Back in 2017 we had the chance to review Canon’s two flagship Cine-Servo lenses, the 17-120mm T2.95 and 50-1000mm T5.0-8.9, both of which impressed us with their abilities to deliver broadcast-style responsiveness and cinema-grade performance. This year Canon is introducing the new Cine-Servo 25-250mm T2.95 Cinema Zoom Lens, designed to provide a kind of Goldilocks solution for cinematographers needing that same quality and performance in a zoom distance that splits the focal-length difference.
In this first impression, we’ll take a deeper dive into the specs of the lens, what’s new under the hood, and how this style of glass could meet the needs of both broadcast and film ministries. While we haven’t had the chance to actually get our hands on the lens itself, we’re definitely intrigued by the possibilities of what it could bring to the table.
Feature set
Designed from the ground up for resolving 4K cinematic imagery, the Cine-Servo 25-250mm is definitely an example of Canon responding to the needs of operators in the field. The zoom range allows for a respectable 24mm wide shot, punching in all the way to a 250mm telephoto frame.
The Cine-Servo 25-250mm is extremely fast for a cinema zoom, rated at T2.95 from 25mm all the way up to187mm, then switching to T3.95 at the end of its 188-250mm range.
Engaging the built-in 1.5x extender increases the range to 37.5-375mm, with only the loss of a single stop of light. Unexpectedly, using the extender allows the lens to actually accommodate full frame sensors. That makes absolutely no sense to me, likely proving how little I know about either physics or math.
The Cine-Servo 25-250mm is extremely fast for a cinema zoom, rated at T2.95 from 25mm all the way up to 187mm, then switching to T3.95 at the end of its 188-250mm range. It can be purchased with a native EF or PL mount, either of which can be switched out, for a charge, by sending it into a service center. Canon also boasts macro filming functionality with the lens, although the minimum focal distance for this ability has not yet been released.
The lens ships with a dedicated removable servo grip for manual zooming, as well as real-time controls of aperture and zoom parameters. The grip also features an LCD display and control for customizing various parameters such as responsiveness and speed ramping.
Why cinema-style matters
Aside from providing coverage for larger Super-35+ sized sensors, cinema lenses provide a number of advantages over glass designed for DSLR or mirrorless cameras. One of the most important features of cinema lenses like the Cine-Servo 25-250mm is its parfocal abilities, meaning that an in-focus shot at the 250mm framing will maintain that same sharpness when crash zoomed out to 25mm.
Features like a constant, or near constant, aperture allow filmmakers to maintain the look and visual cohesion of an entire scene without ever having to change lenses.
Another major advantage of cinema glass is the internal engineering that allows cinematographers to pull focus between an object closer to the lens to something further away with minimal-to-no reframing of the shot. Anyone who has tried accomplishing that type of shot with a photography lens will know just how frustrating that kind of “focus breathing” can be.
Features like a constant, or near constant, aperture allow filmmakers to maintain the look and visual cohesion of an entire scene without ever having to change lenses. Full manual control of that aperture setting, as well as focus and zoom, also ensures full creative control during a shot.
Ministry applications
Right way, it’s clear that the Canon Cine-Servo 25-20mm could be an ideal solution for tech and broadcast directors needing a primary go-to lens for IMAG and streaming. With its expansive zoom range and near-constant aperture it would be perfectly set up to capture just about anything a weekend worship experience could throw at it.
The lens’ minimal focus breathing, parfocal abilities and killer servo functionality would make it a dream solution for working with volunteers whose passion for ministry outpaces their technical abilities. Its ability to resolve 4K imagery while producing an extremely shallow depth of field would also set broadcast teams up to move their productions closer to the IMAG “film” look that’s growing in popularity.
On the film ministry side, having a cinema lens capable of covering just about every focal length you could need for narrative work, other than possibly some ultra-wide establishing shots, has clear and obvious advantage. The speed of the glass obviously allows cinematographer complete control over a shot’s depth of field, along with all of the other advantages of zoom lenses designed for cinema.
At the moment, it definitely seems like documentary filmmaking and production would be the ultimate sweet spot for the Cine-Servo 25-250mm. Not only would it be perfect for interview filming, its extensive telephoto abilities make it ideal for run-and-gun b-roll filming. The weight of the lens and camera combination would certainly lean more towards shoulder-mounted configurations, rather than smaller "rager"-style setups, but the advantages would almost always make the trade-offs worth it.
In conclusion
Listing at $29,990, the Canon Cine-Servo 25-250mm will be a considerable investment for most churches. That kind of investment makes the most sense when considering the lens’ ability to switch hit between IMAG A-camera work for weekend worship and mid-week narrative or documentary filmmaking, something very few lenses today are as well equipped for as the Canon cinema zooms.
Again, this is just a first impression of the lens; we haven’t yet had the ability to put it through its paces ourselves. With that in mind, if the Cine-Servo 25-250mm T2.95 Cinema Zoom Lens is anything like Canon's 17-135mm and 50-1000mm lenses, we think this could be another big hit for church broadcast and film ministries.
