Starting to collect equipment.

Columbus

Columbus

Hello I am a beginning film maker who is beginning to collect equipment and there is so much stuff out there I don't know where to start. Would a good computer/editing software be first? The computer I have now is 5 years old and pretty much junk.

After that I was planning on getting a camera. In the mean time I was planning on using my Iphone since it takes good enough footage for me to edit and learn how to frame. Eventually I want to pick up an HD prosumer camera.

I don't know where to go after that. Sound equipment? Lighting? tripods? jibs? Its a lot of stuff to learn and master!
 
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Welcome!

It will depend on what you want to shoot in the beginning. And unless you have a proper budget, it takes time to collect your own equipment. So meanwhile i would look into rental gear or collaborating with people who have equipment.

And a PC and editing software is going to depend on the camera you get. For example, you'll need different specs for handling raw hd footage than mini dv footage.

I think you should do some more research and read some older threads to get a general idea of what you're aiming for.
 
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Columbus said:
Hello I am a beginning film maker who is beginning to collect equipment and there is so much stuff out there I don't know where to start. Would a good computer/editing software be first? The computer I have now is 5 years old and pretty much junk.

After that I was planning on getting a camera. In the mean time I was planning on using my Iphone since it takes good enough footage for me to edit and learn how to frame. Eventually I want to pick up an HD prosumer camera.

I don't know where to go after that. Sound equipment? Lighting? tripods? jibs? Its a lot of stuff to learn and master!
Click to expand...
Any current computer will handle video editing. One possibility is
Apple and Final Cut. All Mac's come with iMovie free and it's an
excellent video editing software for a beginner. Excellent software
for a PC is Premiere and Vegas.

When looking for a camera there are two essentials: manual
controls of focus, exposure and shutter and a mic input. Check out:
Panasonic HDC-TM700
Panasonic HDC-TM300
JVC GZ-HM1
JVC GZ-HM400
Canon HF S21
Canon HF S11
Sony HDR-CX550V

You'll get several people suggesting the DSLR cameras so I'll let them
wax rhapsodic about those cameras.

What you're looking for is a good shotgun mic. That in itself is a
generic term that means any long barreled mic. You want a good
condenser (externally powered) mic with a “lobar” pick up pattern
to put on your boom pole. Lobar pick up means the mic focuses its
audio pick up to a narrow area. This is why you want to use a boom
pole to get the mic as close the the actor as possible - you’ll
get clean dialogue tracks with less ambient noise.

http://www.sennheiserusa.com/newsite/
Sennheiser is the mic most used by professional sound recordists.
They are expensive and worth it. Check out the ME-66 and the ME-
67. The MKH60 is the best if you can afford it.

http://www.audio-technica.com/
Audio-Technica is cheaper. Check out the AT8035. It’s a workable
mic, a little muddy and not as directional as it should be. The
AT835ST is a good mic for the price, but it, too, sounds a bit
muddy - the vocals don’t sound crisp enough for me.

http://www.rodemic.com/microphones.php
Rode mics are quite good. Check the NTG (shotgun) series.

http://www.azdencorp.com/
I’ve never used Azden mic’s. They’re inexpensive and I don’t hear
too many good things about them, but if that's all you can afford
it's MUCH better than using the camera mic.

A good mic is an investment. It will last longer than your camera
- why skimp? A great place to check prices and purchase is B&H
Photohttp://www.bhphotovideo.com/

Allove will offer more detail on audio.

Lowel makes nice kits. Tungsten lights with stands, barndoors and
hard case. Britek makes nice light kits - cheaper than Lowel and
not as durable, but very usable. You can also check Arri lights -
more expensive and worth every penny. I have a Lowel 6 light kit
with the Omni’s and Tota’s that I bought new in 1990 and am still
using it 20 years later.

For a nice beginning light kit I recommend:

A couple of work lights with stands from any home improvement
store.

Five or six “scoop lights” - those lamps with the silver
reflector.

Three or four pieces of Foamcore from any art supply store to use
to bounce the light.

Two or three Paper Lanterns that you can get at Ikea. I hook each
one to a dimmer
(home improvement store again) to get better control.

Some colored gels (check on line or if there is a small theater in
your town they often have extras) and some black wrap.

Tripods come in many price ranges. I really like Bogen/Manfrotto, but
any name brand will be fine when you are starting out. Obviously the
more you spend, the better the equipment. Look at Daiwa and Libec.

The minimum equipment I would suggest having on hand is:
a tripod
6 lights with stands
2 china balls
8 extension cords
6 power strips
black wrap and gels
2 bounce boards
a good external mic
a boom with extension cables
gaffers tape
a bunch of C-47’s - also called “bullets” or wood cloths pins
a coffee maker
a slate with marker

If you can afford it - these items you can rent:
a dolly (wheelchair or doorway)
a simple grip kit with:
c-stands (at least 6)
flags (assorted sizes - at least 8)
scrims (at least 6)
silks (at least 2)
cookies (at least 1)
sandbags (one for every light/c-stand and then 6 more)
 
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You can save $$ by renting.. I should say that. I own, but I also do website design and video production. The minute you buy a camera, it depreciates 30%. Take your time and really look at alternatives. if you live in an area that has a fimmaing community, you can get others w/ expensive gear to help you in your projects and save on the costs. Just pay them something and your credit card does not get hit hard....

OR go all out $2500 for a cam, $1,000 for lenses, $4500 for steadycam a crane & slider, $1,500 for lights, $1500 for computer, $1,800 for software and another $1,500 for sound. You can certainly save on all the above, but heck, you will buy a $300 cam then long for a $800 cam then long for a $1500 cam then a $2500 cam and the race is on.

For software...Sony video Vegas has an edition for $100 that aint bad. I myself use Linux and all software is free. I use Cinelerra. It's not for everyone, but heck, Im a rebel.

good luck on your new expensive passion !!!
 
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Equipment does depreciate as soon as you walk out of the store with it. I'd suggest buying used equipment on Ebay, I've always done this and it works quite well. If you wait for a really good deal you when you are done with the project you can resell it and you've lost nothing. Sometimes I've been lucky enough to make a little money off of it.
As far as software, look for student versions, they are alot cheaper. If you're not a student you can sign up with community college and drop before classes start. If you just need something really basic, Sony Vegas is nice and you don't need student pricing because it's only around $100. It really depends on what you need it for, if you need alot of tracks for sound this probably won't work for you. I think they limit the sound tracks to 4 with their basic software.
Hope this helps some.
Good Luck!
 
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I'm buying both adobe video set that has premiere and after effects as well as apples final cut studios. I go to Ohio state so I get awesome discounts on software. For a computer I really want an iMac i7 with certain customizations. Right now I am trying to price a set of stuff that is must have vs stuff that is nice to have. I want my gear to all work around hi def as that is what I work with at school. So far this thread has been a lot of help
 
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As always, you will get a lot of contrary advice. So my first piece of advice is to remember that "opinions are like a$$holes, everybody has one and they all stink." Now, on to my advice.

1. Hire folks who have the gear.

The people you will hire will most probably have better equipment than you could own, and they will know how to use it inside and out; that's their job, that's what they do. You will not have to worry about owning it, paying for it, maintaining it or insuring it. Nor will you have to worry that it will be superseded in two years. And when you are on the set all you have to do is direct your talent and communicate your wishes to them and your crew, and any technical problems are not your responsibility.

2. Rent the gear.

The idea is that you are going to direct, so your key crew (DP, Sound, etc.) will decide what to rent to fit your budget and your project. Everything else above still applies.

3. Buy the gear.

Now you are the one to pay for it, maintain it and insure it. The high-tech elements - camera and audio recorder - will be worth about 20% within four years. The upside is that the accessories - tripods, C-stands, mics, cables and the like - will always be useful. The problem is that most newbs blow everything on the camera and then ask on forums like this "Now what the f#%* do I do to __________ (get good sound, light well...) without any money?".


You'll note that we haven't even really touched that much upon post production. FCP is a popular NLE with the indie crowd, but quite a few others give it a good run for the money. When it comes to audio post DAWs Pro Tools in its various incarnations is popular, especially now with the release of PT9 which is no longer dependent upon Digidesign/Avid hardware; but several other platforms can do the job. Regardless of which software you choose processing power and RAM are going to be important for faster rendering in the NLE and more real-time plug-ins for the DAW.


So now come the big decisions. Your first task is to put together a budget and then pare everything down to the basics and allocate your funds from there.

So my advice is to hire and/or rent. You're not a musician who is going to fly out the door with your instrument at the last minute for a jam session. If that is not the way you want to go investigate used gear. And, of course, my bias is to spend at least half of your production equipment funds on audio gear; you'll still be able to use it as you upgrade your cameras. I have mics I'm still using after 25+ years.
 
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I like the "Must Have" and "Nice to have" approach, however you already have everything you MUST have. What you don't have and cannot buy is experience. If you buy a camera now, you'll not know why such and such a feature is a "must" have or a "nice to have" and you will invariably compromise in the wrong direction... and secretly kick your self in the head for being stupid.. (experience talking here my friend!)

I say, go make a short 1 minute movie with your iphone. Figure out whats good and whats bad about it.. and do better for your next one. At some point, youll come to the realization that your camera is a limitation and youll know why.. that will go a long way in helping you to pick the right camera for your next round.. lather, rinse, repeat..
 
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Columbus said:
I'm buying both adobe video set that has premiere and after effects as well as apples final cut studios. I go to Ohio state so I get awesome discounts on software. For a computer I really want an iMac i7 with certain customizations. Right now I am trying to price a set of stuff that is must have vs stuff that is nice to have. I want my gear to all work around hi def as that is what I work with at school. So far this thread has been a lot of help
Click to expand...

No reason to buy both. Stick with the adobe suite (even on a mac), it can do everything the FCP better, and then some. Both have a learning curve, might as well only learn one.

I edit with both because different clients have different preferences. On my personal projects, it's all done with Adobe tools.
 
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Glad I ran across this list. I have the HV40, a tripod and a monopod. I've been looking for a basic kit that one would need to film on location. The list above, is EXACTLY what i needed!

Thanks!
 
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PaulGriffith said:
No reason to buy both. Stick with the adobe suite (even on a mac), it can do everything the FCP better, and then some. Both have a learning curve, might as well only learn one.

I edit with both because different clients have different preferences. On my personal projects, it's all done with Adobe tools.
Click to expand...

I'm buying both because it is too good of a deal. I also am more comfortable with Final cut Pro as far as editing is concerned but also have experience with adobe after effects. I can basically buy all the adobe video products and final cut suite for $700 and I get experience on two different editing platforms.
 
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