of all this (or even the release) won’t happen until Snow Leopard is released in autumn. I also really want an affordable color correcting surface that works with Color, i.e. must work over Ethernet (sorry Tangent Wave: we’ve been waiting for you for years, you’re still not released, and you’re only USB, i.e. won’t work with Color). Adobe: show me robust, proven workflows working with R3Ds natively (you’re not there yet), then I’ll start seeing if it’s worth my while moving from my very effective current elegant workflow: using RedRushes to create 1920×1080 ProRes 422 HQ files from my 4K 16:9 R3Ds–which I edit in FCP–either as off-line (for a feature to be finished in LA; conformed with Scratch and graded in Pablo) or for everything else, online. Cineform: please quit evolving your strategy biweekly and reboot your built-up-over time web site so that I have a clear picture of your roadmap and value proposition (i.e., why I should buy your plug-in, rather than use ProRes, etc. etc.). I’m a big fan and old friend, but don’t have time to mess with lots of buggy betas.
P.P.S. I won’t be at NAB this year–instead listening to music in the desert…
Thanks..
Great search and info.
I think I will order a set or 2 of the RED prime, as soon as they open for to sale..
Percy
I have to say I am sceptical that the RED Primes will be better than a set of S4Cookes. or even Zeiss Master primes. Its all about the glass and the mechanics and also most importantly physics. You cannot produce a lens for nix $$$ and expect it to be the best lens around. CLAIM what you want but REDS 18 to 50 is total rubbish and you can buy them for doorstop prices anyplace.
Unless you spend a lot of money on the glass and mechanics the LOSS of DEFINITION will be apparent. Red have not yet perfected the setting of the back focus on a camera. It can be as much as 0.003 wrong thats plus and minus. Film works to a tenth of that figure. The faster the lens the more accurate the focul depth has to be.
Argue all you like those ARE the facts and no amount of clever journalism will alter them.
TD.
Tony Covell,
I don’t make the claims about Red Pro Primes (RPPs). Red does. And I tend to believe Red, as they’ve delivered on their promises in the past. I find it interesting that you post this hostile attack on Red lenses here, and not on Reduser.net Nothing this brave amongst your other comments
http://www.reduser.net/forum/search.php?searchid=4058042
You arrogantly write, “Argue all you like those ARE the facts and no amount of clever journalism will alter them.”
But let’s look at the so-called “facts” you present:
1. I challenge you to post a link here showing the “REDS 18 to 50… for doorstop prices”–there’s not a single listing on eBay for one of these lenses, at any price. A browse through reduser.net shows someone selling the lens for US$5300 used. So this is not a “fact”, but rather an unsubstantiated smear.
2. The RPP lenses are not out yet. Red has mentioned that their original 18-50 zoom was not “pro” quality, but the RPPs most definitely will be. So any claims by you about problems with RPPs back focus are not “facts” but idle speculation.
3. You write, “You cannot produce a lens for nix $$$ and expect it to be the best lens around.” However, remember that many, many skeptics of the Red One said a couple years ago” “You cannot produce a 4K digital camera for nix $$$ and expect it to be the best 4K digital camera around.” And they were dead wrong. So your claim is not a “fact”, but an pompous outdated opinion.
By all means, don’t buy the RPPs. But don’t snarlingly and bombastically spread FUD on my blog. I and others will be buying the lenses and making money and movies with them.
You sound to me like a bitter Luddite with a vested interest in traditional much more expensive cine lenses, thus non-objective.
-Dan
Dan,
I had a chance to see the RPPs at NAB (on the projector) compared to MPs and S4s and it was abundantly clear that the RPPs exceeded both lenses in clarity, image brightness, focus (edge to edge) with a larger image circle. I was stunned. One may feel after using them that the image won’t have “character” but frankly I doubt you’ll find better lenses for the money…Who knows maybe the prototypes where over engineered as compared to the production units. I’m eagerly awaiting the first images (OffHollywood received there set)
Cheers
hey lots of good info thanks, my question is can i use these lenses to shoot on a arri motion picture camera with film. if so will they perform aswell as on the red camera? i know it says they are calibrated for the red one scensor.
Hi Isaac,
Yes, you can certainly use Red Pro Primes to shoot on an Arri film camera–with great results. While the lenses are optimized for Red’s digital sensor, they are bonafide good 35mm cinema lenses. The lenses are sharp and produce beautiful crisp cinematic images. If you want to add organic aberrations (grain, softening, dirt & scratches, etc.), you can do this well and easily in post.
cheers,
Dan