List Your Most Useful Equipment

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ICD Films

Well-known member
What's your most useful gear that you always find yourself using? (nost just "my tripod"... kind of system, manufacturer you always trust, so on...)
 
C stands, sand bags, black wrap and gaff tape. Even if you just buy some mini c stands and make a habit of always having gaff, black wrap and extra sandbags it makes shoots seem to go a lot smoother. Sandbags are one of those things that often get left off the rental, yet they prevent a lot from going wrong. Heck just being able to lock a light down or tape a wire down will make a shoot safer. C stands and black wrap cookies=MONEY hahahahaha... To me the most usefull gear isn't the stuff I lust after, it's the stuff I need but the stuff I used to overlook because it wasn't sexy. A nice matte box (With a good assortment of filters) or a rock solid follow focus maybe if your actually asking for gear.
 
My brain. I pride myself on making the most of whatever gear I have on hand. They are just tools, it's how you use them that matters.

Not the answer you were looking for, I'm sure.
 
My car. Kia Soul+ 2010. I use it on almost every shoot. Even the ones where I don't use any of my own gear.
 
HDkilledFILM. said:
C stands, sand bags, black wrap and gaff tape. Even if you just buy some mini c stands and make a habit of always having gaff, black wrap and extra sandbags it makes shoots seem to go a lot smoother. Sandbags are one of those things that often get left off the rental, yet they prevent a lot from going wrong. Heck just being able to lock a light down or tape a wire down will make a shoot safer. C stands and black wrap cookies=MONEY hahahahaha... To me the most usefull gear isn't the stuff I lust after, it's the stuff I need but the stuff I used to overlook because it wasn't sexy. A nice matte box (With a good assortment of filters) or a rock solid follow focus maybe if your actually asking for gear.
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I spent a hundred bucks, or so and got 12 empty sandbags off of eBay and filled them myself. I got sick of not having some around. They really are handy. I shoot pretty low budget, and sometimes with equipment that is not up to professional standards, so having enough sandbags helps take away that worry that sh*t is going to fall over all of the time. That is a load off, let me tell ya.
 
David G. Smith said:
I spent a hundred bucks, or so and got 12 empty sandbags off of eBay and filled them myself. I got sick of not having some around. They really are handy. I shoot pretty low budget, and sometimes with equipment that is not up to professional standards, so having enough sandbags helps take away that worry that sh*t is going to fall over all of the time. That is a load off, let me tell ya.
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I couldn't agree more, base things like that are so often the first things forgotten on indie productions. Heck I bring a bag of c 47's (Clothespins) with me on every shoot because I know if they're not there then I'll want them within the first setup.
 
Sorry couldn't resist.

My favourite piece of gear is all my Berkey Systems stuff. The simplicity, modularity and quality- just awesome. Love them so much I even bought a FS100 baseplate (secondhand) in order to take it apart with a specific shoulder rig system in mind. I'm addicted to their stuff. I think they are the ARRI of rig gear. (Quality wise, not price wise)
 
Yes, I agree sandbags are a must, I have around 40 or so different weights and sizes. Gaffer tape is crucial. But one of my favorite tools are the manfrotto magic arms. they have saved me many times on shoots. If i'm dping a shoot, I usually wear a tool belt with extra supplies. I should mention, I usually gaf most of my shoots as well, so the tool belt is a huge plus.
 
A no-name Amazon Chicom reversible collapsible 5-color reflector - 22", about $8 I think... also have a 42" model that cost about $20. It stuffs into my shooting backpack's laptop compartment (or straps to the outside easily enough), and a couple of spring clamps affixes it to most anything. I use it as a flag, soft bounce, hard bounce, warming bounce, diffuser, white balance, natural catch light, background, sound blanket/pop shield, improptu rain shield, frisbee, tablecloth, and to signal search parties. Weighs nearly nothing, takes up negligible space, easy to set up and break down, cheap (nearly disposable), and hypo-allergenic. They've held up fine except for the containment bags which fall apart the minute they are touched by human hands.
 
Are you somehow... using the hole in the weights to attach them to the c-stand? The sandbags sit on top of the legs and conform to the shape to hold them solid. I'm not sure how to do that so easily with weights...?
 
Martin Oller said:
...and why not use weights? smaller + a hole in them...
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I've never seen that done. Is that how it's done in Sweden? How are they attached to the stands? How do the grips carry them around?

Movie sandbags are quite different than the common type you see used in flood prevention and construction.

Sandbags-1-e1268434206485.jpg
Image courtesy John D. Corson.
 
Ok :) Yeah, I pictured another type of sandbag, lol. Never heard of "movie sandbags" before.

Using weights wasn't really a recommendation :P They do drop... and make nasty markings...
 
Martin Oller said:
Ok
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Yeah, I pictured another type of sandbag, lol. Never heard of "movie sandbags" before.

Using weights wasn't really a recommendation :P They do drop... and make nasty markings...
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Ahh cool, I was hoping to pick up a new technique :) One thing I've learned in my career is that every region has different ways of doing things, especially continental Europe and India, and many of those different techniques are better than the hollywood way.
 
HDkilledFILM. said:
I couldn't agree more, base things like that are so often the first things forgotten on indie productions. Heck I bring a bag of c 47's (Clothespins) with me on every shoot because I know if they're not there then I'll want them within the first setup.
Click to expand...

Of sandbags and clothespins...

When the Wife was really active in weddings, we would 'make' sandbags out of grocery plastic bags, get sand from the beach... ok, occasionally we were inland and that didn't work out so well...

She would also do underwater shoots, and we had a set of wedding dresses for the women to wear, rather than dunking their own dress... but the Wife would buy clearance dresses, and they would often be the 'wong size', but with a few clothespins, clamps, etc. they would be fitted to the women for the underwater work.

pins, clothespins, and clamps were also useful on dryland, when stuff would fall off a dress, or wind was blowing...
 
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