Best lens for zooming whilst filming in the 17-55, 24-105 range

K

kawato

New member
I currently have the 18-85 Canon IS kit lens which i bought for very cheap and whilst it isn't bad it isn't great. A lot of the filming i do is extreme sports (mountain biking) and i used to do a lot of zooming whilst filming when i had my old Sony XR550 camcorder.

The proble i have is that the initial movement on the focus ring is quite clunky, causing an indexed motion as opposed to a smooth motion.

I had a look today at the Tokina 16-55 f/2.8 which ticked all the boxes for me (as it had a lovely smooth motion all the way through the range....that is until i realised it was non image stabilised.

I have an unlimited budget for this so fire away with your suggestions, just pleas be aware that this will be my workhorse lens for MTB filming and not anyhting else so the quality of the zoom is my primary concern, not the quality of the glass.

I have had a look at the Canon 17-55 f/2.8 but the construvtion of the barrell and zoom ring seems almost the same as my lens so i'm doubtful as to whether the feel and the action of the zoom will be much different.

Thanks in advance.
 
Neither lens is parafocal, thus they need to be re-focused after you zoom (they don't hold their focus as you zoom). The 24-105 is better at this then the 17-55 in my experience, but I would not rely on either lens for critical sports applications like that. You really just need a video camera.
 
Yeah, really the thing is, DSLR's aren't great for half of the filming types out there. There's a big reason why all DSLR shooters try to invest in big shoulder rigs and stuff, and it's because these cameras are so extremely prone to shake, jello, and watery images, even with IS. On top of that, even if you have a 2.8 lens (constant apeture - no flicker when zooming), or an IS lens, zooming is something that is rarely done with these cameras while recording. These DSLR's really are for a "bolted-down" production style. And then, when it comes to action sports or anything like that, DSLR video gets really out of the question, you'd be so much better off to get a camcorder or professional video camera - less shaky, button zooms, sharper images, an all-in-one package, better at documentary type work, ect ect....there's simply still such a place for different types of cameras.

With DSLR's, really the only reason to get one is for the small body and if you find yourself needing a lens adapter and don't want to fool with the adapter. Things like depth of field, major low light work, focus pulls - stuff that really adheres to film production work and set work - is really where these camera seem best suited for video mode. That's not to say anything's not possible, some great sports videos have been made using these cameras simply without having zoom, and using other features instead (like focus pulls, shallow depth of field, ect ect), but it is a different style that you might not like. Basically that's the long story short: DSLR's really force you to have a different style. That's what I'm really trying to figure out myself, I'm currently trying to decide wether I should keep the DSLR that I rarely use, or sell it and buy a camcorder that I'd simply use more often, even if for just entertainment and practice.
 
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thanks a lot for the reply guys really helpful!!!!!!

ITs not the end of the world if i can't zoom, plus which, i do other types of filming too so the 7d isn't excatly wasted!! I might go for the 24-105 in that case, it was the one i was edging towards either way
 
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