Not-so-cheap setup: DSLR + digital-audio-recorder
This option involves taking your video on a Digital SLR camera. This has become more and more popular over the last number of years as the video capabilities on the DSLRs have improved. Quite a number now have full HD capabilities. The reason why this has become so popular amongst indie film-makers, and even professionals, is because it provides an affordable means of using some really nice lenses without having to buy a ridiculously expensive film camera, like they use in the movies. It’s the same kind of idea as the camcorder with a lens adapter, only here the quality is going to be better because it’s only going through one lens rather than two. Further, you have much more control over your image settings due to the nature of the DSLR being optimised for still images.
The problem? It’s hard to use. They usually take a fair bit of practice to work out how to actually film so that you can see what you’re shooting and not be too shaky (like attaching a tripod to hold as a stabiliser). Also, it’s nowhere near as automated for the image settings – You need to get used to how to adjust the settings so that they film the image the way you want it, and you will have to focus manually during shooting. Then there’s the mic – on a DSLR it’s generally going to be pretty bad, especially in big open spaces. Some DSLRs come with a mic input, but you won’t be able to monitor or adjust the sound levels while filming. This is pretty risky.
But it’s such an amazing image!! So to work around the sound problem it means you need a way to monitor and adjust the sound input.
One way is to get a Audio Mixer that pre-mixes your sound. It sits between your camera and mic (mic plugs into mixer, then mixer into camera mic input), so the sound is still recorded onto the camera, but you are able to monitor it by plugging headphones into the mixer so you can listen to what the mixed sound is like and adjusting the mixer settings accordingly. These sell for around $50-200. The bonus is that you only have to do one import because the audio is still captured on your camera. The danger is that you still cannot monitor exactly what the camera is recording, and it is relying on the camera’s audio capture which is sometimes not as clean as it could be.
The second way is by some sort of digital recording device like the Zoom H4N. It can function in the same way as the mixer (it has a mixed output that you can plug in to the camera mic input), but also has the capability of recording four separate tracks on it, coming with two mics built in that work pretty well, and the ability to plug in two additional mics. This is the way to go if you want some great sound. The pain of this is that if you want to use the audio recorded onto an external device, you have to import the audio separately and sync up the audio and video in editing. But it will be worth it. The DSLR (and even camcorders) can only go so far in their audio capabilities. DSLR’s are built to create great images, not audio, and camcorders are more all rounders.
With this kind of set-up (DSLR, good lens, digital audio recorder), if you can get used to using it, you have the potential to create some really high-level video. 
Even top level commercials are made on this kind of set-up! But if you’re new to video, then you’re really going to struggle with this option at first. It’s like learning to surf – you’d start on a long floaty board to start off with that will help you get the hang of surfing, and then move onto a shorter board later on once you know what you’re looking for and have a better ability to work out how to use it. It might be a good idea to hire a set-up like this for a day for your next project, and see how you like it before you buy it.
Some of you will be budding photographers though and already have a DSLR, and maybe this is the first time you’ve realised that you could actually use it for video! Hopefully you’ve got enough of an idea of the image settings that it won’t be as difficult for you, so give it a go. But be prepared for it to be harder than you think it will be.
Another thing that is good to be aware of. Zooming is generally going to be harder and choppier, because you’re doing it on the lens which generally are not set-up for filming while in the process of zooming. It will probably be best to end up getting a couple of different lenses if this is the option you’re going to go for, including a couple of fixed lenses that will give you a really shallow depth of field, and a lens that covers a good range of zoom for when that is needed. To start off with though, I would recommend a 50mm 1.4f lens. It will give you a beautifully rich image, and forces you to frame your shots well (since you can’t zoom). So you’re probably looking at $1000 for the body and $400 for the lens, plus whatever else you want to spend for more lenses and accessories. So with this plus the H4N, you’re looking at up to $2000 for this set-up.
Just on a personal note, I have been using the Canon 60D as a body, and found it helpful for the practical nature of filming, mainly because of the flip-out rotating LCD screen. It just gives that bit more versatility for filming angles in a hurry. You can also adjust the audio recording level before recording which helps if you can’t get your hands on an external digital audio device. I also hear that it doesn’t overheat as much as some of the others do when filming for long periods.
Not for you?
Check out other setups in this series:
Cheapest setup: Camcorder and Mic
Cheapish setup: Camcorder with adapted lens
Necessories: tripod, mic, headphones, (audio recorder)
Cheapish setup: Camcorder with adapted lens
This set-up is basically adding to the Cheapest Set-up in order to improve the quality of your image. To understand why you might want to do this, compare your camcorder footage that you’ve taken so far to the images that you see in your favourite movie. Pretty different right? Do you notice some of the differences? For one, there’s the colour. Often your camcorder footage is going to look a lot more washed out, where as the film will be warm and full. The other is what’s called the ‘depth of field’ – this refers to how much of the depth of the image is in the field of focus. The shallower the depth of field, the more particular is the point of focus, and everything else gets blurrier and blurrier. Now some of these things can be helped along by lighting, filming distance/zoom, and post-production effects, but your main problem is really the lens on your camcorder. It’s simply not cut out to make anything even close to the images you see in the movies.
“But how can I even come close to getting this kind of image on a budget?!” you may ask. Well, here’s an answer: get a better lens! The next three set-ups are really about trying to keep improving that image by improving the lens (and capturing format) that you are able to use.
First things first. Ever had a go of an SLR camera? They have lots of versatility with lenses. I love the photos that are taken with lenses that achieve a really shallow depth of field – I feel like I get caught up into the image. Nowadays, the digital SLR cameras can also take full HD video – this means you can take video at a reasonable quality while at the same time achieving that brilliant footage! But you may not yet be able to afford this kind of camera yet, or you might find them a bit awkward to shoot video on. So what can you do? Convert an old SLR lens onto your camcorder! Lots of indie film makers went this way before SLR cameras got the HD video capability.
There’s some things you need to know though. First, you want to get the right lens. You want one that’s going to give you a good depth of field. I got a 50mm 1.4f lens for mine (see picture above), and it has worked a treat. You’re generally going to get a much shallower depth of field on a fixed lens (as in, no zoom). I think it also forces you to frame your shot better than you would if you simply zoomed. You can get an old one of these lenses for around $200 – they will usually be of great solid material, but might not fit a modern SLR (so if you were to end up getting an SLR, it wouldn’t be much good to you without another adapter – unless it’s a Nikon lens). New lenses like this retail for around $450.
Next, you need a lens adapter.
This needs to both fit the lens and the camcorder thread – you may need to get an extra piece to fit these together. The lens adapter is basically a tube with a focussing screen – so the image from the lens gets projected onto the screen, and the camcorder then focusses on the image on the screen. Unfortunately this means that the image will be upside down, but you can work around this. It is helpful to get an adapter that has a vibrating focussing screen. This will blur out any specs of dust on the screen that would otherwise appear as tiny black dots on your final image.
Lots of people make these adapters themselves (search Vimeo for DIY lens adapter tutorials if you want to give it a go), but you could also buy one – they can be really expensive, but you should be able to pick a basic one up off ebay or a manufacturer for around $200.
So, the moral of the above? If you’re going to improve your video footage, you need a good lens, and the cheapest way to do this will probably be to get a lens and a lens adapter for your camcorder. This will end up costing you about $400 on top of what you already spent on the Cheapest Set-up of Camcorder and Mic.
PS. Do not make this upgrade if you have not got an external mic. The vibrating focussing screen will create noise for your camera mic, and will be way to0 distracting. Audio over visual!
Update 29/6/11: a video on 35mm lens adapters – cheesy, and a bit long, but helpful visual of the mechanism.
Not for you?
Check out other setups in this series:
Cheapest setup: Camcorder and Mic
Not-so-cheap setup: DSLR + digital-audio-recorder
Necessories: tripod, mic, headphones, (audio recorder)
Necessories: tripod, mic, headphones, (audio recorder)
I reckon that if you want to make a decent video then you’re going to need some kind of tripod, mic and headphones to go along with whatever device you’re using to record your video. Some of these are included in the filming set-ups, but I’ll fill out a few more of your options here.
First off: tripods!
Chances are that you’re as shaky as the average person when it comes to filming, and you don’t always want the shaky-cam look. Get a tripod! There’s a huge range of them, and you can get one for pretty cheap if you’re strapped for cash. Not only are they brilliant for getting a good steady shot, allowing you to adjust the camera to the angle of your choice, they also allow you to do smoother pans and motion. I even use my tripod as a balance weight to aid stabilisation when I’m shooting on the move (as in I have the tripod attached to the camera and hold onto a leg – it gives me a much smoother shot than if I were holding just the camera!)
look for one like this if you can afford it
Things to look for in a tripod:
1) Stability – it’s got to do what it’s there for! Can the tripod hold your camera stable? The one pictured is a really stable design. Unfortunately, the cheaper ones are often quite flimsy. However that may be all you need for a small camcorder.
2) The head – it should move smoothly and provide a little resistance. It should also allow you good control over your angle. It’s also nice having a level bubble on the head so you know when your camera is level.
3) The legs – they should be able to get you as high and as low as you need to go. The extension grips should also not let the legs move once you’ve set the desired length.
4) The feet – these don’t matter so much, but it can be nice to have spikes and movable feet that adjust to the slope you’re on.
Second: mics!
I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again – audio is more important than video. The camera inbuilt mics will generally sound tinny, and the background noise will always be louder than you want. So, you need an external microphone. Here’s some different types you might think about:
1) Shotgun – I’ve found this to be the most versatile type of mic. It’s the one I use most of the time. They have better directional capabilities so that you capture the audio you want, without the mic in shot and the background noise is less invasive. It’s great if you’ve got a boom pole so that you can hover this mic over the top – close to your target, but out of shot. You could also use a mic stand.
2) Lapel – these are particularly good for capturing audio of one person’s voice, so fantastic for interviews. They’re not so good for other types of audio though, so better as a second option in your armoury. The mics themselves are pretty cheap, but the remote boxes are a bit more expensive.
3) Icecream (dynamic) – these are the classic news reporter and singer mics. They are great for voice audio, and can even be a fun prop. Their starting price is probably also the cheapest. But, they’re only good if you can get them close, which means that they are usually in shot. Not always the best look! They are also ok for recording ambient background tracks.
Third: headphones!
There’s not much point having an external mic if you can’t hear what it sounds like. There’s nothing worse than getting to your computer and realising that you forgot to turn the mic on or that there 
is a buzz because your cable wasn’t connected properly (to clarify: there are things that are worse than this in life, but this is still pretty bad). You can get by with generic headphones that come with your mobile or mp3 player, but it is better to get some that will cancel the outside noise – you want what you hear to be what is being recorded. The more you can fork out, the better these will be.
Fourth (when you can afford it): external digital audio recording device!
One of these bad boys will allow you a whole lot more control over the incoming audio. It will also allow you to record separate tracks at the same time, so you could have two mics going at once (eg a lapel and a shotgun). It does mean that you have to sync up your audio and video in post production, but this is usually well worth it. Since you can still get reasonable quality audio through an external mic linked straight into your camera, you don’t need this straight off. But it will be well worth keeping in mind for when you want a seriously good final product. A good starter would be the Zoom H4n (pictured).
Not for you?
Check out other setups in this series:
Cheapest setup: Camcorder and Mic
Cheapish setup: Camcorder with adapted lens
Not-so-cheap setup: DSLR + digital-audio-recorder
Cheapest Set-up: Camcorder and Mic
If you’re starting from scratch, this is about the cheapest option you can go for if you’re going to buy something for making videos. 
Sometimes you can get away with using your basic digital camera or even your phone these days, but remember our two principles? If you’re buying cheap gear, then you should make audio your priority (unless you’re making videos where all the audio is imported – eg Music videos). My opinion is that most camcorders will have much better sound recording capabilities than other cheap video recording devices.
So what do you look for in a camcorder?
First off, make sure it has an input socket for an external microphone.
Then, as soon as you have another $50-100 available, buy one. You can sometimes get cheapish shotgun mic (like the one pictured) off ebay for this kind of price. It won’t be a Sennheisser, but it will get you much better and clearer sound than the inbuilt mic on the camera. The shotgun mic is also pretty versatile, allowing you to capture a good range of sounds without being in shot. It should have it’s own power-source (like an AA battery), and come with a wind sock and an XLR cable – this will need a converter to get into the camera input (which you may be able to get included in your package).
Preferably, it should also have an input for your headphones so you can monitor the sound. This is especially crucial if you’re thinking of doing any filming in places with background noise (which you most probably are!). Even if you don’t have an external mic, get a pair of headphones so you can listen in to the audio that the camera is picking up – preferably ones that cover your ears ($50?).
Next, consider the video quality. HD camcorders are now cheap enough that I’d be surprised if you had to consider something of lower quality. Make sure it is full HD (1920×1080 pixels). After that, look at the lens and the censor – the better they are the better the footage. In Australia, we use the PAL system (25 frames per second), so make sure it shoots at this rate if you live here. If you live in America on the other hand, you want an NTSC camera (30 frames per second).
The other thing to notice with video quality is how it records the footage – check how much it is being compressed for storage. Full quality footage (minimal compression) should take up a lot of space! Be ready for that – which will probably mean buying a big SDHC memory card for storage (since that’s where the storage seems to be heading).
Any features beyond this don’t tend to matter that much. You can do effects in editing – they just put them on the camcorder to try to make it look more attractive.
Most camcorders you can find that have the above specifications should be around the $300-400 price range. One that I’ve found online which looks like a good entry level is the Canon Vixia HF R10. It’s got the above specs, and you could potentially attach a lens converter on later (check the next filming setup for what I’m talking about). I’m sure there’s loads more. So look around, read and watch reviews, and maybe even see if you can give something a try. (It’s hard nowadays to find a cheap camcorder with an audio input. Two mentioned in the comments below are the Kodak Zi8, Aipetek Action HD, and GoPro Hero, but each come with their own downsides. Another option you could try is to add the input yourself, but you’d want to make sure you knew what you were doing! Check out this for an example on a JVC Everio)
Moral of the above? The best thing you can do for your video is get an external microphone! All up, that puts the above set up (camera, mic, headphones?) at $350-550. Not bad! (I paid $1500 for my first video camera – and that was cheap for a MiniDV camera back in the day. Hi8 was still around!)
Also, check out this video for a good comparison of Mobile phone cameras and Camcorders:
Not for you?
Check out other setups in this series:
Cheapish setup: Camcorder with adapted lens
Not-so-cheap setup: DSLR + digital-audio-recorder
Necessories: tripod, mic, headphones, (audio recorder)
