Adrian Barry Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 I am shooting a short film in a council estate in mid march this year, i will be using Kodak 500t through out the night time exteriors. we will also be shooting on the Arri SR 2 Question: I would be using a series of Zeiss prime distagons through out the shoot but have just come across the Zeiss superspeed primes, could any one please let me know the advantages of using the Zeiss superspeed lens'? I understand that the optimal T stop for the superspeed lens is T1.3 but want to know how the image quality will compare to the distagon Zeiss primes. I would ideally like to test the two side by side but unfortunatly our budget does not stretch that far (same old story). If any one has any other usefull information about the Zeiss superspeed primes please let me know. Thanks Adrian Barry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Brereton Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Zeiss Superspeeds are Distagons. The advantage of using Superspeeds is the maximum aperture of t1.3. This is not the 'optimal' stop, just the widest. Many people won't use Superspeeds wide open, as they are not as sharp as they would be at t2. Other people like the slight softness they exhibit wide open. Bear in mind working at t1.3 is very hard on your focus puller, particularly if you have lots of fast action. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member janusz sikora Posted February 5, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted February 5, 2007 Working with Superspeeds fast F-stops also presents an overall issue of the quality of photographic image.... Working with very low (wide open ) F-stops shifts your exposure close to within Tow portion of the curve. That means less separation!!! But shooting Low Budget ... go for it ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Barry Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 Thank you for your responses, this has helped put things into perspective for me. Would I be correct in saying that shooting at t1.3 will create a softer image due to the apateur being wide open, while t2 will create a shaper image than normal (compared to standard zeiss lens') on the super speed primes. I am hoping that by going for a decent lens that will give me a sharper image will help balence the grain created by the 500t. Thanks Again Adrian Barry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member janusz sikora Posted February 5, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted February 5, 2007 Thank you for your responses, this has helped put things into perspective for me. Would I be correct in saying that shooting at t1.3 will create a softer image due to the apateur being wide open, while t2 will create a shaper image than normal (compared to standard zeiss lens') on the super speed primes. I am hoping that by going for a decent lens that will give me a sharper image will help balence the grain created by the 500t. Thanks Again Adrian Barry I guarantee you... not untill you know about Light you will see any difference between lenses. Grain you control with light rather than Lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Barry Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 I understand what you are saying and I agree, my thinking was however that if I use a lens that gives me a better quality of image it would help to present the loss in quality I will get from 500t. Am i wrong in thinking this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Member janusz sikora Posted February 5, 2007 Premium Member Share Posted February 5, 2007 I understand what you are saying and I agree, my thinking was however that if I use a lens that gives me a better quality of image it would help to present the loss in quality I will get from 500t. Am i wrong in thinking this? Adrian..., Again... "95%" of the quality of photographic image is in Light, Lighting Style and Exposure. If your Light is not there then there is no lens in the world that will make it better. If you want to minimize granularity of film in your image you need to light for it... This means the more light the better as more light shifts your Middle Grey towards the middle of Straight Line portion of the curve and away from the Tow. This assures separation between tones... Lets put it this way... If you want Black to be Black you need to light it rather than leaving it unlit hoping for F-1.0 to give it to you... because that will make your Black as grainy grey. Speeds or not Speeds ... "Its about Light" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stuart Brereton Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Would I be correct in saying that shooting at t1.3 will create a softer image due to the apateur being wide open, while t2 will create a shaper image than normal (compared to standard zeiss lens') on the super speed primes. I am hoping that by going for a decent lens that will give me a sharper image will help balence the grain created by the 500t. The difference in sharpness between shooting at t1.3 and shooting at t2 is slight, and depending on your material, and the way in which you are viewing it, you might not see any difference. Both the standard and superspeed Zeiss lenses are 'decent' lenses, but neither of them is going to have any effect on the grain structure of your film. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
John Holland Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 Most important to me is to get enough light on to the neg ,go for the Super speeds ,i have used them many times still love them ,go for it and push it 2/3 stop if you need to . Have fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Barry Posted February 5, 2007 Author Share Posted February 5, 2007 Thanks so much for your help I understand your point, I have taken what you have said into concideration and will apply ot to my practice. Many Thanks Adrian Barry Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leo Anthony Vale Posted February 5, 2007 Share Posted February 5, 2007 I would be using a series of Zeiss prime distagons through out the shoot but have just come across the Zeiss superspeed primes, could any one please let me know the advantages of using the Zeiss superspeed lens'? I understand that the optimal T stop for the superspeed lens is T1.3 but want to know how the image quality will compare to the distagon Zeiss primes. Distagon is a retrofocus AKA inverse telephoto design, not a series. As it was pointed the 16mm Super Speeds are Distagons, though the 50mm is a Planar. In the 35mm Super speeds 35mm and shorter are Distagons, The 50mm and longer are mostly Planars with some Sonnars. Also T1.3 is the maximum stop, the optimal stop is usually 2 or 3 below maximum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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