Buying a camera with some half-assed notion of making a documentary (1 Viewer)

[pete]

seconded on that 50mm 1.8 canon lens. lives on my camera.

 

[CinnamonBoy]

The camera I'm looking to buy comes with a "Sigma af 15-30mm f/3.5-4.5 ex dg"

Will this do the job?

My documentary influences are Nick Broomfield, Louis Theroux and the dude who made Hated: The GG Allin Story.

 

[thairock]

The camera I'm looking to buy comes with a "Sigma af 15-30mm f/3.5-4.5 ex dg"

Will this do the job?

My documentary influences are Nick Broomfield, Louis Theroux and the dude who made Hated: The GG Allin Story.

Personally not familiar with that lens but I'm sure it will be fine.
You can always pick up second hand lenses as you get more experience with the camera, finding what suits best for your particular needs, as you discover them.

 

[thairock]

…That 50mm 1.8 canon lens. lives on my camera.

Same.

 

[CinnamonBoy]

I have a Cannon 550D now with the Nikon lens. I am super excited.

First project this week is ep1 of "Casting Couch Babes" with @Jill Hives

Just to learn how to use it that is.

 

[CinnamonBoy]

Lads, a decent lapel mic for interviews? The lad I bought the cam off said I could get one for a tenner but they look about 50 online.

Also. General scenes. Will probably have music dubbed over with my own deep-voiced magic on top, but otherwise will the camera's inbuilt mic do?
I intend my first project to be in a homeless shelter my pal works in.

Homelessness is hot right now.

 

[thairock]

Lads, a decent lapel mic for interviews? The lad I bought the cam off said I could get one for a tenner but they look about 50 online.

Also. General scenes. Will probably have music dubbed over with my own deep-voiced magic on top, but otherwise will the camera's inbuilt mic do?
I intend my first project to be in a homeless shelter my pal works in.

Homelessness is hot right now.

I know you want the answer to be yes but it really isn't a good idea. The camera's inboard mic has automatic gain control which will , basically , add hiss to your audio . Also you will pick ip lens moter noise etc.
You will get away with the odd soft focus shot etc bit when it comes to sound , your audience will not be so forgiving.
If you can't afford a good mic or separate audio recorder, at least try using an iPhone with a voice memo app running to record off camera audio .
Not saying anything about homeless folk but be aware of course , that using this option let's your phone vulnerable to theft etc.
Check out The Frugal Filmmaker for more tips.

 

[thairock]

sorry for typos, was using phone and was typing too fast.

 

[CinnamonBoy]

If you can't afford a good mic or separate audio recorder,
.

Luckily I can afford either. Can you recommend me something that will do the job? I have €€€ but I have it earmarked for other stuff so something that will do the job well for chape, please!

Thanks for the advice, btw.

 

[ann post]

there is an article in sound on sound this month about DIY sound for movies and it more or less says what this thread says.

 

[thairock]

...Rode Video mic.
Can also recommend the Zoom H4N audio recorder but you will need to sync the audio and video in editing.

Can recommend these as I use them but other brands / models etc are available that will no doubt do the job as well.

Download the free pdf/epub of The DSLR Cinematography Guide
for helpful info and check out sites like cinema5D for more info.

Also , if you are happy to tinker with firmware , worth reading up on Magic Lantern and deciding if it's something you may find useful too.

Good luck and come back and post links to your vids when done - btw - just practice a lot, you will learn quickly if you want too.

Hope that helps.

 

[CinnamonBoy]

Can recommend these as I use them but other brands / models etc are available that will no doubt do the job as well.

Download the free pdf/epub of The DSLR Cinematography Guide
for helpful info and check out sites like cinema5D for more info.

Also , if you are happy to tinker with firmware , worth reading up on Magic Lantern and deciding if it's something you may find useful too.

Good luck and come back and post links to your vids when done - btw - just practice a lot, you will learn quickly if you want too.

Hope that helps.

Helps a lot. The Rode Video Mic looks grand for the job.

I may have access to editing suite in RTE with a pal who has made a couple of documentaries, when I get my footage, which would be amazing.

I intend on leaving my job in two months.