Proposed $1,000 ~ $1,200 setup ~ Your opinion?

G

g9m3c

Hello everyone! I come from the world of DSLR stills and have recently gotten the bug for filmmaking. A friend (who is much more experienced) and I are looking to buy a complete gear setup for $1,000 ~ $1,200. We recently shot a 5 minute film with a T2i and Zoom H2, so I am familiar and aware of the capabilities of those two devices. Here is the list I have compiled so far. Your advice and suggestions are very much welcomed.


Canon T3i w/ 18-55 kit lens ~ $700
Zoom H2n with accessory pack ~ $185
Pelican 1450 case w/foam pack for T3i, H2n and accessories ~ $75
Audio Technica ATR 6550 shotgun mic ~ $50
Sunpak 8001 UT Tripod ~ $25
Supplies to build audio boom ~ $50

Total ~ $1,085 which leaves enough room for inevitable necessities

Our thinking is the T2i produces really nice video for its class and the addition of the multi-angle screen and other small improvements in the T3i should fit our bill pretty well. The H2n, I'm a bit more unsure about. I have watched multiple review videos on it but haven't seen much mention of it here. It's the successor to the H2 which is talked about here a lot as an entry level recorder. Maybe it's not old enough yet to have a large user base? I know my tripod selection is quite cheap, but it actually seems to be the best bang-for-the-buck tripod under $50. Plus, we used its little brother (2001) during our most recent shoot and although we didn't test it too hard, it never failed us. The shotgun mic has been mentioned here a good bit, as well. I have yet to find a better solution for $50. My thinking is use the H2n itself for ambient/field recording and the 6550 connected to the H2n for dialogue/close range audio.


Now, how far off-base am I? :huh:

Cheers!

~Grant
 
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Alcove Audio said:
As I already mentioned, the AT875 and NTG-1 (they require external phantom power) are the more popular mics in that price range.

The ME-66 is $500. If you see it for $200 you're only getting the capsule, not the entire mic.
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Gotcha. I see that there's a K6 power supply that goes with it....


So, here is the revised equipment list.


Canon T3i w/ kit lens ~ $700
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8 ~ $100
Tascam DR-100 ~ $270
DR-100 Redhead windscreen ~ $35
Boom pole supplies ~ $50
Audio Technica AT875R ~ $175
Sunpak 8001 UT Tripod ~ $22.62



TOTAL: $1352.62


Any other comments or suggestions? We're looking to place orders on Monday. :D
 
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There is only one good reason to go with the kit lens ...If it has Image stabilization and you will need stabilization. Older used primes will get you more bang for the buck.

I want a lens w/ IS for tracking and dolly shots. If your style does not need that, then save bucks and go for primes, you can do some limited movement in post
 
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Make sure you get the DR-100mkII. Only $30 more than the original with a lot of improvements complimentary to production sound.

And why do you need wind protection for the DR-100 if you're going to be using an external mic? Buy wind protection for the mic instead.
 
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g9m3c said:
Not hardly. The body only is $100 more than the T3i. Add a decent lens and you're in the $950+ range.




.
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shop around you can get a body for 700ish and a used prime for $50. That kit lens on the Canon is junk.
ME66 is decent but by most accounts overpriced. However you can run it straight to camera if you need. Not many mics can do that.
 
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Zensteve said:
You'll still need a few bucks for a DIY lighting kit, but there's a dozen ways to finaggle that for cheap at Home Depot.

Lookin' good :)
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Thanks. I posted our DIY lighting strategy earlier in the thread. It worked better than I expected for our first shoot.

IndieBudget said:
There is only one good reason to go with the kit lens ...If it has Image stabilization and you will need stabilization. Older used primes will get you more bang for the buck.

I want a lens w/ IS for tracking and dolly shots. If your style does not need that, then save bucks and go for primes, you can do some limited movement in post
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Yeah, it has IS thankfully. It's the regular ole' IF 18-55 EF lens that Canon likes to pair with the entry level DSLRs. Works well enough. I would kill to have a 28mm f/1.8 or something similar but that can be a down-the-road purchase. The 50 we're getting should be fine for now.

Alcove Audio said:
Make sure you get the DR-100mkII. Only $30 more than the original with a lot of improvements complimentary to production sound.

And why do you need wind protection for the DR-100 if you're going to be using an external mic? Buy wind protection for the mic instead.
Click to expand...

Ah, I guess the $30 is probably worth it then. We will still probably use the Tascam by itself for a few things. I hadn't even thought of wind protection for the shotgun. Any suggestions for that or something better than the "redhead" for the Tascam?



Thanks again for all the help everyone. I definitely have more confidence in this list than I did at the beginning of this thread.
 
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brianluce said:
shop around you can get a body for 700ish and a used prime for $50. That kit lens on the Canon is junk.
ME66 is decent but by most accounts overpriced. However you can run it straight to camera if you need. Not many mics can do that.
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It may be junk to you but I have used it for over 2 years with my XSi and I can't think of a reason to call it junk. Our first shoot was shot with the same lens and again, it was very usable. Primes are great and we will use more of them in time, but we seem to use zoom a good bit and I certainly can't think of a better zoom lens at the price you get it for as a kit with the T3i...

I'm pretty sure we'll go with the AT875R because of price...
 
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I never use handheld recorders, so I don't know much about wind protection for them. I rent my field recording gear and always use mics.

On a budget a softie (around $100 to $150 for a good one) is usually your best bet, although probably beyond your initial budget. You can make due with a foam windscreen ($20 to $40) and a cheap slide-on windjammer ($30 to $60) for now. As always, you get what you pay for.

That's the problem with audio, it's the accessories that really inflate your budget.
 
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g9m3c said:
It may be junk to you but I have used it for over 2 years with my XSi and I can't think of a reason to call it junk. Our first shoot was shot with the same lens and again, it was very usable. Primes are great and we will use more of them in time, but we seem to use zoom a good bit and I certainly can't think of a better zoom lens at the price you get it for as a kit with the T3i...
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Just a heads up, if you argue with the people you're asking for advice they're going to stop giving it.

You're doing research apparently and that's great! So if someone suggests something (for free, after askinging for help) that is contrary to what you feel is best with YOUR money, it's ok to disagree. No need to argue the point though, just smile and say "I'll look into it." :)

The reason it's "junk" for video but ok for photos is that you're stuck at around 1/50 shutter speed on a camera, so the slow lenses need a LOT of light. Considering you haven't budgeted for a light kit, you're going to have to crank the ISO indoors and the noise will ruin the image. If you aren't going for lights, you're going to want some fast 1.4ish lenses. At 1.4 you're letting about 75% of available light hit the sensor. At 3.5 it's closer to 28-30%. Or, again, shoot only outdoors in the daylight.

But you also said you had this lens on an XSi... Do you still have it? Why buy a second copy?
 
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PaulGriffith said:
Just a heads up, if you argue with the people you're asking for advice they're going to stop giving it.

You're doing research apparently and that's great! So if someone suggests something (for free, after askinging for help) that is contrary to what you feel is best with YOUR money, it's ok to disagree. No need to argue the point though, just smile and say "I'll look into it." :)

The reason it's "junk" for video but ok for photos is that you're stuck at around 1/50 shutter speed on a camera, so the slow lenses need a LOT of light. Considering you haven't budgeted for a light kit, you're going to have to crank the ISO indoors and the noise will ruin the image. If you aren't going for lights, you're going to want some fast 1.4ish lenses. At 1.4 you're letting about 75% of available light hit the sensor. At 3.5 it's closer to 28-30%. Or, again, shoot only outdoors in the daylight.

But you also said you had this lens on an XSi... Do you still have it? Why buy a second copy?
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brianluce said:
I know, this feels like another debate thread.
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I didn't mean to step on any toes guys... I know as well as you guys what it's like when a forum noob acts an ass. That's not what I'm intending to do.

We already have some lights and will probably get a couple more. I listed a 50mm f/1.8 in our revised list. That should do fine for night shots on a budget....

The reason we're getting a second copy is because my friend who is splitting the costs with me is going to buy back my share in the purchase to eventually own all the equipment himself because he needs it for his side business as a wedding videographer.
 
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So, today was the day. The final list is below. :D

Canon T3i (body only)
Canon EF 50mm f/1.8
DSLR Flycam Nano
Tascam DR-100mkII
Audio-Technica AT875R shotgun mic
AC charger for DR-100mkII (not included w/ recorder)
Spare battery for the T3i and DR-100mkII

All of this with 3 year protection plans for the T3i and DR-100mkII came to a bit over $1,600

I cannot wait to get our hands on this stuff. We ended up going with the only the T3i body because if we need a zoom lens, we'll just use mine for now. In the future, we'll probably buy more glass. Once we start shooting, we'll see which lenses could benefit us the most. Our first shoot is February 25th!
 
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If you're getting performance footage see if you can get an audio feed off of the FOH console (the bands mixing board). Other option is to plant a mic in front of the PA speaker. In either case WATCH THE LEVELS!!! It can get extremely loud.
 
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Alcove Audio said:
If you're getting performance footage see if you can get an audio feed off of the FOH console (the bands mixing board). Other option is to plant a mic in front of the PA speaker. In either case WATCH THE LEVELS!!! It can get extremely loud.
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Yeah, that's what we're planning on doing. We're gonna be there for sound check and everything, so hopefully that can get all worked out. Thanks for the help!
 
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2012-02-22_02-32-13_310.jpg



:D

We got all the stuff from B&H on Monday, the FlyCam showed up yesterday, and the shotgun mic came last week. I ordered the mic and the FlyCam from Amazon because B&H was out of stock on the mic and they don't offer the FlyCam. I also built a DIY boom pole last evening. The only thing I'm going to change is the rubber bands to black ones (it'll look a bit less DIY that way). I used a combination of ideas from the The Frugal Filmmaker and also Film Riot youtube channels. (video links below)


2012-02-22_02-25-07_480.jpg


http://youtu.be/LwQJFRec2-E

http://youtu.be/2hTZj5FDnvM

Tomorrow, I'll be building a camera dolly. :cool:
 
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