Camera Labs

Hey,

When it comes to shooting video I don't really know much. I have been asked to video a local play and am unsure about which lens to use.

Up until this weekend I would have used the 50mm 1.4 without even questioning (it's what I have always used and it works quite well). However now that I have the 24-105mm f4L lens which is better? Does the lens affect the video as much as it does the photograph? Also if I am videoing in low light would the f1.4 vs f4 have an affect (like it does in photography) on how well the video looked or does it work differently for video?

Any help would be great

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Camera: Canon 550D with battery grip
Lenses: Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300mm,
Accessories: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 808RC4 head, Canon 430ex II speedlite, Lowepro Nova 180AW and Lowepro Pro Runner 450AW

Oh that is so lame, every hot girl who can aim a camera thinks she’s a photographer -Stewie Griffin

Definitely the 50, provided the actors don't hop around too much. Practice focusing

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I take pictures so quickly, my highschool was "Continuous High".

Thanks Citruspers but how does aperture work on video. What is it set at as default?

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Camera: Canon 550D with battery grip
Lenses: Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300mm,
Accessories: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 808RC4 head, Canon 430ex II speedlite, Lowepro Nova 180AW and Lowepro Pro Runner 450AW

Oh that is so lame, every hot girl who can aim a camera thinks she’s a photographer -Stewie Griffin

Can't speak for Canon, but on Nikon, the aperture locks as soon as you enter video mode. So if you're shooting at F/2.8, and enter video mode, it will stay at F/2.8

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I take pictures so quickly, my highschool was "Continuous High".

OK thanks Citruspers will have to do some research into canons video mode.

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Camera: Canon 550D with battery grip
Lenses: Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300mm,
Accessories: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 808RC4 head, Canon 430ex II speedlite, Lowepro Nova 180AW and Lowepro Pro Runner 450AW

Oh that is so lame, every hot girl who can aim a camera thinks she’s a photographer -Stewie Griffin

For Canon you can adjust your aperture at anytime, including in the middle of a video.

As for what lens to use, remember that video is only 1080p, which is a succession of 2 megapixel images. A lot of lenses can handle 2 megapixels quite fine.

If you're going to be shooting handheld, get an IS lens. For videos, IS is muuuuch more important than for photos. If you're using a tripod, pretty much anything that has the focal length needed and an aperture wide enough to light up the scene will do the job fine.

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Cameras: Canon EOS Rebel T2i, Canon S90
Lenses: Tamron: SP70-300mm F/4-5.6 Di VC USD, Canon: EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS Lens, 75-300mm f/4.0-5.6 III, and EF 50mm f/1.8 II
Retired camera: Fujifilm Finepix s700

Thanks Jean-Pierre I quite liked using the 24-105mm but when I played it back the zoom was quit noisy. Maybe I just wasn't being careful enough.

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Camera: Canon 550D with battery grip
Lenses: Canon 24-105mm f/4L, Canon 50mm f1.4, Canon 18-55mm, Tamron 70-300mm,
Accessories: Manfrotto 055XPROB with 808RC4 head, Canon 430ex II speedlite, Lowepro Nova 180AW and Lowepro Pro Runner 450AW

Oh that is so lame, every hot girl who can aim a camera thinks she’s a photographer -Stewie Griffin

Any noise that make around your camera when using the internal mic is going to sound bad. Don't know how this translates for a mic mounted in the blitz shoe.
The internal mic doesn't really justify filming a play though.

If you follow the 180 degree rule your probably going to shoot at 1/50 at 24fps or 1/60 at 30fps so you have plenty light there.
Your L is going to do a great job if there is enough light. =)

IS like mentioned is absolutely crucial if shooting hand held.

Don't go too high in ISO for pretty result as well.

Do some testing on beforehand though and read plenty guides

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Canon 5D MkII -|- Sigma 24mm f/1.8 | Carl Zeiss 35mm f/2.0 | Canon 50mm f/1.4 | Canon 100mm f/2.8 Macro | Lensbaby Composer
Canon A-1 -|- Canon 28mm f/2 | Canon 35mm f/2.8 | Canon 50mm f/3.5 Macro

F4 is too dark for cropped sensors,if you want to film indoors too. the 50mm F/1.4 is your answer.
Still,IS is crucial for filming,but I don't know a good option with IS & bright aperture. You could use the 24-105mm,but mostly for outdoors.

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Gear: Nikon D80, 18-105mm, 35mm F/1.8, 85mm F/1.8, SB-600
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prime lenses are good for video sharp and fast aperture lenses in general 2.8/2.0/1.8/1.4 btw i'm gonna look for FD prime lenses full Manuel lenses cheaper but your gonna need FD to eos adapter for it