Lightweight Pull-focus/zoom solution

One of the effects I liked to replicate in my DSLR movies was pull-focus, follow-focus and pull-zoom-focus. I used to achieve this when using my Canon DSLR with the addition of a cage and a large pull-focus wheel mechanism. Unfortunately, this added a lot of weight and made the camera almost unusable unless it was tripod mounted.

Since I got my Fuji X-T2 mirrorless camera I have sort of drifted toward a more light-weight style of camera-work and away from the use of a cage and lots of add-ons (when possible). But I was left with the problem of how to do pull-focus effects.

Then I came across the Movo Photo FF200 Manual Follow Focus / Zoom Control Lever Lens Clamp for DSLR Video Cameras. This is available from Amazon.co.uk for a very reasonable £8.95...

It's a very simple lever design which is attached to the camera's focus ring or zoom ring using a velcro strap. The great thing about it is that it's very quick and easy to attach and it fits a variety of sizes of lenses. I opted for two of these levers so I could control both my manual focus and my zoom smoothly...

It looks a bit weird but the levers work perfectly. They allow you to adjust focus/zoom from a more detached stance behind the camera (as opposed to the more 'connected' stance used by stills photographers, where they grasp both the camera and the lens). The long levers give you a nice smooth leverage over the speed of turning of the lens rings, and I find I can use these even if the camera is being used handheld.

Goodbye Canon 700D?

Yesterday I undertook what may turn out to be the last little outing for my trusty and beloved Canon 700D. The camera which got me into this whole 'DSLR video' thing!

It'll probably be a week or two before my new Fujifilm X-T2 arrives, but we have a lot of 'real life' activities going on which may preclude any more trips out of photographic/video experiments...

Over the next few weeks, builders will be remodelling our
house...I have been designated chief tea-maker!

So, the wife and I travelled out to a Yorkshire stately home to do the whole tourist thing. I took the 700D in its secondary guise of family camera to get some snaps for the wife. Here are a few of the  pictures (flash was not permitted and they were all hand-held, of course)...

No video I'm afraid - so the last video will probably be those projects I did before I left my last job. So, that's that really. The 700D will be demoted to my 'back-up' camera, plus - being Canon - it will still allow me access to cheaper specialist lenses, should I need them.

I'll be doing a video comparison of the 700D and the new Fujifilm X-T2 (when I get it) outlining the differences, advantages and why I have chosen to make the large investment in this camera upgrade. I look forward to doing that. But it is quite sad, the Canon 700D is a wonderful entry-level DSLR and has served me well as a learning tool and family camera.

Yongnuo YN 50mm lens test

Managed to finally find time to do a very quick test of my new Yongnuo YN 50mm lens (for my Canon 700D DSLR). I also wanted to do a couple of exposure tests for a location that I would be using in some interviews soon...

For a first attempt, I am pretty pleased with the sharpness and the exposures. Believe it or not, this is actually a great improvement over the old video camera I had been using for interviews!

I stuck to manual settings, I didn't try auto-tracking focus using the Yongnuo's auto-focus as this is the weakest feature in the lens. To be honest, the auto-focus on this lens is horrendously noisy!

But that's not all...
As well as trying out my cheap Yongnuo lens I got to play with a couple of other items of equipment while shooting this short test. The first item of note was my Rode Smartlav+ Lavalier Microphone and the other bit of kit in use for the first time was a 52mm ND2 Neutral Density Filter.

I've never used a Lavalier (or lapel) mic before and had no idea what to expect from it. In the past, I have used a pretty expensive shotgun mic which plugged directly into my video camera via an XLR plug. To be honest, the lav mic was a little noisy compared to a full sized shotgun mic, and it gave me a bit f hiss. But this may have been due to my inexperience. We shall see.

The Neutral Density Filter is a small bit of kit but quite important. Simply put, it is like having sunglasses for your lens!

I have been quite amazed at the low light abilities of my DSLR and it's lens (particularly the 50mm f1.8), but this performance comes at a cost - particularly if you want to shoot on bright sunny days. The lens actually lets in too much light (never thought I'd complain about that) and so you have to bang on an ND filter to turn down the amount of light you let in for particular exposure and shutter settings.

Without the ND filter, my test subjects would have been grossly over-exposed!

(Big thank you to Katey for helping me out with my sound test!)

Yongnuo YN 50mm F/1.8 lens for Canon EOS

Although I couldn't resist splashing out on my slider, if you ask what should be your first upgrade as a budding DSLR video-maker many might say 'a 50mm lens'. This is because it is a piece of kit that helps you achieve that much sought after 'film look', which is the reason so many turn to making videos using DSLR cameras in the first place.

A 50mm lens with a low f-stop capability allows you to create that very pleasing shallow depth of field effect, with the background blurred out but the foreground subject in focus.

Being as I am on a very tight budget I had to make some hard choices about my purchase. Even the fairly reasonably priced Canon EF 50 mm f/1.8 II Lens - £98 on Amazon - had me umming and ahhing so I was intrigued when I came across a review of the Yongnuo 50mm lens for the Canon EF mount.

Basically, the Yongnuo is a straight Chinese copy of Canons popular 50 mil. And being a Chinese 'clone' it comes in £56.99, which is a very attractive saving. Of course, it would be false economy if the Chinese lens wasn't any good, so I checked out a few reviews before making my choice...

Well, no surprise there. You pay your money, you make your choise. For me, in particular, the choise wasn't as simple as thinking 'well, just another £40 would get me the Canon 50mm' - for a start, £50 is £50, and additionally the Canon lens I'm really after (long term) is the Canon EF 50 mm-f/1.4 USM Lens, which is £239.38!

Like everything, at this point, I don't want to buy 'too expensive' as I am still learning.

I should have a chance to use the Yongnuo on a live project this week so I'll post up the results next weekend. Looking forward to trying it out.