$10,000 budget for complete set of shooting equipment

Hello everyone!

Ok so i just got the awesome privilege of making a list of things that a company will need to get great quality video content for the web.
The budget isn't really defined... so this is basically a dream. (round $10,000 is the vibe i got)

Anyways, here is a list of things that i currently have. Lighting is something i'm gonna pick out myself, but please critiuqe what iv'e got so far.

About 90% of the content we will make is interview style. Kinda like a Vsauce video but a lot more attractive :cool:

So here's the list I've got so far:

Blackmagic cinema camera: $2,000
2 Camera ssd's (500gb): $760
Konova slider: $350
Manfrotto pro fluid mini head: $160
Manfrotto pro tripod legs: $200

Canon 50mm f/1.2 $1,200
Canon 24-70mm f/2.8 ii $2,000

Now remember were going high quality as eff.
So go crazy. Also, what do you guys think of the black magic cinema camera?
 
So here's the list I've got so far:

Blackmagic cinema camera: $2,000 (...) Also, what do you guys think of the black magic cinema camera?

My question would be... what made the BMCC the best choice for your project to start with? :hmm:

Btw, you've spent roughly 7k out of 10k on not much at all. Mostly a camera (suitable or not) and lenses. There's a tonne of other knick-knacks that you could add to your general kit, to bump that even higher. How much are you setting aside for audio? You're doing interviews... right?

.
 
Heh. High quality as eff, indeed. :bag:

Ha! yah... Well... That's why i'm here, I need help. I was gonna go the 5d route because these guys want quality, and i kinda prefer a 5d over a 7d, or even 60d. I just think the images it creates look so much better.
So after looking at the price of the 5d mk iii, the black magic looked like a really good route to take, for it is only $2,000 compared to the $3,500 of the mk iii. And looking at test footage of it, it looks pretty insane.

Now i do know that the black magic has its quirks, but i think that they wont really get in the way.
We do have the computing horsepower to handle 2k as well, so thats another thing out of the way.

I need some serious help in the audio field, although all we need really is an auxiliary mike to plug into the zoom. I was kinda looking for recommendations on a mike or possible other routes to take.

IDK, I've been out of the game for years, and i've lost a pretty good chunk of my knowledge.
Any help would be appreciated, Please bear with my ammeter nature.
 
Oh man.. You got it all backwards..
I d suggest to spend 2000 on camera, lenses and Rigs; 2000 on lighting. Dump the rest into audio gear.
The camera has little to do with quality of your product. Crappy light and a sh*t stick mic will destroy your video quality, even if you re shooting on IMAX film.

Think what is your platform, and get a camera. If the video is for YouTube - you don't really need 2k, 4k cameras.
 
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Since it's interviews I'll assume it's in a single room you invite people to. Is that the case?
If so, you'll need to treat the room acoustically if your goal is "high quality as eff." Next you'll need an assortment of mics but microphones aren't my area of expertise outside of the music studio.

Next you'll need sofware, have you even looked into what you want? Software can be expensive. I'd suggest a video and audio editing suite + some audio tools to create a professional sounding mix ($200 - $1000 depending on your choice). Next you'd need a PC powerful enough to fulfill your needs. Do you have one? That can set you back $1000 to $2000.
 
Since it's interviews I'll assume it's in a single room you invite people to. Is that the case?...

...Next you'll need sofware, have you even looked into what you want?

Yes we will be in one room the majority of the time.

We have a powerful custom built pc with the adobe suite on it. We'll primarily be using premiere.

Do you think that putting up some Foam on the walls would help with acoustics?
 
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Oh man.. You got it all backwards..
I d suggest to spend 2000 on camera, lenses and Rigs; 2000 on lighting. Dump the rest into audio gear.
The camera has little to do with quality of your product. Crappy light and a sh*t stick mic will destroy your video quality, even if you re shooting on IMAX film.

Think what is your platform, and get a camera. If the video is for YouTube - you don't really need 2k, 4k cameras.

Lighting is taken care of, we've already filmed some stuff and the lighting looked pretty good. I'm looking in to some LED panels, and a few tungsten lights.

We definitely need a good stick though. You got any reccomendations?
 
Hi PIMP - in my view, unless you're shooting cinema, you don't need a Blackmagic Cinema Camera. I you're shooting interviews for the web, and want pro mic inputs and shallow depth of field - but you don't want to deal with the headaches of a DSLR, I recommend the $2999 Sony NEX-EA50.

Here is a nice interview shot with the EA50 and a $298 Sony 50mm f1.8 lens - note the large-sensor, blurred background look (please watch at 1080p):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtrcCd2zV4Q

The great thing about this camera is that you don't have to rig it up when you take it off the tripod, and the video quality is world class.

If you already have the lighting taken care of, get yourself a $557 Sachtler 1001 Ace M System tripod and head and a $1450 Sanken CS-3e mic.

Here is what the Sanken will do for you (in-camera recording):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrkCTBkAOsI

Add your slider, a boom and some cable and you're good to go for about $5K.

Hope this is helpful!

Bill
 
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Do you think that putting up some Foam on the walls would help with acoustics?
Fixing room acoustics is a big deal. You can do lots of things to help out such as placing furniture in the right place, putting things on walls...

Ideally you need to cover the walls and the corners and with different kind of materials in layers (for the cheapest option you can use some foam covered with felt/a curtain). Put plant pots in the corners, don't put a table in between the people speaking and the mic, don't put the people against a wall but instead in the middle of the room... The first walls to worry about are the ones in front of and behind the microphone. Deal with those first if you can't do all of the walls.
There's lots more but that will get you started.
 
You seem to be entirely focused (pardon the pun) on the visuals without any consideration as to what constitutes quality sound.

Note: we already have a zoom H4n, so that won't be needed. We need a really solid, bassy mic though

This is a joke, right? A professional production sound team will have invested three to five times your entire "$10k vibe" budget on production sound gear.

And there is no such thing as a "bassy" mic. That deep, rich voice sound is accomplished with a quality mic and proper mic technique.

You have not given any indications as to what type of content the "great quality video content for the web" will include. Most corporate content are presentations, interviews and product demos/"commercials". Most of these will require wireless systems using lavs, headsets or handheld mics. With your limited budget you should consider the Sennheiser G3 wireless system. This one is probably appropriate.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/877198-REG/Sennheiser_ew_100_ENG_G3.html ($1,550)

You'll have to do some research to figure out which frequency set is most appropriate for your area.

This is a good headset mic:

http://oscarsoundtech.com/aboutus.html ($110)

This is pretty decent for a budget mixer:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/300798-REG/PSC_FPSCDVMIX3_DV_PROMIX_3.html ($470)

You should also get a better recorder than the H4n. Consider this one:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...661mkii_Marantz_PMD661_MKII_Professional.html ($660)

For audio post you will need a decent set of speakers, an audio interface and an LDC (Large Diaphragm Condenser) mic for VO work.

By the time all is said and done your audio expenditures will be in the $5k range.


Your project will only look as good as it sounds, because "Sound is half of the experience."
 
You seem to be entirely focused (pardon the pun) on the visuals without any consideration as to what constitutes quality sound.



This is a joke, right? A professional production sound team will have invested three to five times your entire "$10k vibe" budget on production sound gear.

And there is no such thing as a "bassy" mic. That deep, rich voice sound is accomplished with a quality mic and proper mic technique.

You have not given any indications as to what type of content the "great quality video content for the web" will include. Most corporate content are presentations, interviews and product demos/"commercials". Most of these will require wireless systems using lavs, headsets or handheld mics. With your limited budget you should consider the Sennheiser G3 wireless system. This one is probably appropriate.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/877198-REG/Sennheiser_ew_100_ENG_G3.html ($1,550)

You'll have to do some research to figure out which frequency set is most appropriate for your area.

This is a good headset mic:

http://oscarsoundtech.com/aboutus.html ($110)

This is pretty decent for a budget mixer:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/300798-REG/PSC_FPSCDVMIX3_DV_PROMIX_3.html ($470)

You should also get a better recorder than the H4n. Consider this one:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...661mkii_Marantz_PMD661_MKII_Professional.html ($660)

For audio post you will need a decent set of speakers, an audio interface and an LDC (Large Diaphragm Condenser) mic for VO work.

By the time all is said and done your audio expenditures will be in the $5k range.


Your project will only look as good as it sounds, because "Sound is half of the experience."

Sorry let me clarify. These videos are for a nutrition based company that produces natural supplements.
They want a constant flow of videos going on there website explaining how the supplements work and multiple scenarios you can use them in. All they want is the highest quality videos they can get, visual and audio wise, with a $10,000 budget.

I just need the best production equipment possible to make a very high quality video that doesn't total over 10,000 dollars.

Thanks for the links you posted, but all that's necessary for us is a single boom mic.
 
Hi PIMP - in my view, unless you're shooting cinema, you don't need a Blackmagic Cinema Camera. I you're shooting interviews for the web, and want pro mic inputs and shallow depth of field - but you don't want to deal with the headaches of a DSLR, I recommend the $2999 Sony NEX-EA50.

Here is a nice interview shot with the EA50 and a $298 Sony 50mm f1.8 lens - note the large-sensor, blurred background look (please watch at 1080p):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OtrcCd2zV4Q

The great thing about this camera is that you don't have to rig it up when you take it off the tripod, and the video quality is world class.

If you already have the lighting taken care of, get yourself a $557 Sachtler 1001 Ace M System tripod and head and a $1450 Sanken CS-3e mic.

Here is what the Sanken will do for you (in-camera recording):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TrkCTBkAOsI

Add your slider, a boom and some cable and you're good to go for about $5K.

Hope this is helpful!

Bill

Thanks man. What i don't get though, is why you would spend an extra $1,000 to get a camera that doesn't shoot as high of quality as the bmcc. I also need a camera that has an EF mount. The camera you showed me looks really high quality though, I just don't think it really fits what i need
 
heres what i would get...


bmcc, then go for fast Vintage lenses (my new craze, manual lenses built for greatness!!)
that would cost me around $2,200 I would spend another $1000 on Tripod/head (interview only right?).

I would then probably get some wireless mics/sound system for around $3,000

then spend $2000 on lights

then look for a rig/reflector with the rest.
 
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all that's necessary for us is a single boom mic.

This completely contradicts:

I just need the best production equipment possible to make a very high quality video that doesn't total over 10,000 dollars.

So, who will be swinging the boom? Or were you planning on using a C-stand?

How much experience do you have with production sound of any kind? Have you ever shot corporate projects? I've done the audio post on quite a few, and the biggest problem is the production audio. Do you or someone on the staff have the skills and the gear/software to fix the audio problems? Fixing poor production sound is a tough job, and one that can be avoided by using the proper production sound gear and techniques.

Here's a thought for you... How will your superiors react when the production audio sounds like crap?
 
I hope you don't mind me chipping in here.

I am going off your statement that you'll mostly be shooting interviews/videos with loads of talking about nutrition products (Funnily enough, I've shot similar stuff and got a job coming up, but with a lot higher budget, so I am hiring a sound guy).

1) Cut out the slider, save 350 bucks. Why do you need a slider for a simple talking head interview? I don't believe that you need sliding shots, especially if you only have 10.000 dollars to spend. (I am not against sliders, I own a Kessler Pocket Dolly and a 6 foot Shuttlepod myself...)

2) The Blackmagic camera is not a bad idea, but have you considered your lens choice? Yes, you have a fast lens and a lens that would be a good medium wide on a 5D, but bear in mind the crop factor of the Blackmagic camera. With a 24-70 you wont be able to get decent wide shots which can be very important (especially if you want to use a slider).

3) Have you considered power for the Blackmagic camera? You need to buy a V-Mount and V-Mount battery to power your camera for a decent amount of time. Pausing a shoot and waiting for your camera to charge will get you booted off the job, quicker than you can say "I have to charge my camera".

4) Buy the best tripod you can get for your budget. If all you really want is to support a Blackmagic camera or similar in weight, buy a Sachtler ACE. Much better than cheap Manfrottos.

5) Invest in SOUND! I 100% agree with Alcove, sound is very important. If you only record with a shotgun mic, you will get less than optimal sound. I shoot a LOT of talking heads and corporate films with interviews and my lavalieres have been the best thing I've bought so far. There's a lot of different mics for different prices, but buying a lavalier mic is the first step to good sound. I use the Sennheiser G3's a lot and own a Sony UWP-V1 system which I often use with a TRAM TR50 mic. The standard mic (the one that comes with the UWP-V1) is also decent, but kind of big. I always boom a mic on interviews as well. This is just a backup in case my wireless lav picks up any weird sounds/gets interference from somewhere. Most of the time I do this with a stand/C-Stand. Consider an audio mixer and a decent recorder as Alcove said. The H4n is not a really great option, there's much better out there, but I'll just let him advise you on that!

6) I know you're going high quality as "eff", but do you really need to shoot Cinema DNG or ProRes in 2.5K for a final output to an online medium? I don't see the point in this. It's gonna cost you a lot of money in SSD's (You have 760 budgeted for this) and a lot of pain in post production.

7) I am wondering whether a camera like a Sony FS100 (even used) would be a better solution. Depending on the quality of the audio you really need, you could even send your sound straight to camera. This is what I always do, because I don't have the time for dual system sound. I get 5 minutes to set everything up and then I have to roll most of the time.

8) What lighting will you use? Tungsten will give you the best colour rendition and won't give you any nasty colour spikes in skin tones for example. Tungsten lights get hot though, so your talent will feel uncomfortable soon. Have you thought about that? You don't want your talent sweating.
I use LED panels. 1x1 LED's by F&V Lighting. They're very cheap and you can pick up a 3 light kit which includes amazing diffusers for just 1000 dollars. This is super cheap for a light kit that gets the job done almost every time.

Anyways, think about a few of these things, as they can save you hassle later on. You don't want to end up with bad sound or a ton of work in post, just because you bought something not suitable for the job or didn't do much research!
 
So, who will be swinging the boom? Or were you planning on using a C-stand?
How much experience do you have with production sound of any kind?

Here's a thought for you... How will your superiors react when the production audio sounds like crap?

I have 0 experience with audio.
Someone on this thread recommended a Sanken Cs-3, which sounds pretty fantastic. Here's an interview test with it (Video) I would be using a C stand.

That sounds really high quality and really thats all we need... Why would my superiors think that sounds like crap?
 
I hope you don't mind me chipping in here.

I am going off your statement that you'll mostly be shooting interviews/videos with loads of talking about nutrition products (Funnily enough, I've shot similar stuff and got a job coming up, but with a lot higher budget, so I am hiring a sound guy).

1) Cut out the slider, save 350 bucks. Why do you need a slider for a simple talking head interview? I don't believe that you need sliding shots, especially if you only have 10.000 dollars to spend. (I am not against sliders, I own a Kessler Pocket Dolly and a 6 foot Shuttlepod myself...)

2) The Blackmagic camera is not a bad idea, but have you considered your lens choice? Yes, you have a fast lens and a lens that would be a good medium wide on a 5D, but bear in mind the crop factor of the Blackmagic camera. With a 24-70 you wont be able to get decent wide shots which can be very important (especially if you want to use a slider).

3) Have you considered power for the Blackmagic camera? You need to buy a V-Mount and V-Mount battery to power your camera for a decent amount of time. Pausing a shoot and waiting for your camera to charge will get you booted off the job, quicker than you can say "I have to charge my camera".

4) Buy the best tripod you can get for your budget. If all you really want is to support a Blackmagic camera or similar in weight, buy a Sachtler ACE. Much better than cheap Manfrottos.

5) Invest in SOUND! I 100% agree with Alcove, sound is very important. If you only record with a shotgun mic, you will get less than optimal sound. I shoot a LOT of talking heads and corporate films with interviews and my lavalieres have been the best thing I've bought so far. There's a lot of different mics for different prices, but buying a lavalier mic is the first step to good sound. I use the Sennheiser G3's a lot and own a Sony UWP-V1 system which I often use with a TRAM TR50 mic. The standard mic (the one that comes with the UWP-V1) is also decent, but kind of big. I always boom a mic on interviews as well. This is just a backup in case my wireless lav picks up any weird sounds/gets interference from somewhere. Most of the time I do this with a stand/C-Stand. Consider an audio mixer and a decent recorder as Alcove said. The H4n is not a really great option, there's much better out there, but I'll just let him advise you on that!

6) I know you're going high quality as "eff", but do you really need to shoot Cinema DNG or ProRes in 2.5K for a final output to an online medium? I don't see the point in this. It's gonna cost you a lot of money in SSD's (You have 760 budgeted for this) and a lot of pain in post production.

7) I am wondering whether a camera like a Sony FS100 (even used) would be a better solution. Depending on the quality of the audio you really need, you could even send your sound straight to camera. This is what I always do, because I don't have the time for dual system sound. I get 5 minutes to set everything up and then I have to roll most of the time.

8) What lighting will you use? Tungsten will give you the best colour rendition and won't give you any nasty colour spikes in skin tones for example. Tungsten lights get hot though, so your talent will feel uncomfortable soon. Have you thought about that? You don't want your talent sweating.
I use LED panels. 1x1 LED's by F&V Lighting. They're very cheap and you can pick up a 3 light kit which includes amazing diffusers for just 1000 dollars. This is super cheap for a light kit that gets the job done almost every time.

Anyways, think about a few of these things, as they can save you hassle later on. You don't want to end up with bad sound or a ton of work in post, just because you bought something not suitable for the job or didn't do much research!

This is the type of feedback i was looking for! Thanks for your input.

About #6) I know that the web does compress the footage pretty badly, making it seem pointless to shoot in 2k, but in all the comparison footage between this camera in 2k and others in 1080p, the Bmcc looked leaps and bounds better. Even with the web compression. We have a 3930k cpu and a gtx 760 so i dont think it will be a really big problem in post.

About #2) You don't think that at 24mm the bmcc would be very wide? I knew that the Bm had some crop factor but i did'nt know it was gonna be that bad. What would you think about switching out the 50mm 1.2 for the 14mm 1.4 from canon? Wide shots are definitely important for What were doing. What lenses would you personally pick for interviewing?

About #8) Well were shooting with a white background, so led's would work perfectly, I'm not sure that they would light the interviewee very pleasantly though. They'd probably make him look pale, right? Leds are definitely something im looking into, ill check out the ones you recommended. Also, is it bad to mix tungsten with LED? I was thinking about getting a Leds to light up the backround and also the interviewee's hair, while using tungsten to light up the interviewee, making him look a little bit more natural colored.

About #5) Yah i guess i definitely need to look into sound more. I thought a really high end boom would suffice, but i guess not.

Thanks a lot for your help man, especially on those LEDS
 
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