The “My Gear” section of this blog – where I list almost every single piece of kit that I use in both HDDSLR & still photography production – has become the top destination on this blog since it was put up.  In case you didn’t know, there is a link on the top left of the blog that says “My Gear Main Page” if you haven’t seen it yet, check it out!

What I’d like to know is:  what else would you like listed there?   What else are you interested in hearing about?*  Please comment on a special section on the following page called “Requests.”

As you’ll see in the My Gear section – I not only list every piece of gear, but I also went through a lot of work to post: The Pros and Cons of each piece of gear – as well as examples of the images I made with each piece of gear, and in many cases behind the scenes videos of the gear in use.  I think it’s pretty cool actually – and something I want to continue investing my time into.   For one – I’d like it to be the “go to place” for HDDSLR gear and two,  I get SO many e-mails asking me about gear, that I’d figure I just put this section together and point people there – saves everyone a lot of time!

I will be putting up “custom configurations” of HDDSLR kits in the next month.  We’ve got all the pieces in place and now need to shoot the videos.   The idea will be to list kits for:  a. beginner HDDSLR user  b. Photojournalist/Documentary c. Indie filmmaker d. Filmmakers  e. The “top of the line system in existence.”  Expect more on that in about a month – it’s a LOT of work to get all the pieces here to shoot, let alone film and edit it.

Note: FYI: *I do have a policy that if I REALLY don’t like something – I generally tend not to comment on it.  I don’t like to slam products – doesn’t do anyone any good -especially when published and it creates headaches (including potential lawsuits f.y.i.) So if you don’t see me list something it’s either because: a. I don’t use it or haven’t used it or b. I don’t choose to list it for the aforementioned reasons.  c. I simply haven’t had the time to use it yet.   At the rate HDDSLR accessories are coming out – it’s almost IMPOSSIBLE to keep up – let alone arrange to get loaners etc – it’s honestly a full time job.  So I do my best to list my “go to” gear that I think is relevant to most people out there.

Hope to hear from you soon – and to hear you comments that you should post HERE.  Thanks!

For fans of the “frozen bullet” effect from the Matrix – here is a pretty awesome series of “shots” by Timeslice Films for RipCurl using 52 Canon T2i cameras.   Add a little rain and short circuits, fried computers and hard drives,  and of course a few lost cameras and perseverance – and you get something pretty spectacular.

Also check out this really cool article (with excellent behind the scenes photographs) on the use of a Canon 1D MKIV to shoot a LIVE TELEVISION (Yikes!!) segment on DSLR News Shooter – very very cool.   The reason?  Standard cameras aren’t sensitive enough to capture the low light of the city in the background – in comes the 1D MKIV.  Here is the result below:

[vimeo video_id=”15650229″ width=”700″ height=”525″ title=”Yes” byline=”Yes” portrait=”Yes” autoplay=”No” loop=”No” color=”00adef”]

And finally – something very special.  The Eddie Adams Workshop has always been very close to my heart – and here is a pretty brilliant little short made by Andre Costantini. The workshop was in its 23rd year, celebrating photojournalism with some of the best photographers, editors and multimedia editors from around the world sharing their knowledge and passion with a very lucky 100 participants. (Andre btw was the editor behind “Reverie.”  Prior to handing the edit over to him – the initial cut of “Reverie” was one that I did not really want to see more than twice.  Andre exercised his magic and helped make something very special.)

I think the movie speaks to the possibility of HDDSLRs and the incredibly creative films they can achieve when combined with talent.   In this case LOTS of talent.  I haven’t asked Andre – but I know the budget for this was $0 – and in this case that fact is pretty much irrelevant.   For those who have attended the workshop – they will understand the history and passion behind the workshop.  You have to admire the inventiveness behind this short.   So enjoy this one – I sure did.

Below is a quick picture of how they did the “fly cam” from the Eddie Adams Workshop slide show… like I said: Lo-Fi – but shear Awesomeness in my book… two magic arms for balance, cord, and some cool doodad in the middle… and that’s Andre on the right of the trio…

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I’ve always said that one of the surest ways to elevate your video work to being cinematic is camera movement.  Not only does this elevate your production value, but it makes your images more visceral, emotional, and kinetic – and as they should be!  They’re called motion pictures after all.

However, the equipment to do this is often expensive (hence the differences in amateur and professional productions).  But if you are resourceful you can fake professional moves with only your basic camera package.  The above video is a clever example of this.  Using only a basic tripod and some basic geometry the filmmaker above devises a pretty ingenious way to fake a dolly move (and a jib moves of sorts) – with pretty fantastic results.  Technically its not quite as smooth as a true dolly move of course, but the motion is uniform and at the very least it comes across as a great steadicam (but short and ultra-basic) move – either of which will add instant production value to your film!  Frankly it’s something I’ll love to have in my bag of tricks  for sure when the itch to do a dolly move in the middle of a busy street or indoors – equipped with only a tripod might strike.

I always try to put the “best of breed” gear in my Gear Section on this site (as section we’ve put CONSIDERABLE amount of time into – by adding examples of the gear in use and describing why we like it)  – but I also want to make sure I don’t lose sight of the realities of people’s budgets…  we’re going to update the gear site soon with a series of different camera configurations – from budget conscious, all the way through 5 configurations that get you to the high end – we’re in the middle of assembling the kits now and going to shoot videos next week.  Should be very cool.

Lastly – one more tip: if you have NOTHING in terms of support with you when shooting with an HDDSLR – put the camera strap around your neck and push forward against you neck to get resistance and you’ll get a steadier result.   The tension will give you a bit more stability and in effect use your neck as a virtual “point of contact.”  In general – the more points of contact you have with any camera (shoulder, one hand on a handle, the other on the Follow Focus wheel – is a good thing…

Happy shooting.