I am going to film my new short film soon. But i need some euipment gear for my T2i. I was considering making a fig rig, dolley, steadicam, etc. Which of those is most appropriate for a dslr camera. I know focusing will be hard. But which do you guys use? And any pictures? I would prefer a diy. I cant afford the real thing.
Diy Equipment Gear
- Thread starter cmnervegna
- Start date
A tripod will serve you the best... after that, a shoulder mount or fig rig will get you the most consistent shots with just a little bit of serious practice. The steadicam will take a bunch more practice to get decent shots out of (but they're beautiful shots if you do them right) and a Dolly takes extra people to run, but is pretty easy to make.
Focussing will be hard and may take an extra person to do if you're concentrating on moving - then they can concentrate on focussing (this piece of kit will cost more, even if you make it yourself).
Focussing will be hard and may take an extra person to do if you're concentrating on moving - then they can concentrate on focussing (this piece of kit will cost more, even if you make it yourself).
I say:
1. Tripod = A must to me.
2. Fig Rig = Easy and inexpensive to make (Or so it seems from the tutorial), and might be useful.
3. Basic Stabilizer = Easy and inexpensive, might be good to have on hand.
4. Gimble Stablizer = Not that easy, kind of cheap, but could be rather time consuming.
5. Dolly = Takes some doing and you're likely to not use it THAT much, so the money could go elsewhere.
6. Jib = Pretty easy to make and might give a shot or two, but can you spend the time and money more effectively?
-Thanks-
1. Tripod = A must to me.
2. Fig Rig = Easy and inexpensive to make (Or so it seems from the tutorial), and might be useful.
3. Basic Stabilizer = Easy and inexpensive, might be good to have on hand.
4. Gimble Stablizer = Not that easy, kind of cheap, but could be rather time consuming.
5. Dolly = Takes some doing and you're likely to not use it THAT much, so the money could go elsewhere.
6. Jib = Pretty easy to make and might give a shot or two, but can you spend the time and money more effectively?
-Thanks-
I agree with Buddy -- you probably wouldn't use a dolly very often. In fact, you probably wouldn't use a steadicam very often, either. Between the two of them, though, I wouldn't want to be without a dolly. Though I personally only used it a few times, on a feature film, I love every one of those shots.
You might use a shoulder-mount a little more often. But I think that's only if you're somebody accustomed to having a camera on your shoulders.
Like the others have said, a tripod is a must-have; I'm assuming you were already planning on purchasing one. Spend a couple hundred bucks; get one that's not gonna fall apart.
Focusing -- considering your most realistic scenarios, you'll only be doing any follow focusing if you get a shoulder mount. With all the other options, I'd recommend keeping as wide a depth of field as possible.
Besides a tripod, the accessory I found myself using the most often was my Josephcam. The Josephcam is real sweet -- it's just a guy named Joseph, holding the camera. It turns out -- when he keeps both hands on the camera, with his elbows locked tight by his side, he can hold a pretty steady shot, while moving around a little bit. I've seen footage from friends who use shoulder mounts, and the Joseph cam is easily just as stable -- the only disadvantage is that you aren't able to use follow focus with the Josephcam, so you're forced to keep a wide depth of field.
I'll post some pics of my stuff later -- they're up in the attic.
You might use a shoulder-mount a little more often. But I think that's only if you're somebody accustomed to having a camera on your shoulders.
Like the others have said, a tripod is a must-have; I'm assuming you were already planning on purchasing one. Spend a couple hundred bucks; get one that's not gonna fall apart.
Focusing -- considering your most realistic scenarios, you'll only be doing any follow focusing if you get a shoulder mount. With all the other options, I'd recommend keeping as wide a depth of field as possible.
Besides a tripod, the accessory I found myself using the most often was my Josephcam. The Josephcam is real sweet -- it's just a guy named Joseph, holding the camera. It turns out -- when he keeps both hands on the camera, with his elbows locked tight by his side, he can hold a pretty steady shot, while moving around a little bit. I've seen footage from friends who use shoulder mounts, and the Joseph cam is easily just as stable -- the only disadvantage is that you aren't able to use follow focus with the Josephcam, so you're forced to keep a wide depth of field.
I'll post some pics of my stuff later -- they're up in the attic.
All of the above advice is great. So instead of repeating it with a slight variation, ill try and offer a different perspective.
Do you have your short storyboarded? Do you know what kind of shots you're going to be filming the most? Do you have a creative idea on how to make a regular shot more interesting? You can use that to decide what you need most right now.
For eg, a shoulder mount will serve you a lot most of the time as everyone has said and i agree, but suppose your short is about following a character through a dream or surreal world. You might want to be following him with a steadicam then for the aesthetic.
So think about your shots and see what it is you need. If you dont know, then listen to the guys above because thats the order in which you will generally use your support gear.
Do you have your short storyboarded? Do you know what kind of shots you're going to be filming the most? Do you have a creative idea on how to make a regular shot more interesting? You can use that to decide what you need most right now.
For eg, a shoulder mount will serve you a lot most of the time as everyone has said and i agree, but suppose your short is about following a character through a dream or surreal world. You might want to be following him with a steadicam then for the aesthetic.
So think about your shots and see what it is you need. If you dont know, then listen to the guys above because thats the order in which you will generally use your support gear.
All of the above will get you absolutely CRAP shots if your operator doesn't practice with them before you get on set. The set is not a place to practice technique - so just having the gear doesn't mean good shots... knowing the gear means good shots (within the framework of the director and DoP/Camera Op's abilities).
I just made my own Track/dolly and just a word of advice if you do decide to make one. DON'T make a ride on. They cost more to make and the added weight of a person on the wheels often gives them a flat edge unless you are constantly moving on it. This assumes you are using skateboard wheels of course but realistically going for a 'H' frame design is much better. I made mine in about half a day for £20 and it works brilliantly. Easily as well as the low end of the professional market.
I'm currently making a shoulder mount which hasn't cost me too much (£35) and it seems to be going quite well and is fairly straight forward to do. You just need slightly more planning before you get the tools out. You can make a follow focus with a very simple gear system as well although i cant offer any personal experience as thats my next job.
I'm currently making a shoulder mount which hasn't cost me too much (£35) and it seems to be going quite well and is fairly straight forward to do. You just need slightly more planning before you get the tools out. You can make a follow focus with a very simple gear system as well although i cant offer any personal experience as thats my next job.
What plans did you use for the dolly, we consistently put 300+ pounds of gear and operator on ours with no problem.
My homemade dolly - built in 1986, still going strong.
Homemade jib arm, adapted from Internet plans.
Niceeeeee. 
(Got detail pics or the plans you used for your jib? I'd like to learn that lever system you employed.)
-Thanks-
(Got detail pics or the plans you used for your jib? I'd like to learn that lever system you employed.)
-Thanks-
Just do a search for "homemade jib arm". I looked at a number of different plans then adapted the best bits of all of them. That's really the only pic I have of it.
Here are instructions to build your own slider:
http://www.zazaslider.com/instructions.html
http://www.zazaslider.com/instructions.html
My homemade dolly - built in 1986, still going strong.
Homemade jib arm, adapted from Internet plans.
Those are great!
Is that you in the second photo?
So THAT's how you got the shot above the coffee shop in your movie you're working on. Very nice!
