In today’s broadcast and video environments, there are a lot of reasons to bag long zoom lenses. From wildlife videography to live event coverage, no one wants to be forced to put themselves too much into the action.
While there have been a great many long zoom lenses on the market, the increase in length has always come at the price of quality and depth of field. However, all that might be set to change with new and improved lenses hitting the market which are revolutionizing the nature of zoom lenses.
Let’s take a look at the new FUJINON Duvo HZK24-300mm, a portable and handheld-friendly zoom lens from Fujifilm which sports an impressive F2.8-F5.0 PL mount cinema box design great for the trickiest of long lensing situations.
Introducing the FUJINON Duvo 24-300mm
As long as zoom lenses have been around, they’ve always been a bit heavy and clunky. This is especially true with zoom lenses which go up into the 300mm range, as they’ve often required extra mount support, plus other odd shipping and storage issues.
This 24-300mm lens is designed to be as compact and lightweight as it comes at only 6.5 lbs for its 10.6-inch long size. With the use of a built-in expander, this Duvo 24-300mm can shift the focal length by 1.5 times to 36mm-450mm, effectively turning into into a far-way capture lens for your most exotic of uses.
Designed for both video and broadcast uses, the Duvo 24-300mm can operate using zoom and focus demands and is able to be used with a wide variety of accessories designed for any FUJINON lenses—including set-ups for shoulder mounts and Steadicams.
The FUJINON 24-300mm
Credit: FUJINON
Long Range and Shallow Depth-of-Field Cinematography
The biggest selling point for this new FUJINON really comes down to its lightweight design and long-range capabilities. The goal for most professional videographers is to unlock as much shallow depth-of-field as possible from as long of a range as possible. The Duvo 24-300mm should do just that while still allowing videographers to operate handheld.
“The most dramatic, shallow depth-of-field shots in live shows often come from those intimate handheld positions, providing viewers with an immersive cinematic experience; Fujifilm's expanded range of our portable and long Duvo lenses provides directors with that highly desired cinema look from nearly any position.” — Stosh Durbacz, national sales manager, Optical Devices Division, FUJIFILM North America Corporation
This means you’ll be able to unlock plenty of great bokeh from long ranges which should rival some of the more expensive prime cinema lenses on the market. Traditional cinema lenses also often have smaller zoom magnification ratios and require a true specialist to operate, but hybrid zoom lenses like this Duvo line should blend the best of both worlds for solid image quality yet easier use.
Price and Availability
While there is no information just yet about an expected price, the FUJINON Duvo 24-300mm is currently expected to be available for purchase in the spring of 2024 and is set to be previewable here at IBC 2023 in Amsterdam (we’ll keep you posted).
For more information on the Duvo 24-300mm PL Mount Zoom Lens, and the Duvo line in general,you can visit FUJINON’s website here.
