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Equipment
If you want to be taken seriously while shooting then you gotta have some fancy looking stuff attached to your camera and all the other stuff.
● Camera
It helps to have a camera when shooting a film.
● Tripod
Everybody with a camera should have a tripod. Even if you are going for the 'NYPD Blue' look its still good to have a tripod in your arsenal because if follow our advice then you might want to keep it just for its aesthetic value because the following equipment will look like crap even up against the cheapest of tripods. We recommend a fairly expensive tripod with a nice fluid head. We have a cheap $15USD tripod which kinda rules out any panning and tilting, unless you want a cheap earthquake, also the water from the spirit level has evaporated but for static shots and special effect work it makes life a whole lot easier.
● 'Eddie' the Steady cam
Ah good ol' eddie, we've been through a lot together. Sure it may sound like I've become a little too attached to my equipment but this would probably be the one piece of equipment that we could not do without. I'm too lazy to write out how to make it. So here the link for the page we got the plan from. When we first made the steady cam we had found that there was too much movement through the y-axis and so I redesigned the $14 steady cam into what we call steady eddie. There wasn't too much thought that had gone into the redesign just that i had to increase the amount of rotational momentum by spreading the weight further out from the center of the y-axis. The result is the inverted 'T'. The result is a very smooth shot even at full sprint provided u can watch where you are running and hold the extra weight at arms length. We use it first in ghost movie for the majority of the shots and it was especially important in the part where Joe tells the story to Tim. But in that shot it wasn't to good because we hadn't worked out the technique of walking forward with the camera facing backwards (or the don Juan method as it is known properly) so there were a few takes before the final take by which time my arm was hurting. I suppose an upgrade would be support arm for eddie maybe made from one of those spring arm lamp thingys.
● 'Dangerous Dave' the Crash Box
As the name may suggest a crash box is simply a box that protects your beloved camera from any danger or harm that may be caused went it is put in an unpredictable situation (ie. on the side of a car). So far dave has been on the front of a 4-wheeler (ATV) and next to the launch pad of a model rocket. Our crash box is made form a former NZ army ammo box with a small plastic window bolted on one end. Although our current design is a bit narrow for my digital 8s fat body, it fits Tim's camera nicely :). We already have another ammo box which is a bit wider its just a matter of finding a transparent material that can be cut, drilled and scratch-proof because the cheap plastic is scratched and slightly foggy. Before i hacked holes into the crash-box i tested it ability to withstand water and got to a depth of approximately 1.5 m and it was still bone dry inside. So theoretically if well constructed the final product could be used as and underwater camera in shallow water.
● 'Dolly' the Dolly
Right now the dolly in the construction stage. We got the idea from the web, mostly from homebuiltstabilisers.com. There was quite a lot of thought that went into the design, like what kind of wheel configuration, track shape. The way i came up with this was the requirement that we needed first was the track width. I simply use the standard gauge that they use in hollywood guessing that there many years of practice had perfected the width. Then there was the need for it to fit through a doorway and a little bit of leeway so it could go through at a slight angle. The other requirements were that the tripod would be quite stable fully extended and that there was room for a chair (It is hard work pushing that big red button). Now the track was the part that had the most thought going into it, first i knew that i didn't want what most people had made with PVC pipe just layed out on the ground because of the local environment didn't have too many level concrete surfaces. And it need to be strong so i could be elevated for uneven terrain and be able to support a well-feed camera operator. Also it need to be cheap and readily available, those really long shots. So the answer was wood with small guide rails on the inside this enable us to make the dolly without horizontal guide wheels and make it capable of working without the track on a smooth level surface.
● The Reflector that has no Name
Our reflector is simply a piece of white cardboard with aluminum foil taped on one side. This proved to problematic with the foil making noises in the wind and reflecting unnatural looking light. So its best just to use the white side of the board.
● Microphones
Its a bit hypocritical of us to say that you need mics that are not attached to the camera but we have got a mic but the sponge has deteriorated so we gotta buy a new muff (windshield) for it.
● Lighting
One day we might use them. We might get some inspection lights from the local hardware store or something. So until then we'll just keep using our big yellow friend in the sky.
● Catering
Yea, Its best if take your own lunch to the set. The crash box would make a good lunch box.
● Future Equipment
Well first of all I think we need a mic and then possibly lights. But the next large piece of equipment is a camera boom. Now i have thought a lot about this. Explored ideas on the net and have come to the conclusion that it is not worth the effort and resources to build one. Instead i have started to design in my head a motion controlled camera rig. Now i know this sounds like big project and it is but I'm sure with enough thought put into the research and development of it then it should be able to be constructed for less than $500 USD or possible less than $300. Which by professional standards is quite bloody cheap and if we do it right and make a rig that has good performance and is reliable then it would be no problem to profit on hiring it out or something.
Created on 12/31/2006 01:31 PM by admin
Updated on 05/29/2007 06:37 PM by admin
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