How practical is to shoot handheld with a Letus DOF lens attached?

Mitchell Lewis · March 9th, 2009, 03:35 PM

I wasn't talking about capturing a Hollywood motion picture. If I had that kind of control, I'd have no trouble shooting with an adaptor and prime lenses.

I'm talking about being stuck in the back of a room, all alone, having to capture an event happening in the same room. Clients ask us to do this all the time. It may be a quarterly meeting, they may have a guest speaker, etc.... But I need to be able to quickly zoom in to get a head shot and then zoom all the way back out to get a wide shot of the whole room if necessary, all without stopping.

So yes, you're correct, but I'm also correct when it comes to certain types of event videography. :)

Peter Ralph · March 9th, 2009, 03:59 PM

Mitchell - if you are stuck in the situation you describe, why are you using a letus? keeping the rig on a tripod won't help with zooming. If it was handheld you could move forward. But there are problems associated with shooting a letus handheld -

which brings us neatly back to the original question: "Is it practical to shoot handheld with a Letus adaptor?"

Carry on

Mitchell Lewis · March 9th, 2009, 04:24 PM

Sorry for the thread hijack Arif.

Pete: I'm not "stuck in that situation", that's just an example of a situation that I have work in a few times a year. The rest of the time (when I have more control of the environment I'm shooting in) I use the Letus. I LOVE how you can get shallow DOF in small rooms. Very useful. I love it. In fact I can't wait for them to release their relay lens for the EX3. Phil Bloom says you'll gain almost 2 stops. That makes it VERY useful for me. :)

David Warrilow · March 24th, 2009, 10:07 PM

Hey Arif,
I've been struggling for about 3 months trying to develop a working setup for HH with the EX1 and the Letus - and I just figured out how to do it.

My setup is predicated on two things: you have the RR shoulder mount and all it's little attachment gizmos, you have the Letus rails kit and you have a lcd finder unit (like the hood pro etc. I made my own.) where you can place your eye close to the LCD to view the image.

Wait...that's three things. Oh, well.

If you're interested I can send you some pics of my setup. What others have said here is true: it's no other way than heavy but with a counter balance it's very workable. (I'm shooting a 90% hand held movie in May with it so I guess it better be). And shooting in less than controlled, non repeatable conditions like somebody's wedding, well that would scare me.
Anyway, if you're interested...
Best,
David.

March 9th, 2009, 03:35 PM	#16
Mitchell Lewis Trustee Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Kennewick, WA Posts: 1,124	I wasn't talking about capturing a Hollywood motion picture. If I had that kind of control, I'd have no trouble shooting with an adaptor and prime lenses. I'm talking about being stuck in the back of a room, all alone, having to capture an event happening in the same room. Clients ask us to do this all the time. It may be a quarterly meeting, they may have a guest speaker, etc.... But I need to be able to quickly zoom in to get a head shot and then zoom all the way back out to get a wide shot of the whole room if necessary, all without stopping. So yes, you're correct, but I'm also correct when it comes to certain types of event videography. :) __________________ Sony EX3, Canon 5D MkII, Chrosziel Matte Box, Sachtler tripod, Steadicam Flyer, Mac Pro, Apple/Adobe software - 20 years as a local videographer/editor

March 9th, 2009, 04:24 PM	#18
Mitchell Lewis Trustee Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Kennewick, WA Posts: 1,124	Sorry for the thread hijack Arif. Pete: I'm not "stuck in that situation", that's just an example of a situation that I have work in a few times a year. The rest of the time (when I have more control of the environment I'm shooting in) I use the Letus. I LOVE how you can get shallow DOF in small rooms. Very useful. I love it. In fact I can't wait for them to release their relay lens for the EX3. Phil Bloom says you'll gain almost 2 stops. That makes it VERY useful for me. :) __________________ Sony EX3, Canon 5D MkII, Chrosziel Matte Box, Sachtler tripod, Steadicam Flyer, Mac Pro, Apple/Adobe software - 20 years as a local videographer/editor

March 9th, 2009, 03:59 PM	#17
Peter Ralph Major Player Join Date: Feb 2007 Location: Denver/Vail Colorado Posts: 254	Mitchell - if you are stuck in the situation you describe, why are you using a letus? keeping the rig on a tripod won't help with zooming. If it was handheld you could move forward. But there are problems associated with shooting a letus handheld - which brings us neatly back to the original question: "Is it practical to shoot handheld with a Letus adaptor?" Carry on

March 24th, 2009, 10:07 PM	#19
David Warrilow Regular Crew Join Date: Apr 2003 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 106	Hey Arif, I've been struggling for about 3 months trying to develop a working setup for HH with the EX1 and the Letus - and I just figured out how to do it. My setup is predicated on two things: you have the RR shoulder mount and all it's little attachment gizmos, you have the Letus rails kit and you have a lcd finder unit (like the hood pro etc. I made my own.) where you can place your eye close to the LCD to view the image. Wait...that's three things. Oh, well. If you're interested I can send you some pics of my setup. What others have said here is true: it's no other way than heavy but with a counter balance it's very workable. (I'm shooting a 90% hand held movie in May with it so I guess it better be). And shooting in less than controlled, non repeatable conditions like somebody's wedding, well that would scare me. Anyway, if you're interested... Best, David.