What are some of the most absolute quiet auto-focusing lenses for video work?

yazcui wrote:

linux99 wrote:

If you want really silent then the best option is manual focus lenses.

Either shoot at a small aperture to give your self a ton of depth of field and then dont touch it, or use an external marked rack to vary between a few pre determined focus points (this is how it is done for professional movies).

In effect using a rack gives you manual "auto focus" because you are moving between marked points without having to recheck the focus through the viewfinder.

Completely silent.

I like the m42 adapted russian lenses - because they are cheap and built like tanks. But you can use whatever you are able to fit onto your camera.

If you are determined to use a lens which does the focusing based on instructions from the camera I have had a lot of success with the Olympus 12-50 ad a workhorse for my video work.

I have also used the 45mm 1.8 and the 25mm 1.8 with no observed interference on the soundtrack.

However as another poster points out - it is usually best to rely on the inbuilt camera mic's for sound synchronisation only. If you are using them as your main medium for sound capture lens noise is likely to be a long way down the list of your worries.

Thanks. I'm just a hobbyist so I'm not so much concerned with crystal audio as I am with a screeching autofocus motor. From my research so far it looks like any lenses that use a stepper motor or a nano usm, would fit the bill.

Sigma 19mm f/2.8 EX DN. (MFT or Sigma E-Mount).

It has a linear AF motor moves the lens units directly without the need for gears or the drive of other mechanical parts.