I need a lot of help.
- Thread starter WilliamC
- Start date
Welcome WilliamC!
I have no experience with film equipment, so I can't help you there. I DID, however, notice your location -- and thought I'd share that I am a John Jay HS graduate. Small world!
I have no experience with film equipment, so I can't help you there. I DID, however, notice your location -- and thought I'd share that I am a John Jay HS graduate. Small world!
There's the obvious:
A camera - you can pay from a couple of hundred to several thousand.
Check the "What camera should I get?" threads here for detailed info.
A microphone - you can under $100 to $1,000.
The minimum equipment I would suggest having on hand is:
a tripod
6 lights with stands
2 china balls
8 extension cords
3 power strips
black wrap and gels
2 bounce boards
gaffers tape
a bunch of C-47’s - also called “bullets” or wood cloths pins
a coffee maker
a slate with marker
I'll let you do the research on the price range because, frankly, you
can pay anywhere from $30/$40 to a couple of hundred for just
about everything on that list.
Lowel makes nice kits. Tungsten lights with stands, barndoors and hard case.
You can also check Arri lights - more expensive and worth every penny. Not
the Lowel kits are bad - I have a 6 light kit with the Omni’s and Tota’s that I
bought new in 1990 and am still using it 18 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 clamp on work lights 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. Check Studio Depot
This example kind of puts all the following links in perspective.
Here's a do-it-yourself Croney Cone made from foamcore and gaff tape.
A camera - you can pay from a couple of hundred to several thousand.
Check the "What camera should I get?" threads here for detailed info.
A microphone - you can under $100 to $1,000.
The minimum equipment I would suggest having on hand is:
a tripod
6 lights with stands
2 china balls
8 extension cords
3 power strips
black wrap and gels
2 bounce boards
gaffers tape
a bunch of C-47’s - also called “bullets” or wood cloths pins
a coffee maker
a slate with marker
I'll let you do the research on the price range because, frankly, you
can pay anywhere from $30/$40 to a couple of hundred for just
about everything on that list.
Lowel makes nice kits. Tungsten lights with stands, barndoors and hard case.
You can also check Arri lights - more expensive and worth every penny. Not
the Lowel kits are bad - I have a 6 light kit with the Omni’s and Tota’s that I
bought new in 1990 and am still using it 18 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 clamp on work lights 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. Check Studio Depot
This example kind of puts all the following links in perspective.
Here's a do-it-yourself Croney Cone made from foamcore and gaff tape.
Rik you continue to earn your guru status on a daily basis
But IMHO if you don't know what it takes to shoot a movie on film, you're probably best going a different route. Film is expensive, harder to work with for beginners, and on documentaries for the large part, unnecessary.
But IMHO if you don't know what it takes to shoot a movie on film, you're probably best going a different route. Film is expensive, harder to work with for beginners, and on documentaries for the large part, unnecessary.
Thanks, WideShot.
I kinda missed the "on film" part. William - check the forum
“Shooting Formats” for several discussions on film cameras.
I agree that it takes more work and knowledge to shoot on film
than on video and for a doc not only overkill, but quite
unnecessary - but the question was about equipment. Maybe
WilliamC will come back for more advice about shooting on film.
I kinda missed the "on film" part. William - check the forum
“Shooting Formats” for several discussions on film cameras.
I agree that it takes more work and knowledge to shoot on film
than on video and for a doc not only overkill, but quite
unnecessary - but the question was about equipment. Maybe
WilliamC will come back for more advice about shooting on film.
Thanks for the input I phrashed my question wrong. Ive shot on Video before and I should have clarified that I was making a short documentary so That I could make an attempt to work with film. I meant if there was any extra equipment or addtional meausures I should take.
The answer is, yes, there is a lot more you need to know if you shoot on anything other than a cartridge load automatic light meter 8mm or 16mm camera. Loading mags, using a light meter, proper storage, embracing film's MASSIVE latitude with your lighting setups, correct fps and shutter speeds... backfocusing... ensuring the viewfinder is callibrated to the film plane... there are some things to know before shooting on film, many of which are answered in basic film books from the 70's and 80's that you can pick up online, in a library or anywhere else for really cheap.
But the good side is, film has more latitude so where your video may have been 2 stops of overexposure area or under, film will pick it up. Film will look smoother, cleaner, and you won't see the sharp lines or other artifacts we associate with video. The first time I shot film I was in heaven. Its like.. wow, this doesn't look like cheap digital movies.
But the good side is, film has more latitude so where your video may have been 2 stops of overexposure area or under, film will pick it up. Film will look smoother, cleaner, and you won't see the sharp lines or other artifacts we associate with video. The first time I shot film I was in heaven. Its like.. wow, this doesn't look like cheap digital movies.
If you want to shoot something in film for the first time, I would not shoot a doc, I would shoot a short narrative or experimental, or a camera test.