One of the biggest advantages of using one of the new Panasonic AG-AF100, Sony F3 or DSLR cameras is that camera operators now have the ability to interchange their lenses. Shooters are no longer stuck using a camera’s stock lens. Hooray! This is a very welcome change to prosumer video camera functionality. There are also a variety of mount adapters out on the market now that allow users to use just about any lens they want on a camera, regardless of its mounting type. The inability to switch out the lenses on a camera is a problem shooters have been dealing with for a long time. Since the introduction of these new cameras, this problem has been pretty much abolished.
No matter what type of camera you are using, a big heavy lens can cause a lot of stress to your camera lens mount. If the problem is not addressed, the lens mount or camera body can break and those pieces of hardware can be extremely expensive to repair. It’s best to avoid this potential damage in any way possible. The easiest way to do this is to use a lens support on your rod system.
A lens support is pretty much exactly what it sounds like: a device used to support your lens. Some lens supports screw directly into your lens, others just let the lens rest on top of them. Some lens supports use a strap that wraps around the lens securing it into place. Zacuto offers four different options in the lens support category: the Zupport, the ¼” 20 support, the 3/8” 16 support and the Zian—a horizontally adjustable 1/4” 20 support. Each support device can adapt to standard 15mm rod spacing, 15mm rod studio style spacing or 19mm rod studio spacing. All Zacuto lens support systems are described in detail below.
Left to Right: The Zacuto Zupport & Q-Mount
Zupport-This Y-shaped lens support can screw onto any Zacuto male rod and mounts underneath your lens for additional support. Once attached to the rod, this support can attach to any Zacuto mount that accepts 15mm rods including all Q-Mount’s (all sizes) and the Z-Mount II. The lens rests comfortably in the middle of this support and for extra support and stability, users can strap a Zip Gear around the lens. The Zipgear will also prevent the lens from rotating. Zacuto also sells this as a kit called the Locking Lens Support.
Locking Lens Support
½” to ¼” 20 adapter-The ½” to ¼” 20 adapter is designed to screw into any lens with a ¼” 20 tapped screw hole. The ½” side can screw onto any Zacuto female rod, which in turn can be attached to any Zacuto mount that accepts 15mm rods including all Q-Mounts and the Z-Mount II. Once this piece is screwed into a lens and mounted onto a rod, the support is rock solid. The ½” to ¼” 20 adapter can be sold separately or as part of Zacuto’s ¼” 20 Lens Support. If you are using Zeiss CP2 lenses, Zacuto recommends using the ¼” 20 lens support.
½” to ⅜” 16 adapter-This adapter functions the exact same way as the ½” to ¼” 20 adapter except it works with lenses that use a ⅜” 16 screw hole tap instead of a ¼” 20. Again, the ½” side can screw into any Zacuto female rod and that rod can fit into any Q-Mounts or a Z-mount II. Again, the ½” to ⅜” 16 adapter can be sold separately or as part of Zacuto’s ⅜” 16 Lens Support.
The Zacuto Zian
Zian-This locking lens support also uses a ¼ 20” screw to screw directly into a lens. The difference between the Zian and the ½” to ¼” 20 adapter is that the Zian has the ability to move approximately ¾” from side to side. This is perfect for people who have different lenses that may have the ¼” 20 screw hole in different positions. When working with such minor differences, ¾” can go a long way.
Left to Right: 15mm Locking Lens Support, 19mm Locking Lens Support
Of course, like all Zacuto products, the lens supports are interchangeable and transposable. You can use one of the lens support mounts mentioned above or you can mix and match Zacuto parts to create your own lens support configuration. Some lenses may require different rod lengths and some camera rigs may even require different spacing. All Zacuto lens support devices can adapt to function with any standard 15mm camera rig as well as any 15mm or 19mm studio spaced camera rig.
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