Hacking Photography - one Picture at a time
Getting a monitor on a DSLR* can be tricky. Base plates, cages, and magic arms all come to mind. If you want something a little more compact, cold-shoe ball mount is the go-to option.
Caleb Pike has a sweet little solution that uses GoPro parts that make a mount that only tilts and does not rotate or pivot. This makes it extra easy to tilt the screen with one hand and not worry about it rotating around. It stays perfectly aligned.
If you are a long time reader of the blog, you know that we love sand bags. I mean, what can ruin a shoot better than a piece of gear flying into the talents eye, right? Especially if they are talking about sand bags….
I thought that there was little to innovate in that area, but we saw the water weight bagel thingy last year, and now comes StandDaddy.
Living on the 9th floor in my apartment, anything that gets left in the car, stays in the car. Even if I later “suddenly” remember that I need it while I am at home. Having the enormous responsibility of my project 365, this is usually bad news for me. I knew that I was going to take a picture of one of my guitars because I had planned to. The only problem is, I wanted a table top. And for that… you need a tripod. I’m sure you know where I am going with this. Yes, the tripod is in the car, and its pouring outside, its cold, and anyway I’m flustered because I decided to postpone the picture till 2:00 am. I’m just not going down to get my tripod!
So it was time to work around it, because honestly, I couldn’t think of anything else to take a picture of…
Nothing says “I love my camera” more than a handmade wooden grip, and this grip by Stefano Borghi says it perfectly. Stefano build this wooden grip to replace his Fuji Xpro-1 plastic grip. Of course, similar procedure can be implemented to create a wooden grip for the newer Xpro 2 as well, and probably the Xpro3 when it comes. (we are not starting a rumor now!).
It is kinda straight forward, so I am just gonna lay out the photos to show you how it’s done step by step.
Anyone who remembers my early videos knows that my command of the english language is far from perfect extremely creative. It was after several long days with many takes that I decided to test using a teleprompter. My first test was just placing an iPad with a teleprompter app and giving it a shot. We went down from million takes to three after 15 minutes of fiddling.
There was one caveat though, it was looking weird as my eyes were not looking at the camera anymore. This is when I decided to build a teleprompter. (In whole honesty, after living with my wooden, handcrafted prompter for several months, I did go for a more streamlined option. But for testing sake, several months of usage and about $15 I was quite happy.
If you think that you can benefit from a magical device that whispers your next line when you are doing video, hit the jump button for instructions.
The weekend is here, which means you’ll likely have some free time on your hands. If you’re wondering how to spend that free time, look no further than this clever little DIY project.[Read More…]
C-stands are undoubtedly one of the most important tools for a setting up (big) lights and other heavy equipment. But while using a C-stand may seem trivial, if not done in the right way it’s just begging for a broken rib/light/head or possibly all three.
The combination of “heavy” with “high” does require some know-how to avoid an accident. And the team at RocketJump Film School share the three critical tips to avoid a stand falling on your head.
Well, there are the trivial ways for mounting a microphone when shooting with DSLR (or with any camera actually), some sometimes, the traditional ways are just not compact enough, or versatile enough or quick enough. And this is where this quick video from DSLR Video Shooter comes handy.
Add to this Rode VideoMic Pro or VideoMic GO and you can create some interesting setups that can really up your audio game. At the end this is about how far away you (or your talent) are away from the mic, this video has five quick (and mostly cheap) ways to mount your microphone for either field or studio usage.
If you are just starting your way on movie sets, you probably hear grip this and grip that. But what is a grip anyways and what do they do?
Well, they do pretty much anything that’s involved with movie magic. (special effects and CGI aside), they are guys who set up dollies, move tracks, place microphones and lighting gear. And basically anything that you’d say, but how the heck can I put THIS over THERE, they know how to put it THERE for you.
It is a hard job which is not often credited, so it was nice to see this oldie from 1995 made at Paramount Studios Grip Dept showing what the Local 80 brothers grip team are doing on their day to day routine. Imagine how would this movie look if they had GoPros, Drones and stabilized gimbals.
Get A Grip movie was made by Laura Jacobson (former Grip), and produced by husband and wife Richard and Marcie Lestz Jastrow.
[GET A GRIP via reddit]
Here is a clever way to attach a GoPro to just about anything. The best thing, it will cost you almost nothing.
Videographer Dustin McLean found out that you don’t need a fancy branded $50 clamp mount for a GoPro, you can actually build a good one yourself for about $20.
If you have your GoPro connected to a tripod mount (which you really should have) then it’s one of the easiest DIYs you saw here on the blog. It involved a Spring Clamp, A Small ballhead, a machine screw and two nuts.
You can find out more about John on his website or follow him on Facebook and YouTube.
can change a lens mid-rappel, swap a memory card while treading water, or use a camel as a light stand.
To see more of his work please visit his studio website blurMEDIAphotography, or follow him on Twitter, 500px, Google Plus or YouTube.
JP’s photography is available for licensing at Stocksy United.
Find my work on My website or follow me on Facebook or My page
