Servo zoom lens for the FS700?

[Rand Lechner]

I am looking for a decent servo zoom lens for the FS700. Sony keeps saying that they will be coming out with one since the end of October 2012. They seem to be dragging their feet. Has anyone out there had any luck with a servo zoom lens for the FS700 that doesn't cost an arm and a leg?

[Wilf Davies]

Hi I am waiting for one myself. I am aquireing quite an arsnell of fairly priced lenses for differant applications but like you and probably a lot more people we are waiting for a decent motorised zoom lens will keep fingers crossed its not to long in comeing. Thanks Wilf.

[Junior Pascual]

The power zoom lens (SELP18200) that comes with the NEX-EA50UH (and the consumer NEX-VG30H) will work on the FS700 & FS100. However, all zoom operations must be done from the controls on the lens itself. The zoom rocker on the FS700 will not control this lens without a firmware update. Same with the FS100 along with the availablity of a suitable zoom rocker/handle assembly. This was a result of me testing the lens on my FS700 & FS100 after I took delivery of the EA50UH. The servo motor is not absolutely quiet; nor is it noisy. I can hear it if I put my ear next to the lens. I have yet to test if the mic on either FS' will pick it up.

afaik, the power zoom lens is not yet available for purchase by itself.

btw, on the EA50UH, the zoom rocker on the handle will control the power zoom (11x) OR digital zoom (2x). Not both at the same time.

Jr. Pascual
49 Productions

[Rand Lechner]

Thanks for the information. I took a EA50UH out for a spin last Friday. The servo zoom on it is not internal focus and only opens to a 3.5 and ONLY when you are zoomed out to 200mm. A couple of things I liked about that camera was the ability to do about a 10mm digital zoom with a prime lens on it! I put on a 35mm and a 50mm prime and got some amazing dof, plus the ability to zoom in some. I think the servo zoom on the EA50UH is garbage. Still waiting for Sony to come out with a better, faster servo zoom for the FS700 in February.

[Tim Dashwood]

There is an E-Mount 16-50 coming soon that apparently has zoom servo.

[Alister Chapman]

The servo on the SELP18200 won't work correctly with the FS700 until it gets a firmware update. This update should come soon. The lens is f3.5 at the wide, 18mm end and f6.3 at the long 200mm end. It's not the best lens in the world, but it is useful. The zoom speed is quite slow and there can be some small focus shifts as you zoom (there is no back focus adjustment so 100% accurate zoom tracking is impossible). However it's the only lens anywhere near this price range that offers a decent zoom range. Consider that the Fujinon Cabrio 19-90mm PL mount zoom costs about $45k.

[Tim Dashwood]

Engadget claims the SELP18200 will be available to purchase in March for $1200.
Sony grows E-mount lens collection with 20mm pancake, 18-200mm power zoom

[Juan A. Diaz]

The SELP18200 is up for pre-order on B&H already. Listed ship date is Feb 27, 2013.

@Tim, the SELP1650 is the kit lens that comes with the NEX6 stills camera. I have tried it on my FS700, and it is horrible. It has massive barrel distortion, which the NEX6 corrects on the fly, but the FS700 does not. Also, zoomed wide to "16mm" (it's actually more like 14mm), it doesn't just vignette, you actually are recording the insides of the lens tube.

Also, it does not support Active mode image stabilization. The Sony store claims it does, so perhaps it's just the FS700 firmware does not handshake properly, but all things considered, the lenses other faults make this a moot point.

And finally, it does not feel like $350 lens, it feels like a cheap toy. It is best relegated to lightweight travel use on the NEX6 that corrects all it's faults via electronics.

[Wilf Davies]

Hi the lens that you are talking thats not the same lens as is on the EA50 & VG30 Thanks Wilf.

[Juan A. Diaz]

Wilf, are you saying that this SELP18200 is not the same SELP18200 that ships with the EA50:
SEL-P18200 | Wide Angle Lenses | Features | SELP18200.AE | SELP18200 | Sony

Could you elaborate on the differences?

[Wilf Davies]

Hi Juan thats the question i am asking you, Please excuse my ignorance i have a few lenses now for my 700 one of them is the stock lens which for everyday run and gun situations is not such a bad lens my question is is the new motorised lens opticaly the same but just has a power zoom.Thanks Wilf.

[Juan A. Diaz]

Oh, I thought you were making a statement, not asking a question - SORRY!!!

Everything I've seen so far on the web leads me to believe the lens I linked in the Sony UK store is the exact same one that ships with the EA50. If you look at "What's Included" on the Sony UK site, it even mentions the ALC-SH125 lens hood, and according to the guys in the EA50 forum, that's what they received on their kit EA50's. The VG30 comes with a different, petal shaped hood.

Also, if you check the specs anywhere for the EA50, it's always listed as shipping with a SELP18200 - note the P for power.

The press release for the lens mentions that something like "the lens that shipped with the EA50 and VG30 is now available for purchase separately".

Just remember that so far the zoom rocker on the FS700 does not work, it will not work until the camera firmware update is issued. Alister Chapman has mentioned this several times on these forums, and he's had a pre-release version of this lens in his hands, plus the press release mentions "firmware update required" for the FS700 as well.

I've been looking forward for this lens too. The much maligned FS700 kit lens works quite well for run & gun, which is mostly what I do, but without a 3rd hand, zooming while holding the camera steady is problematic.

[Wilf Davies]

Thanks for that you sound just the same as me.If it is opticaly just as good as the stock lens i will be happy.Its taken me quite a while to get used to my cam and which lens to use for which job but i realy miss a power zoom' when your on the move its i bit awkward to focus zoom and hold the 700 but having said that i still love it Thanks Wilf.

[Juan A. Diaz]

One would hope that the SELP18200 would have at least the same auto-focus performance as the SEL18200 kit lens.

I find it interesting that people say the kit lens has really bad auto-focus.

In a side by side comparison, FS700 with the kit lens, and a HVR-Z5U (E in your region, I think) in perfect, clean working condition, I find that neither camera particularly bests the other in regards to auto-focus, yet I've never heard anyone say the Z5U (E) has **bad** auto-focus.

The FS700 is slightly more inclined to back focus from an interviewee to a busy background, say for example leafy trees, or high contrast stripes (but face recognition can mitigate this), and even with face recognition turned off, the FS700 seems to ever so slightly favor faces when looking for something to focus on. Apart from that, I can find no major difference in AF performance.

Perhaps what is happening is that because of the shallow depth of field, if focus is even slightly off, the errors are more obvious, and for this reason people are inclined to say FS700 AF is bad. Maybe someone who thinks FS700 AF is bad will jump in and say in comparison to what... because comparing it to a tape measure and a manual focus pull on a $4K cine lens is just silly. I use my FS700 as a "poor man's" Phantom HD most of the time, but running & gunning, and the FS700 AF doesn't let me down very often.

I think it's also worth noting that I find the FS700 can AF in low light / low contrast situations better than the NEX6, in both cases using the SEL18200, and the NEX6 has a theoretically more competent contrast detect **and** phase detect AF system (my SEL18200 does have the upgraded lens firmware v2 to support CD-PD auto-focus on the NEX6).

[James Manford]

What will the SELP18200 retail for in the UK? Im considering selling mine (from my EA50) as I own a VG20 and im happy with my regular SEL18200... I could do with the cash to be honest to use towards a few other prime lenses I had in mind.