When you are starting out in film production, the different filmmaking equipment can be confusing and intimidating. The categories and items listed below will give you a general idea of the different filmmaking equipment you are likely to run into. This list will also be useful if you are looking to purchase gear to make yourself a more capable filmmaker.
Cinema Camera and Lenses
A cinema camera and lenses are the brains and eyes of the entire operation. Cinema cameras are extremely complex feats of engineering. Although, once you understand how to work their menus and settings, picture profiles, gamut settings, resolution, and compression settings, you will be able to figure out how to manipulate many different cameras.
Lenses are what can impart character to your image. Understanding the subtleties of different lenses from different manufacturers takes some testing. Many people prefer older lenses for their imperfectness and warmer look. Some modern lenses are extremely sharp and reproduce images exactly as they are, which is not what every cinematographer is looking for.
A few of the cameras you can run into on set are:
For high-end film production: Sony Venice
For mid-range film production: RED Komodo
For independent films: BlackMagic 4K Cinema Camera
Camera Stabilizers
Once you’re on set, you need to have a way to keep your camera stable. Tripods are the oldest form of camera stabilization and are still the go-to for locked-down shots. With a tripod, you can perform movements such as pans and tilts. There are, however, many other types of camera stabilization including steadicams and gimbals.
The Manfrotto Befree Live 4-Section Aluminum Tripod is a compact and versatile video tripod that allows you to get smooth shots with your DSLR or mirrorless camera. If however, you want to move that same smaller camera through space the Manfrotto Professional 3-Axis Handheld Modular Gimbal really does a tremendous job of keeping your footage buttery smooth as you perform tracking shots or any kind of moving shot.
The modularity of this system is also something to behold, with the gimbal breaking down into four parts and working with accessories such as the Manfrotto FAST GimBoom which allows you to get higher shots which approach the look of drone footage.
External Microphones
While the visuals of film production are important, many people (myself included) believe that capturing clean audio is even more critical. When the audio is less than perfect, the audience will come away with a negative impression of the film.
There are many different audio recording options. On film sets, audio is recorded by having at least one dedicated sound person — sometimes two. When there are two, you have a Production Sound Mixer and a Boom Operator. On much smaller sets, such as one person-band set-ups, you can have these responsibilities performed by the cameraperson. For those types of setups, having an on-camera mic and recorder such as the Rode VideoMic Pro, On-Camera Microphone with Rycote Lyre Shockmount + Tascam DR-05 will help you get better audio than the mic from your mirrorless or DSLR. For something more high-end, you can try the Zoom F6 MultiTrack Field Recorder.
Lighting
The difference between a great image and a passable one usually doesn’t come down to the camera and lens combo. It is more influenced by the lighting of the scene. The art of lighting is extremely important to help drive the audience’s attention and emotions. There are many different types of film lights, such as HMI’s, tungsten, and fluorescent. Although, the newest kid on the block — LED — is making moves in a huge way.
LED units have recently been able to be very bright at a lower power draw than more traditional lighting. Although, now they can reproduce any color on the color wheel while also creating different effects — for example, lights from a cop car.
Some of the units you will see on bigger sets are the Aputure LS 60x 60W Bi-Color Adjustable Focusing LED Light and Aputure Light Storm LS 300X Beyond Bi-Color LED Light Kit.
C-Stands
The C-stand can be found on all sizes and budgets of film sets. With its collapsible leg design, baby pin, gobo head, and gobo arm, it can hold all kinds of film equipment such as smaller lights and lighting modifiers. The gobo head and gobo arm help you to extend your modifiers, such as a flag or diffuser, and place it exactly where you need it while keeping its legs out of shot. The Flashpoint C-Stand kit is a great value proposition, giving you three complete C-Stand sets in a convenient rolling case.
Video Monitors
While almost all cameras come with a built-in monitor, these are usually very small and often don’t have the exposure and focusing tools that make life easier on set. External video monitors are useful for a variety of reasons. They have larger screens so you can see more detail. External video monitors also allow team members perform their function more effectively.
A focus puller will use their own dedicated monitor to ensure that focus is exactly where it needs to be, while a director can make sure that everything in the frame and the performances of the actors is exactly what they want. On commercial shoots, the client often gets their own monitor so they can ensure the brand is being represented appropriately.
The SmallHD Indie 7 7″ On-Camera Monitor is a bright, large, color accurate display, with all the tools a camera operator needs to make sure they are getting what they expect in relation to the image. The Blackmagic Design Video Assist also has these benefits, but adds a video recorder. This can record the RAW output from the sensor of certain camera models so you can get higher resolution, a bit depth, or both.
Video Switchers
When you are on a set with multiple cameras, being able to switch from one to another during a live feed requires a piece of either hardware or computer software. Hardware, such as the Blackmagic Design ATEM SDI Extreme ISO Live Production Switcher, lets you perform this vital live feed action. This unit has eight SDI inputs allowing you to get up to eight different cameras that can output an SDI signal into this one piece of hardware.
Having multiple cameras for your live feed allows you to get more interesting angles and seamlessly switch between wide shots and close-ups. The compact size of the ATEM SDI Extreme also allows this to be an ideal in the field remote switcher.
Wireless Transmission Systems
When you have multiple monitors on set, you need some way to get the signal from the camera to the people who need to be looking at that image. One way would be to have multiple runs of cables from the cameras to each monitor. This would, however, be a very inefficient and dangerous way to run a set. You would have cables all over the place and have to rerun the cable any time you switch locations. Wireless transmission of the video signal means that you can get multiple monitors running without lengthy cables.
A unit such as the Hollyland Mars 400S PRO is a reasonable way to send a 1080p signal to two receivers, as well as two more mobile devices such as phone or tablet. The Teradek Spark 4K — as you can guess by the name — can send a 4K signal. The Teradek is key when you need to have as little delay (also called latency) between the camera and the focus puller. They often need to make split-second decision on focus for the camera. More on that next.
Follow Focus Systems/ Lens Controllers
Many video cameras — including your phone — have auto focus. Most cinema cameras still use manual focus cinema lenses. The reason for this is that the technology to make subtle shifts in focus, as well as to make artistic choices of when to switch the focus, still needs to be done by a human with a feel for the scene. The focus puller, or First Assistant Camera (1st AC), is the person responsible for making sure that whatever is supposed to be sharp, is razor sharp. It is a very demanding position.
To be able to control the focus of the camera, there is wireless communication between the follow focus unit and the motor on the camera, which is attached to the focus gear of the lens. The Teradek RT MK 3.1 4-Axis Wireless Lens Controller Kit is a highly reliable follow focus unit from the very highly regarded and ubiquitous name in wireless transmission of all kinds, Teradek. SmallRig also has a multitude of options, such as the SmallRig 3918 MagicFIZ Wireless Follow Focus Two Motor Kit below.
Extra Memory
There are two things that, no matter what type of production, the size, or the camera, you need to make sure you have on set. Media is one of them. Before leaving for the set, you have to make sure you have enough SD cards, C-fast cards, hard drives, or whatever media your camera takes so that you can capture whatever it is you are filming.
If you have a DSLR or mirrorless camera, a card like the SanDisk Extreme PRO 512GB UHS-I Class 10 U3 V30 SDXC Memory Card is a solid choice. It is very high speed, which allows you to get quick read and write times. This allows you, on certain camera models, to get frame rates and resolutions that are only available with cards of this or higher speeds. Also, when choosing which brand of media to go with, make sure to go with a trusted brand like SanDisk. You don’t want to have an unreliable SD card break down on you after you just shot a few hours of footage.
Extra Batteries
The other thing you need to make sure you have more than enough of on set is batteries. This is not just for the camera, but for all your different devices. When you have a fully rigged camera there can be several different accessories that all require their own batteries. One way to get around this is to use a unified battery solution such as the Core SWX Powerbase EDGE Cine V-Mount Battery Pack. A larger V-mount or Gold-Mount battery allows you to power all of your devices from one larger capacity battery.This is by running cables from that battery to each individual accessory. Just make sure you have the necessary cables to go from the battery to each accessory ahead of time.
Intercom Headsets
Communication on set needs to be quick and efficient as there is almost no other job that encapsulates the saying “time is money.” If you are spending time looking for someone, you are wasting time. On large sets, almost everyone has a walkie talkie with an earpiece so that you can reach someone and deliver instructions immediately. Another option aside from the walkie talkie is the headset style Hollyland Solidcom C1 System. With 1000ft (305m) radius, these Hollyland wireless intercom headset systems give you that same ability to seamlessly and instantaneously communicate to your team while keeping your hands free.
Film sets are places of controlled chaos. There are a million pieces moving all at the same time and towards one goal — to make the production work as best as possible. Knowing what the different departments do, the equipment they use, and being able to understand how to work with them will make your time on set much more rewarding. Hopefully now you have a bit more of an understanding of the varied equipment you can run into on set.
