On the still lens front, you have a variety of options. I am addressing this topic from a 40 foot screen digital projection perspective, not a still photography one.
ZEISS ZE PRIMES
21mm-Zeiss-ZE
Zeiss ZE primes rock. Their resolution is spectacular and they are lightweight. Their focus is alittle more cinematic then a Canon or a Nikon, so it gives your focus puller a chance.
28mm-Zeiss-ZE
The lenses do breathe, which means they zoom in or zoom out when you rack focus. This asthetetic bothers some people so you should see if you like it and or can deal with it.
CANON L SERIES PRIMES
Canon L Series 35mm
Canon L Series 85mm
Canon L series primes deliver very beautiful, sharp images. They do not resolve as well as the Zeiss primes. So you will loose a little detail and color gradation choices in post. If you are fine with that, then the Canon primes are a great choice. Their zooms are not as sharp as the primes and they don’t hold contrast as well.
Canon L Series Lenses
The Canon EF lenses cannot hold up on the big screen. I used them on the first 2 shooting days of the Navy SEAL movie and they were just plain soft. When I went into color correction, I was not able to have the full range of detail of the 8 BIT compressed color space, that I had with the L series or the Nikons. Canon lenses also have one tricky issue: the endless focus wheel. It is amazing for a still photographer but not a trained focus puller. Companies like Zacuto have put lens stops on their zip gears to try and correct the problem but it is still something to contend with.
NIKON AI SERIES PRIMES
Nikon AI Series 28 mm
Nikon AI Series 50 mm
Nikon glass delivers well with the AI series. They were the cream of the crop back in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s and still are in my book. They deliver images just like the Zeiss in contrast but the glass has a warmer tone. However, their focus range is short like the Canon’s.
LEICA R SERIES PRIMES
Leica 35 mm R Series
I tested Leica and found that they delivered beautiful contrast and color throughout. They felt the closest to the Panavision Primo primes and had more of a cinema focus throw, even more than the Zeiss ZE primes. These lenses resolve so well on the big screen.
HASSELBLAD MEDIUM FORMAT ZEISS PRIMES
50 mm Hasselblad Medium Format
150 mm Hasselblad Medium Format
Hasselblad medium format lenses were very interesting on the 5D. It had the same contrast and color of the Zeiss ZE Primes. You need to check it out. They have an amazing cinema focus throw, but breathe like the Zeiss. I like the large focus markings and the weight, they felt really nice on my Red Rock Micro shoulder rig. As long as you feel comfortable shooting above a 4.0 these lenses are a great choice.
With all of the lens options out there, these are still just tools. The story and the characters are KING! These players all have a back story that never makes it to the screen, but it is the thread, the tapestry that binds the film. Find that thread, follow it to dream and create your next work of art!!!!
Tags: lense choice, Lenses
Shane 
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Shane, I would love if you could e-mail me that list of your favorite Leica lenses and where you got them as well. I have a Canon 7D and am looking at getting some high quality glass.
Hi Shane,
Like everyone else I truly appreciate your dedication to all aspiraring film makers. I am also very interested in the leica list, could you send it to me?
Hi Shane, thanks so much for the feedback regarding the Zeiss 35mm.
If you could kindly let me know what Leica R lenses would be suitable for the big screen we’d much appreciate it.
Thanks again for all your wonderful tips.
Andy
Shane, also interested in your Leica list. Thanks Shane!
I just want to say thanks to you Shane for all of the information and inspiration. I know you’re busy but I want you to know how me much we all appreciate you sharing your knowledge and experience. I got your Leica list, thanks so much again.
Come on, you just can’t say that the Canon primes are that bad. The differences between the Zeiss and the Canon are subtle, with a slight advantage over the Zeiss. But you can’t pretend to have lore problems with color grading when using Canon L primes ! You are talking about the 8-bit compression but it has nothing to do with the choice of the lens. You won’t have a better latitude of color grading when using a Zeiss lens. That is simply not true.
William, the Canon EF primes suck, period. The Zeiss ZE kick the shit out of them. Now the L series hold up very well and I have been incredibly impressed with there resolving power even more so than the Zeiss on the big screen. The glass is everything. The better the glass, the better the image, the better the resolving power and the more latitude you will have in post. You have your point of view and I respect that.
Jeff, Thank you so much for those kind words, no problem anytime. You are very welcome.
Shane, wow that list of Leica R’s sounds like a gem. I would be real happy if you found the time to quickly email it to me as well.
Thank you!!
Hi Shane,
I would very much appreciate to see that Leica R-list.
Keep up the marvellous work!
Haavard, I just posted a blog about them for all of my colleagues to see. Thank for your support
Ivar Edding, Because of the amazing interest in the set of Leica’s, I just posted a blog for all of my colleagues to enjoy.
Thank you Shane! And thanks for the blog. The best out there.
David, Thank you so much for those kind words, it means a lot. You all rock!!!
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Hi Shane, I’ve become very curious for your Leica R-list. Would you be so kind to email it to me? If you’re ever in the Netherlands I’ll buy you a cup of coffee (or two)!
Hans. My list of Leica lenses is on the Leica blog below. I would love that cup of coffee. Thank you so much for your support.
Hi Shane, thanks for the great site and thanks so much for your openness and sharing your hard earned information with us! Just a quick question if I may.. I am planning on buying either the Canon 50mm f1,2L or the Zeiss 50mm f1.4 ZE and I just wanted to know if you were faced with this choice and could only choose one, which one you would choose? I am after sharpness and the best resolving power.. Cheers mate
Shane, great work on everything you’re doing in the DSLR world. I met you at NAB and you stoked me out with some amazing advice, really gave me a paradigm shift on DSLR image acquisition. I’m getting ready to move forward with a set of Zeiss primes. I keep debating between the ZE’s and the ZF’s which I would have modded at Duclos. I like the idea of the lenses being future proof and having manual control over the iris via the lens. But the added play in the lens mount via the adapter really worries me. I’ve tried both styles and I feel like the ZE’s are much more solid as they were made for Canon systems which is what I would primarily using the glass for. I notice you’re one of the few who hypes the ZE’s. Hows your experience been and why have you chosen to go in that direction rather than the ZE’s? Thanks man! You rock!
*Oops, meant to say “Hows your experience been and why have you chosen to go in that direction (ZE) rather than the ZF’s?”
Thanks!
just in case someone finds these comments section and is tempted to try out those vintage carls zeiss jena lenses that were mentioned above…
I got some of these czj “zebra” lenses, and tested them against my other kit with my One Dollar Resolution Chart:
http://www.similaar.com/lenstests/lenstestsb.html
it turns out:
* the sharpness ranges from pretty decent (50 pancolar, 135 sonnar) to totally awful (35 flektogon), with mediocre in between (80 biometar)
* it is not true that any medium format lens will be as sharp on the edges as in the center when mounted on a 1.6x crop camera (see biometar 80 at f/2.8 and f/3.5)
* they breathe
* they flare strongly, and extremely easily (hood or matte box, plus care when framing bright objects, absolutely mandatory)
* some have a powerful color cast, which is not even consistent throughout the range
on the plus side:
* they’re totally manual, which is good for the long term (they will work on virtually all cameras, present and future, just changing the adapter, as long as the flange focal distance is not a problem)
* they have a super-nice long-throw focus ring: even if they’re not sharper than my tamron 17-50, my shots come out sharper, because whith these I actually get things on focus, while with most stills modern lenses the focus ring allows so little movement that accurate manual focusing seems nearly impossible (for my very limited ability)
* they are super-cheap, you can get the full range of primes, 20+35+50+80+135+180, with fotodiox pro adapters, for under $1200 (for full frame, there’s no cheaper path; for 1.6x crop, long-throw focus and manual aperture still make them interesting)
disclaimer: this is just a hobby for me, so I’m mostly clueless and don’t have an idea of what I’m doing, but hey, the test seems ok to me
I have just started experimenting with some of the different screw mount lenses from the past. I just bought a 55 f2 that is an amazing lens for 30 dollars. The best part is that they are all manual and have nice focus ring action. I would love to hear peoples thought on these lenses. Oh, remember they are only good for aps-c sensors.
Sage, First off I want to thank you for your kind words and support. It is great to hear from you again, yes I remember you at NAB. Both sets of lens are great. The future proof thing is always good to do. I have to say that after putting together this Leica set I am all about these lenses. Their contrast range matches the Primos perfectly and they are sharp. You can check out my list in the latest Leica Blog. I am veering. In the color correction bay the Zeiss are to contrasty. Losing wonderful detail in the shadow and the sky blows out quicker. I was just on this Amphibious Assault Destroyer this morning shooting Osprey’s taking off on the flight deck. I had a wide shot with the hot kick from the sun reflecting off the ocean, and two Ospreys in the FG. That Leica 19mm was able to hold both. I sent the Leica’s to Duclos and he fine tuned and de-clicked them so that you have your manual f-stop ring. You are very welcome and hope this helps. I keep on gravitating towards still lenses that I feel have the sharpness and contrast of the cinema lenses that I have been using to shoot all of my films.
Wow, Leica/Ef mount lenses look stellar. I’m going to pick a few up and do some tests, there are many to choose from. Thanks once again for the kick ass advice, Shane!
Sage, you are so welcome.
Shane, as I continue to research Leica glass it seems there are many to choose from. You listed a handful of specific lenses in your Leica blog post. I’ve found variations which seem to also be compatible according to the list on pebbleplace.com. I’m looking at a 50mm Summicron f/2 and a 90mm Elmarit f/2.8. Any thoughts on these and can you fill me in a bit as to why the ones listed in your blog were chosen?
Also, what are your thoughts on the Leitax adapters compared to the Fotodiox?
Again, I cant thank you enough and I truly appreciate it. Its really cool of you to take the time to share your knowledge. Sage
Sage, On the blog there are specific links that help me build this exact kit. I pulled form many peoples expertise to find the premiere set. Everyone will have their opinion, but I have these lenses in the field right now and they are blowing me away. So filmic, period. You are very welcome. The Leitax adapters are the bomb, I am changing mine all over as we speak. I will always share, it is the only way I roll.
Mr Hurlburt
Your work is a true inspiration to me, I cannot thank you enough for this incredible resource.
I know you must be bored stiff of people asking you which items of kit they should buy but I have been tearing my hair out recently trying to decide whether to go with Zeiss ZE or Canon L primes for my 5D Mark II. I notice you own both. Do you have a preference or does it depend on the project?
Is it fair to say that Zeiss are better at the wide angles, while the Canons are better for 50mm plus? Obviously it’d be a mistake to mix and match though – ?
My main concern about the Zeiss is that I keep reading that they are soft wide open – is this true in your opinion? If you were looking to shoot a lot of stuff between f/1.4 and f/2 (I know that would be madness by the way!) would you avoid the Zeiss for fear of mushy images? Are the Canons much better in this regard?
Finally, does the short rotation of the focus wheel on the Canons make focus an impossibility? I notice Gale Tattersall has commented that he probably wouldn’t use Canon glass again for that very reason.
Joey G, Thank you so much for those kind words. I am never bored with your questions and insight. I am pushing everyone to Leica right now. With the new Leitax mount and the quality of the still glass, I feel it is the best in the Still lens department in every way. The Canon’s are great from a 35mm and up and you can shoot them in all f-stops. The Zeiss I feel are a little to sharp and make it look more like video. The Canon short focus throw is very tough. I finally figured out how to use it on “Last 3 Minutes,” but that had taken me 13 months to perfect it. Check out my Leica blog, go on eBay and see what they are going for. You will not be disappointed. These get you as close to the Primo Primes as I have found, and they look so good on these cameras.
Hey Shane!
Fist of all – a BIG thank you for your post on the Leicas! Great info, and awsome links.
Just recently got myself a Elmarit 24mm, and I guess I kinda jumped the gun on a Novoflex, seeing that the Leitax seem to be the thing to go for. Also, on my 1.6 crop, the 24mm doesn’t feel wide enough, so I’ll probably buck up for a 19mm soon enough.
Thanks again Shane, keep rocking!
Ivar Edding, you are so welcome and thank you for your continued support. The 19mm rocks. I used that on the Amphibious Assault Destroyer in the middle of the Atlantic as the Osprey’s take off. WOW!! The way it handled the flare and the contrast with the ocean highlight blasting me right down the barrel of the lens.
Hey Shane,
What about Carl Zeiss Jena Lenses?
All best.
Hi. I’ve been preparing a short film for last 4 months. It’s a 10pgs of script but I’ve been putting all my efforts into this project. I’ve got a dp who is a colleague from ACCD and we’ve been discussing over the types of lens that we will use with Canon 7D. The choice of lens is really depending on the final goal of the project and I’d like to get some advice from you.
So the type of project is a narrative short film with $1500 budget and I’m shooting only interior, which is inside an actual trailer home. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idcHMYqFGjM it’s the preproduction video that I just shot with my 5d using ef lens.
The goal of the project is to turn it into film festivals. And as you noticed, I have a very small budget.
So basically I can go with L lens or ZE primes w/ 7D. According to your article and review, it seems like ZE primes are much better than L lens series. I wish I can hear from you soon. I have about 2 weeks left before the shooting. Let me know.
P.S. Do you have any comparison video?
Ken Goren, I have looked at those and liked them, especially the flare. Thanks for the input.
JUSTIN, I would try to get your hands on some Leica R glass. The ZE’s are very sharp and contrasty, I feel the Canon L series would do you well, but it is very difficult to focus those lenses. The endless focus ring is a pain. The Leica’s all around are the best still lens that you can put on that sensor. I ran a Leica blog a little while back that has all the glass that we selected. I have loads of comparison video, but not the time to present it.