ABout ready to jump into the dSLR world...

A

abeas

Well-known member
As much as I enjoy using my Panny AC160, I can't keep up as easily with the folks using dSLR rigs for weddings and what not. So I suppose I am going to take the plunge. I have decided on a Canon 60d. Costco has a deal for $1099 that includes 2 lenses, and I don't remember what they are now, but I am assuming they aren't great. I would like to get a decent prime lens and a zoom lens. I'd like to try to stay under $600 per lens; I realize this won't allow me to purchase Canon's top of the line lenses, but that's okay. BH has a package for $1299 that includes the 60d and an EF-S 18-200mm lens f3.5. Again I don't know if this would be a good lens for video.
I am also looking to get a follow focus, matte box and some rails. Indisystem looks to have some decent stuff at a price I'm comfortable with. I was looking at:

indiFOCUSpro http://www.indisystem.com/products/indiFOCUSpro.html

indiMATTEpro http://www.indisystem.com/products/indiMATTEpro-w{47}side-flags.html

indiRAILSpro dSLR http://www.indisystem.com/indirailspro-dslr-18/

If anyone can help me out with some decent first chose prime and zoom lenses and knows of any matte box, follow focus or rails that are better for around the same cost I'm open to suggestions. Thanks a lot!
 
* a zoom with a very large range will usually be very soft; I would stay away from any 18-200
http://www.the-digital-picture.com/...meraComp=474&SampleComp=0&FLIComp=1&APIComp=2

* yes, sharpness does matter for video
http://www.similaar.com/foto/lenstests/lenstestsv.html

* if you want a zoom and a prime, I'd go for the tamron 17-50 f/2.8 non-VC and either the samyang 85mm f/1.4 (if you want a great portrait lens, sharp and with excellent bokeh) or the samyang 35mm f/1.4 (if you want a standard lens that is quite fast and excepcionally sharp); also consider the tokina 11-16 f/2.8 (if you want a relatively fast and sharp ultra-wide angle lens)
http://www.similaar.com/foto/equipment/us_lensc.html#samyang
 
Dont waste money on follow focous, matte box etc...There is no time to loose during a wedding and that stuff will eat your precious time...
You just need a shoulder mount (http://www.amazon.com/CowboyStudio-Shoulder-Support-Camcorder-Camera/dp/B0036NMQ7S) that is what Im using, or/and monopod/tripod and you re just fine...
Two lenses are enough to get you started and those would be a 17-50 2.8 for most of the shots ( I d take the sigma with OS) and the samyang 35 1.4 for low light...
Finally I would suggest the 600D over the 60D only because of the 3x crop mode which can be soooo useful especialy for weddings....
http://vimeo.com/33488526 Check out that wedding teaser...the close ups of the faces and hands were done with the 3x crop mode...
Good luck!
 
I'm in the similar boat as the OP and I'm coming from the DVX100B.
My wishlist is pretty precise for how I want to shoot so It will most likely differ from how you will shoot.

First, the lens. There are several takes and opinions on this so this is just my take. I would seriously consider the Canon EF-S 17-55mm F2.8 IS Zoom Lens as your first lens. Its fast, image stabilized and very sharp with the perfect range. There are other budget lenses out there however like the Tamron 17-50 Non-VC or the Sigma 17-50 for roughly half the price but they wont have both image stabilization and sharpness. If you go Sigma you can get IS but not sharpness. If you go with the Non-VC Tamron you can get back the sharpness but lose any image stabilization. If you go with the VC version of the Tamron then you gain IS but lost Sharpness again. You wont get both unless you go Canon. You could get a standard prime lens and roll with that but I prefer flexibility for my kind of shooting not to mention focusing at anything faster than F2.8 requires practice and good stabilization.

Second, on my list of priorities is fast efficient camera support.Tripods can be very cumbersome so for my kind of run n gun shooting I would highly recommend the Manfrotto 56IBHDV Monopod. Everyone who has ever reviewed this monopod loves it to death and it has been a staple tool for many wedding/event videographers. If you had this monopod then getting lots of fast primes with shallow DOF is possible to manage as it stabilized your footage that much better. Its exactly how Stillmotion shoots it epic Wedding Portrait Films. For my own wishlist I'm gonna swap out the head on this monopod for the Manfrotto 502HD, just so I can use the same head for sliders etc.

Lastly but very importantly is Sound. How do you plan to capture sound? I am not a fan of syncing audio with video for everything so I recommend starting with the Rode Videomic Pro. That is arguably the best on-camera mic for DSLRs period. It has a +20db function that forces the camera's preamps to work less and so improves Signal to Noise ratio.
The on-camera solution is great for unexpected situations but for planned environments you're gonna need something better.
Enter in a Sennheiser G3 Lav Mic Combo pack (Lav Mic+Body pack+Plug-In+Receiver). Plug the receiver output directly into your camera, use this Sescom Headphone Cable to monitor audio (with Magic Lantern) and you have an efficient capable little audio beast. The Sennheiser has its own gain so it will also turn down the noisy DSLR preamps. The cable will allow you to monitor audio at all times (with ML installed) and if you need to have an XLR input simply use the included Plug-In Transmitter in the combo. This means using a boom mic is easy without the cable mess or other XLR adapters.
This setup may not be for everyone but since I value efficient use of space and no bulk, XLR adapters were out for me and I need a lav mic anyway so this is the best solution I could come up with.

I hope my little 1-2-3 step process was beneficial to you.
Hope this helps!
 
Last edited:
lyrov said:
Dont waste money on follow focous, matte box etc...There is no time to loose during a wedding and that stuff will eat your precious time...
You just need a shoulder mount (http://www.amazon.com/CowboyStudio-Shoulder-Support-Camcorder-Camera/dp/B0036NMQ7S) that is what Im using, or/and monopod/tripod and you re just fine...
Two lenses are enough to get you started and those would be a 17-50 2.8 for most of the shots ( I d take the sigma with OS) and the samyang 35 1.4 for low light...
Finally I would suggest the 600D over the 60D only because of the 3x crop mode which can be soooo useful especialy for weddings....
http://vimeo.com/33488526 Check out that wedding teaser...the close ups of the faces and hands were done with the 3x crop mode...
Good luck!
Click to expand...

I would have the dSLR on a tripod, recording line out audio to my Panny 160, so audio is not an issue for the dSLR. The dSLR is for stylistic/cinema shots, hence the reason for the follow focus (when on my slider) and rails. Can you explain what exactly the 3x crop dos on the t3i?
It looks like I might just jump with the Canon EF-S 17-55mm. Might be the only lens I need initially. Don't see a need for a 11-16 prime if I spend the money on that, other than the fact it is a faster lens.
 
If you're using the DSLR (whichever one you get) then you're most likely aiming for shallow DOF shots. Setting up a tripod/slider in the middle of a venue while a wedding is going on seems like too much to me. The image will probably look great but the disruption to the venue might sour the bride+groom.
The Tokina 11-16 might be better suited for you after all for the slider shots, if that is the only thing you were going to be doing with it.
I am a Steadicam fanatic so I understand the want/need to go wide for moving shots and DSLRs do have one benefit (wider lenses) over traditional video cameras.
The wider you go the harder it is to achieve shallow DOF however (That's why lenses like the Canon 24mm 1.4 are so expensive as being both fast and wide is hard)
Look up Stillmotion to see how they use sliders, monopods and lens selection to tell their stories in the wedding business.
 
Well, I ended up getting the T3i and the canon 16-35mm L f2.8 lens. Thanks for all the advice.
 
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