Lens Compression at DVinfo.net

Alicia Ferrows · December 26th, 2010, 11:41 AM

Hi, as i read endless amounts of material in regards to making films on the canon 5d (or any lens mounting camera) it is often mentioned about different lenses used to create and compress different senses of space. My question is this, do zoom lenses when matched with the focal length of prime lenses, does it create the same sort of compression? or do primes that are specifically designed for say 80mm/105mm etc give a different look to a zoom that is set to the same length. Thank you

Perrone Ford · December 26th, 2010, 01:57 PM

Focal length is focal length. Whether it comes from a zoom or a prime. So yes, the zoom will exactly replicate a prime of the same focal length. At least as far a compression of space.

Olof Ekbergh · December 26th, 2010, 01:59 PM

The angle of view is the same (or should be very close).

The main differences in lenses are:
Speed (fastest f-stop) primes tend to be faster.
Distortion (barrel or pincushion) primes tend to have less.
Size primes tend to be smaller.

Lenses also have very different out of focus looks, generally more expensive lenses have smoother OOF.
Lenses also have different contrast and color rendering. And flare and aberration varies a lot from lens to lens.

Here is a link to a really good site that reviews lenses and more for Canon DSLRs.
Canon & Nikon Digital SLR Camera & Lens Reviews

If you click on the buy button you will get the price of each lens, so this is a helpful site to explore there are lots of sample photos from each lens, and he covers many of the non canon lenses as well.

Alicia Ferrows · December 26th, 2010, 03:44 PM

you guys are the best, thank you very much.

December 26th, 2010, 11:41 AM	#1
Alicia Ferrows New Boot Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: england, london Posts: 6	Lens Compression Hi, as i read endless amounts of material in regards to making films on the canon 5d (or any lens mounting camera) it is often mentioned about different lenses used to create and compress different senses of space. My question is this, do zoom lenses when matched with the focal length of prime lenses, does it create the same sort of compression? or do primes that are specifically designed for say 80mm/105mm etc give a different look to a zoom that is set to the same length. Thank you

December 26th, 2010, 01:57 PM	#2
Perrone Ford Inner Circle Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: Tallahassee, FL Posts: 4,100	Focal length is focal length. Whether it comes from a zoom or a prime. So yes, the zoom will exactly replicate a prime of the same focal length. At least as far a compression of space. __________________ DVX100, PMW-EX1, Canon 550D, FigRig, Dell Octocore, Avid MC4/5, MB Looks, RedCineX, Matrox MX02 mini, GTech RAID, Edirol R-4, Senn. G2 Evo, Countryman, Moles and Lowels.

December 26th, 2010, 01:59 PM	#3
Olof Ekbergh Sponsor: Westside AV Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Mount Washington Valley, NH, USA Posts: 1,365	The angle of view is the same (or should be very close). The main differences in lenses are: Speed (fastest f-stop) primes tend to be faster. Distortion (barrel or pincushion) primes tend to have less. Size primes tend to be smaller. Lenses also have very different out of focus looks, generally more expensive lenses have smoother OOF. Lenses also have different contrast and color rendering. And flare and aberration varies a lot from lens to lens. Here is a link to a really good site that reviews lenses and more for Canon DSLRs. Canon & Nikon Digital SLR Camera & Lens Reviews If you click on the buy button you will get the price of each lens, so this is a helpful site to explore there are lots of sample photos from each lens, and he covers many of the non canon lenses as well. __________________ Olof Ekbergh • olof@WestsideAV.com Westside A V Studios • http://www.WestsideAVstore.com/

December 26th, 2010, 03:44 PM	#4
Alicia Ferrows New Boot Join Date: Jun 2010 Location: england, london Posts: 6	you guys are the best, thank you very much.