What’s the best gear I have ever invested in for video?
With so many holiday deals and tantalizing sales, it can be hard to know what you should get and what you shouldn’t
The saying is true, “buy cheap, buy twice.”
More isn’t better.
I wanted to take a second and give you my perspective from 10 years in this industry… I’ve made a lot of terrible purchases that weren’t necessary and often were cheap.
What To Buy:
I think there are three categories that are crucial when it comes to video production and when I reflect on amazing projects that clients have loved, I think it comes down to these three:
Lighting
Audio
Lenses
Lighting:
I used to purchase cheap lights. Don’t do that, please. It turns into junk really fast and it’s a waste of money.
Save until you can purchase at least a good 200w or 300w light.
Here are the lights I use and really love:
Nanlite 720b (lots of power for filling a space)
Nanlite 500 (more power for a key)
Nanlite 300b (my regular key light)
Amaran 200x (another regular)
Aputure Infinibars (hair lights or background)
Aputure bulbs (for light fixtures as practicals)
The only other light I will likely add in the coming year is a 1200w because there are some higher end shoots we’ve used it on to pump through windows, and it really elevated the whole look.
Audio:
I was hesitant to buy a nicer shotgun/boom mic than my Rode NTG4 until I tried the Sennheiser MKH8060, which is a $1,500 mic.
I knew there would be a difference but I was blown away by the quality difference and it really sold me on the value and price. An expensive mic is very worth it, especially as my workhorse interview mic.
That might look different for you. Not saying you need a $1,500 mic for your work, but a high quality mic is absolutely worth the spend.
I plan on keeping my Sennheiser and using it for probably a decade.
Lenses:
Camera bodies are fun to shop for but lenses really make all the difference when it comes to look.
Why?
Lenses have all sorts of characteristics that add to your image. We recently used the Tokina Vistas on a commercial shoot and the client was blown away by the image (part of it was the lighting, of course).
After seeing the client blown away, it further reiterated the value of good lenses.
Here are some lenses I’m considering next:
DZO Arles
Tokina Vistas
Leica R cines
DZO Pavo anamorphic
Conclusion:
Buy for the long term, not the short term.
I probably have $3,000 in wasted purchases over the years by buying cheap.
If I had saved that, I could have a Sachtler tripod as well. Sheesh those are nice and very expensive.
Remember: if the price seems like a stretch for you but it’s a piece you could use for 5-10 with great results, it’s probably the right buy.
-Trent
P.S.
(The retainer course is launching next week - 12/12 - and I’ve had great feedback from a focus group of trusted creatives. The feedback has also revealed that my price is too low, so I’m going to give everyone here in my Newsletter a discount code to keep it at $199, even though I’m raising it to $299 for the public)