DZOFilm Vespid Prime 21mm T2.1 PL Mount + EF (VV/FF)

Nearly a full stop of extra light separates the DZOFilm Vespid Prime 21mm T2.1 PL Mount + EF (VV/FF) from the 12 mm and 16 mm models, making it the widest T2.1 lens in the original Vespid Prime series. On night exteriors, neon-lit streets or in a bar lit only by practicals, that margin lets the camera stay nearer its native ISO.

For a production company that rents some bodies and owns others, the mount matters as much as the glass. It is user-swappable between PL and EF: a screwdriver releases it, and DZOFilm shims from 0.02 to 0.3 mm set the 52 mm or 44 mm flange distance for each camera. The same lens can serve a hired PL cinema body on Monday and an in-house EF-mount Canon EOS C700 FF on Friday, while Super 35 cameras in the fleet use it as a gentle wide. Octopus adapters bring it to mirrorless RF, E or L-Mount bodies, and an LPL mount kit to LPL cameras; both are optional, sold separately.

Neither a RED Monstro VV nor an ARRI LF shooting open gate will show dark corners: the circle measures 46.5 mm, enough for VistaVision as well as full frame. Thirteen elements in nine groups carry APO correction, so purple and green fringes stay faint on chrome, glass towers and backlit hair. Breathing is held down; during a rack between two speakers, frame size hardly moves. The rendering sits between modern sharpness and older cine softness, with neutral colour and natural skin. Sixteen iris blades keep defocused street lamps circular instead of polygonal.

On the rig, gear positions match every other Vespid Prime: focus turns through 270°, the iris through 68°, and both 0.8 MOD rings meet the motors where they sat for the previous lens. The 80 mm front accepts a clip-on matte box, and an M77 thread takes screw-in filters, something the 16 mm lacks; a KOOP magnetic base ring for rear filters on PL lenses is a further option. Engravings run slightly beyond infinity, so infinity stays reachable after long service without back-focus work. In a car-mount wide, a hand on the steering wheel can still be held sharp: focus goes down to 0.28 m, measured at the sensor. Cityscape establishers, gimbal walk-and-talks, drone passes and dialogue coverage all suit it.