Re: HD ENG LENSES

There is a good bit of variation from lens to lens, even within the same model. If at all possible, you should take your camera to the dealer and try what they have in stock; then you can choose the one that suits your eye.

Early "HD" zoom lenses were simply hand-selects from the batch of SD lenses; those in the upper range of quality were labeled "HD" and sold at a premium price. Be sure to check your camera with SD lenses as well; you may well find you prefer the picture, which is liable to be less "cold" and "hard." I do think a good HD lens, or even a set of primes, is almost mandatory if you are going to film out.

Today, the HD lenses have other benefits to those who are used to film shooting; they have larger indexes, more rotation on focus, and are marked in both f-stops and T-stops for those who set their stops by meter. This is really just a bit of marketing hype, because the "ASA" of the camera is set by test and it doesn't matter if you use "f" or "T" stops; furthermore, you need "f" stops to calculate depth of field, not "T" stops.

You might also check with your optical shop; I had my lens optimized to be sharpest wide open, which is where I do most of my shooting to reduce depth of field.

Good shooting!
Leo