Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Log in
  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Minimum RED build?

D

Dory Breaux

Well-known member
Joined
Feb 9, 2008
Messages
52
Reaction score
0
Points
0
Age
35
Hey all, I was wondering if you could help me figure out what the minimum setup for a RED One would be. So far I've come up with:

RED Body (I'd assume thats a given :-P)
Base Production Pack
5inch LCD/cable
Power Pack
4x CF Cards (to start with, mostly cause I do alot of work where weight is a concern)
Nikon Mount
Two extra rods
NIKKOR 18-200mm f/3.5-5.6G IF-ED (and probably another, wider and faster piece of glass)
RedRock Mattebox (or something of the same functionality/price range)
other obvious stuff such as a tripod and whatnot.

I cut all my stuff with Avid and have NO want to switch to Mac/FCP, so workflow might be a tad tricky but it seems that lots of people are figuring it out, and if RED ever releases the SDK, things should get easier...

the way I calculate it, everything should come out to around 25-30k. Is their anything I left out? I'm talkin bare bones here, for starters. I Probably wont use 4K much when I cant dump from the CF cards, mostly cause the stuff I'd shoot when i dont have a dump/storrage device avalible need the FPS of 2k/3k.

Let me know your thoughts!

Later,
Dory
 
Looks like a good start, you'll certainly get an image with that set up.

You'll probably need some IR/NDs if you will do any outdoor shooting.

Are you doing any sound to the camera? If so you'll want a couple of XLR adapters (it comes with 1.)
 
I rarely ever use more then one mic, I dont do a ton of narrative work. And yes, I plan on rockin some NDs and ND grads with the mattebox.
 
good start but that 18-200 is a bad idea. First its 'G' series, which stands for "Goddammit, where is the aperture ring?!", so you need a birger mount to use it, and second its about as sharp as a scratched coke bottle.

If that is your budget, i'd wait on the mattebox and get something like a 28-70 f2.8, (or maybe the previous generation of the same lens, which is still pretty sharp and 1/2 the price.) or maybe a few primes, 20 f2.8, 35 f2, and 50 f1.4 would be a barebones setup to me.

Use still photo filters when you have to, and be careful about flare.

There isnt much sense in spending the money on a great camera if the glass sucks.
 
I don't know about you, but I like having two handles when hand held. (means you'll need the left handle and a handle mount and a universal mount)

Also, the top handle - I use it with the extension, but with the original handle removed. It provides a stronger, more secure handle. (now you'll need another top mount)

2 batteries only? Are you sure?
 
Ohh yes, that was another thing I forgot to ask, on average with that setup, shooting 2k or 3k, how long will one brick last me?

And will I need the CF modual for to make transfer from the CF cards to computer? or can the camera be used for that (like the HVX)?

As for the lens thing, primes are 100% out of the question, because snap zooms (and many other types of zooms) are one of my biggest, ehhh, tools.

I actually already have a formatt fm600 mattebox, but it doesnt have rodmounts built in (altho I've seen people ghettow rig it) and I dunno if its going to fit right with the front of some lenses.

Maybe I should ask, whats the widest range zoom, fastest Nikkor lens sub 1k that wont look like a scratched coke bottle?

Shawn, year, I just realized that too. I HATE single handle setups.
 
yeah, that lens wont work with the RED's nikon mount

and a set of filters will probably cost you more than the mattebox

also, as I've found out, tripods are fucking expensive in this class. My last tripod cost about $500 for a nice setup for my DVX100. The tripod I just bought for my RED cost $5300! (at discount!)
 
So probably a good idea to just rig the formatt for rods?
 
Brandon said:
im not understanding what you mean
Click to expand...

The Formatt FM600 mattebox I have right now, it would be a better idea to rig it to use a rail system and spend the money i was going to spend on the RedRock on better glass?

Also, what sort weight rating for a tripod should I be looking for?
 
gotcha, in that case ur probably going to need to get the 15mm adapter in order to use 15mm rods and accessories.

As for a tripod, 20 pounds is about as light as you can get it. Full studio setup with a huge lens could be 60 or more, but most of the time for and indie set up with a nikon lens I'd expect to be 30-40 pounds.

My setup right now is camera, top and bottom rods, RED LCD, drive, battery, sigma 28-70 (nikon mount) and its just under 30 pounds. Add a mattebox, filters, follow focus, and nicer lens and I'm sure it will be closer to 40 pounds.
 
Thanks man. How do you like that lens?
 
If weight is a concern, consider the element technica rods. They're really not expensive compared to the carbon fiber but they do make a tangible difference. i hate to spend unnecessary money, but I thought it was well worth it.
 
its shitty, but honestly, when coming from the DVX, RED looks awesome no matter what you shoot through. THAT said, I'm definitely getting the 17-35, 28-70, and 80-200 nikon zooms sooner or later, but better to be shooting than not, and the sigma was only $100. So if you just want something to through on the front, cheap sigma zooms are a good option to tide you over.
 
Hmm... Well, the other thing is, I would love to be able to go from like 14mm to 300mm, not necessarily with the same lens... With the DVX I am always wishing i had a wider or longer lens hehe (part of the reason I poopooed Scarlet, 8X? come on, thats worse then the DVX). And seeing as I'll be shooting 3K or 2K most of the time (probably 2K actually), I dont think having the sharpest lens in the world is a HUGE problem. I just don't want some POS glass that will look as if its meant for an early point and shoot still camera...
 
Dory Breaux said:
And will I need the CF modual for to make transfer from the CF cards to computer? or can the camera be used for that (like the HVX)?
Click to expand...

You have to get the CF module when you get the camera. You don't have a choice. You do need it to record media to the CF cards. You will need to get a separate CF reader to transfer your footage.

It seems to me that you would do well to spend some time reading round the forums.

The RED is a whole new world of camera for you.
 
Quite true Shawn. I'm off to read the forums, the wonderful forums of RED!

Lame, wasnt it.
 
Dory, here is what I recommend. Get a hold of someone's Red (borrow or rent). Shoot some 2K or 3K. Make sure it is what you are hoping for. It might be, but keep in mind, it is not 4K scaled to 2K. It's a crop. 4K scaled to 2K or 1080 is a far superior image. But if you need the frame rates, then yes your only choice is to go to those resolutions. As for Nikons, use whatever you can get a hold of at first and then when you have the money add some nice primes and the zooms that were mentioned above. You will enjoy them.

The camera is bigger than a lot of people expect it to be. So if you are coming from a DVX, you will need to get used to it.

It's certainly worth it with the images it puts out. Just make sure you do all of the homework and you will be fine.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top