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Yesterday, we bought an iPad for the company, from the Bristol Cabot Circus store. We bought the iPad so that we had something to take with us for proposal meetings. We opted for the iPad Pro (the 12 inch version obviously, the smaller 9 inch is tiny, looks like an iPad mini). Anyway, on the way out, I had a quick play with the Zeiss ExoLens’, and at £200 a lens (they’re prime lenses, so that’s £200 for a telephoto, then an extra £200 for a wide angle), I was hoping for some great results.

Ofcourse the iPhone and it’s internal lens is still taking the photograph too, so we can’t expect a huge increase in quality, more just the angle.

I’m using the iPhone 6 here, and stood in the same place on all of the shots.

This video shows the difference between the normal iPhone camera, the Zeiss telephoto, and the Zeiss wide angle – all within video mode in the iPhone 6. Ofcourse in video mode it’s much more cropped than it is in photo mode.

The weight is noticeable when holding it in your palm, but really not a problem when comparing it to a larger camera. The lenses are small and easy to carry. Although I had no problem screwing the lens onto the mount, I think it’s a shame there’s no easier “one click” system (similar to how DSLR lenses attach), or some sort of easy release. The threaded screw ons might be a bit difficult when you’re out and about – especially if you’re at a concert or a festival or something.

When taking pictures, it’s difficult to say if there’s been any image deterioration. It really doesn’t look like there is, and why should there be?! These are reasonably pricey Zeiss lenses, and definitely not your “£15 clip on lenses” you get on eBay. I’ve uploaded them in a high resolution if you’d like to take a look (note these are straight off the iPhone with no image control on them at all).

Note on the wide angle shot below, can’t see any barrel distortion, which is very nice to see!

All images taken from the same spot.

Normal – (no Zeiss lens)

With Zeiss Telephoto

With Zeiss Wide Angle

Also, just so you know what they look like…

After 4 Months of using a Blackmagic 4K Cinema camera, we upgraded to a Canon C100 MKii. You might be thinking why?

The 4K BMPC records beautiful ProRes and also 4K raw images……… for a total, of about 15 minutes. As soon as the camera gets a little warm, fixed pattern noise begins to take over the image; to the point where the footage becomes unusable. I had tried everything to keep the camera temperature down, I had even got to the point of turning the camera off between shots. In the end I couldn’t trust it to perform, so when our project with AIM Altitude came in, we had to get something to replace it.

After much weighing up between cameras, I eventually went for the C100 Mkii. I have now been using it for 4 weeks, and these were the key things I got to love about the C100 Mkii.

1. Form Factor and Inputs

One reason I went for the C100 Mkii – is that it’s a perfect hybrid between a DSLR and a production camera. After using smaller setups like the A7s Mkii w/Movi M5, I realised the shots you can get out of a small form factor camera. However without a lot of rigging, they don’t have professional inputs and controls such as XLRs and built in ND’s.

We are all about creative shots. Either a camera is awkwardly attached to something, or inside of something to get a unique perspective. These are shots where a small form factor and low weight camera is essential.

2. Wireless Control

Wireless control was something that we thought we would only use when the camera was on a overhead slider or jib, but it has so many other uses. For example when we were setting up lighting, and had a 5K tungsten coming through a window. The wireless viewer allowed our gaffer to take his phone and see the cameras view. He could then make changes to lighting without having to go outside and back multiple times.

We also mounted the camera inside a 5-axis cutting machine. With the wireless control, we were able to quickly adjust aperture, focus and ISO without having to stop the machine. Anything that saves time on a shoot day is a massive bonus!

3. Continuos AF

We know that autofocus is generally frowned upon but it really has its uses! We had multiple shots where the camera would be on a 3-axis Kessler Cine-slider, and we would want the focus to follow the movement. The continuous AF makes this possible. We didn’t have to use any wireless follow focus systems, saving time and money.

4. Low Light

Good low light is essential for us. Having a camera that can be usable at high ISO allows us to achieve much more without having to hire in. We were using up to ISO 20,000 on scenes where we wanted to use only the ambient lighting from the machine. We found it was crucial to do a full black balance when using high ISO’s to get the cleanest possible image out of the camera.

5. Professionalism

This is a bit of an odd one. But there is an element of professionalism associated with the kit you use. A client wants to see equipment that looks impressive, it’s just a reinforcing trust thing. They want to see where their money is going. When you turn up with a DSLR, and the client says “oh I have one of those”. No matter how good the results on the final film are, it just doesn’t have the same presence when on set.

All in all…. our in-house camera, the C100 Mii is one helluva camera for the price!