Please could someone explain to me why some people maybe using Nikon lenses on the 5dmk2. Does this mean I will get full manual control over shooting video or is it just a quality issue?

For manual iris control.


-Bill

Mark,
You get a Canon to Nikon lens adaptor that will not work the AF and IS functions due to no electrical connection. The Nikon lenses are available used or new and some are as good as the new Canon AF lenses but without the features. The need for manual control of iris and focus is for depth of field control, the frame rate of the camera is nominally 30 fps but it does adjust speed of frame exposure of too much light appears... aka shutter speed ... and if you give it too little light, then it wil lcrank the ISO up to get correct exposure, so it's not completely manual in that respect.

The other solution is to use the AE lock ... point at your brightest object, push AE lock (this only works if you're not in any of the 'auto' modes) and it will hold pretty solid at that fixed setting until you go out of range - too dark or light for the onboard exposure computer to be happy, in which case it will flip back into auto mode.

Used carefully and with practice - it allows panning shots with a fixed exposure.

Thanks Tony,
Sounds like it's best to use the AE lock way and get that mastered. Just to get it right though, what you are saying is expose for your highlights then hit Ae lock. On that point I have noticed you can only use AE lock when you start to record video is this right?
Mark

We use Nikon lenses AND Exposure lock.

I can set the aperture to whatever I want with a manual Nikon lens. I can also set it with a Canon lens, but I have to hold the DOF preview button and untwist the lens. In that case I lose the manual functions anyway, but I also risk the lens falling off.

With the aperture fixed, now all we have to worry about are shutter speed and ISO. We've found that by shining a light into the lens we can get 100 ISO. Hit the AE Lock button, and you can now adjust the shutter with the exposure compensation control. Alternately, you can lock the shutter at 1/40 and then adjust the ISO to whatever you want.

It's not ideal, but it works. You can also play games with a Canon lens by shining a light, locking AE, and then using exposure compensation, but the camera now plays games with three variables, rather than two. It makes it much harder to get what you want.

It's critical to be able to get back to back shots have the same settings - especially iris and shutter - otherwise the look will change from cut to cut within the same scene.

All Canon has to do is to let the settings "stick" when we press "record." I can set everything manually for Live View in Exposure Simulation mode, but the camera goes full auto once you start recording video. That change would require no changes to the printed manual, and no changes to the on-screen-display.

If they made that change, I'd buy Canon lenses over Nikon lenses. I'd also feel better about the Canon brand every time I use the camera. As it is, the flashlight thing is a constant and unavoidable irritant.

Hi All,
One of my complaints has been the playback of the Canon .mov on my laptop.
In the search for a 'fix' I accidentally did the right thing. I downloaded and installed the latest VLC media player. Nope..it won't playback the H264 - BUT ..suddenly the ZoomBrowser EX that came with the Canon software utilities WILL playback the .mov files JUDDER FREE!
AMAZING!!???

This is from a 5400 500MB 2.5" Samsung laptop drive. Whoever would've figured this???

With the aperture fixed, now all we have to worry about are shutter speed and ISO. We've found that by shining a light into the lens we can get 100 ISO. Hit the AE Lock button, and you can now adjust the shutter with the exposure compensation control. Alternately, you can lock the shutter at 1/40 and then adjust the ISO to whatever you want.

It's not ideal, but it works. You can also play games with a Canon lens by shining a light, locking AE, and then using exposure compensation, but the camera now plays games with three variables, rather than two. It makes it much harder to get what you want.
I don't know exactly what to think. Is it effectively possible to control the three parameters then?

... Is it effectively possible to control the three parameters then?...
Here's the basic procedure:

1) Put the camera in manual mode.
2) Start Live view
3) Press the shutter button halfway, so you can see the settings
4) (Optional) Offset the exposure compensation to one or the other extreme to give you more range of control, as needed.
5) Shine a light or shade it as needed to get the camera to change settings.
6) Hit the AE Lock button.
7) Adjust the exposure compensation.
8) Keep hitting the shutter button half way, so it doesn't time out.
9) Hit record.

The three parameters will change, but certain settings are impossible. You might think you're close with the flashlight, then the next parameter goes haywire. It takes practice to get what you want - and you have to accept what the camera is willing to deliver.

At least with a manual lens, I can repeat my settings. I can get any ISO at 1/40, and any shutter at 100 ISO. I can also get 1/30 and 3200 ISO easily.

Juggling all three parameters is more limiting, and much harder to lock. Hit the AE Lock button a moment too early or too late and you get to start all over again. Also, the iris control only seems to allow full open, full closed, f/5.6 and f/22 (from memory) - and those are only available with their own sets of shutter and ISO.

So, not only can you get any aperture and get repeatable and usable settings with a Nikon lens (or untwisted Canon), but you can learn how to do it pretty quickly. With a Canon lens, settings are more limited and can be hit and miss.

I enjoy using Zeiss Contax mount lenses with an AF confirm chip adapter on a canon.

Why oh why did those half blind developers cut off the legs of heir first son - just because of investors profits?

Another positive thesis of mine would be that they hopefully didn't have the capacity to manufacture all the lenses and cameras, to be demanded when they didn't cripple it...
... imagine all those meter-and-a-half long developers coming up with different limitation ideas and sensor readout patterns to deteriorate the image quality, at least they got some fresh schoolgirls for bonuses, or those saddle type WCs, or those maybe not so cool TV shows. That, in the other hand, makes me think that if the western culturosphere makes someone to execute an entire school what would those guys do when they realize what have they been doing for their entire life?

T

Does the focal length change the shutter speed after locking the exposure or during the recording of video? . . . or only for photos?

wHAT ABOUt just using the un-mount lens trick to get Canon EF locked into the aperture it was set to before the lens was decoupled from the electronic contacts?

just press the lens release and unscrew the lens by 2mm or so..

Beats buying a whole new set of Nikon lenses.. especially if you already have good canon fast primes that's not available on the nikon side..

wHAT ABOUt just using the un-mount lens trick to get Canon EF locked into the aperture it was set to before the lens was decoupled from the electronic contacts?

just press the lens release and unscrew the lens by 2mm or so..

Yes, this works. Note that you should press the DOF Preview button while unscrewing. That ensures that the aperture is as you set it.

The drawbacks are these:
1) You risk dropping the lens. (I've nearly done it.)
2) To adjust the aperture again, you need to screw on and go through the process again. (Not a big problem, but not as simple as an aperture ring.)
3) You lose the IS and EF functions (which the Nikon lenses don't support anyway.)

But if you already have the EF lenses, go for it. You might get a safety strap for the lens, so you won't drop it to the floor. There are lens cap straps that could be made into safety straps.

Any chance someone could film what they are doing when they unscrew the lens etc & post it on Vimeo or something like that it would be a lot easier if you could see someone doing it
Many Thanks
mark

this is an old thread but i'm sure it was made before the 5d firmware upgrade. my question is, now that the 5d has manual control via the firmware upgrade, are canon lenses the preferred ones to get or is there still an advantage of using a nikon w/ adaptor? thanks, just want to clear things up before starting my selection.

Hi
Yes it is an old thread I started before the firmware upgrade. I have just shot a film with the 5dmk2 and I used Canon lenses 24-70 f2.8L & 70 -200 f4L They are great lenses. I think there is an advantage if you were shooting film to find an adaptor to let you use Panavision lenses or zeiss distagons we didn't have the budget as they are very expensive but otherwise the Canon L series lenses are fantastic especially the 50mm f1.4L & the 85mm f1.2L

... the Canon L series lenses are fantastic especially the 50mm f1.4L & the 85mm f1.2L

You probably meant the 50mm f/1.2L. The 50/1.4 USM is nice, but has significant barrel distortion. Just be careful using it near straight lines. I'd love to have the f/1.2L, but I still can't justify the price. I need to rent it someday...

Yep that's it the 50mm f1.2L