Cinematographer Frederic Goodich, ASC, recently completed principal photography on the feature film Mid-Life Gangster (Facebook link). Shot in Los Angeles in a quasi-documentary style and composed for 2.39:1, the filmmakers used Fujinon's HAe10x10 E-Series zoom (10-100mm T1.8) and a set of HAe E-Series prime lenses, along with a Panasonic AJ-HPX3700 P2 HD VariCam camcorder, Panasonic AJ-HPX3000 camcorder and Silicon Imaging SI-2K Mini.

Revolving around a recovering addict's desire to avenge his father's death, Mid-Life Gangster was going for a gritty, natural look. "I like to work with available light and add or subtract light as needed," says Goodich. "Working in low light levels, the speed of the Fujinon HAe10x10 and the E-Series prime lenses allowed me to shoot wide open and still maintain the sharpness I need."

A Day in the Making of Mid-Life Ganster
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With the E-Series lenses, the crew was even able to shoot some car interiors at night without additional lighting. "I was using an LED light source, but I turned it off because it was excessive," Goodich explains. "Just using the light coming from the street, I got the look we were going for by using these Fujinon lenses."

The HAe10x10 zoom lens is built for minimal focus breathing, flat T-stop and low distortion for 2/3-inch B4 mount cameras. "There was no breathing. I loved it," says Goodich. "When changing focus, there is no awareness of the lens or a sense that something is being manipulated on the image because the breathing is so minimal."

Speed was a key issue on this shoot—both for the lenses themselves and the production schedule in general. "We had to work very fast. The ability to change lenses quickly was important," said Goodich. "We used the same follow-focus markings so we didn't have to spend time with alterations if we changed lenses."