dslr video

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I'm a fan of working with many of the smaller camera systems like the GH4, Sony A7s, BMPCC, and also a fan of 3 Axis Gimbal Stabilizers. Yet when it came to an ultra portable one that offered tool-less adjustments and a full range of pan and tilt, there had been a gap with current products on the market.

Some of you may know that I had been making my own mini custom gimbals out of random parts found online. The small systems make it easier for me to travel and operate handheld for a long long period time without fatigue. As others seemed to be interested in the build, I decided to work with a few friends to make a frame kit available for others to build as well.

This kit which has been a work in progress has been designed to allow small cameras full range of motion, easy to balance, incorporates a camera QR system, and easy assembly disassembly. The frame kit is finally available and here's the latest update video.

Note: The frame has been revised with new motor housings and additional bearings that allow for better support and stability, but here are a few other (older) videos showing some of the features of the mini gimbal.

The 'Tiyaga' is a kit that requires assembly and a few additional parts to finish the build, but what you end up with is an affordable 3-Axis Gimbal Stabilizer for small cameras around 2.5lbs. There is a discount price for Early-Birds, and only a limited amount of kits will be made. You can find additional information over at the website https://MiniGimbal.com.

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find-price-button MiniGimbal 'Tiyaga' 3-Axis DIY Gimbal Frame Kit for Small Cameras

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It's quickly coming around 2 years since the BlackMagic Pocket Cinema Camera was announced at NAB 2013, but with the recent firmware upgrades and lack of competition for a pocketable camera that is capable of RAW video for under $1K, it's still a very popular choice. Better late than never, Kamerar has finally decided to release a dedicated LCD ViewFinder for the BMPCC Camera.

Similar to previous QV-1 versions, the LCD ViewFinder attaches magnetically to a special baseplate that is a similar width to a Manfrotto 701PL plate. The QV-1 LCD VIEW FINDER FOR BMPCC, folds up to see an entire view of the BMPCC screen without crops or obstruction and full access to menu buttons.

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The Dovetail quick release plate does not obstruct the battery door, and offers both a 3/8" and 1/4" female thread for you to add virtually any other type of QR plate or direct tripod mount.

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The Kamerar QV-1 LCD View Finder for the BlackMagic Pocket Cinema Camera #BMPCC is available now, and more information can be found at https://PNCGear.com (click here).

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find-price-button QV-1 LCD VIEW FINDER FOR BMPCC

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If all you wanted to do was to add a very basic Follow Focus to your camera, you still end up needing a very basic set of 15mm rails and baseplate. Although there are literally dozens of baseplates available online, here's a new PVGear 3 Way Baseplate that adds a horizontal 90 degree rod clamp integrated into baseplate. This saves from having to purchase an extra part as well as save space on your rails.

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Example: Sony A7s with Atomos Shogun 4K HDMI Recorder

Here's a quick video on how I assembled a few pieces to create a super short, lightweight, and functional rig for my Panasonic GH4.

Instead of a cage system where you would mount all of the accessories onto the camera body, the horizontal rod allows you to add a monitor or even portable audio recorder alongside your camera. It's quick to break down and setup for travel. With a plate under the base you can add your favorite quick release to go direct to tripod mount. Like many affordable baseplate systems for rails, this is a basic setup that does not offer rail height adjustments which can be handy when using cheap matteboxes that don't offer up/down alignment. Still if you don't use a mattebox very often (as I don't), this is a handy piece of kit.

PVGear 3 way baseplate system
Example: GH4 with F&V SpectraHD Monitor and PNC Hybrid Should Pad

The top plate can be used to mount your camera directly or add a QR base system like the Manfrotto 577. You can find the new 3-Way Baseplate with or without Carbon Fiber Rods available at https://pvgear.com/products/3-way-15mm-rod-dslr-base-plate-mounting-system.

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find-price-button PVGear 3-Way Baseplate for 15mm Rods

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find-price-button SmallRig 15mm Handles

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find-price-button PNCGear Hybrid Folding Chest / Shoulder Pad

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find-price-button Manfrotto 577 Rapid Connect w/ Sliding Mounting Plate (501PL)

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In terms of Canon's best Prime Lenses especially for flattering portraits the 135mm F/2.0 at just over $1K is a highly popular focal length. There's a certain aesthetic quality from the 135mm that can't be matched. Now Rokinon is extending their lineup of Cine Lenses and has just recently announced their own 135mm F/2. For video use most people would gladly trade in their auto focus, but the real test of course is to see how people compare the quality of the two. Available for almost every camera mount, the new Rokinon 135mm F/2 or 135mm T/2.2 Cine Lens is available now for pre-order starting at $549.

PRODUCT HIGHLIGHTS
135mm Lens
Full-Frame Coverage
Multi-Layer Coating to Reduce Flare
Standard Gearing for Focus and Iris
Dual Side Focus and T-Stop Scales
De-Clicked Aperture Ring
Hybrid Aspherical Lenses
Manual Focus and Aperture
Removable Lens Hood
Accepts 77mm Threaded Filter Rings

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find-price-button Rokinon 135mm F/2.0 or 135 m T/2.2 Cine Lens

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Although I haven't even had the time to learn everything about the new DJI Inspire 1 Quadcopter, I was at least able to get it off the ground and flying. It's a bit frustrating that they don't sell spare batteries (yet) as I only get around 18 minutes of flight before having to recharge the battery. So even though i've had the multicopter for a few days, I probably logged less than an hour and most of it is playing with the menu.

Keep in mind i'm not a very skilled pilot and there are some instances in the footage below where i'm trying to steer the copter. The Inspire 1 is actually a very very stable system. Here's a few minutes of 4K footage I shot recently on the new DJI Inspire 1 Quadcopter.

Make sure to switch to 4K resolution in the player and maybe even go full screen..

The images may be a bit underexposed or flat, but I wanted to pull down the highlights and in some cases bring up the shadows to see how much information I could retain. At around 2:45 in the video I'm shooting straight into the sun and was still able to retain color in the sky without completely losing the beach below. I still have a lot to learn and hopefully get better results but with the single battery it's taking a lot longer to practice. More to come.

DJI Inspire Quadcopter Multicopter 4K camera gimbal indoor
find-price-button DJI Inspire 1 4K Video Quadcopter

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Auto Pan onemancrew parallax video slider add on device 4

Tired of static camera angles? We all know that sliders can add an entirely new dimension to your video, but Panning the fluid head simultaneously can add even MORE! Of course it's tricky business tracking a subject perfectly and to repeat the process purely by hand is near impossible. Well here's a little Parallax Slider Add-On Track that you can mount to just about any video slider so that you can have auto-panning to track a subject. Here's a very quick video about how it works.

The kit comes with just a few parts and has a dozen different 1/4" or 3/8" mounting options to get it to fit on just about any slider. The track adjusts quickly so that you can setup your next tracking shot. Build quality is great and things work smoothly.

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find-price-button Parallax Auto Panning Subject Tracking Video Slider Add-On Track

You'll need a bit of practice on how to get it to work best by ensuring your track is not too high above the auto-pan base or it can bind. After about 10 minutes of playing you'll pretty much master the technique though. The kits are available with different lengths for short or long sliders and start at just around $150 (you provide the slider). Find it (HERE).

Auto Pan onemancrew parallax video slider add on device
find-price-button Parallax Auto Panning Subject Tracking Video Slider Add-On Track


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Here's a simple sound comparison video from Pete Alexandar using the affordable AspenMics HQ-S Stereo Lav mics. Using the same two microphones he's recording one to a Samsung Note 4 and to a Zoom H4n. For comparison he references back to what audio would sound like from the internal Sony A7s camera microphone. You'll notice immediately how different the same microphone can sound when using different recorders.

The Zoom H4n obviously is designed to capture quality sound and there's a big difference compared to the Samsung Note 4 which may sound a little flat. Still not a bad thing if you know how to tweak the audio in post using the Audio EQ. If you're looking to pair it with an affordable audio recorder that offers high quality sound capture, my vote is still the pocketable Zoom H1 often found for under $100 bucks.

So if you're looking to get better audio, there's no reason why you shouldn't have a good set of lav microphones in your kit. The focused sound will block out most ambient noise and deliver a higher quality recording. The AspenMics are perfect for the budget filmmaker, finally back in stock, and currently on sale (HERE).


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find-price-button AspenMics HQ Stereo and Mono Lavalier Microphones

For an additional sound test of these mics, check out the review samples from Ray Ortega from ThePodCasters Studio.

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I just received the new Atomos Shogun 4K Recorder / Monitor and obviously I plan to pair it up with the Sony A7s to utilize it's 4K Video feature (via HDMI only), and also test out 10Bit 4K via the GH4.

It's #4K time on Sony #A7s and 10 bit #4K on #Panasonic #GH4 #atomos #shogun #hdmirecorder

A photo posted by Emm (@mrcheesycam) on

For something this heavy, it's probably not a great idea to mount it directly to the Hot Shoe of the camera, so you'll need to look into using some type of accessory mount or Camera Cage. Here's a look at two Varavon Armor Pro Cages designed for the Sony A7s and Panasonic GH4.

Instead of a fairly large generic shell, each Armor Cage is custom designed only to fit a specific camera. This allows the cage to be remain very slim and allowing full access to the camera's dials, inputs, and doors. Each Varavon Armor Cage comes with a leather Hand Strap, while some packages offer a Top Handle and optional rotating ENG Hand Grip.

To maximize the run time on these cameras (I really need one for the Sony A7s), Varavon also offers external battery power solutions for many types of cameras.

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find-price-button Varavon Sony A7s and GH4 External Battery Package

For more information about these cages and optional accessories, check out the Varavon website (here).

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find-price-button Varavon Armor Cages for Sony A7s Pro and GH4 Pro