best low light DSLR (for shooting video) to day for under $1500?

henryqiu said:
It's weird to me that nobody has mentioned lenses. For better or best low-light performance, you got to have a great lens for use in low light.

For the purpose below



any Canon camera (t2i etc, not to mention 5D2) plus a f1.2 or f1.4 lens will be able to get the job done. Regular room/street lights are typically pretty bright for a f1.2/1.4 lens that you should rarely need to go over ISO 1600. As for distracting noise, if you don't go over ISO 1600, you'll rarely have to worry about it. If you start with footage with reasonably low noise, you don't need to invest in a noise reduction specialty software.

My suggestion is to invest in a fastest lens to take care of your low-light scenarios.

Additionally, if you eventually get a camera with great performance at extra high ISO settings such as today's 5D3 (or a future rebel model):
5D3 + f1.2/f1.4 lens => shoot everything visible in the dark. And if you don't care too much about noise, they can capture more than eyes can see in darkness.


Digital cameras come and go. Software constantly becomes obsolete. But a great lens remains great even after many years' service down the road.
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You make a great point here! I wasn't quite thinking clearly about this but you've helped clarify this for me. thanks!
 
henryqiu said:
It's weird to me that nobody has mentioned lenses. For better or best low-light performance, you got to have a great lens for use in low light.

For the purpose below



any Canon camera (t2i etc, not to mention 5D2) plus a f1.2 or f1.4 lens will be able to get the job done. Regular room/street lights are typically pretty bright for a f1.2/1.4 lens that you should rarely need to go over ISO 1600. As for distracting noise, if you don't go over ISO 1600, you'll rarely have to worry about it. If you start with footage with reasonably low noise, you don't need to invest in a noise reduction specialty software.

My suggestion is to invest in a fastest lens to take care of your low-light scenarios.

Additionally, if you eventually get a camera with great performance at extra high ISO settings such as today's 5D3 (or a future rebel model):
5D3 + f1.2/f1.4 lens => shoot everything visible in the dark. And if you don't care too much about noise, they can capture more than eyes can see in darkness.


Digital cameras come and go. Software constantly becomes obsolete. But a great lens remains great even after many years' service down the road.
Click to expand...

I mentioned lenses in the second post and I fully agree with you. I'd rather start out with the lesser body and good fast lenses than the more expensive body and no budget left for the rest. If one can afford the best of both, then fantastic...lol
 
yes, I'm just now starting to understand the importance of good fast lenses...! I was thinking that the depth of field with lenses wide open would be so shallow that the image would be too soft to be any good but from tests I see online, that may not be the case... And is some cases soft ins't to bad...
 
pulpfiction007 said:
5.) The D7000 - Most expensive on the DSLR list, but it's worth a look- the D5100s video mode without having to do all the tricks...other than setting your aperture before entering live view. Other settings can be dialed in as you please for video
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You can set the camera to use the lens' aperture ring (vs. the wheel) via the menu system. You can also add this menu item to your "custom" menu for faster access. When set this way, you can freely change apertures, even while video is recording. Very cool and a big problem solver for the D7000 - which has really nice color rendering for video (and is likely Nikon's best value for a DSLR body overall - superb camera).
 
this thread has been extremely helpful. I think at this point I'm going to see how the GH3 fares in low light and then decide between going Panasonic or Nikon. I'm leaning toward Panasonic since it seems the lenses I would get might be more likely to be interchangeable with their higher end dedicated video cameras.

In the meantime, I'll start shooting with my T2i and Magic Lantern. Can anyone recommend a good fast wide angle prime or variable focal length Canon Lens?
 
I put nikon lenses on my canon all the time, and could put them on a Panasonic or a sony, or even, god forbid, a nikon.

You should buy a 50 1.4 and start playing with that.

The canon one is very nice, but the Nikon AIS and other older manual primes will be very nice too, also cheaper.
 
homestar_kevin said:
I put nikon lenses on my canon all the time, and could put them on a Panasonic or a sony, or even, god forbid, a nikon.

You should buy a 50 1.4 and start playing with that.

The canon one is very nice, but the Nikon AIS and other older manual primes will be very nice too, also cheaper.
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on a t2i, wouldn't the 50mm EF f/1.4 be more like an 80mm considering the APS-C magnification thing? In that case, I'd prefer a wider lens. Something good for close quarters interviews. Like sitting across a table from the subject.
 
killmaster said:
on a t2i, wouldn't the 50mm EF f/1.4 be more like an 80mm considering the APS-C magnification thing? In that case, I'd prefer a wider lens. Something good for close quarters interviews. Like sitting across a table from the subject.
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It will be the same FOV as the 50mm/f1.8 that you already own - and not that much better for low light use, honestly.

Crop factor speak unnecessary here - since you are talking about the same camera you are already familiar with, it only serves to confuse.
 
killmaster said:
on a t2i, wouldn't the 50mm EF f/1.4 be more like an 80mm considering the APS-C magnification thing? In that case, I'd prefer a wider lens. Something good for close quarters interviews. Like sitting across a table from the subject.
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A 50mm lens gives exactly 80mm with the 1.6x crop factor. Once you're used to it, you simply work with it. Unless you're shooting in a very tight space, I can live with it.
 
Think I picked up a nikkor 50mm 1.4 for about $75 on ebay a couple months ago... full manual. A little softer than the 1.8 but I don't think that lens is holding me back from anything yet, as I have a lot to improve on first. I also have a t2i with ML.
 
Samuel H said:
^ just make sure they are 100% manual lenses (not all Nikon lenses will work on Canon or m43 without an intelligent adapter: only the fully manual ones will).

Also, Leica-R mount is even more versatile, as it would also work on Pentax K and Sony A http://www.similaar.com/foto/lensmount/lensmount.html
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Yes, absolutely a fantastic point. Nikon F mount is the one you want, look for the aperture ring.

Thanks Samuel!


killmaster said:
on a t2i, wouldn't the 50mm EF f/1.4 be more like an 80mm considering the APS-C magnification thing? In that case, I'd prefer a wider lens. Something good for close quarters interviews. Like sitting across a table from the subject.
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Yes, it will. It will look exactly the same as your 50mm 1.8 in terms of framing.

If you need something wider I'd recomend going after a 35mm lens, which would get cropped to ~55mm
 
I use a 28mm 2.8 as my main DSLR lens. I tested several older lenses and found the older "Series E" Nikkors to work well - with the DSLR's aliasing there's only so much quality you can pull from a decent lens anyway. People who spend on Zeiss glass may disagree, but testing lenses with stills and then video on test targets really brought this home for me. Would be another story on, say, an AF100 or BMC.

I tested a few older aftermarket lenses - Vivitars, Rokinons, etc - the Nikkors really were markedly better, across the board. I didn't test everything out there but got my hands on a few pieces.

A 50mm 1.8 is ubiquitous and cheap and very useful (hint: for $100 on eBay you can get an older Nikon film body with a Series E 50mm - this combo usually goes for less $$ than just the lens alone. There's really nothing quite as kickass as having an older, functional, hunk-of-metal Nikon or Canon or Olympus camera loaded with B&W film. Take it around with ya, and for another $50 or so you can get a developing tank and chemicals to process your own negs. Playing with different developers is awesome. Send your negs out for proof prints and enjoy your badassery!)

Just finished testing these old bad boys - 30-year old Nikon, and that 40-year old Canon is just the sh*t. Look at that thing, it's like industrial art!

testing.jpg
 
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