Video rigs for "hobbyists" vs "pros"

Oh come on Drew...

Your like the kid in the playground who's mother is the headmistress...Little snippets of things to come.

Fill us in..please..

Plastic, dragons..SPIDERS What the fook do you do in your bedroom

Dive safe

DeanB

Sorry Dean, Head mistresses tend to be big on NDAs.

Plus everyone knows something always comes that's a little better than the previous generation.

OOOOHHH !!!

I love a man who plays mysterious games

Keep giving me it piece by piece big boy

Dive safe

DeanB

OK, I'm going to but in here, speakingt of video rigs for hobbyists. I'm a DSLR man till now, but I do have a Sony DCR-VX1000 in the closet that I used to use at work. Is this a viable toy to get started with underwater video? What are the options / recommendations for housings?

It's a great cam Loftus. It's the grandparent of prosumer DV. BUT housing options are going to be pretty rare. You may find a few used ones on EBay or elsewhere. The design is 11 years old and so are the housing options. I used the Amphibico with that and those should come under $1k used now. You'll probably have to send it back to the manufacturer for a service. But still shouldn't be a bad way to start shooting for under $1500. You may also want to send the camera in for service too (headcleaning etc). You don't want some rusty part to eat up your tape of the orcas and great whites having a tussle.

Dean it's not my fault that you can't come up with better excuses to "kill spiders" and have autonomy to slay video dragons on the side. Keep working on it and make sure your spider slayings are kept in plastic til you do.

 

The funny thing is that hobbyist HD cameras pretty much have lots of limitations compared to the DV generation. I suspect there will be more 1500-2400 range cameras in the coming months. Actually I know!

Wasn't the internet designed for the sole specific reason of bypassing NDA's???? Ohhhhh come on Drew give us a hint! A1 replacement maybe?

Dean, be careful of those bedroom spiders - they can have FAR reaching effects!!

Cheers, Simon

Thought I'd throw my 2c in for what its worth,

Video rigs for Hobbyists or Pro's? I think one first needs to find the distinction between hobbyist and pro. Here we sit discussing the cameras and equipment some believe will magically open the doors to fame and fortune, well exposure in the broadcast world if nothing else, if they go and buy the latest and greatest. I have seen professional, that is contracted union affiliated camera operators, using equipment some would deem antique in order to get the job done. Dependant on size, budget and requirements the camera for the job may not be the latest 24p HDV nice 'n shiny cam straight outta the box rig.

For 6 months last year I worked with the remote imaging department (Crittercam) unit of NGTV&Film. The whole shoot of Sperm Whales in Mexico and White Sharks in South Africa was shot on a 'lowly' PD150, and this at a time when the FX1 and Z1 were readily available! Go figure.

So what then is a professional? If that is a registered IATSE (International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees) who pretty much cover all union bodies withing the motion picture entertainment industry, individual charging the going $52.00 per hour for an 8 hour day as mentioned in previous posts then I for one believe that there are very few, if any, of us here who meet that criteria. Therefore are we all here just hobbyists, some with an elevated opinion of our work and abilities?

I do work and dive almost everyday. With repetition comes the ability to hold a cam steady, to compose and to shoot, occaisionally, nice imagery. I need equipment that is both sturdy and reliable. I buy what some would call "prosumer" equipment as I hope that with my frequency of time in the water I will happen on something significant which could find its way into broadcast productions etc. BUT the same results could be gleaned from smaller more recent cams. I don't wish to have waited on the buying front. I made my choice based on what was available at the time of purchase and went with that. I don't see myself as a Pro, I see myself as someone in a very fortunate situation to be able to make a small living doing something I love doing.

If some people are of the mind that the equipment a user shoots with dictates whether they are pro or hobbyist then I motion that the true judgement of this is the ability of the individual with the equipment they have in their hands, period. Having a Ferrari doesn't mean that you are a good driver, it just means that you have the money to buy a Ferrari. People should shoot with whatever they feel comfortable with whilst at the same time not having to worry about getting labelled because of that equipment.

Go out and buy RED, an F950 or whatever. If you got the cash go for it, we'd all love to see your stuff. And don't worry we, we won't report you to the union bosses if your camera is too big !!

Mark.

Another good post Marky..

I agree that we can all get jealous of other peoples equipment (i've spent many a evening sobbing my heart out when showering after a workout at the local gym) but as you said most of it comes down to the operator.

Lately I've noticed when watching a few wildlife progs that the camera's used have stickers on them from hire companies. When I first asked 'industry' people about hiring gear I was told that the BBC would not 'payback' the cost of hire equipment so it was better to have everthing yourself... HA !! I say now. Maybe the lensmen are trying out new gear before putting their hands in their pockets..Who knows.

Still, be happy with what you've got..for now.. or until someone on a forum tells you your camera's rubbish anyway

Dive safe

DeanB

just got back from Australia and some amazing (if windy) diving in the Coral Sea. Got a chance to meet Peter in Cairns, although at the time I didn't know it was our own pmooney...hoping to do some bidness and serious diving with you next Minke season, dude.

This thread has progressed nicely, and Mark I echo Dean's response to your latest soliloquy. Well said and needed!

Drew, you're no nagging grannie...more like Jimminy Cricket (who is way cooler than he is given credit for, by the way). B)

I personally made the jump last week to the LMI Bluefin and a Z1. I have a doc currently airing on the water channel right now that I shot all the in-water footage with a Stingray II and piddly-ass TRV950. As proud as I am of my work so far, the inability to white balance, adjust exposure and a dozen other settings certainly shows and the rig has limited my marketability. My topside camera rigs are pro, so why shouldn't my in-water stuff be pro as well? After all - it's 75% of how I make my shooting money now. I'm hardly a major player in 2006, but I did legitimately reach a point where my gear didn't match my skillset.

What tore me up about my decision was this illusion that if I waited for the V1U somehow it would magically make me, uh, more pro. There's a lie sold at film schools across the country that if you're not shooting (at the very least) in 24p, you're not producing good content - that somehow an interlaced look is nothing better than home videos, amateurish at best. I began to fall into that myself when I did my post-grad work at Boston University 2 years ago. I personally don't think it applies to what we do, or at least not to what the majority of us do.

So I went with the Z1 - is it going to keep me from getting work? Maybe, but I probably would not be qualified for those shoots anyway. Would not shooting with a more versatile, higher res rig have kept me from work? Most definitely. I got what I could afford and look forward to shooting on a rig that not only matches my current skillset and clientele, but allows for continued progress in my abilities. (And client list.)

In the words of Bill Murray in Stripes: "Talk about massive potential for growth! I am the acorn that becomes the oak!"

Having had a look around the 'Diveshow' on sunday, I must admit the Gates housing for the Z1 with the 4" monitor and Squid lights was a MONSTER.. It was more like a dustbin..

"That set-ups for the Pro's" said the young sales assistant. "Cost you £8000 for the whole set-up"..."Fuck that" I said...

Although the footage I saw at the Peter Scoones seminar of the up and coming 'Planet Earth' series was magnificent. A mother Humpback and calf filmed in Tonga..By Doug Allan with his Gates/ Z1/Fathom lens combo.. All crystal clear and, well, brilliant.

Also had a chat with Steve at F.E.P about the L&M housing for the A1 which has now dropped in price to rival what i paid for my F#*king useless Amphibico pro evo. Their going to let me know when the Fx7/V1 housing is arriving.

Oh yes..My little 'Pro evo' failed again today. I think it must be the lanc lead as none of the electronic controls worked. Both grips failed. First It kept going into Photo mode then completely gave in. Nothing, Nada. I had to press record on the cam itself, then load it. But no w/b, zoom, stop..etc..SHITE..

Dive safe

Dean(frustration)B

Dean, sorry to hear about ya little EVO.

Can you plug it onto say a tripod with a lac lead and see it that drives the camera?

I would send it back to get looked at.

Hi Wags,

I connected it to my Manfrotto straight away especially after the last time..

No, definately the housing this time..Its going to the supplier tomorrow.

Hopefully it will be sorted before next weeks expo.

Dive safe

DeanB

Having had a look around the 'Diveshow' on sunday, I must admit the Gates housing for the Z1 with the 4" monitor and Squid lights was a MONSTER.. It was more like a dustbin..

 

Hahaha Dean,

Now you see what I gotta contend with in rip currents on Blue Corner! Now down to 8% body fat, which for a skinny git like me helps me to camouflage well when trying to sneak up on wildlife.....I just turn sideways on !!! and become invisible.

 

Planning to get some of these suckers or at least the diver portable versions which will be available after DEMA this year. That should get me down to 7% body fat in no time and render me impervious to Ocean Currents, pure hydrodynamical efficiency.

 

Cheers,

Mark.

Hey Mark, with those lights on you will be like a big wind sock

Are you going to get one of those subs as well?

Just drive around and shoot everything while ya eating ya KFC and listening to The Life Aquatic sound Track.

Wags,

Sorry but no KFC outlets on Palau at the mo. Mind you we do have a Winchells so I'm looking for a way to keep the donuts dry whilst diving. They could always double as a life preserver if I get into trouble too !!!

That will be the last of the buying for the mo. My bank manager was last seen scouring Palau with a very nasty looking machete with a serious look of intent on his face

Cheers,

Mark.

P.S I could do with a propellor on the housing though. That would make life a lot easier.

Don't worry, I'm sure by this time next year Mark you would of paid all your gear off from selling your beautifull footage. Just don't eat all ya profits in Donunts

Kelly pushes me around with the Apollo while I'm holding the Phenom. Works rather well.

Don't worry, I'm sure by this time next year Mark you would of paid all your gear off from selling your beautifull footage. Just don't eat all ya profits in Donunts

 

Kelly pushes me around with the Apollo while I'm holding the Phenom. Works rather well.

Cheers Wags,

I appreciate yer kind words mate. Starting to payback now actually. Just putting finishing touches to a TV project and been asked to film for a TV crew doing an expose on Palau next month. Should be good for a few donuts !!

Best,

Mark.

i was driving through my town last night and going past the football club I had a idea 'How about submersing a bank of floodlights'..Now looking at that website, I could strap them to the top of one of those subs..

But where would be the satisfaction when I could lay in 10ft of reeds in 4oc of murky inland water waiting for a pike to "AT LEAST MOVE, YOU BASTARD"...

I've got to be passionately, insane..

Dive safe

DeanB

P.S I could do with a propellor on the housing though. That would make life a lot easier.

Tried that. The result was rather cumbersome.

I'd thought about strapping a housing to a DPV this year to film basking sharks, but as it turned out in the end I couldn't even get my polecam set up to work properly. Plus the sharks didn't turn up anyway. Oh well it really DID seem like a good idea at the time....

Cheers, Simon