Movie Shoot T2i/T3i Equipment Question

M

ministerfortson

Member
My camera finally arrived after almost 2 weeks of waiting for it. So far I'm loving it. I've had it less than 24 hours and it is a vast improvement over my Fujifilm FinePix S5100 point and shoot. We are prepping to shoot a film starting early January and I will NOT be running the camera. I'm directing the project. Everyone involved owns either a T2i or a T3i and I want to know what equipment that I'm overlooking. Crew is completely assembled and contracted with the exception of makeup, but I have 3 MUA's I'm waiting on quotes from. This is my first project with an actual budget (personal funding) so I figured I'd get what I need now so I'll have it for future projects.

Personal Equipment Purchased Already

18 - 55mm lens
75 - 30mm lens
Carry Speed LCD Viewer
Shutter Remote
Sennheiser K6 Shotgun Mic
Shotgun Mic Wind Screen
Boom Pole
Battery Grip
Lens Hood
UV Filter
58 - 55mm step down ring (for filters I bought for my FinePix point and shoot)
Lens Cleaning Kit
Matte Box
White Balance 18% Gray Card
4GB Eye-Fi wireless SD Card
Pop up flash diffuser
2x 4GB SD Card
16 GB SD Card
3 batteries
2 battery chargers
Lights
100ft. Extension Cord
20x10ft. Green Screen

Equipment Contributed By Others

2x T2i
1x T3i
Lights
Batteries
Lens Hoods
Battery Chargers
6ft. Crane/Jib
Tripods

Things Being Built

Camera Rig
2ft. Slider
5ft. Slider

We need the sliders because we are filming inside of a house that only has wood floors so we can't use a dolly. Also, not sure how the wireless SD card will perform, but if it works as advertised, it should give us a recording ability only limited by the hard drive space on the computer. I'd love to hear if anyone has had experiences with these cards.

Things I know I need

1x Tripod
External Flash (Behind The Scenes)

What equipment have I overlooked? I'm 100% responsible for budget and equipment on this. I'm not renting anything. I'll either see if someone on the project already has it or I'll buy it for future use. I have a pretty decent budget ($1,000+) to work with to pick up extra equipment. Please keep in mind that this an independent project being funded out of pocket so I'm not looking for super high end equipment, but I would like it to be above average if possible. Thanks in advance.
 
I don't see any audio recorder on your list. if you're making narrative film then you will need a much better audio recording than the cameras are able to produce. (subject well covered in the audio forums here)

I seriously doubt that the wireless SD card will work as these cameras have issues working with even some cards period.

Don't cheap out on the tripod, you will regret it for sure.

tripod and sound are more important than most other things besides a great script.

cheers
 
Yeah, I may have missed it, but don't see a tripod, even a head for mounting on slider) and don't see an audio recorder. I also didn't see any lights.

I'd also strongly advise against shooting multiple cameras (if you were thinking about it). Focus on getting good shots in one camera instead.
 
Hawk Teflon said:
This. We shot with multiple t2i's at the beginning of Bad To The Jones. That died off pretty quickly.
Click to expand...

Everybody, including me, thinks its a good idea when you first start, but generally it isn't. Limits where the sound guy can be, complicates lighting, etc... etc... In the right situation multi-cam can be a good choice, but generally it isn't. There's a reason most studio films (where they could afford 10 cameras if they wanted) are still shot on one.
 
That is something I'm definitely trying to figure out. I love the mic I have, but can't decide whether or not to use a preamp and record directly to the t2i or have a separate recorder. When you talk about the audio the camera produces are you talking about the onboard mic or recording through an external mic into the camera? We have tripods. Quite a few actually. I have two myself and I know that there are at least 6 more floating around between the crew.
 
I have two camera men and a DP for filming, do you still suggest only running one camera? What problems did you run into? Thanks for the heads up.
 
Prime lenses? I only see two zooms on that list, and they look like the Canon stock lenses. You'll need a couple of decent fast fixed focal lenses. Also, a follow focus.
 
That makes sense. I'm meeting with the DP next week at the location since he hasn't seen it yet. I'll bring it up and see what he thinks. We shot with 2 DVX in the past and sometimes we had great angles from both cameras that we were able to pull from. Maybe I'll put the other camera man on the BTS part of the filming and give him the Eye-Fi card.
 
I'm looking at the 50mm for a prime lens. Once I know what the DP wants to do, I'll grab one. Follow focus is a great suggestion. I've seen several kinds of focus rings with handles for under $50. Will those work or do I absolutely need a follow focus system?
 
The audio on the camera, even from a good mic is garbage. A juiced Link or magic lantern can make it slightly less garbage, but still pretty bad.
A cheap recorder like a Zoom can take it from garbage to "eh, it's pretty noisy, but it's passable". Separate audio also un-tethers the boom op from the camera. Do you REALLY want his cord in your (or the DPs) way while you're trying to use the camera?

OK, you have tripods, do you have a GOOD tripod head?

We could talk about multi-cam vs single all day, but bottom line is you're probably going to have limited lights and limited lighting knowledge (as in your DP probably isn't a super experienced pro). Without a grip truck and a lot of knowledge at your disposal it's hard enough to light a scene to look good from ONE angle, much less two or three. Try to get one right instead of worrying about two. Even the old "well the cameras are side by side and one is wide and one is tight" doesn't work for me. You direct an actor differently in a wide and a tight. In a wide shot an actor can be "bigger" in a closeup the raise of an eyebrow can be a huge gesture.
 
Gotta agree with gonzo again. You don't want to record the audio on the camera itself. Even with Magic Lantern, it's ill advised. I would suggest at LEAST an H4n or the Tascam equivalent (DR-100 I believe ... haven't looked into it in a while). Those are around the $300 range. That might sound pricey (not sure about your budget), but over the years I've learned how important good audio is. A bad shot is sometimes forgivable. Bad audio is NOT.
 
gonzo_entertainment said:
The audio on the camera, even from a good mic is garbage. A juiced Link or magic lantern can make it slightly less garbage, but still pretty bad.
A cheap recorder like a Zoom can take it from garbage to "eh, it's pretty noisy, but it's passable". Separate audio also un-tethers the boom op from the camera. Do you REALLY want his cord in your (or the DPs) way while you're trying to use the camera?
Click to expand...

I was actually contemplating recording to Laptop through a Tascam mixing board. That would untether the boom and I know it produces very clear audio. The downside is that it's heavy to transport and it can't be moved around. The good news is that since we are filming in the house in multiple locations we could use a 100ft. cord and accomplish what we need.

OK, you have tripods, do you have a GOOD tripod head?
Click to expand...

I've never used a high end tripod to compare so I can't honestly answer that question. I also know that a friend of mind just spent about $5k on new equipment which included 2 new tripods, but not sure what kind of heads they have. What do you suggest?

We could talk about multi-cam vs single all day, but bottom line is you're probably going to have limited lights and limited lighting knowledge (as in your DP probably isn't a super experienced pro). Without a grip truck and a lot of knowledge at your disposal it's hard enough to light a scene to look good from ONE angle, much less two or three. Try to get one right instead of worrying about two. Even the old "well the cameras are side by side and one is wide and one is tight" doesn't work for me. You direct an actor differently in a wide and a tight. In a wide shot an actor can be "bigger" in a closeup the raise of an eyebrow can be a huge gesture.
Click to expand...

The DP has been doing photography and video for years. I wouldn't say he's a pro or anything, but I've seen his work and he makes very high quality stuff. With that said, everyone on film except the two actors are independent filmmakers that decided we want to make a good film. I wouldn't say any of us are near pro, but we have a decent amount of combined knowledge and experience to draw from. I get what you are saying though. I'll express that to him when we meet on site.
 
Hawk Teflon said:
Gotta agree with gonzo again. You don't want to record the audio on the camera itself. Even with Magic Lantern, it's ill advised. I would suggest at LEAST an H4n or the Tascam equivalent (DR-100 I believe ... haven't looked into it in a while). Those are around the $300 range. That might sound pricey (not sure about your budget), but over the years I've learned how important good audio is. A bad shot is sometimes forgivable. Bad audio is NOT.
Click to expand...

I agree 100%. I can honestly say that there is only 1 script that I've ever watched that had horrible audio and picture for an entire season. It was just that good. Usually bad audio and video is an instant stop button for me. I want to focus 90% of my effort on audio quality. I'll let the DP focus on light since that's what he's good at. I actually use to have a recording studio and one of my camera men has one currently, so between the two of us, we can get it figured out if we know what the best equipment for the job will be. The only problem I have with the H4N is that I don't know how to work it. I'm confident in my experience with the Tascam mixing board, but I'm worried about the laptop holding up. It's never had a problem with audio ever, but Murphy's Law always seems to come into play.
 
A Laptop is ok to use but be sure you use an external interface. the audio inputs on a laptop are usually almost as bad as the T2i and sometimes worst, as there is a ton of RF being generated inside your computer that you want to keep out of your audio (the hard drive noise).

also keep in mind your boom operator will need to be tethered to the mixer by headphones as well not just the mic. and will probably need a second person to operate the mixer and laptop.

you might want to look at the new Tascam DR-40 its less expensive than the Zoom and probably better. not to mention the boom op can operate it himself as well as having it with him for monitoring.


cheers.
 
recordingwhiz said:
A Laptop is ok to use but be sure you use an external interface. the audio inputs on a laptop are usually almost as bad as the T2i and sometimes worst, as there is a ton of RF being generated inside your computer that you want to keep out of your audio (the hard drive noise).
Click to expand...

I have a Tascam FW1082 external interface with it's own sound card separate from the laptop. It plugs into the laptop via Firewire port.

also keep in mind your boom operator will need to be tethered to the mixer by headphones as well not just the mic. and will probably need a second person to operate the mixer and laptop.
Click to expand...

Noted. I'm considering running the sound because I have a co-director that is on the same page as me when it comes to how everything should go. I'll get it figured out before filming if we do decide to use the Tascam.

you might want to look at the new Tascam DR-40 its less expensive than the Zoom and probably better. not to mention the boom op can operate it himself as well as having it with him for monitoring.
cheers.
Click to expand...

Going to check that out now. Thanks.
 
The Tascam Dr-100 looks like something I'd much rather purchase. Definitely considering that as my audio recorder. I can hook the Sennheiser into it and hopefully disable the onboard mic that it has.
 
ministerfortson said:
I'm looking at the 50mm for a prime lens. Once I know what the DP wants to do, I'll grab one. Follow focus is a great suggestion. I've seen several kinds of focus rings with handles for under $50. Will those work or do I absolutely need a follow focus system?
Click to expand...

Just remember that the t2i/t3i has a crop ratio of 1.6. So that 50mm will become an 80mm. The Canon 50mm F1.4 is a nice lens, but you'll find it's not as universal as you'd like to think. You'd want to go for something a bit wider also. I use my 28mm more than I use my 50mm. A follow focus system is incredibly important to achieve accurate focus, so don't skimp on that.

gonzo_entertainment said:
The audio on the camera, even from a good mic is garbage. A juiced Link or magic lantern can make it slightly less garbage, but still pretty bad.
A cheap recorder like a Zoom can take it from garbage to "eh, it's pretty noisy, but it's passable". Separate audio also un-tethers the boom op from the camera. Do you REALLY want his cord in your (or the DPs) way while you're trying to use the camera?
Click to expand...

I could disagree, Juicedlink + Magic Lantern can actually give pretty good results. The only real disadvantage is it holding back your camera with cords.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top