DSLR Video: Gear, techniques, everything related to shooting videos on DSLR cameras

Sebastian

Sebastian

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Hi all!

I would like to start this thread to share our experiences with shooting videos on DSLR cameras.
I do expect it to be a crazy adventure so I would love to hear about your techniques, gear, tricks, everything related to shooting videos.



I have recently bought D7000 to shoot videos and to use it as a backup to my trusty D3.
After few initial hand-held tests and not being impressed with my movies, I have realised that I will need few bits of equipment:


  • stabilizer to avoid camera shake: shoulder support, flycam/steadycam, tripod with video/fluid head
  • LED light for low light situations
  • external mic - the one built-in is not the best quality and is too close to the lens, it picks up focusing motor!
  • some form of bracket to put it all together
  • LCD viewfinder - I know, sounds stupid, but it really helps with manual focus

I have also decided to do some research and buy original products or their substitutes if the quality is as good as the original gear. I will post all my findings here.


So, let's start with my first purchase:

Shoulder support:
A.S.S = Amazon Shoulder Support

Initially sold at amazon.com, gained popularity due to low price, good build quality and max weight support (it takes 6kg without major problems)
I have just ordered mine from this eBay seller for £18.99 delivered
According to reviews, it is very comfortable and allows hands free operation.

30/03/11 UPDATE: Item arrived today. After few minutes of play I can already tell that I will like it. I can also tell that it WILL take 5-6kg of weight without any problems.
The construction is solid, but some elements like padding and rubber elements could be better.
But for this price, you can't complain!
I will post some photos / videos later.


I will be now researching other components, let me know if you can recommend something.



VIDEO TUTORIALS:

Vimeo Video School (you can find much more videos here)




PS: I have a little chat with TP admins and all posts related to shooting video on DSLR camera will have to be posted here in Talk Equipment section,
but we can have a separate section if there will be more people interested in it. Spread the word :)
 
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Few words about www.cheesycam.com

This website is a must for anyone interested in shooting DSLR videos.
The owner, Emm, is researching, reviewing and testing plenty of gear.
Make sure you will visit his blog every now and then


Here is a video from this website, showing the type of video rig that I am going for:
http://cheesycam.com/a-s-s-implants-how-to/
 
Check out the http://cheesycam.com/ blog, lots of updates and prices etc on cheap and DIY support systems. edit: HA! beaten to it while I typed this essay...

I'm kinda lucky in that through work I have access to and use a good selection of nice support systems, so don't know tooo much about the cheaper systems.

The FIRST purchase for ANYONE wanting to shoot films on dslr should be a tripod with a FLUID HEAD. lots of people recommend one that's about £110 for the tripod and head, see here: http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313&_nkw=wf717&_sacat=See-All-Categories (all links are just the first ones that I come to, not the best place).

Alternatively, if you've got a bit more money, the manfrotto 503 series heads and the bundled tripods aren't a bad buy, the newer version looks like they've fixed the bits that used to fall apart too.

The ebay 'steadicams' I struggle to recommend, however there's not much alternative really sub £2k. They work... ish. You need to practice with them, and balancing them is always fun...

If you are using a steadicam, a major issue will likely be pulling focus. Steadicams should almost always use a wide angle lens anyway, especially with an amateur operator, but you still can't really touch the camera when it's rolling to pull focus. Depends on the shot really. JAG35 have just released a very very reasonably priced remote follow focus, about $300 for the controller and the motor, looks very interesting.

There's a million shoulder support rigs out there, of varying style, weight, quality etc. jag35 ones sound good, and are pretty affordable, though I haven't used one (yet! my mate's just got one, can't wait to play :) ) The redrock systems are crazy expensive, but very very nice. Apparently there's a guy in india who makes pretty much exactly similar and very well made shoulder rail systems for pretty little money, sells them on ebay. The dvxuser and cinema5d guys talk about them loads.

The next VITAL thing is audio!

There's infinite videos on vimeo with beautiful f1.4 pictures but crappy audio.
At very least, get a rode videomic, and enough cable for it to also be able to put it on the end of a boom pole (a normal monopod works well if you want to get something dual purpose :) )

Depending on what you're shooting, you may also want to use lapel mics, or larger shotgun mics... all depends really. The industry standard radio mic sets are the sennheiser ew100 series, but they're very much not cheap. Work well though, and you can use like 5 or 6 at a time license free in the UK.


MONITORING

Different cameras do different things. The 5d doesn't output full 1080p while recording on HDMI, so you can't get pull focus accurately from a monitor displaying the output. 7D can (and for a few other small reasons, and the extra frame rates, I prefer working with the 7D).

Lots of people, again, see dvxuser and cinema5d forums, like using an inexpensive lilliput screen (under £200) that has mini HDMI in, peaking graphs, sony camcorder battery power etc, and a built in hood, for monitoring. If you're using a seperate monitor for your focus puller, or taking HDMI off to video village for your director/crew, you'll need to use a HDMI splitter unless you buy one of the expensive marshall monitors with HDMI passthrough.

For a more run and gun system, with the operator also pulling focus, an LCD viewfinder loupe is often used - there's a load about, ranging from about $60 to several hundred, with all sorts of different mounting systems. Never used them so can't comment. Downside is that HDMI outputs cut off the screen on the back of your camera, so it's an either or situation. Several products are coming out that are essentially electronic viewfinders, as found on professional video cameras, designed specially for dslr rigs.
 
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Look forward yo this thread, sounds good. I've only got the humble D5000, but I'm pretty pleased with some of the ones I've shot. At the moment, I use it with either just the 70-300 VR (the VR works damned good - I don't seem to need a tripod!) or with the old 600 AIS on a tripod. I find the sound recorded to be suprizingly good, a few tweaks the audio and I'm rather impressed. I'll try and upload some videos from my you tube to hear at some point. :thumbs:

Sent from my iPhone 4 using TP Forums
 
LIGHTING

there are parallels between photo and video lighting, but of course with video, (almost) everything gets hot because it needs to stay on for a long time.

Red Heads are cheap light cannons, you can buy them dirt cheap off ebay, several 'pro' manufacturers do make more expensive ones but in all honesty they're still not much more than a tin can with a lamp holder at one end and a barn door holder at the other. Think carefully about your power consumption, 3 of these plugged into one 13A socket is dodgy at best - any extension leads MUST be fully unwound otherwise it just turns into a kettle.

For an on camera fill light, the Z96 LED panel off ebay is about £40 and is really neat. I've been meaning to buy one for ages, looks really nice for stills work too just to throw a splash more light in close up.

There's kino flo imitations and larger LED panels available on ebay... cheesycam and kirk tuck talk about them quite a bit. All look quite neat and will stay cool, and in many ways are ideal for standard interview type stuff.

Also, if you haven't already, get yourself a popup reflector and a stand/support arm for it. Get the calumet reflector arm, it's the one that can be a speedlight / mini LED panel boom in a pinch.
 
STORY, VOX POPS, filming style, shooting for the edit.

Another very commonly overlooked part of shooting dslr video... (and the reason that I reckon that the constant murmurings within the industry of 'will you be asked to shoot video) are largely bogus...

Video production is a SKILL and is one way, way beyond gear, so much like photography, there is a hell of a lot more to just taking the pictures, and being able to do the two seamlessly and by KNOWING your kit is important, and allows you to concentrate on what you're making, rather than the how.

28 days later, the film...remember it? Fantastic piece of british cinema, and an awesome zombie flick. It was shot with a frankly tiny budget, and on this standard definition, miniDV canon camcorder costing a couple of grand:

XL-1_751.jpg


More recently, they shot crank.... 2? maybe 3. Can't remember. Either way, they shot it on a few cheap £3k panasonic prosumer camcorders, and a load of small, cheap, sub £1k handicams. The kinda stuff you take on holiday. It really, really, isn't always about the kit, so think HARD about what you're trying to do with the video.

DSLRs are DIFFICULT technically to shoot on. Stuff goes wrong, they have a big sensor which means shallower depth of field which means you've got to pay more attention to getting good focus, they don't have real audio inputs or outputs, you can't wedge one into your shoulder and run and gun.... a million reasons. But they do produce good video compared to the 1/3"chip camcorders recording on HDV codec...

BUT all of that is irrelevant if your content is pants. I obviously can't cover every scenario, and in all honesty I'm gonna retire to bed in a minute with band of brothers and a glass of wine, but...

for documentary stuff, you can NEVER have enough cutaways, or voxpops of people summing up the event really quickly.
Cutaways are the 'arty shots'. The pans across a street, the rack focus through a crowd of walking people, the pull focus onto the place signs, the general atmosphere. Memory cards are cheap, shoot loads.

Interviewing or getting vox pops is an art, and getting people to say useful stuff succinctly enough that you can use it without having to cut it up into a million pieces is difficult but comes through experience. Some of the sorts of things to ask are 'really really quickly, in just a few words, can you sum up why xyz should take part in abc?' or 'did you have a good time today?'. Often just shoving the camera in people's face and asking them a short, sharp and direct question will get you short sharp answers or reactions. Keep the camera rolling and never ever interrupt or interject - in fact, when they finish speaking, even answering each question, leave a second before you speak - this way you can be sure that they've finished, and the audio of you (or your interviewer/director) speaking won't cut into theirs.

If you're not editing the video yourself, always always ask your editors for feedback on your footage - it's the real way to improve, and editors are always more than happy to share how you've made their life miserable that day :D

I'll add some more tomorrow, any questions/thoughts?
My (limited, frankly - I'm a photographer 1st and foremost, but did a lot of video stuff at a student station and still do some work for a small production company, as well as for my clients when requested) experience is largely event and live broadcast based, working with 'real' video cameras rather than slrs (well... I say 'real'... I've been known to clamp cctv cameras around stages and use 500m wireless video transmitters from a local tower block for a 'blimp shot'....it's all fun), but I've worked with and know a fair bit about video on dslrs, so happy to help wherever really. Working at the moment on some more narrative based stuff, which is interesting and not something I've done so much before. Fittingly, the only video camera that I actually own cost just £12 from 7dayshop...

I've done a fair share of filming dance shows and school plays too... don't ask how to shoot them continuously on dslr because you can't because you can't get a shot longer than 5 minutes or something like that, and eventually your sensor would just overheat if you just restarted instantly. Plus pulling focus for an hour or two solid would drive you mad. Hire an EX1...

couple of snaps of the kinda things I throw myself at occasionally... if you thought photo stuff is expensive or hard... wait til you get really into video :D

Video production is 10x photo cost in terms of both money and effort, narrative film production is 100x, feature at least 1000x...

PwNn8.jpg

f2RD4.jpg

download festival. Only time my hands have ever gone wrinkley from the rain while filming...
QVO2s.jpg

mc30j.jpg


sure is damn fun though. You've got the audio difficulties of radio, the story difficulties of journalism, and the image difficulties of photo.... but all at 24 times a second!


OH AND FINALLY.... please resist the temptation to shoot EVERYTHING at f1.4!
 
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Dave, Thank you so much for your input. Your experience and tips will be very useful for all of us here

Sent from my Desire HD using TP Forums
 
Great thread, thanks guys, especially Dave. I've started trying to shoot video on my 60d, so far it's fun but hard. I'm only shot with my Sigma 30mm so far and keeping it in focus is a bitch. I'm definitely going to look for some sort of cheap support or steadicam type thing first.

Keep it coming guys - if I ever have anything useful to post I'll put it up, but looks like I'm miles behind some of you currently!
 
SixToes said:
Great thread, thanks guys, especially Dave. I've started trying to shoot video on my 60d, so far it's fun but hard. I'm only shot with my Sigma 30mm so far and keeping it in focus is a bitch. I'm definitely going to look for some sort of cheap support or steadicam type thing first.

Keep it coming guys - if I ever have anything useful to post I'll put it up, but looks like I'm miles behind some of you currently!
Click to expand...

The 60D's a special one because of the swivel screen... pretty cool really, means you don't need such an offset or to crook your neck so badly when shooting with a shoulder rig. Want to get my hands on one really... Nikon need to sort their act out :(
 
First thing, great idea for a thread as this is something I've been looking into recently.

With regards to sound, I have a sad and geeky hobby of traveling around to watch demolitions, and with my probable future purchase of an SLR with video I thought I should record them. I've been looking a lot at the Zoom H1, it seems to be the cheap standard in audio recording? And I use a lot of Zoom products for my musical instruments but is the H1 capable of capturing very loud, very low frequencies? Although I've never tried the H1, I imagine it would just distort. I may be completely wrong though.

I'm currently running on Linux (ubuntu) at the moment because I'm too cheap to buy Windows. I've been reading forums and trying out the software and it seems my OS isn't too good for video editing. It seems there are two extremes for Linux, serious , hardcore editing and very simple editing. I'm starting to think I may need to dual boot XP or 7 to get some decent editing software, unless anyone can point me in the direction of some good software for Linux.

Thanks for reading!
 
What would be really usefull would be a word definition section. I have looked at other dedicated video forums in the past and the language used, although English, is not one I understand and so tend to grumble to myself and just go back to the camera and (fixed) tripod. IS it possible to use a DSLR to create videos without a lot more expensive equipment?
 
Kerioak said:
What would be really usefull would be a word definition section. I have looked at other dedicated video forums in the past and the language used, although English, is not one I understand and so tend to grumble to myself and just go back to the camera and (fixed) tripod. IS it possible to use a DSLR to create videos without a lot more expensive equipment?
Click to expand...

I will try to put inexpensive rig together. Have a look at my first post - I will be posting all my findings here :)

Word definition section: +1
 
itsdavedotnet said:
The 60D's a special one because of the swivel screen... pretty cool really, means you don't need such an offset or to crook your neck so badly when shooting with a shoulder rig. Want to get my hands on one really... Nikon need to sort their act out :(
Click to expand...
I'm really happy with mine. Its funny, when I bought the camera I wanted the high ISO and better controls. I wasn't bothered about the articulating screen or liveview, but having had them I can't imagine gong back to a camera that didn't have them. Combined, the flexibility they give you for shooting stills and video at difficult angles is fantastic, and I'm sure it helps loads with stabilising video shooting as you don't have to hold it in front of your face the whole time.
 
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First of all, thanks Sebastian for setting this thread up, I see within a short space of time, Quite a few posts have been posted.

I have recently moved to a Nikon D3100 as it has continuos focusing.
I very rarely use the original sound. I tend to overlay music.
Unless the video is shot outside, I have setup my own lighting setup, using wall mounted security lights with 500W bulbs, that cost around £7 from Homebase. I put these on cheap tripods, and have wired dimmer switches onto them. then use cloth as a soft box application.

I will be doing some filming sometime this week and will let you know how itr goes.

Before I was using the Canon HF200

I will be using the Nikon to carry on this project. http://vimeo.com/20382280
 
I was sceptical about my Nikon 3100 video abilities, and intended to keep my DV recorder. Having used it, and got the auto focus set up (wide setting stops it hunting all the time) I've found it extremely usable, and the quality far better than standard DV. I'll post a link to my stuff when I've edited it.
 
oldnick said:
I was sceptical about my Nikon 3100 video abilities, and intended to keep my DV recorder. Having used it, and got the auto focus set up (wide setting stops it hunting all the time) I've found it extremely usable, and the quality far better than standard DV. I'll post a link to my stuff when I've edited it.
Click to expand...

Looking forward to it.
 
(Im using a Nikon D3100) When shooting with a normal Camcorder you dont have to worry about iso or shutter speed. When using my DSLR, it displays the shutter speed. Does the shutter speed actually affect the video recording, as it is recording at 25fps?
 
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Can't comment on the Nikon, but it does on the Canon. The video mode is an electronic shutter, not mechanical. When you up the shutter speed, you are getting less exposure time per 1/25th of a second, so the higher the shutter speed, the more frozen the image becomes. At 1/25th or 1/50th you'll see smooth motion, but as you up the speed, any motion becomes more choppy as you are sampling a smaller and smaller timeframe of the 1/25th of a second.
 
arad85 said:
Can't comment on the Nikon, but it does on the Canon. The video mode is an electronic shutter, not mechanical. When you up the shutter speed, you are getting less exposure time per 1/25th of a second, so the higher the shutter speed, the more frozen the image becomes. At 1/25th or 1/50th you'll see smooth motion, but as you up the speed, any motion becomes more choppy as you are sampling a smaller and smaller timeframe of the 1/25th of a second.
Click to expand...

So would I be right in saying I should put it on shutter priority and have it at 1/25
 
Yes, or 1/50th. Maybe even manual. Probably worth doing a few experiments on cars out of the window to see the different effects.
 
Sebastian said:
Shoulder support:
A.S.S = Amazon Shoulder Support

Initially sold at amazon.com, gained popularity due to low price, good build quality and max weight support (it takes 6kg without major problems)
I have just ordered mine from this eBay seller for £18.99 delivered
According to reviews, it is very comfortable and allows hands free operation.
I will test it and review it for you asap.
Click to expand...

Great idea for a thread so thanks for starting it.
I dont have much to offer but i do have a lot to learn.

That support looks pretty good, especially at that price so im looking forward to your views.
 
I've got a Jag35 manual follow focus and a merlin type stabiliser from Turkey, I haven't been able to use them much due to other commitments, but I will post a review up soon!

Excellent thread btw :thumbs:
 
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Sebastian said:
So, let's start with my first purchase:

Shoulder support:
A.S.S = Amazon Shoulder Support

Initially sold at amazon.com, gained popularity due to low price, good build quality and max weight support (it takes 6kg without major problems)
I have just ordered mine from this eBay seller for £18.99 delivered
According to reviews, it is very comfortable and allows hands free operation.
I will test it and review it for you asap.
Click to expand...

Looking forward to seeing your review on this - I assume you are male, it looks as if it might not fit the female form quite as well? I was supporting my 5D and 70-200 on a fence the other day and trying to look at it via live view (not easy) so an inexpensive way of supporting it would be useful
 
arad85 said:
Yes, or 1/50th. Maybe even manual. Probably worth doing a few experiments on cars out of the window to see the different effects.
Click to expand...

I am thinking about trying one thing:

On D7000
Set ISO to automatic range 100 - 800
set minimum shutter speed to 1/50th
shoot in aperture mode f5.6

ISO should keep shutter speed 1/50th or faster, without risking aperture to go f1.4 (this could happen when shooting in Shutter priority with 50mm f1.4).
And ISO 800 on D7000 looks very good, at least on photos.

I need to see it this configuration, very useful when shooting events, applies to shooting video too.
 
Kerioak said:
Looking forward to seeing your review on this - I assume you are male, it looks as if it might not fit the female form quite as well? I was supporting my 5D and 70-200 on a fence the other day and trying to look at it via live view (not easy) so an inexpensive way of supporting it would be useful
Click to expand...

No problem. It was dispatched today from London so I should have it by Friday. I can test it on my wife and report back :)
 
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Sebastian said:
I am thinking about trying one thing:

On D7000
Set ISO to automatic range 100 - 800
set minimum shutter speed to 1/50th
shoot in aperture mode f5.6

ISO should keep shutter speed 1/50th or faster, without risking aperture to go f1.4 (this could happen when shooting in Shutter priority with 50mm f1.4).
And ISO 800 on D7000 looks very good, at least on photos.

I need to see it this configuration, very useful when shooting events, applies to shooting video too.
Click to expand...

I tend to keep my shutter speed at 1/50 (shooting 1920 x 1080 25fps) but even at ISO100 im finding i need to step down quite a bit if using a largish f stop. Over the weekend i was almost hitting f/22 and still over exposing at one point.
Ive got a 8ND filter on its way and im hoping this will help.
 
Sebastian said:
ISO should keep shutter speed 1/50th or faster,
Click to expand...
The problem with the "or faster" means the shutter could jump to 1/200th or higher. You will get a very stroboscopic look to the video if this happens. Say you are shooting at 1/250th shutter. This means you open the (electronic) shutter for 1/250th second every 1/25th second or 1/10th of the frame time. Although the image may well be nicely exposed, the next frame you take the scene will have moved 9/250ths of a second further along so you are losing 9/10ths of the information (i.e. motion) in the scene.

I hope that makes sense....
 
ohjin22 said:
so its best tp have it on M, fixed shutter and apeture, and auto ISO?
Click to expand...
Certainly most control - try taking a couple of clips of something moving at different shutter speeds and seeing the effects you get. I've not used mine for videoing in anger yet though - so this is all theory ;)
 
hsuffyan said:
I've got a Jag35 manual follow focus and a merlin type stabiliser from Turkey, I haven't been able to use them much due to other commitments, but I will post a review up soon!

Excellent thread btw :thumbs:
Click to expand...

Can't wait :)

Sent from my Desire HD using TP Forums
 
arad85 said:
The problem with the "or faster" means the shutter could jump to 1/200th or higher. You will get a very stroboscopic look to the video if this happens. Say you are shooting at 1/250th shutter. This means you open the (electronic) shutter for 1/250th second every 1/25th second or 1/10th of the frame time. Although the image may well be nicely exposed, the next frame you take the scene will have moved 9/250ths of a second further along so you are losing 9/10ths of the information (i.e. motion) in the scene.

I hope that makes sense....
Click to expand...

of course, this is a decision that the cinematographer must make as to the look and feel of the footage. Sometimes high shutter speed in video is good and wanted - eg sports will often use a higher shutter speed, ditto fast action sequences.

If you need to get low aperture, slow shutter speeds and can't drop the iso any further, you'll need ND filters - a staple of video work where shallow depth of field is often desirable - real video cameras almost all have ND filters built in, but you might want to add them. In professional video, this is done with slot in filters in a filter holder at the back of a matte box, but you can use normal screw in or cokin style ones...
 
itsdavedotnet said:
of course, this is a decision that the cinematographer must make as to the look and feel of the footage. Sometimes high shutter speed in video is good and wanted - eg sports will often use a higher shutter speed, ditto fast action sequences.
Click to expand...
No problems with that.. to me, it's all about understanding what and why you use different speeds. A bit like taking the camera out of P mode for the first time.... just the problems with video are different ;)
 
With the Nikon 3100 there is a software bug which means that if in live view or while shooting video, nothing can be adjusted. ie , shutter, aperture, white bal. You have to come out of live view, adjust and go back. I think that may also apply to the 5000 and 7000.

Anyway as promised some 3100 video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QkQA_QT-zWs

Best watched in 720p
 
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UPDATE:

I have updated post #1 with super fresh news about A.S.S.

I have also starter Tutorial section.
I have "discovered" Vimeo Video School, a set of great tutorials that will help us to understand how to shoot good videos.

Have fun!
 
I decided to order the same shoulder support as Sebastian (see his first post) and mine also arrived today. I was a bit concerned (not being exactly flat chested) that it would be a poor fit but it is fine and fits nicely under the bust. It takes a while to get used to it on your shoulder, especially if you have neck problems, but overall I am happy with it so far.

I do have problems getting the view in focus but I think that is my vision as I cannot get far enough back to see the screen. The support takes the weight of a 5D MkII and 70-200 is lens. I would prefer to have a quick release plate rather than having to unscrew it each time I want to remove the camera but adding this might make it a bit too high.

I think providing you don't breath too deeply or try and remain totally static this will be a good buy. It is nearly all plastic so hopefully it will not break.

I have uploaded a trial video to my website (I have yet to learn how to make teh best use of the editing software) it is a bit pixelated but does I hope, show how smoothly it can be used - this was my third attempt - the dogs keep moving! Click on the little white arrow below the word Trial
 
Sebastian said:
UPDATE:

I have updated post #1 with super fresh news about A.S.S.

I have also starter Tutorial section.
I have "discovered" Vimeo Video School, a set of great tutorials that will help us to understand how to shoot good videos.

Have fun!
Click to expand...

Thats a great set of videos there, thanks.

Can someone explain to me why when he was dealing with ISO with regards to recording movie, he said 125 bad, 160 good and 100 was fine?
 
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