Camera + Mic question

Hello, thank you for looking at my thread.

(sorry if I posted this in a wrong section, I hope I did it right)

Right now I have a Canon 650D with the standard 18-55mm lens.

I use this setup to make videos like this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ktGHPW6WLpw

I am asked to make some similair videos for a company, which is great but recently my lens broke.
I would like to upgrade my gear a bit, but I want to do it as efficient possible.

Camera question: should I buy a better camera+lens, or do you think a better lens will make a big enough difference?

Mic question: which mic is suitable for the kind of videos I'm making? And would it work on the camera that you are recommending?

Thanks in advance!
 
A separate audio system has become fairly standard for DSLR work. Brand new you can put together a decent kit for about US$1,200, quite a bit less if you carefully purchase used gear.

Here's my $1,200 buying guide.


Shotgun mic kits will have the shotgun mic, boom-pole, shock-mount and simple wind protection (softie).

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/551607-REG/Audio_Technica_AT_875_Shotgun_Microphone.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/461493-REG/Rode_NTG_1_Shotgun_Condenser.html


Hypercardioid mic:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/867157-REG/Avantone_Pro_CK1_CK_1_Small_Capsule_FET_Pencil.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/359043-REG/sE_Electronics_SE1A_SE1A_Small_Diaphragm.html



Audio recorders:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/832911-REG/Tascam_DR100MKII_DR_100mkII_Portable_Linear.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/821259-REG/Tascam_DR_40_DR_40_4_Track_Handheld_Digital.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/821260-REG/Roland_R_26_R_26_6_Channel_Digital_Field.html



Headphones:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/49510-REG/Sony_MDR_7506_MDR_7506_Headphone.html

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/507447-REG/Sennheiser_HD_25_1_II_HD_25_1_II.html



You'll also need cables, cases, battery packs and other miscellaneous items - about $200+.

The above guide is a "basic" entry level prosumer quality kit, meant to be wielded by a dedicated PSM/Boom-op. It is far from definitive, but it's a good place to start. Quite a few of them are IndieTalk Member Tested :lol::D. The foibles of all the gear have been discussed frequently.

To indie types $1,200 seems like a huge amount of money; to a professional production sound team that's just one microphone in a kit that can easily cost well over $50,000. It's all a matter of perspective.


Lavs may be the solution for what you're doing, but reliable wireless systems can get pricey and have their own pitfalls. If you have no choice but to stay camera mounted you may want to look into the Rode VideoMic or VideoMic Pro.
 
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