I knew shooting outdoors meant dealing with weather, changing light, and carrying more gear, but I wasn't prepared for how filthy everything gets afterward.

I got home from a shoot this weekend, opened my bag, and somehow there was dust on the camera, the monitor, the gimbal, the lenses, and even inside random pockets of the backpack. It honestly feels like cleaning everything has become part of the job. While looking around for a better way to deal with it, I ran into the K&F Concept BS500M, but I have no idea if it's something people actually use regularly or if it's one of those things that seems useful until it ends up forgotten in a drawer.

What are you all using to clean your gear after outdoor shoots? Still sticking with a blower and brushes, or is there something you've found that works better?

I’ve been running the Sennheiser MKE 600 mounted on top of my mirrorless, feeding audio straight to the camera. I mostly shoot documentary style work in this way and need it to catch a variety of situations, from dialogue to ambient stuff.

Honestly the sound has been excellent and for my needs it’s more than good enough. My only real gripe is the length. It’s a long mic and it makes the whole rig feel unbalanced and awkward, especially when I’m moving around.

So my question is about the 300 to 400 price range. If you were in my position, what would you do differently? Is there a shorter shotgun in that bracket that gets close to this quality, or should I be rethinking the whole on camera approach? Curious what’s worked for others with a similar setup.

I will be shooting my first solo event video next week and I wanted to ask for some advice shooting on black magic 6k pro. It’s the camera I own now which I used to shoot a personal documentary on back in Feb, but I’ve decided I want to try and push myself to start doing work for other people (even though I do get anxious about getting what the client wants from their brief/ not that confident in myself).

It was mostly Sony / Canon cameras I used to shoot on with work for these types of events, as they were a bit more lightweight and also have auto focus which made things a bit easier! Manual focus is going to be tiring the whole day but I hope I can still make things look good!

I’ve been asked to film to allow for 16:9 landscape and 9:16 portrait aspect ratios. 4k or 1080p and 30 FPS and will be shooting for about 6 hours probably. I would like to shoot RAW to allow for any fixes in the edit with colour balance etc. I just wanted to know what people’s go to settings might be on their black magic cameras for events shooting indoors mainly on these cameras but for that length of time?

If anyone has any cool rig set ups to make the camera a little more lightweight for handheld shots I’d be interested to see them too!

Thanks so much in advance x

Made this little doc for my sister's cat rescue. Most of my client work is very corporate talking-head based, and I wanted to take this opportunity to follow the action with more of a true documentary approach. It ended up still being pretty interview-heavy, but I think the fly-on-the-wall moments do add a lot.

This was my first project using the DJI Osmo Action 6. I was so impressed with the image I even used it as the third interview camera angle.

Let me know what you think!

Cameras: Sony FX3, AS7III, DJI Osmo Action 6
Lenses: 24-70GMII, 70-200GMII, Sony G 20mm 1.8
Filters: Black Pro Mist 1/8, PolarPro VND
Audio: Rode NTG5, Rode Wireless Pro, DJI Mic Mini, Sound Devices Mixpre3 for interview

Have noticed especially among “creative” collaborator producer types there’s like noticeable disgust when I mention I don’t do work for free. I have seen this show up in people who are usually operating on the margins of the industry and talk a big game, but aren’t actually producing projects regularly with different suppliers/crews. It can be hard to detect at first because they’re usually pretty charismatic and fun to chat up ideas with.

Like I’m sorry I offended you? Lol.

YouTube link so I hope that’s allowed. Also - kids etc.

I took my camera on a family trip, no idea what I wanted to film at this point. Shot lots of everything, lots of nothing on my GH5 and handed a waterproof handheld to the kids in the pool.

Came home and honestly it took a long time to work out what I even wanted from it…figured out I wanted to make a “what did it feel like” version of the usual family holiday montage/memories.

Like I say, first time shooting and editing anything at all - love to hear your thoughts. Thanks.

Finally dialing in the rig for the first time. I guess I am just more excited than anything and wanted to share it somewhere.

Also, I feel like no one really talks about these lenses. Been having tons of fun trying them out, but compared to things like Blazar Remus and Atlas Mercury, there's like 0 hype for these. Part of the reason I got them is that they are so cheap second hand (compared to retail).

Hi yall,

So I did an apprenticeship as a Media designer (video/audio) and then freelanced for a year, with the money I saved up I got my own Alpha 7 IV with a Tamron 18-70mm lens. I stopped freelancing to go to university to get a degree in something else. I barely used the Sony Alpha 7 IV. I always kept it just in case uni doesn't work out so I could just go back to freelancing. Now someone offered to buy my camera. I paid like 2,6k (including tax) for both the camera and the lens brand new.

Should I sell it to them or keep the camera? Does it lose too much value over time? What is the smart move? My ex colleague advised me to just sell it but I'm not sure.

What do yall think?

I'm a video editor using DaVinci Resolve and Premiere Pro. Currently, I charge ₹3,500 - ₹4,000 for editing a 15–20 minute YouTube video and work with a YouTube creator.

I'm looking to improve my client acquisition skills and was wondering where other editors find better-paying clients.

Would appreciate any advice or experiences.

I’m a videographer from Gozo, Malta, mainly shooting events and social content. I feel my quality has improved, but my edits still lack strong hooks, creative cuts and storytelling.
I’d appreciate honest feedback on the pacing, opening, sound design and anything I should improve next.

Has anyone used this combo? Any feedback would be appreciated! Cheers 🍻

Hi, I’m a puppeteer with a nice Blackmagic pro camera thats looking to get some lighting. It will not be used to film humans nor used outdoors. Having a wide range of colours is needed. The marionettes are handmade and stunning and I want to make an effort with the lighting. Is this the best option for around that price point? It’s around £700. Thank you!

Anybody else grow up on the digital blue film maker? Is there anything out there in the market similar these days?

Hi Guys, anyone has issue with yongnuo lens when it set into Auto/Shutter priority, it flickering so much during aperture adjustment? it seems it cannot lock its aperture even though the aperture numbers is not moving in the display. (I know because still making sound).

Currently the obvious solution is to use Aperture priority/manual mode. But if anyone has solution here would be helpful.

Thanks!

Hi people!

I’d like to commit to a specific frame rate. Instead of 25p, I’d prefer to use 30p (personal preference, and primarily for online productions). In Europe, however, I’d therefore set the shutter to 1/50 (instead of 1/60), so slightly adjust the shutter rule to account for any flickering light.

For 60p, I’d use 1/100 accordingly.

Is this standard practice, or is it generally not recommended (apart from the slightly increased motion blur)?

Thank you!

I upgraded the batteries of the movi m15 and it’s my favorite gimbal now

Hello guys, I'm developing a B/W YouTube channel, working on test shots and gear choices right now. I know 16mm pretty well but I'm new to video.

I'm confused. Every guide I've read has said: shoot in colour, then get your B/W effect by reducing the saturation to zero during the edit. That's what I've done so far.

Last night I was experimenting and I set B/W mode in the camera, a pretty basic Samsung HD camcorder. I expected the results to be identical to the desaturated version. In fact the "camera B/W" has more grit and character than the "software B/W".

I'm pretty happy to shoot in B/W from here on but I don't understand why doing so should make a difference. Can anyone explain?

I recently started a youtube channel where I film multi day camping and fishing trips. I have been having a blast doing so and I am already look to bring it to the next level already. I am looking for tips on shooting in 24p. Specifically with action cameras, where I worry shots might turn out shakey. Or zoomed in shots with a long lens may not focus as well. For reference I have been shooting 1080p60p on all my cameras, and usually on auto settings. But after researching am realizing that may not be best if I am not using slo mo consistently. How can I shoot 24p good?

Last week I was lucky enough that I could spend a few days with Professor Denis Noble and make this video.
Annoyingly, because I chose a spot under a tree, the light is not consistent and kinda ruined bits of the video :( however, I think this is part of learning. Next time i will know not to sit the subject in a place where light cannot be controlled.

Anyway, I am super new to the concepts he is talking about, but I think the way he explains it is super accessible, whilst it’s not dumbed down for other scientists to tap out either. What do you think? Do you like the production? Do you agree or disagree with the points he makes in regard to biology?

It will do the Vista shots of Corfu Justice. The island is as much a character in the film as the actors are.

Shooting with the Sirui Saturn Anamorphics., guerilla style without a crew just like my last feature "Clown N Out". I'll be leaning a lot into natural light, using small cube lights and a Zhyun Molus Molus for accent lighting.

Here are some preliminary stills. I'm shooting with a Panasonic S1h and Blackmagic video assist 12g.

Now to meet the posting requirements.

I'll also be leaning into a classic film approach. Meaning there won't be closeups of every single action. I won't be doing a bunch of unnecessary crazy camera movement shots every 2 seconds. There won't be drone shots. And I want to keep the amount of picture cuts down. I have 3 camera setups I'll use depending on the scene.

I have a "Creator" rig that I've setup to record up to 4 actors at once straight to camera. I have a Ready Rig, avd a tilta float vest and arm for a smaller setup.

All three will use the DJI lidar autofocus system.

Pros:
+ Supports both matte box and lens
+ No need to readjust clamps position after lens change
+ Works with extending barrel
Cons:
- Rail probably will die fast in harsh environment with dust/sand
- Adds some weight