AbelCine teamed up with NYC-based director and cinematographer Theo Stanley for a brief study of the similarities and differences between TRIBE7's BLACKWING7 B-Tuned (Bespoke) and S-Tuned SKIN 2000 prime lenses.

Emerson College, the prestigious institution known for its exceptional programs in communication, the arts, and the liberal arts, recently purchased five ARRI ALEXA 35 packages from AbelCine. In addition to scholarly media studies, the Department of Visual & Media Arts emphasizes practical learning on state-of-the-art technology.

The Panasonic P2 memory format has an impressive legacy. It was the first, widely available, professional solid-state media format for cameras. Panasonic took a bold leap introducing this new 'tapeless' format back in 2004, and it caused quite a stir.

Andrew Theiss is a Steadicam Operator based out of Columbus, Ohio. After deciding on this career path, he purchased an ARRI TRINITY 5-Axis Hybrid Stabilizer. Recently, he talked to us about why he chose the TRINITY and how he’s been putting it to good use.

Canon’s CN-E Compact Zooms have been a great addition to documentary cinematography since their release five years ago. The image quality is superb and is a great choice for higher-end productions. They offer a comfortable size and weight, with a fast, consistent T2.8 aperture. This pair of lenses offers a great focal length range that will cover you in most shooting situations. Let’s take a deep dive into the look and feel of these two lenses.

As a documentary cinematographer, I am constantly struggling to decide which lenses I want in my kit for any given project. The options over the years have ranged from minimal to overwhelming. In the beginning, I was mostly restricted to DSLR-style lenses to interface with my EF or Sony E-mount cameras.

Fujinon recently released the Cabrio 20-120, an economical version of their popular Cabrio Compact Lenses. Despite being smaller and lighter, the 20-120 is still a member of the elite “Premier” series of Fujinon lenses, offering exceptional optical performance across the board.

The Canon Compact-Servo 18-80mm T4.4 lens is the newest release in Canon’s extensive lens lineup. The lens was designed to bridge the gap between their EF still zooms and their cinema zooms, blending features from both form factors. This lens fills an important space for documentary cinematographers looking for a small, inexpensive lens with high functionality on a wide range of shoots. The zoom range of the lens is great for all-around verite shooting, covering the most-used standard focal lengths.

It's been another exciting year in our industry, with lots of evolutionary and revolutionary changes. Many of the trends we've seen coming for the past several years came to fruition in 2011, leaving some to wonder what comes next. Let's take a look back and see if it can help inform us a bit on what's to come in 2012.