Full frame cinema prime lens VESPID Prime is now available from DZOFILM

I would like to introduce you to a very interesting prime lens. This is a DZOFilm prime lens that I once had after a long and tedious process of choosing a lens. Since I had a good impression of DZO FILM when I wrote about why I chose the "DZOFILM Pictor Zoom" cinema zoom for RED KOMODO, I assumed that the single focal length series would be even better. Since the loan period coincided with my shooting schedule in Hiroshima, I decided to have it sent directly to the hotel.

When I arrived at the hotel and was told that my luggage had arrived, I told the front desk that I would take it to my room, and the staff girl said, "What? "What?" I thought, but then she looked at our luggage situation and said, "Shall I bring it to you?" I was confused for a moment, but then she started to prepare a dolly. I was puzzled for a moment, but then I saw him in the back room of the front desk, trying his best to unload the boxes from the shelves. And the box he brought was huge! When I saw the box, I was so shocked that I thought it was an ARRI Master Prime class (size) cinema lens, and I was a bit excited.

Since I couldn't take it with me along with my camera bag, I asked the staff to carry it to my room with me and immediately checked the lens, leaving the rest of my luggage aside. I opened the box and found more boxes. When I opened the box from the manufacturer, I found a case with the same design as the one used for the Pictor ZOOM lens, and thinking that DZO Film is unified in this style, I opened the case... It's so tiny....

It was true that there were seven lenses in the case, but the lenses were disproportionately small compared to the size of the case. I froze for a moment, but I picked it up anyway. The weight and texture of the lens in my hand was a surprise to me, as I always like compact things.

I immediately tried it on Komodo, and the feeling was not bad. The KOMODO itself is RED's smallest model, and it is smaller than the DSMC2, so it is a natural fit for the concept.

Lineup of 7 focal lengths from 25mm to 125mm

I immediately took out all the lenses and lined them up. As you can see, I think it has a very compact feel to it. Since they are small, you can put them in a pouch and stick them in your bag, and more importantly, you can carry a large number of lenses. To be honest, it's tough to carry it in its own case, but the fact that you can carry a few in your bag is quite a point. Moreover, with a diameter of 80mm, it is almost as big as a still lens. The filter diameter is also 77mm, making it an easy size to use with a still lens or to obtain at a low price.

The lens actually fit perfectly in the soft cushion pouch "HAKUBA KCS-37M" (internal dimensions W130 x H155mm), so I carried it in a tote bag. I thought that being able to put three lenses in the bag, while only two lenses with a larger diameter would fit in the bag, would expand the possibilities of expression a bit. Also, the lens is placed on the cap side, so it's hard to tell, but if you place it on the mount side, the focus gear and iris gear are all in the same position. This is also a recent trend in lenses. This is great because you don't have to readjust the position of the follow focus after changing lenses.

The smoothness of the gears in each lens is good. The gears are smoother and lighter than those of the TOKINA cinema lenses, which makes me want to take them out more actively. Incidentally, I didn't feel the snagging of the DZOFILM Pictor Zoom on the demo unit provided by the editorial office, so I guess it's an individual problem.

Enough about the compactness, how about the composition of the lens group: 25mm, 35mm, 50mm, 75mm, 90mm+macro, 100mm, 125mm, it's a legitimate and easy to understand set. Personally, however, I would have liked to have the 16mm, which was marked on the case but not included. Instead, I thought the 100mm was unnecessary. To be honest, I think I can manage the 10mm difference with my own self-help efforts to move and solve the problem.

The difference between 16mm and 25mm is also 9mm, so I'd like to say I'm helping myself, but the difference in the wide angle side is connected to the spread, so I think I have to solve it with the lens. If I were to be greedy, I would be quite happy if the lens were 12mm, which would be a step further than 16mm. It's no use asking for something that you don't have, but I'm sure it's only a matter of time before a 16mm lens is added to the lineup. Since it is indicated on the case...

As for the specifications, I was disappointed with the cheap lens cap, as the company did a great job with the case. As is often the case with lens manufacturers with good cost performance, the lens cap is probably the key to keeping costs down, since it does not affect the main body. However, it is my strong desire that if they are working so hard on the main body of the lens, they should have worked harder on this part as well. It would have been a waste of money.

Characterized by a sense of calmness and straightforward depiction

How about the description? If I had to describe it in one word, it would be "ordinary. It's in the middle, in both good and bad ways. I don't feel that it has a distinctive character that can be described as "clear" or "vivid," but if you ask me if that means it's "bad," it's not.

I borrowed the lobby of the hotel where I was staying (THE KNOT HIROSHIMA) to make a short demo reel. As usual, I used a RED KOMODO with an EF adapter. As you can see, I think it turned out reasonably well. I dare to describe it as "ordinary" because, as you can see from the reel, it can be described as straightforward.

In other words, a lens with a lot of personality needs to be set up while keeping its characteristics in mind and anticipating the end result, but a lens with no personality makes it easier to modify and put together later.

The hotel sign at around the 9-second mark is also well-balanced with the surrounding colors, without the red standing out. It's more like a look. The stillness of the panel that says "Entrance" at around 10 seconds also comes out well, and the image is calm without being too sharp.

In the 12-second front shot, the gold color of the sake is suppressed and the people are not too subdued. The 31-second mask reproduces the original colors and the focus is not glaring. The 31-second mask was able to reproduce most of the original colors, and there was no glare in the focus. I think that a still lens in the same price range would probably look crisper. The word "soft focus" could be used to describe it.

Personally, I prefer this "soft focus" in movies, and I think it works well in human dramas. However, I think that sharp lenses are preferred by the general public, so it depends on your own preference. Also, there is a bit of noise overall, but this can be covered by exposure adjustment or noise reduction during shooting.