Camera & audio setup for YouTube series

[Joseph]

Hi all

 

I was hoping to get some advice re camera and audio setup. I am going to be starting a new youtube channel which will interview people one on one in an informal setting like a coffee shop or such. I need to buy the equipment for it but have absolutely no experience in what setup is the best to get.

 

My budget is approximately 1,000 euro to include camera and audio equipment to get setup. I was thinking of getting a Canon 600D and some sort of external mic setup but would really appreciate some solid advice on the setup.

 

 

Cheers

[defunkt]

Have you got any kind of following on youtube? If not then there's no point wasting that amount of money on ballin equipment.

[Joseph]

Not youtube famous, no Willing to spend the money though if you've any input

[megadarkwood]

If you dont really have a following just get a nice $300 camcorder, a Blue Snowball mic, and thats it. no need to spend that much.

[Joseph]

The interviews are going to be done in conjunction with someone else so want to have a semi decent setup... The budget isn't a goal, it's a rough limit but do want a decent enough setup

[Lil Chillbil]

Not youtube famous, no Willing to spend the money though if you've any input

 

i'll sub 4 sub you give me a link to yours i'll give you mine

 

get yourself a 600d a 28-80 canon lens. And a zoom h1 

[Joseph]

Why do you suggest the zoom h1 instead of mics to connect directly?

[red_jelly]

It's just over kill getting a Zoom H1. All you really need is something that does 1080p and has an external Mic connection. It also matter what kind of videos you'll be doing so consider that. but my opinion i like a nikon D3100 with a rode mic

 

 

Fix: Get a JVC everio would do the job perfectly fine. It's got full manual controls it shoots in 60fps and it's got a mic input

[Lil Chillbil]

It's just over kill getting a Zoom H1. All you really need is something that does 1080p and has an external Mic connection. It also matter what kind of videos you'll be doing so consider that. but my opinion i like a nikon D3100 with a rode mic

 

No just no, the 3100 is the worst choice for a camera for video. At that point its fanboyism to recomend a 3100 over a rebel. The rebel can do 60fps at least 

[CaptainSi]

These replies.. I don't even...

1. Don't get a 600D. Canon format SD cards in FAT32 which limits file writes to 4GB, so you'll only be able to take about 12 minutes of footage per take (It's the same for FHD and HD due to varying framerates). NOT GOOD FOR INTERVIEWS.
2. Don't get a 28-80 zoom. Don't get any zoom. It's an interview. It's controllable. There is literally no reason you should need to zoom. Get a prime/s. Cheaper, sharper, faster, more creative options.
3. Don't get a Blue Snowball unless you want to carry around a laptop with your kit - a laptop that has a noisy fan and a bright screen which can throw off whitebalance and lighting setup. Also you'll want a much tighter polar pattern than what a Snowball offers to eliminate background noise in (as you suggested) informal locs.

I suggest the following-
Sony a37.
Sigma 50 f1.4.
Rode Video Mic.
Audio Technica ATR3350 Lav.
Zoom H1.
A tripod, something like a Manfrotto 804RC2 is a good budget option.
And you'll need a coldshoe mount/grip as the camera uses a minolta hotshoe. They're only like $20 and the cheapest one you can find will do.
 

[Blade of Grass]

No just no, the 3100 is the worst choice for a camera for video. At that point its fanboyism to recomend a 3100 over a rebel. The rebel can do 60fps at least 

There are no Canon DSLRs that can shoot 1080P @ 60 FPS. 

[Lil Chillbil]

There are no Canon DSLRs that can shoot 1080P @ 60 FPS. 

 

I know but the 3100 can't even do 60 fps 720p 

[red_jelly]

No just no, the 3100 is the worst choice for a camera for video. At that point its fanboyism to recomend a 3100 over a rebel. The rebel can do 60fps at least 

There is no real point to shooting 60fps. I admit the D3100 isn't the greatestbut it's pretty cheap, there isnt a real investment behind a camera like that.

[Lil Chillbil]

There is no real point to shooting 60fps. I admit the D3100 isn't the greatestbut it's pretty cheap, there isnt a real investment behind a camera like that.

 

 

ok so lets have a look into my video I made right here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIJCEfhgplw

 

Its not very effective when doing interviews but if he ever does plan to expand his channel into other more so creative videos (which based on how many people in his area will be A. applicable to the topic at hand B. Willing to meet him in a coffee shop and do an interview it will be pretty soon without doing repeats.) Then the canon will let him do those creative videos 

[red_jelly]

ok so lets have a look into my video I made right here

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIJCEfhgplw

 

Its not very effective when doing interviews but if he ever does plan to expand his channel into other more so creative videos (which based on how many people in his area will be A. applicable to the topic at hand B. Willing to meet him in a coffee shop and do an interview it will be pretty soon without doing repeats.) Then the canon will let him do those creative videos 

A. You dont need to have 60fps to get slow-mo. To get equally as good slow-mo you can just put your shutter speed at 1/3000th. and thats 100% fine and sometimes give you better results. Given you do need a fair bit of light for that.

[Lil Chillbil]

A. You dont need to have 60fps to get slow-mo. To get equally as good slow-mo you can just put your shutter speed at 1/3000th. and thats 100% fine and sometimes give you better results. Given you do need a fair bit of light for that.

 

ok fair nuff  

[Joseph]

These replies.. I don't even...

1. Don't get a 600D. Canon format SD cards in FAT32 which limits file writes to 4GB, so you'll only be able to take about 12 minutes of footage per take (It's the same for FHD and HD due to varying framerates). NOT GOOD FOR INTERVIEWS.

2. Don't get a 28-80 zoom. Don't get any zoom. It's an interview. It's controllable. There is literally no reason you should need to zoom. Get a prime/s. Cheaper, sharper, faster, more creative options.

3. Don't get a Blue Snowball unless you want to carry around a laptop with your kit - a laptop that has a noisy fan and a bright screen which can throw off whitebalance and lighting setup. Also you'll want a much tighter polar pattern than what a Snowball offers to eliminate background noise in (as you suggested) informal locs.

I suggest the following-

Sony a37.

Sigma 50 f1.4.

Rode Video Mic.

Audio Technica ATR3350 Lav.

Zoom H1.

A tripod, something like a Manfrotto 804RC2 is a good budget option.

And you'll need a coldshoe mount/grip as the camera uses a minolta hotshoe. They're only like $20 and the cheapest one you can find will do.

 

 

Thanks for the advice

 

I was checking http://www.jessops.com and found the Sony A58 (couldn't find the A37 you mentioned). Also couldn't find the lense you mentioned on there.

 

Also audio side, what would I use the zoom for if I am using the lapels, and should I have some sort of amplifier or something?

 

Apologies for the noob-esque questions!

[Blade of Grass]

Thanks for the advice

 

I was checking http://www.jessops.com and found the Sony A58 (couldn't find the A37 you mentioned). Also couldn't find the lense you mentioned on there.

 

Also audio side, what would I use the zoom for if I am using the lapels, and should I have some sort of amplifier or something?

 

Apologies for the noob-esque questions!

You would plug the lapels into the zoom, and use that as the preamp/recording device.

[CaptainSi]

Thanks for the advice

 

I was checking http://www.jessops.com and found the Sony A58 (couldn't find the A37 you mentioned). Also couldn't find the lense you mentioned on there.

 

Also audio side, what would I use the zoom for if I am using the lapels, and should I have some sort of amplifier or something?

 

Apologies for the noob-esque questions!

Shotgun mic into the camera, lav into the zoom. Lav as primary, shotgun as backup and/or if you want your own voice to be in the interview.

[CaptainSi]

What he said ^^

[CaptainSi]

And the a58 will be excellent, I just wanted to keep your budget as low as possible.

[Joseph]

Shotgun mic into the camera, lav into the zoom. Lav as primary, shotgun as backup and/or if you want your own voice to be in the interview.

 

 

And the a58 will be excellent, I just wanted to keep your budget as low as possible.

 

Cool so the H1 would record through it's own mic and I could get a splitter for two lapel mics coming off fit? Interview would be me and guest on camera sitting across from each other. Then I would edit the sound in from the H1 separately? And if budget allowed would you suggest the H2N instead?

 

Lense wise I haven't been able to find that Sigma you suggested, the only one I have been able to find is this. Also just on the zoom, if I am using the camera for other things or want to zoom in for some reason is it bad to get one with a zoom?

 

You mentioned about the file format, I presume this camera is still limited to 30 minutes, but how long should it record up to that in 1080?

 

Sorry for the barrage of questions!

[CaptainSi]

Cool so the H1 would record through it's own mic and I could get a splitter for two lapel mics coming off fit? Interview would be me and guest on camera sitting across from each other. Then I would edit the sound in from the H1 separately? And if budget allowed would you suggest the H2N instead?

 

Lense wise I haven't been able to find that Sigma you suggested, the only one I have been able to find is this. Also just on the zoom, if I am using the camera for other things or want to zoom in for some reason is it bad to get one with a zoom?

 

You mentioned about the file format, I presume this camera is still limited to 30 minutes, but how long should it record up to that in 1080?

 

Sorry for the barrage of questions!

Just run the one lav to the zoom and use the shotgun (mounted on camera) as backup. If it's multiple guests then you would used the zoom placed centrally and the shotgun on-camera. Lav mics have incredibly tight polar patterns so they're good for noisy locs, however if the situation sounds artificially quiet due to this you'll have the shotgun track to add a slight ambience to the room after. It's always a good idea to record a couple of minutes of loopable ambient sound before conducting the interview too, in case you buff up settings (shit happens) and you need to disguise some noise or pops in post.

The H2N looks great. I've never personally used it so I can't say anything more about it than that. The Sony 50 f1.4 lens you've posted is an excellent lens. I only had a week with it, but I can tell you it out performs similarly priced offerings from Canon and Nikon, and I'm actually surprised to see it so cheap. I remember it being much more expensive. Go for it. I'm thinking of getting it for myself now. It's probably a good idea to get a zoom bundled with the camera. Like the prime, Sony's kit lenses are vastly better than offerings from other vendors so the 18-55 kit zoom will be fairly robust, however a fast prime is vastly better suited to interview situations where there may be low light. 

If the a58 is like any other of Sony's SLT's it will record 30 minutes @ 1080p to one file then immediately start another, so really your only limit is the capacity of your memory card. Also, keep in mind that these entry level dSLRs are using APS-C sized sensors, so you have a 1.5x crop factor (except if it's a Canon APS-C, which use smaller sensors, so it's more like 1.6x). 50mm lenses are considered the closest image aesthetic to the human eye in terms of depth compression, however the crop factor means the 50mm prime will be the equivalent of a 75mm on FX, and likewise the kit zoom will be a 27-82.5mm. The ~60-150mm focal lengths are around about what most photographers use for portrait photography, so that's why a 50mm is a better choice for your interviews than, say a 35 (which gives you a nearly 50mm equivalent on DX).

 

Edit: removed retarded product of tiredness. Thanks blade of grass

[Blade of Grass]

Just run the one lav to the zoom and use the shotgun (mounted on camera) as backup. If it's multiple guests then you would used the zoom placed centrally and the shotgun on-camera. Lav mics have incredibly tight polar patterns so they're good for noisy locs, however if the situation sounds artificially quiet due to this you'll have the shotgun track to add a slight ambience to the room after. It's always a good idea to record a couple of minutes of loopable ambient sound before conducting the interview too, in case you buff up settings (shit happens) and you need to disguise some noise or pops in post.

The H2N looks great. I've never personally used it so I can't say anything more about it than that. The Sony 50 f1.4 lens you've posted is an excellent lens. I only had a week with it, but I can tell you it out performs similarly priced offerings from Canon and Nikon, and I'm actually surprised to see it so cheap. I remember it being much more expensive. Go for it. I'm thinking of getting it for myself now. It's probably a good idea to get a zoom bundled with the camera. Like the prime, Sony's kit lenses are vastly better than offerings from other vendors so the 18-55 kit zoom will be fairly robust, however a fast prime is vastly better suited to interview situations where there may be low light. 

If the a58 is like any other of Sony's SLT's it will record 30 minutes @ 1080p to one file then immediately start another, so really your only limit is the capacity of your memory card. Also, keep in mind that these entry level dSLRs are using APS-C sized sensors, so you have a 1.5x crop factor (except if it's a Canon APS-C, which use smaller sensors, so it's more like 1.6x). 50mm lenses are considered the closest image aesthetic to the human eye in terms of depth of field, however the crop factor means the 50mm prime will be the equivalent of a 75mm on FX, and likewise the kit zoom will be a 27-82.5mm. The ~60-150mm focal lengths are around about what most photographers use for portrait photography, so that's why a 50mm is a better choice for your interviews than, say a 35 (which gives you a nearly 50mm equivalent on DX).

The 50mm is the closest to what the eye can see (viewing angle) on a full frame camera. I don't think it has anything to do with depth of field. From my knowledge, most photographers like using 85mm lens (as it's 'the' portrait lens) or higher, depending on what they want to do (something like a 300 f/2.8 are used in sports or in portraits because of the pincushioning (thin-ing look) distortion it gives, along with the ability to get shallow depth of field).

 

Also, I don't know if Sony makes the best 50mm F/1.4 or 18-55mm zoom.

[CaptainSi]

The 50mm is the closest to what the eye can see (viewing angle) on a full frame camera. I don't think it has anything to do with depth of field. From my knowledge, most photographers like using 85mm lens (as it's 'the' portrait lens) or higher, depending on what they want to do (something like a 300 f/2.8 are used in sports or in portraits because of the pincushioning (thin-ing look) distortion it gives, along with the ability to get shallow depth of field).

 

Also, I don't know if Sony makes the best 50mm F/1.4 or 18-55mm zoom.

Oh shit sorry, what am I on about. Probably a sign that I need more sleep. I didn't mean depth of field, I meant depth compression - the magnification distance between foreground and background. Also, I never said they make the best, I said the best at each price point, which is kind of inarguable.