I have no idea what to get.

AllAroundFilmLV

AllAroundFilmLV

Well-known member
So we just bought a 7D and a T2i.

I'm trying to price out a decently rigged shoulder support system. I need to be able to mount a monitor, audio, follow focus, matte box, etc.

Do I need rails and a DSLR cage? I don't know what any of these accessories' applications are.

Example: I know what rails are, but i don't know how I would use them, or for what purpose, or what else I would rig to them/with them... w/e.

I'm frustrated and can't find any basic information on what these parts do. Can anybody help?
 
The rails are the base of any camera rig. Everything else is built off of them. What you need depends on what you are shooting. For a shoulder rig, you may benefit more from getting a loupe (view finder) for the LCD on your camera rather than getting an external monitor.

Check out my YouTube videos for more details on each component.
 
Id start basic and branch out. Decide what budget you have overall and then what type of shots are most important and delegate funds out based on that. Decide how close you are to shooting actual projects, if you have some time then take it to find deals. Craigslist, Ebay etc.. are good resources for finding used gear and saving hundreds or thousands of dollars.

My order went like this.

Cheap Tripod (like $12 ebay special that i already had)
Shoulder Rig
Steadycam (Glidecam)
Decent Tripod ($170 Tiffen, with fluid head)
Slider

Now, if i had to do it over, id probably say a decent tripod with a fluid head is your best bet. Some people swear by the pro vista Davis and Sanford and FM18 fluid head and some people say its to cheap. Just depends on your budget. If you only have $1,000 for gear total, your not gonna want to buy a $9-1,200 tripod. Mine works just fine in fact i prefer it to the manfrottos ive worked with (501s and 503's)

Go out and shoot a few things, even if you just take a small group and say give yourself an hour or two to come up with a story, cast it, and shoot it. Then edit it together and look at how it turned out. Whats missing? Does it need more camera movement? Get a glidecam, or slider if you need that.

Dont forget a lot of stuff can be made DIY depending on how handy you are.

Thats not Ralphie May in your avatar is it?

jon
 
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