Hi everyone! I've got a somewhat complex question without a super clear answer so I'm as interested in the reasoning as the recommendation itself.

I shoot a lot of intense BDSM content, burlesque shows, and other adult content for myself and others. I also do other performance video work (fire dancing, &c).

It's become a bit challenging to balance all of the different situational needs I have; especially since the content and creative people I work with are interested in very artistic and high quality production aesthetics.

I shoot with a Sony A7IV camera body so I have a fairly good ISO, autofocus performance and sensor sensitivity range to play with that avoids excessive noise.

The technical situations I tend to be in involve a few specific scenarios:

1. Tight spaces and low light, usually with a fixed camera while I'm actively performing in the scene.

For these shoots we're cramming an entire production into an 8'×8' or similar room (2.6m ×2.6m) and I need to get a lot of detail with low light and capture a wide scene (usually height isn't a major issue). The reasons for the restrictions are basically that city rent is expensive and most spaces we have to work with the props and furniture aren't very big. In order to keep the information range high I'd like to keep my full sensor used here.

1. Tight spacess and low light with a mobile camera.

Similar to the others but in these scenes I'm operating the camera and need to remain mobile. Usually there's shifts between fast action (whips, darts, wrestling, &c) and intense close ups of faces and other activities. Here the issue is having a short enough minimum focus that I can actually get good shots while fitting around the action in the room.

1. Performances with a lot of light variation

Most performances I shoot are live and involve performers moving from on stage to the generally unlit audience area without a lot of notice or time to make major camera adjustments. Here I have some flexibility with distance from the performance, but still like to remain close enough that I can change angles and get low/side-on shots as positions shift and action moves vertically in space.

1. I also shoot some portraiture/cover photos/photo studies &c.

One final consideration: I have hEDS which causes my joints to be "floppy" and so rig weight is a BIG factor for me. Anything over 10lb and Im in a lot of wrist pain after a 4 hour shoot if I don't get breaks. I use braces but they have their limits. Currently I can manage about 8lb with body, lens, monitor, handles, mic, and cage. I'm saving to add a shoulder support to my rig setup but I'm not there yet (in this case autofocus would make that happen much sooner since I could avoid the cost of a follow focus kit).

Currently I have:

Sony Zeiss 50mm f/1.4 - Usually fills my needs in #3 & #4 and sometimes in #2

Sony Zeiss 24mm to 70mm f/4 - Honestly a bit heavy after using it for a while, and the 24mm spherical just isn't wide enough for some of the spaces I shoot in, and the 70mm is rarely used; 50mm is about the longest lens I can typically manage in the spaces I shoot in.

SLR Magic 18mm f/1.4 APS-C lens. It gets the width but has a lot of headroom and the APS-C crop makes it less than ideal for most situations. It's my "bail me out" lens for #1 when I just can't get the distance from the action with the 24mm, and I can use the full frame and work with the vignetting in post when needed but I really don't like all the negatives that come with it.

So the question:

For situations #1 and #2 I really need to buy something new (and I'm gonna sell what I have to help with the cost), and I need to make some choices:

• Anamorphic 35mm vs Spherical Ultra-Wide
• APS-C Crop vs Full-Frame (which has a lot to do with limits on what's available in my proce range)
• Zoom vs Prime
• Is it worth trying to keep Autofocus Capability in this range?
• Wide Zoom (XX-35 mm) vs. Mid-Zoom (XX-50 mm) if a zoom lens

My budget is about $500-$1,200 but that's including the sale of my other lenses. If a lens could also fill the role of the 50mm f/1.4 then I could go up to $1,600-$2,600

Let me know your thoughts and suggestions! I'm open to anything including using lens adapters and vintage/used gear ☺️