Canon KH-20 inquiry for EX3...

[Larry Huntington]

I'm headed back to Africa in January and I want a good all around lens that gives me flexibility with wide and telephoto shots while minimizing CA and barrel distortion. I will mainly be shooting African musicians and landscapes in the city of Bomako, Mali. Any KH-20 users out there want to share their experience or suggest another equivalent lens for this type of shooting? My price range taps out at $9,000. Thanks, Larry

[Dan Chung]

I have a KH20 on my EX3 and on the whole it is very nice, however I am experiencing some softness issues at the long end of the range on one side of the image. I had Canon and Fujinon (who make the EX adapter) guys look at it and we are still not sure what causes it. I would definitely look at the Fujinon XS17 as well and make sure you try both on your camera with your adapter to see if they are performing the way you want. Also I thought I would prefer the 20x range of the Canon over the slightly wider end of the Fujinon but in practice I keep feeling that the Canon is just not quite wide enough for my general purpose use.

Hope that helps

Dan

[Alister Chapman]

I use a KH20. I have not noticed any softness issues and I shoot a lot of airshows with it using the long end. I think the pictures I get with the KH20 are just a little bit better than I get from the stock lens, but it is not a big difference. The KH20 seems sharper but does introduce some CA. As Dan said you may find that it's not wide enough for you at 6.4mm. Of course if you need to go a little wider you could use the standard lens or Standard lens with the Sony 0.8. Th plus point with the KH20x6.4 is that it is a good long lens, quit a lot longer than the Fujinon XS17x5.5. 128mm for the Canon over 93mm for the Fujinon.

[David Issko]

I used both ends of my XS17 with my EX3 this glorious afternoon shooting 8 tennis courts. Although I could have used the extra length of the Canon, the XS gave me just enough width for that wide establishing shot.

No matter what lens you have, you can always want wider and tighter. My XS is a great overall lens without being too front heavy.

[Larry Huntington]

Thanks for your input everyone. I checked out the Fujinon XS17x55BRM-M 17x 1/2" XDCAM HD Lens on B&H and it does get quite a bit wider than the KH20. On B&H, there are two versions of the Fujinon:

Mfr # XS17X5.5RM-M
Mfr # XS17X55BRMM

Which one of these Fujinon lenses are you guys using?

It's a toss up for me, as I like to shoot nature and I like having the 20x capability- Can I put a wide adapter on the KH-20? Is there a lens that goes from 5.5mm to 128mm in this price range?

[Dan Chung]

I have the Canon wide adapter for the KH20 but it is really heavy and expensive. It also makes the EX3 far far too front heavy. I was going to get the Fujinon EX wide angle instead.

Dan

[Larry Huntington]

Good to know Dan. I am on the fence about buying an additional lens because of price vs. performance. Is the Fujinon worth $7500 for the little gain in zoom range? Is the glass much better than on the stock lens? Right now, if I were to choose, I would lean towards the Fujinon XS17 because of the 5.5mm wide range. I like having the wide range without adding w/a adapters. I feel that the 17x versus the 14x on the stock lens will work for telephoto; it's not 20x, but for my budget, this would be sufficient. Can you add a doubler to the XS17? I am new to adding new lenses, so I have lots of questions.

[Dan Chung]

Since I don't own the XS17 I am not best placed to answer your questions. However I find the major advantage of the KH20 or any broadcast lens is not just the extra range but the way in handles. I am more used to proper zoom and focus controls that are damped nicely, not that the stock lens is bad it is just I personally prefer the feel of my KH20.

For doublers you can get a variety of front mounted teleconvertors for the stock lens and broadcast lenses, but they are heavy again. Alternatively there may be a rear fitting 1/2 inch convertor from someone but it will probably be expensive and not all that convenient.

Dan

[Dave Tyrer]

Originally Posted by Alister Chapman

I use a KH20. I have not noticed any softness issues and I shoot a lot of airshows with it using the long end. I think the pictures I get with the KH20 are just a little bit better than I get from the stock lens, but it is not a big difference. The KH20 seems sharper but does introduce some CA. As Dan said you may find that it's not wide enough for you at 6.4mm. Of course if you need to go a little wider you could use the standard lens or Standard lens with the Sony 0.8. Th plus point with the KH20x6.4 is that it is a good long lens, quit a lot longer than the Fujinon XS17x5.5. 128mm for the Canon over 93mm for the Fujinon.

Is there any way to fix CA in post production? Hope it's not a silly question but so far I'm only doing stills and it can be fixed in those (hoping to move over to video in the near future)