T2i + Sigma 18-250mm + XH-A1 Lens Hood
 

It was back in 2007 I first discovered the XH-A1 lens hood can used with Canon WD-H43 and Raynox WA lens making the HV30 looks so awesome! I bought a Sigma 18-250mm Lens. It also has a 72mm front diameter. I tried the XH-A1 lens hood on it.. it is a snug fit! The screw on the hood can also be tightened. Looks great!!

T2i with Sigma 18-250mm Lens and XH-A1 Lens Hood | L.A. Color Blog

Taky, what percentage of your video time is spent using this lens?

100% very likely.. but I just ordered the Tokina 11-16mm. I might be switching back and forth. But for now, this lens 18-250mm range is good.

New pics with the rail

I like the look of this rig, however, how important is it to have such a "video" looking lens hood on your camera?

I shoot a weekly TV show with a couple T2is as well as small commercial and web video projects.

When we use hoods, I use the collapsible rubber ones. I use screw on filters when shooting outside as well and they work with the rubber hoods.

But frankly, in most inside shoots, I don't need a hood. With my old Pentax m42 lenses, I use old hoods that screw onto those lenses. Other than helping with light spill (tell me if that is right), I think that those metal hoods help protect the lens, but the rubber ones have a cushioned give to them which is helpful.

What I see with my fellow filmmakers is a desire to make the DSLR look like a video camera to impress potential clients. I understand that, but the look is more important on the video not necessarily on the camera.

Added an external monitor.. but not so sure I will keep it =)

Jonathan, it always bring good discussion on this topic..:) do I really need to pimp my gear just for the professional look? To me (and in my opinion), it is a must. I do weddings. I have to use professional equipment for paid jobs. Also I need to show my clients I'm using better equipment than the bride's uncle is shooting with. I know it's all your skills and final work deliverable that counts. But on the wedding day, I need to impress my next potential customers too. =)

Since I'm using an entry level T2i camera, I need to pimp it up =) Besides, my XH-A1 lens hood is just sitting there. Why not mount it up.

In your situation, you don't need a lens hood as you can always adjust your angle and position when you shoot commercials or web projects. However, I have done so many wedding ceremony that all the audience is look at the sun directly. Recently, I did this wedding I was actually holding the "program" on top of the camera to block the gear. Still you can see the glare was very bad (0:51)

Keep sharing, Taky, and thanks, it's nice to get some extra mileage out of our investments. Sometimes you need a DSLR doing video to look like a still camera, sometimes it's good for it to look like a video camera, depends on the crowd you are in. As for needing a hood, I've too often thought I didn't need it on and was unexpectedly pull outside, hence, better to just have it on all the time. Also a hard hood is good for shielding the camera nose against bumps.

Glad to share! Most of the time I don't find the hood has any use. However, it doesn't help a lot when shooting outdoor around 4pm to 7pm when the sun is setting. Sometime lens flare is pretty... but too often it becomes so distracting...

oh worst was the Raynox 6600 lens I have on HV30. The lens flare actually make the lens reading (diameter, focal length, F stop... those numbers on the front ring of the lens) on the Raynox reflected and be recorded to the footage.

Btw, Here's a breakdown of the cost

T2i ($799)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/675617-REG/Canon_4462B001_Canon_EOS_Rebel_T2i.html

Battery grip ($159)
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/676247-REG/Canon_4516B001.html

Light and sound bracket ($33)
Light and Sound Video Bracket | L.A. Color Shop

Flash bracket ($21)
Universal Camera Bracket with Accessory Shoe | L.A. Color Shop

Sigma 18-250mm Lens ($478)

Lens hood ($33)
Lens Hood for Canon XH Series Camcorder | L.A. Color Shop

Rode VideoMic ($123)
http://www.jacksmusicfactory.com/che...quoteID=90162Q (best price to get... Jack is very reliable)

Comer 1800 LED light ($389)
Comer CM-LBPS1800 On-Camera LED Light | L.A. Color Shop

Sandisk 16GB Class 6 SDHC ($61)


LP-E8 Battery ($23)
LP-E8 Canon Compatible Li-Ion Battery | L.A. Color Shop

External LCD monitor ($184)
7" LCD Monitor Kit w/ Shoe Mount & Battery Adapter

Only I'm returning the external monitor .. as it doesn't help much in focusing since it is in SD resolution. Also, mounting it with all the wires and additional battery adapter is a pain.

Tacky,
Pimping it is really nice, however, if you'll be using this rig for the wedding (even just for the ceremony) you might find it really heavy, especially with extra batteries on board.

haha.. it's on tripod.. I am using XH-A1 with wide angle lens and other attachment. It's heavy.. I can handle that =)

Taky, I like your work and I once had the Sony HD1000U for this very purpose.

One way I kinda tricked out the T2i is to add a battery grip. Of course, it is great to have one. But the camera looks and feels more substantial and robust. Below the battery grip is my Beachtek DSLR adapter (the one that spoofs the AGC). Around the camera I have a large flash bracket with my wireless mics and a Sony video light in the middle. It is pretty substantial and all of you have rigged the camera similarly.

While I'm considering a lens hood that looks like it is for video, I'm interested in a hood that works. The old video style ones may not necessarily be the best for the DSLR. Can you address whether the video style hood is superior to the rubber DSLR ones?

A filmmaker friend of mine bought a very substantial matte box for his 7D on ebay and I was licking my chops over it. It seemed to be very functional. Your comment about using the program is very telling. We've all done exactly that over the years. But a matte box with dog-ears is clearly the way to go.

I've only shot one wedding and it was on the beach. I used a couple filters and came out okay. I was way lucky.

Mainly, I'm shooting under very controlled conditions. So your points are well made.

The great thing about this forum is we can let it all hang out.

My latest venture is to use Skype to do video interviews with filmmakers. Here's a clip from the first of such interviews:

<embed src="http://blip.tv/play/hb0ygfWleQA%2Em4v" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="480" height="360" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true"></embed>

Note that this interview features a nice discussion about using the DSLR in filmmaking.

That first attempt was very rough. I'm thinking about using one of my old Sony video cams as a studio camera and then just capture the incoming stream from the subject from Skype. To trick out my set, I'm going to have both my T2i's on tripods in the background. The DSLRs become props!

Anyway, thanks for being very open in this discussion.

Here's the link to that interview that I tried to embed. Sorry, I never tried embedding to this forum before: http://blip.tv/file/3999938

Sorry again, I used the link to my dashboard. Here's the interview link: The Film Fix Interview: Filmmaker Jesse Rosten Part 2

I noticed your mention of a monitor. And I've been using my MacBook Pro when shooting interviews. It is a great monitor (for framing and you can use the autofocus if you're using a lens that speaks to the camera). Anyone doing that kind of tethering?

If they make the tethering work for the iPad, I'll buy one immediately.

I got my Lilliput monitor today. It is such a great setup. HDMI connection. attached battery. I will post my review soon. Also considering be their reseller =)

iPad has hno built in USB or SD slot. Solution BUY two Apple adapters, but you can only use one at a time.

Such a shame. Would have bought one, but I don't like getting milked. Apple will be fine as there seem to be a lot of people who don't object.

Now with the Lilliput Monitor, the setup is ready to roll

http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final1.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final2.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final3.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final4.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final5.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final6.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final7.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final8.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final9.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/final10.jpg

Yesterday at church, the videographer from the previous wedding came to me and said he likes my setup. I'm vain. But on the other hand, I want to lighten the load. I am not sure if I like this setup as it gets heavy and the HDMI monitor is still very annoying with the 3 to 5 seconds blank screen at the beginning of the shot.

My Tokina 11-16 F/2.8 and Sigma 17-50mm F/2.8 both performs very well. I like it the aperture is fixed at different zoom range so I don't have to adjust exposure at zoom everytime. But the Canon 70-200mm f2.8 with OIS is $2300... that's just ouch!

Okay, here's the final setup, with Rail, Matt box, video light and mic. I removed the Follow Focus and the external monitor.

For more photos, read here -> T2i Final Setup | L.A. Color Blog

http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/mb1.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/mb3.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/mb5.jpg http://lacolorshop.com/blog/images/t2ipimp/mb9.jpg