I bought myself a camera..what's next?

[Manuel Fantoni]

I know it'll probably sound as a stupid question but.....i have zero experience in video,it's been ten year i do my living out of photography and now i'd like to explore this new media for me.

So i'm waiting for my Canon a1 to arrive,what do i need next?

I'm talking about the things i absolutely have to have in order to be able to shoot and edit,just the basic,for example i know a widweangle converter exist but at this time i will consider it an optional so this is not an "Have to have" thing.


Let's star from what i have and i would greatly appreciate if you can tell me what i miss and if what i have fullfill at least the minimum requirements to work.


Canon A1

Tipod Manfrotto/Bogen 190 ,photographic head

Apple mac Book Pro 2,33,2 giga ram/FCP5

No desktop thinking about a 24" imac,would it be a good choice?

External HD 2 Iomega USB 250 giga,4 lacie portable HD USB 120giga





thanks for any tip

[Brian Luce]

video cameras require a video head for the tripod, So I'd start there.

What kind of production you plan to do?

most likely you'll need at least two mics. audio.

[Manuel Fantoni]

Originally Posted by Brian Luce

video cameras require a video head for the tripod, So I'd start there.

What kind of production you plan to do?

most likely you'll need at least two mics. audio.

I want to explore documentary and reportage,traveling and shooting by myself, no crew, no "movies" or things like that with actors etc. etc.

So scenics,some action,street life and maybe some interview.

[Jeff Rhode]

Our kits are set up for the video journalist and so far we have found that these are the essentials :
1 Tripod and monopod or shoulder mount
2 I like having a wide lens, so that would be high on the list.
3 A shotgun mic and extra cables (we use the ME-66 by Senn) and a wireless kit (G2 by Senn) for interviews and remote audio. If you are going that route the a J-Rod to mount www.j-rod.com (had to throw that in there :-).
4 Several extra batteries.
5 Power inverter for the car to charge the batteries.
6 Camera raincoat to keep the gear dry in the rain and snow.
7 If you are looking into reporting maybe a handheld audio recorder to capture interviews or additional audio tracks without the need for a mixer. The audio can be added as an additional track later for ambient sound, for example.
8 Lots O tapes.

Good luck with the new camera !

[Ole Vik]

Originally Posted by Manuel Fantoni

Canon A1

Tipod Manfrotto/Bogen 190

Hi,
have you checked if that tripod is sturdy enough for the A1?

[Harm Millaard]

The Bogen 190 will likely not fit the bill. It is a typical photographic oriented tripod without a halfbowl. In that price range I would suggest the Bogen 525 or similar and a good fluid head like the Vinten Vision 3 or similar.

[Jason Strongfield]

Originally Posted by Manuel Fantoni

I want to explore documentary and reportage,traveling and shooting by myself, no crew, no "movies" or things like that with actors etc. etc.

So scenics,some action,street life and maybe some interview.

The built in mic might be adequate for ambience. Get a wireless for a quick interview setup. To save money, You can also use the wireless for in studio Voice over narration. Get a Bogen 503 head at the very minimum.

[Bill Pryor]

I agree about the wireless. I much prefer to use a shotgun mic, but when you're doing interviews by yourself, it's often not all that convenient to set up a C-stand, boom and shotgun when you can stick a wireless under the collar quickly. The camera mic is good enough for ambient sound, but because it's a stereo mic it uses up both channels, so you can't leave it on while you have the wireless on, should you want to do that. In most cases that's not really necessary, but you might want to get a shotgun mic when you can. I'd put the wireless ahead of that, however, in your case.

The lens of the XH A1 is wide enough for most things, so I wouldn't buy a wide angle adapter until you do a bit more shooting and see if you really need it.

Defnitely a fludi head tripod. I've always used big heavy tripods but when I got the A1 I was into smaller and lighter and quicker, for personal documentary projects. I got the Libec 22 from Zotz Digital. It was around 400 bucks and is well suited to the A1. You have to work with it, but with practice can do moves well. If you let go at the end of a pan, it will move back just a fraction. A really nice tripod will stop perfectly and stay there, but you're going to pay at least $1500 for that and have more weight. Everything's a tradeoff.

I'd also recommend a lens cleaning cloth and fluid, and a protective filter of some sort, like a UV, or if you like a bit of the Black ProMist look, a 1/4 Black ProMist, or equivalent. And a bag. I got the Petrol PCUB 1N, which came with a free rain cover.

Oh yeah, a cleaning tape.

Then you need to think about lights. I have a variety of lights, open face, fresnels, fluorescents, etc. For a documentary project I'm working on now, I light all the interviews with a single Lowel Caselight 2, which is a fluorescent. I have daylight and 3200 lamps and switch out as needed. I want all these interviews to be dramatic and contrasty. Generally you'd want a set of at least 3 lights. Probably the cheapest decent thing along those lines would be a set of 3 Lowel Omni lights. With open face lights you'll always need to use diffusion gels and/or umbrellas, and color correction gels. If I were you I wouldn't buy any lights until you've done some shooting with the camera and see what type of things you'll be getting into.

[Manuel Fantoni]

Taking notes.


Thank you very much