What's in Our Bag?
What gear do we use?
We get a lot of questions asking us what kind of gear we use to shoot our videos. In this article, we will be talking about all the camera equipment we use and including links on where to purchase the same gear. Let's get started.
EQUIPMENT
This is the gear we used to shoot this video and most of our films, we have provided the links below. Just remember, that aside from all the gear, the most important part of filming is the story. Good luck!
CAMERAS
For our camera bodies, we use Sony mirrorless cameras. In specific, we shoot with the Sony a7s and Sony a7sii. The a7s is usually our "B camera" and a7sii being our "A camera". This is because the a7sii is able to shoot in 4k and we want to make sure the most important parts of the video are shot in the highest quality. With that being said, the a7s is not far behind. Although it does not shoot in 4k, it still gets great quality and is not far behind the a7sii aside from shooting in 4k. We love the mobility and weight of the Sony cameras and we bring them to all of our shoots.
STABILIZATION
For stabilization, we bring with us our trusty Manfrotto 755CX3 carbon fiber tripod with built-in ball head. This tripod is great for shoots because it is super lightweight and easy to pack. We bring it with us to every single set and it is our most used tripod. We also use our Rhino Slider Evo Carbon for those smooth shots you see in our videos. The slider we use is combined with Rhino Motion and Rhino Arc. With the whole slider system and tripod, we are able to grab almost every shot we need. Since the slider is carbon fiber, it is also very light in weight and easy to carry around with all of our other gear. For interviews or for a more dynamic shot, we like to use the 42" Rhino Slider Evo Pro with steel rails.
LENSES
We shoot all of our videos with Rokinon lenses. With the sony cameras, we do use a canon EF lens adapter to fit these lenses. Rokinon makes high-quality glass and we love them. They take some getting used to in the beginning because they use full manual focus and aperture prime lenses. However, once you get used to using their glass, you can be confident that you will get a high quality shot every single time. We have the full set of Rokinon lenses (14mm, 24mm, 35mm, 50mm, 85mm) and we use every single one of them for different scenarios and shots.
ACCESSORIES
Other accessories we bring with us to all of our shoots are ball-heads, audio, ND filters, on-camera LCD monitor, SD card case, and extra batteries. For ball-heads, we bring with us the Manfrotto 496rc2. We use this ball-head on all of our tripods and Rhino Arc. It is great for adjusting your shot and it holds up very well. For audio, we pack with us the RodeLink Wireless Lav system. It is built like a tank and is a breeze to use. It plugs right into the camera and all you have to do is power it on. To get the shot we need in bright lighting, we use ND filters often. We shoot with B+W ND filters. They are high quality and have been life savers many times on our sets. The ND filters allow us to shoot wide open without over exposing. One of our most important accessories is the SmallHD on-camera monitor. This is one is a game changer and has improved our workflow greatly. It allows us to preview the lut we plan on using in post in real time while on set. Another great accessory we recommend is the Pelican SD card case. It is a popular item on amazon and is built to last. Last but not least, we pack a bunch of extra batteries because the Sony cameras do not have the best battery life and the SmallHD monitor eats up the canon LP-E6 batteries like mad.
CONCLUSION
Hope you enjoyed our short read on what is in our bag for video. At the end of the day, no matter what gear you have, you can always go out and create stories. You do not need the most expensive gear or newest camera to inspire others and create content. Do not let your gear be the reason you hold back from going out to shoot. With that being said, we want to see what is in your bag. Take a photo like the one above with all of your gear laid out (This is not a contest for who has the most expensive gear. We want to see some unique creative shots). After you take the photo, post it on to Instagram and tag:
#RhinoBagChallenge
You must be following our account to enter @rhinocg. Winners will receive a Rhino gift card that will be able to be used on our online store.