FS-100/Nikon Lens Combination

It is par focal, however, you must focus at a longer focal length and then go backwards. The way
you mentioned isn't how it works, quite the opposite actually.
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I do not understand , why all the time I have to take focus at a longer focal length . Why I can not start from 80 and zoom in to 200 ? Okay I am in church , newlyweds front of me I want to zoom in , and I CAN NOT DO IT . Why , because I lose focus .
Sorry guys I am new with camcorder which let me play with many lens . Is all zoom lens behave like this ? . Do I have to always take focus at a longer focal ? It does no matter what brand of lens I use ?
 
On B&H Photo's website, they have a column to narrow results by f-stops: f/2.8, f/3.5, f/4.0
If the difference between f/2.8 and f/4.0 is only one stop, then f/3.5 must be a half-stop.
Maybe ????????
Hey, I'm still learning here.
 
steditrak said:
On B&H Photo's website, they have a column to narrow results by f-stops: f/2.8, f/3.5, f/4.0
If the difference between f/2.8 and f/4.0 is only one stop, then f/3.5 must be a half-stop.
Maybe ????????
Hey, I'm still learning here.
Click to expand...

between 2.8 and 4 will be a fractional stops. Usually third of a stop increments. In bold are the main stops.

HTH.




f/No. 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2 2.2 2.5 2.8 3.2 3.5 4 4.5 5.0 5.6 6.3 7.1 8 9 10 11
 
Ahhhh...


That explains it.


Thank you!


I learned something new today.


OK so now that I know it's "third of a stop increments", I still say f/2.8 is better in low light than f/4.0


Is it worth the higher price tag?


That all depends.


Suppose you could get your hands on a Nikon 80-200 f/1.2?


How much would you pay for THAT lens?


I'd buy it.
 
2.8 is better but not that much considering how cheap a 4 can be.

A 1.2 would probably be around £50k

Check the 200 f2 if you really want lo light!
 
I can't imagine shooting on the long end at f2.8 let alone f1.2. It would be a bizarre look.

There is only so much bokeh a shot needs after all.

The f4 would be more practical on so many levels IMHO.
 
tom1 said:
I do not understand , why all the time I have to take focus at a longer focal length . Why I can not start from 80 and zoom in to 200 ? Okay I am in church , newlyweds front of me I want to zoom in , and I CAN NOT DO IT . Why , because I lose focus .
Sorry guys I am new with camcorder which let me play with many lens . Is all zoom lens behave like this ? . Do I have to always take focus at a longer focal ? It does no matter what brand of lens I use ?
Click to expand...

Yes, all zooms do this unless there is some sort of auto-focus assist which is not available on the FS100. When it does exist it generally fails right in the middle of a crucial spot.

If you focus on your subject while in a wide shot then zoom in, any very slight missed focus will be magnified once zoomed in. For that reason you MUST zoom in, focus up then pull out to reframe, if you need to tighten up on the subject you can do so without losing focus assuming you or the subject hasn't moved. This is only true for parfocal lenses, a varifocal lens will need to be refocussed for every new focal length. You'll get used to it.

Part of the skill of the camera operator is knowing when to quickly zoom in, get focus then zoom out so minimal footage is lost. Normally you would edit these refocusses out with a cutaway or you would learn to focus while zooming. These are skills that any competent camera operator is expected to have. This is another reason why I like the older Nikon lenses with their push/pull zoom and focus action even if it's a varifocal lens it's easy to focus while zooming with one control.

You can get away with sloppy technique with small chip camcorders because everything is generally in focus all of the time but that's not the case with a large chip camera and nice fast lenses.
 
The E-mount with adapter seems to me to be kind of weak and I am very worried about using heavier lenses with it. What type of lens support are you guys using with these heavier lenses on the FS100?
 
David G. Smith said:
The E-mount with adapter seems to me to be kind of weak and I am very worried about using heavier lenses with it. What type of lens support are you guys using with these heavier lenses on the FS100?
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Good point. There is a purveyor of lens supports who is often found on these very threads. I'm sure he could chime in and offer words of wisdom.

I don't use lens support and try and keep my lens selection as light as possible.

The 80-200 f2.8 is 1.3kg and on the end of an adapter too so you'd probably better off supporting the lens instead of the camera if you don't use rails. Which is not ideal from a monitoring point of view.

The 80-200 f4 is 800g which should be fine unsupported but on the upper end of what I would use unsupported.
 
There comes a point where you mount the camera onto the lens, rather than the lens onto the camera.

I could hear my FS100 wimper in discomfort when I attached my Tokina 80-200 f2.8 - it will do it, but don't try and move the camera about. I've seen pictures of the JVC HD100 with a DoF adaptor and a huge lens, and the droop is painful to see.

It's at this point we all have to shrug and buy a rods system, and a funny little gadget that supports the lens. Not for when we're shooting, but for when we're moving around.

With so much mass hanging around, it's when you mount or dismount the camera, or put it on the floor, where the damage happens.
 
I realize the Nikon 80-200mm f/4 is cheaper than the Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8.


I know.


But there are three things the Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8 AF-S lens has in common with my Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8 AT-X:


The same Nikon lens mount - No need to buy another adapter


The same aperture of f/2.8 - they can handle low light situations with identical results


The same filter diameter of 77mm - No need to buy more filters


And one thing that sets it apart:


The 80-200mm f/2.8 has a rotational zoom ring. The Nikon 80-200mm f/4 has the push/pull type. I find the rotational zoom ring more precise for video work.


What can I say? The more I see it, the more I want it.
 
A step up adapter will cost £5 to make any lens 77mm

I think you will find the focus zoom feel is far nicer on the F4 lens

You won't be able to do a nice zoom on any still lens..
 
@Steditrak

How you spend your money is entirely up to you. Good luck with your purchase.

There will be other people reading this thread that may benefit from the advice away from the f2.8 and towards the older Nikons in general.

For those that are interested:

The older Nikon AIS series lenses really are excellent choices for video work be they primes or zooms. Given they were designed for manual usage they have lovely smooth long throw focus action which vital IMHO. Compare the 50 f1.8 AIS and new G! The G is hideous for manual work.

The AIS lenses are the same fitting as the modern lenses and don't require a different adapter.

I haven't noticed any difference in image quality between the older lenses and new ones maybe they'll be more prone to flaring I don't know. I have had several Nikons from each era and at 1080p they all look like Nikon lenses apart from the 43-86 which is a junk lens bought for fun. The biggest difference is build quality and hands down the AIS lenses feel more substantial and able to survive the odd thump IMO.

The AIS zooms do use a push pull mechanism for focus and zoom and IMHO for video this is preferable and I haven't had any zoom creep when titling either. The newer Nikons tend to have zoom and focus rings so far apart that it is a two handed affair to zoom and focus up this may not be an issue depending on how you support your camera.

The older Nikons tends to be slightly slower (but not always) but given you are reading this you're probably a FS100 owner so you already know there is little difference in noise between a doubling of your ISO settings. I can't see much of a difference between 800 and 1600 iso for example so we know we can ramp up the iso without too much (if any) pain.

I would urge people new to the FS100 and wanting to buy a nice manual lens collection to have a serious look at the AIS lenses, although not until I have completed my collection of AIS primes and zooms, thanks.
 
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