Top 5 Gear Items for Beginner Photographers
I know starting your videography journey can be daunting. You’re probably making that transition from just being curious to a true hobbyist, or maybe even attempting to make it a career! Trust me, I remember the days of watching countless YouTube videos, trying to soak up as much information as I possibly could, trying to see what gear all the “pros” use. I assumed that just because all these YouTubers were using this specific camera, that it must be the best. The truth is, there is no “best” camera out there. Especially now in 2022, every camera company, whether it be Canon, Sony, Nikon, Fuji, you name it, makes amazing cameras. I’ll skip that part for now because I’m sure you already have a camera, so aside from that, here are the top 5 gear items that you should invest in!
Light
This might be a surprise to some. You’ve probably seen some creators online showing off all their cool gear like a gimbal but no, the first thing you should invest in is a light! Lighting is everything! Don’t ever forget that. You can be shooting on the most expensive camera in the world but if the lighting is bad it doesn’t matter. I use the Godox VL150. Aputure is one of the mainstream brands of light within the YouTube/content creator world, but Godox is another great brand for a cheaper price! This light is super powerful, fairly small and more importantly, it is quiet! You don’t have to get this exact light but make sure you invest in a light that does not have a super loud fan. When you’re lighting a subject who is also speaking, you don’t want to get that fan noise in the background so the quieter the light, the better. Adding a modifier is optional but highly recommended. I use a light dome to make the lightsource larger and diffuse the light to make it softer and more flattering. Be clear, be confident and don’t overthink it. The beauty of your story is that it’s going to continue to evolve and your site can evolve with it. Your goal should be to make it feel right for right now. Later will take care of itself. It always does.
Microphone
I know I just said lighting is everything, and it is! but so is audio… People are much more likely to sit through a video that has crisp audio with sub par visual than the other way around. Bad audio is an instant video killer. In the beginning I would recommend getting an on camera shotgun microphone. RODE is one of the best brands out there! I’ve used the RODE VideoMic Pro Plus for 5 years and still use it today! They have cheaper options as well, such as the RODE VideoMicro. You can’t go wrong with RODE.
Tripod
You’re probably going to be filming videos of people talking. This next piece of gear goes perfectly with the light and microphone. Think of an interview scene, the camera is sitting still focused on the person talking. In order to keep the camera steady you’ll need a good tripod. Honestly any tripod is fine when you’re starting out. As long as it’s able to hold your camera any brand will work! When you get more advanced you will care more about how much the tripod weighs, and the type of plate mount and head it has. The brand Manfrotto is great for tripods!
Gimbal
I know I mentioned this early as something content creators just show off, but they really are great tools! I’ve been using the original DJI Ronin-S for a long time now and even though there are new versions out, I still stand by my choice! Since this is an older model you can find this online for a much cheaper price than the new ones. Gimbals help with stabilization. No one likes shaky footage, it just looks messy and unprofessional. Gimbals ensure that your footage is smooth and cinematic. Note that it takes some practice, gimbal operating is not something you can do well instantly. It’s taken me 5 years of practice to call myself a good gimbal operator.
High quality lenses
If you’re starting out, you probably bought your camera in some form of kit. Sometimes they come with kit lenses like an 18-55mm. There’s nothing wrong with these lenses! For your first ones, they’re great and versatile. However the minimum F stop is typically pretty high, around 5.6. Now remember that nice blurry backgrounds does NOT directly correlate with “cinematic footage” however in society it has become an expectation when you think of “cinematic” Lenses have a longer shelf life than the camera body, and by this I mean that you could be using a 5 year old lens and still get amazing results, but a 5 year old camera would probably have some noticeable quality differences. You’ll have to upgrade your camera body much more frequently than your lenses so make sure to invest in high quality glass. Some great lenses that I like are 50mm F1.4, and a 35mm F1.4
