Equipment Reviews

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For videos that engage an audience, it's extremely important for the host to maintain good eye contact. Trust me, if you guys ever need to have someone drop a few lines or read off a script, a Prompter is a true time saver. Time is money, especially when you're off at a rented location, you can't spend countless takes waiting for your host to nail a script. Not something you'd typically see, but that's all changing now. In the past, the problem was that these units used to run in the thousands and were quite bulky. iPads have helped shaped these things down to a much more manageable tool that we use both in the studio and out in the field.

pad-prompter

The Pad Prompter is not only set at a decent price with a true glass beam splitter (good for maintaining sharpness), but is also the only one I know that can break down this small and mount a basic rail setup. The entire unit packs into a laptop sized bag and can be transported with the iPad inside. The Pad Prompter does not include any software, and we're using the ProPrompter. You can find this Pad Prompter - iPad Teleprompter over at the store (click here).

iPad Prompter
find-price-button iPad Teleprompter Portable Lightweight Beam Splitter Glass

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When you search eBay for a DSLR Rig, you'll find a ton of these 'Movie Kit Shoulder Mounts'. I received this one a while back from eBay to demo, but never got around to doing anything with it. I personally am not into these transforming rigs, but I know a few people have sent in comments and videos showing use of them. Here's a quick demo of some of the configurations they can bend into. Again, not my cup of tea, but might be something entertaining for someone out there. Prices have definitely dropped since they first appears, and you find them on the web (click here).

DSLR-Media-Rig
find-price-button Transforming DSLR Movie Kit Shoulder Mount

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First look at what's in the box with the Small HD DP4-EVF. First impression, this thing is much bigger than I anticipated. It's a very nice external monitor, and sadly it might be enough to replace my DP6 (might be up for sale soon?). The menu with the click wheel on top, is the same as the SmallHD DP6 allowing you to change through a variety of features. Also included is the Focus Peaking and False color to help you with exposure. If you're familiar with the SmallHD DP6 features, you'll fall in love with the DP4 as both an external monitor solution and as an EVF. So the question on everyone's mind is, how does the Small HD DP4 hold up to the Zacuto Z-EVF? I don't have a Zacuto ZEVF to compare it to right now (yet), but i'll leave the comments open if someone has something to say, and i'll have more of my opinions in a bit. You can find more about SmallHD DP4-EVF following this link.

Oh and the Diopter for the Small HD DP4 question? Thanks for the comments, The SmallHD DP4 uses 46mm thread on 'Close up' Filters a.k.a Macro Filters (like Cinevate's Cyclops). These Close up filters come in a variety of magnifications like +1 to +4 or more. Found below.

Close Up Macro Filter
find-price-button 46mm Close UP Macro Filters for Diopter

Even without a side by side SmallHD DP4 vs Zacuto ZEVF comparison, there's no doubt the Zacuto EVF is the smaller of the two. If size (or lack of) is of importance for your work, then Zacuto's EVF Electronic View Finder still lands as the smallest most affordable EVF solution. Hopefully i'll have the two side by side pretty soon. You can find it via B&H (click here) or via Amazon (click here).

Zacuto EVF
find-price-button Zacuto EVF

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A very cool looking kit from Snake River Prototyping that adds a much needed flat lens to the GoPro HD. If you haven't done your research, the GoPro HD video will become soft underwater and things will look blurred out. With a flat lens on the housing, your video will retain it's sharpness and focus to infinity. I've been using the EyeOfMine housing which has vastly improved the videos during my snorkeling trip in Maui, but the SRP BlurFix not only looks better, but allows use of Filters. With an orange type filter under blue color cast waters, this will provide a better white balance and underwater images become more colorful.

I'll be putting the kit together and then later do some testing with a GoPro HD in standard housing, and another one with the SRP BlurFix kit. Stay tuned, but you You can find out more information about the Blurfix from Snake River Prototyping can be found at https://www.snakeriverprototyping.com/BlurFix.html

Instructional Assembly

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I know there's a good amount of new DSLR shooters who haven't invested in ND filters yet, so here's a good example of the difference it can make to improve your DSLR video. To properly exposure on your DSLR you'll primarily be changing either Aperture or Shutter Speed. Since the majority of people love to shoot with a shallow depth of field (wide open aperture), changing the shutter speed is the only other option in bright days. This is where you could really compromise the video quality (unless you're going for that fast shutter look specifically). Get invested into some ND (neutral density) filters to cut down on the light so you can maintain that 'double framerate' rule.

To maintain the sharpest image possible, a single piece of ND glass is your best bet. The problem is that you need to have 1 filter for every sized lens, and you'll also need different densities according to the lighting. If you want to save time in swapping densities, you could get into Variable or Fader ND filters. These are adjustable filters that change densities as you rotate them giving you up to 9 stops in one single filter. Just be careful about the uber cheap ones. Here's a good article about those Variables http://cheesycam.com/variable-nd-filters-fader-filters/.

Here's a variable that i've been using with good results, but price has gone up a bit: http://cheesycam.com/nature-fader-nd-variable-neutral-density-filters/

Single Density ND Filter
find-price-button Single Density ND FIlters ND2, ND4, ND6, ND8

nature-fader-ND-filters
find-price-button Adjustable Variable Density Fader ND Filters

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Another practice run on the Electric Skateboard. I'm determined to learn how to ride this thing, and I think I'm getting pretty comfortable. I picked up quickly for someone who never really knew how to skate. I had to warm up a 21 year old car and decided it would be fun to chase it around. Surprisingly this car still gets her 35+ MPG and passed the smog so clean, the Smog techs were in awe. Keep in mind i'm still not shooting with a Video camera Stabilizer, this is all with a short Velbon UltraStick monopod and the Sony HX9 point and shoot camera. The full 1080/60p helps with these moving shots. I'm almost pretty comfortable to take out my Steadicam Vest and Glidecam setup, so that should yield much better results.

sony-hx9-digital-camera
find-price-button Sony DSC-HX9 Digital Camera Full 1080 60p

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DSLR Shoulder Rig Pad Old New v2

There aren't too many sexy Video Rig shoulder pads on the market, not to mention anything affordable. Immediately after getting the Gini Rig shoulder pad, I was already looking to upgrade. The Gini silicone shouler pads (even the latest version) aren't the most comfortable. So, a recent redesign of a Shoulder Pad that peaks my interest. To the left is the OLD and to the right is the NEW. I'll admit, I've already had my eye on the old version, but i'm glad I held out. In my opinion this looks much more comfortable than the Redrock Micro microShoulderPad, and offers a better look, and more mounting points. (Not to mention cheaper too).

All standard 15mm fit, so it will work perfectly on a couple of new Gini DSLR Rigs I picked up. Yeah I know how you guys drive prices up, so I had to place my order first. I'm all in for this one, so i'll let you know how it turns out as soon as it washes up on U.S. soil. More about the new Video Rig Pro Shoulder Pad designs (click here)

DSLR Shoulder Pad v2Shouder Rig Pad
find-price-button DSLR Video Camera Rig Shoulder Pad v2

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A look at how the latest version CarrySpeed VFinder attaches to a Canon 60D with that swivel out screen. Right off the bat the metal frames might not line up perfectly, but they are easy to bend into position. If you want something super secure, I say permanently glue the sucker to the metal QR frame.

The 3:2 viewfinder fits perfectly on this Canon 60D and it is slightly slotted to fit the Canon T3i as well. The CarrySpeed viewfinders come with a Neoprene pouch, a Lanyard, Metal Frame, and the VFinder loupe. Not a bad deal for an important tool to help you set focus and dial in proper exposure (especially on those bright days). You might want to add some Anti Fog solution too.

carry-speed-lcd
find-price-button Canon 60D / Canon T3i LCD ViewFinder Quick Frame

[Update] Also available via Amazon below
carry-speed-lcd
find-price-button CarrySpeed LCD ViewFinder

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The GH1 hacked camera created quite a buzz, but fell off when newer units were shipped with 'unhackable' firmware. Shortly after, the GH2 was released. Not long ago an announcement was made about hacking those 'unhackable' GH1 cameras. This puts the GH1 back in the spotlight as a very inexpensive quality interchangeable lens video and photography camera, cheaper than some point and shoots. There was an earlier article posted on here, and many opted to go for the GH1 route. If you haven't already, Vimeo member Michael Eggert walks you through a how-to mod your GH1 cameras in this two part video tutorial.

   

If you're still thinking about the discontinued GH1 cameras as a backup a few bodies still remain, your best bet is to check out the auctions. They're disappearing elsewhere.

GH1
find-price-button Search for Panasonic Lumix GH1 Micro Four Thirds