The best cine lens for filmmakers: lenses designed specifically for videography

Best cine lens
(Image credit: Irix)

What do the best cine lenses have that regular lenses don't? If you’ve been brought up using modern photographic glass, then cine lenses might seem like a step back in time. No autofocus, no image stabilization, and often no electronic communication with the camera, so you have to set the desired aperture on the lens itself.

Indeed, the best cine lenses are typically much slower than their photographic cousins, thanks to their "slower" (or, in some cases, simply "more honest") maximum apertures – more on that in a moment.

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James Artaius
Editor

The editor of Digital Camera World, James has 21 years experience as a journalist and started working in the photographic industry in 2014 (as an assistant to Damian McGillicuddy, who succeeded David Bailey as Principal Photographer for Olympus). In this time he shot for clients like Aston Martin Racing, Elinchrom and L'Oréal, in addition to shooting campaigns and product testing for Olympus, and providing training for professionals. This has led him to being a go-to expert for camera and lens reviews, photo and lighting tutorials, as well as industry news, rumors and analysis for publications like Digital Camera MagazinePhotoPlus: The Canon MagazineN-Photo: The Nikon MagazineDigital Photographer and Professional Imagemaker, as well as hosting workshops and talks at The Photography Show. He also serves as a judge for the Red Bull Illume Photo Contest. An Olympus and Canon shooter, he has a wealth of knowledge on cameras of all makes – and a fondness for vintage lenses and instant cameras.

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