Sony SELP18200 w/Zoom Rocker Tested

[JuanDiaz]

How is the manual focus on this SELP18200?

If you hated the kit lens, then you will hate the SELP18200 for the same reason, and maybe an additional reason too. I have both, and I see / feel no discernible difference between either lens when using them in manual focus model. The focus ring is fly-by-wire, and velocity sensitive - you turn it slowly, the focus creeps in the direction you request. You turn it fast, and the focus zips in the requested direction. What is difficult to do is to learn to develop a velocity of rotation of the focus ring that puts you somewhere between the two focusing speeds.

If you are a cinema style user of the camera, as opposed to an event shooter, you might also hate that the zoom motor housing bump on the bottom covers the focus ring, thus precluding the use of any normal rails & follow focus rig.

 

[JuanDiaz]

The first time I used the SELP18200, I felt as though it's auto-focus performance was significantly worse than the kit lens (SEL18200). But I guess I was just having a bad day, and / or the shooting conditions were worse than usual. In subsequent use, I see no significant difference between the two lenses in terms of optical quality, or AF performance, which is good. Well, of course it would have been nice if Sony had improved one, or both, but I guess that's too much to ask.

There has been much talk of the very slow zoom performance of the SELP18200. I can say with some certainty that this is a characteristic of the lens, and not the FS700. I happen to have a NEX6 with the kit SELP1650 sub-compact power zoom lens. When this wee little lens in mounted on the FS700, and the zoom set to the highest speed (32), it literally shoots back and forth like a race car. So clearly the FS700 is telling the SELP18200 "go as fast as you can", but the lens just can't go any faster. I suspect the reason for this is that the SELP18200 allows manual zooming, and as such must be heavily damped with that very sticky lubricant found in "fluid" video heads (if you've ever taken an old zoom lens and / or fluid video head apart, you know what I'm talking about). Because of this, the zoom motor in the SELP18200 must be geared for torque (like a truck), not for speed.

One little device that I've found really useful is the Sony RM-VD1, it's a small $40 LANC zoom controller with REC start/stop that easily mounts on the top handle. It's key interesting feature in my mind is the 2 step zoom rocker. Push lightly, it zooms slowly, push hard, it zooms fast. With the FS700 zoom control set to variable, it gives the equivalent of about speed 10, and speed 32. I find this MUCH more convenient than Sony's variable zoom rocker on the side grip. The rocker on the side grip is just horrible, it's virtually all or nothing, and getting a slow zoom is frustrating beyond words, especially when you need to concentrate on your shooting & framing, not the amount of pressure you are applying to the zoom rocker.

 

[Michael Erlewine]

Question on the SOny RM-VD1 LANK zoom controller. I only works on the power zoom lens, not on the standard FS700 kit lens, right?

 

[chromeboy007]

Thanks guys... unfortunately this servo zoom lens doesn't make the FS700 a very good run and gun cam then IMO.

 

[JuanDiaz]

Thanks guys... unfortunately this servo zoom lens doesn't make the FS700 a very good run and gun cam then IMO.

Well, I use it for sports and extreme sporting events, but only because there is no other camera I could possibly afford with the HD slow motion capability of the FS700.

But if you don't need / want slowmo, then almost any other camera could be a better event camera.

I would absolutely love to have something shaped like an EX1 or NX5U (or even the EA50), smaller sensor(s), and the same or longer HD slowmo capability. But for now the FS700 will have to do, since Sony thinks the target market for slowmo is cinematography. And maybe it is, who knows?

 

[JuanDiaz]

Question on the Sony RM-VD1 LANC zoom controller. It only works on the power zoom lens, not on the standard FS700 kit lens, right?

Correct. The kit lens is servo-ed by "Human Hand 1.0" ;-)

Also, for people who like the Sony side grip, you can run BOTH the RM-VD1 (on the top handle, for example) and the stock side grip using a LANC combiner from Manfrotto called the 521SB. This is a small black box that has two inputs for controllers, and one output to a camera LANC jack.

The Manfrotto 521SB is small enough to Velcro onto the side of the camera. If you don't have / use the 128GB flash drive, just remove the plastic cover & velcro the 521SB into that nice little slot.

 

[aly324]

There has been much talk of the very slow zoom performance of the SELP18200. I can say with some certainty that this is a characteristic of the lens, and not the FS700. I happen to have a NEX6 with the kit SELP1650 sub-compact power zoom lens. When this wee little lens in mounted on the FS700, and the zoom set to the highest speed (32), it literally shoots back and forth like a race car. So clearly the FS700 is telling the SELP18200 "go as fast as you can", but the lens just can't go any faster. I suspect the reason for this is that the SELP18200 allows manual zooming, and as such must be heavily damped with that very sticky lubricant found in "fluid" video heads (if you've ever taken an old zoom lens and / or fluid video head apart, you know what I'm talking about). Because of this, the zoom motor in the SELP18200 must be geared for torque (like a truck), not for speed.

Right, and it's also just a much heavier lens than the SELP1650. I doubt the E-mount puts out enough power to move it very quickly.

 

[JuanDiaz]

I doubt the E-mount puts out enough power to move it very quickly.

That is another point worth mentioning... with the SELP18200 attached, the more you zoom, the faster the battery level drops. And it can be very significant - for example, a full percentage point in less than 2 minutes, worst case scenario.

Overall, I'm happy I got the lens, because with the RM-VD1 on the top handle, the camera is much easier to handle in "run & gun" situations. With the kit lens, I always felt like I needed 3 arms / hands - one to hold the camera, one to zoom the lens, and one to tweak the exposure. With the SELP18200 and the RM-VD1, two hands will suffice.

But I'm with Chromeboy007 on this... very inconvenient camera for events. If not for the slowmo, it wouldn't even bear consideration.

 

[chromeboy007]

If you hated the kit lens, then you will hate the SELP18200 for the same reason, and maybe an additional reason too. I have both, and I see / feel no discernible difference between either lens when using them in manual focus model. The focus ring is fly-by-wire, and velocity sensitive - you turn it slowly, the focus creeps in the direction you request. You turn it fast, and the focus zips in the requested direction. What is difficult to do is to learn to develop a velocity of rotation of the focus ring that puts you somewhere between the two focusing speeds.

If you are a cinema style user of the camera, as opposed to an event shooter, you might also hate that the zoom motor housing bump on the bottom covers the focus ring, thus precluding the use of any normal rails & follow focus rig.

So how have you managed the manual focus on this lens? Like did it take you a while to get the hang of it?

 

[chromeboy007]

Oh, additional question. I read from a user review on B&H that you have to do a firmware upgrade to use the servo lens?

The reviews of the motor assisted focus is generally positive. So perhaps I can learn to get used to it.

 

[ksteiger]

Just shot 4 days at a music festival in the rain with a Panasonic HPX 170. Damn I wish I had the sweet images that the Sony can get... But the weather would not have been
kind to it. And frankly the control I have with with the Panasonic BLOWS AWAY what the Sony can offer in R&G mode. The servo zoom is really not up
to the task IMHO. Not to mention having to deal with the Alphatron hanging off the cam. Oh well. It is a trade off no matter what you do.
Bu the Sony is still an awesome cinema camera, period!!!

 

[JuanDiaz]

So how have you managed the manual focus on this lens? Like did it take you a while to get the hang of it?

I would describe it like driving a different manual transmission car than your own... it takes a while to get a feel for the clutch. Except in the case of the lens, it may be longer than 15 minutes driving down the road ;-)

Oh, additional question. I read from a user review on B&H that you have to do a firmware upgrade to use the servo lens?

Yes, you need a firmware update, which is only available from Sony Asia. Sony Americas still says the servo zoom firmware is unsupported, and if it breaks your camera blah, blah, blah won't support you and more blah, blah, blah. Ridiculous, but typical of Sony.

Anyway, you can get it here:
Windows: http://pro.sony-asia.com/support/download/548298
Mac: http://pro.sony-asia.com/support/download/548299

You absolutely MUST have the AC power adapter plugged in to the camera, or it won't go through with the update. Update looks and runs just like updates for the NEX stills cameras, and works on 64 bit windows (even if they say it doesn't). I read somewhere else that Mac users might have to start their system in 32 bit mode... but I don't know for sure.

 

[Niels Neeskens]

How slow can you set the automatic zoom out on this lens? I need a automatic zoom as slow as possible for time lapses?