For you shooting geeks out there - you asked our creative director what equipment she recommends, so let her tell you about what we have and why she likes it.

Eliene Augenbraun, creative director, here.

 

In 2023 we updated our equipment and started shooting and editing for new clients. I got a lot of questions about what I chose, why, and where. So here is a detailed description. Feel free to ask if you have any questions.

 

We bought most items at B&H Photo Video (thank you Payboo card for saving us the price of the tax) and Amazon. We bought my MacBook Pro directly from Apple (I usually do not buy direct from Apple but it pays to shop around - at that moment, Apple had the best price and availability versus other options) and editing software from Adobe.

 

Editing computer and accessories

2023 14 inch Macbook Pro M2 Max 32 GB HD. We use Creative Cloud for editing, audio, I love this Macbook - it handles After Effects animation and Premier pro video editing at the same time. In 4K.

 

We bought Apple Care.

 

Hard drives for backup. Portable drives for working copies. I always have a 10 GB hard drive on my desk set in Time Machine to back up everything on my computers and portable drives. When one is full I store it on a shelf and buy another.

 

Camera and lenses

Sony FX3. Love love love it. Shoots beautiful 4K (although beware - not all 4K is the exact same dimensions with some subtle differences in width between default shooting dimensions and default video editing dimensions). The camera is a full-featured cinema camera, even as it is small and unobtrusive, an advantage when on the road a lot. I can fly it on a relatively light pro gimbal (see below). Apparently this camera and that gimbal can be used to film cars driving on bridges (not that I have done that yet).

 

Sony 50 mm F/1.8 FE lens with 49 mm filter (gorgeous lens)

Sigma 24-70 mm lens Sony E (I am pleased with this lens - some buyers complained about small chromatic or spherical aberrations, but I have not seen that with our lens, so I am very happy with it).

 

We bought the Sony extended warrantee.

 

Camera accessories

Batteries. Sigh, So expensive. I bought two Sony rechargeable batteries that fit inside the camera. I also bought a 99Wh large battery for which I had to build a lot of rigging, but it is worth it for long interviews. Moman V Mount battery with mini V lock mount, SmallRig mini V-mount battery plate, D-tap charger, and a D-tap cable.

 

Rigging. Most of the pieces are from SmallRig. The brand is expensive (nothing seems to be less than $20 and that is a tiny thing) but everything they sell is wonderful. I bought a short plate, an articulated arm, and locking V-Mount plate. I will probably build out the rig more if we shoot outdoors and need to use a raincoat.

 

Media. Hundreds of dollars invested in cards. For example, San Disk 256 GB Extreme Pro works for still photography or 2K video or exchanging videos with someone; it costs $39. For 4K 30 fps, you need something much better. A pair of Prograde 256 GB UHS-II V90 SDXC set us back $485 at B&H. As backups we got Lexar 128 GB UHS-II for $228 a pair.

 

Cables. I spent hundreds of dollars, all totaled. Battery cables, charger cables, HDMI cables. Do bungee cords count too?

 

Stabilization

Gimbal. Ahhhh. Ronin DJI RSC 2 Gimbal stabilizer and an extender pole. So much fun.

 

Tripods. I had a bunch of 25-year-old Manfrotto pro tripods with 501 fluid heads. They needed cleaning and greasing. I bought a tube of grease for $10 and an old head on eBay for $60 for spare parts. We now have two lovely, good as new Manfrotto tripods, in addition to others we use for iPhones and audio gear. And I highly recommend the experience of taking things like that apart for maintenance.

 

Audio

Zoom H5 portable audio recorder. It comes with interchangeable microphones and XLR connectors so you could use up to two other microphones.

 

Microphones. We must have at least ten for all different purposes ranging from podcast recording in a studio to lavalier, wireless, wired lav for places that cannot use wireless, and directional mics for indoor and outdoor uses. We have a very noticeable “dead cat” windscreen. Brands are Sony, Rode, Sennheiser.

 

Headphones. I prefer Sony headphones, so we have several for the whole crew. Interesting note – the foam rubber earpieces deteriorate and need to be replaced every few years. The replacement earpieces cost about $10. If your headphones look ratty, don’t throw them away; just replace the foam rubber. Or give them to me…

 

Lights

Amaran set of 3 P60X lights. The kit comes with stands and diffusion filters. The articulated mounting shoe for the top of the light stands is inadequate but everything else is great.

 

2 more LED accent lights

 

I use very white pillow cases for diffusion filters over the LED lights. It looks weird but works great.

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Cases and wheels

We have a convertible dolly/hand truck that could transport a refrigerator. I replaced the blow up tires with solid rubber ones, so we can really load it up. We have a bunch of Porta-Brace and Tamrac bags, plus a lovely Amazon Basics (believe it or not) camera bag. We also have a bunch of consumer luggage bags that work just fine and cost a lot less than pro cases.