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 :)

How can I make money with a Red camera??

Unless you are in a strong market, renting could prove to be difficult. It sounds like you don't have a track record in the industry, so getting top tier rental clients will be tough. You may get interest from low to mid level clients but then you have to worry about the headaches that go along with that such as higher insurance risks, possibility of theft, wear and tear on equipment, etc. To me, I have never found that to be an interesting revenue stream. As someone mentioned earlier, if you are able to go on the shoots with the camera and gain knowledge, then perhaps that is more enticing, but otherwise, renting camera gear out to others can be challenging. Rental companies that specialize in camera gear have the service and support that is needed to compete in that sphere.

I agree with others that suggested content creation. Use your camera to make content that can find an audience and gain you a reputation that will lead to other opportunities. You could get a nice underwater housing and do a series of videos on scuba diving. Maybe you have a unique angle on that. A well done documentary on squirrels could find a home on a nature channel if done really well. If you have a knack for visual storytelling you will probably have a better chance of making your money back with great content rather than trying to rent it out at low rates, high risk.

Just my .02
 
Carl Epstein said:
Thanks Chris, One of the most mature replies I have gotten.

Clark did you spend 40 k to take squirrel videos too??? Maybe we can put our heads together and make a squirrel documentary and sell it to National Geographic and pay for our equipment. As Chris said it is compelling content that makes money. (:
Click to expand...

Actually just 6K for a scarlet but when the weather gets better you know where I'll be ;) out by those squirrel nests and yeah maybe we can meet up and talk squirrels with our REDs, I might even rent a few master primes for that national geo shoot...
 
I think the shooting car stuff is a good idea since you are already involved. I started off doing design work for Motion Graphics studios and now I shoot for some of those same people.

The rental market is tough unless you rent to clients. Renting to random people is just more trouble than it’s worth and with things like Share Grid where Dragons are going for $150, minus all the fees you’re probably looking at making $100 a day for a $40,000 kit. Not worth it. I’m actually all for peer-to-peer systems to exist along side rental houses, but the undercutting is too insane.

It’s easy to buy a camera, but the tough part is spending the years it takes to learn about shooting and lighting.

Truthfully, I wish I had more of your “make money” attitude. I’m a bit lax when it comes to the business end as I come from an art background; and it actually hurts me in the wallet.
 
Carl, why drop $40K ? Why not start with an used Red One package for $4K and see if you like it. Learn the sh#t out of it and upgrade later if you still love it and want to continue. The Red One is still an amazing camera.
 
Stefan Antonescu said:
Carl, why drop $40K ? Why not start with an used Red One package for $4K and see if you like it. Learn the sh#t out of it and upgrade later if you still love it and want to continue. The Red One is still an amazing camera.
Click to expand...
I guess you are not from around here and not in midlife crisis haha....
This is America you don't buy old, used- you throw it away. You buy nice and shiney new gadgets so you have the newest and best for the Joneses to see....
Double it down in the mid life crisis- now you REALLY need the shiny and new -and you can afford it (hopefully)
Only half joking really....
 
Carl:

If you are bold enough to post, at your possible peril, to this forum then you're bold enough to make content. Make a YouTube series which chronicles your desire and attempt at creating content. Include your posts to this forum. Sometime it could be touching sometimes bad. Let yourself be human and expose your personal truth and struggles. You may gather an audience and if you don't, figure out what you can do better and try again. If you do that, you can officially claim to be a filmmaker. Print yourself business cards and everything. I followed pregnancy for my first movie and now it sells all over the world and major broadcasters are working to air it. You never know unless you try. There are plenty of examples of respected filmmakers who did nothing even close to making movies for a lot of their lives and then just started. Check out the Farrelly brothers story. Good luck.
 
Thank you for the kind words. I have been starting to think about short film ideas. After being a car mechanic from 30 years I have to wake up the creative side of my brain that has been sitting dormant. They say learning a foreign language fends off Alzheimer's. Maybe pondering my next film can have the same effect. Oops I forgot what was typing about. Only kidding.
 
Carl Epstein said:
Ok so I am an auto shop owner going through mid life crisis. Instead of a red Corvette I got a Red video camera. I am in the process of dropping 40 k on video equipment. In my business when I spend 40 k on something it makes me money back. I started this so I could take video of squirrels in the park or my wife sitting on the couch. Now I am thinking... Hmmm maybe I could make some money to support my hobby. You guys are obviously professionals in this field. Any suggestions??
Click to expand...
You won't make any money Carl ... you'd be far better off to buy a CASE 580 Back Hoe and rent that out. But you can have fun in the movie business Acting, Writing, DoP, Directing, Casting, Producing. Actually work on Student films for a year Twelve to Fifty of them. Then write your own full length script, or buy one. Then put up another $250K of your own money and produce a Ninety minute film.
 
Last edited:
Great advice George. I found a cool Bull Dozer so I can start working on the 250k. The Back Hoe won't bring the same return on investment. Interestingly enough it is exactly the same price as a Carbon weapon 6k package. $77,500. I enclosed a link below if anyone wants to see my new Bull Dozer. (pm me if you want to rent it)
http://www.machinerytrader.com/listingsdetail/detail.aspx?OHID=11341441
 
Last edited:
If you have no skills or ideas spending 40K won't get you jack. You wont make a dime unless you sell it..the camera is a tool that you use to enhance your craft.
 
So I think it is time for me to officially bail out of this thread. I just seem to be getting the remaining negative people replying.

Thanks to all for all the positive ideas!!
 
If you can't handle the truth then maybe it is time, people have their opinions when you ask them for help.
 
Carl,
I seriously feel that you should start a youtube channel and start talking about things you know. You can either simply talk about each car repair and point out what could have lead to such problems etc etc or you can talk about parts/components/sub assemblies of different vendors and which one is better, what needs more care, what type of care, what to do when there is a breakdown when there is no tow car available etc etc.... Sit down and think all your experiences both serious and funny and you will know what to share. My first job was in the engine division of Tata Motors and I know one can easily find out situations and talk about it. People want different content. Each of us is unique. So why not create something unique?

Cheers,
Sabyasachi
 
Carl Epstein said:
Thank you for the kind words. I have been starting to think about short film ideas. After being a car mechanic from 30 years I have to wake up the creative side of my brain that has been sitting dormant. They say learning a foreign language fends off Alzheimer's. Maybe pondering my next film can have the same effect. Oops I forgot what was typing about. Only kidding.
Click to expand...

Which ever the case is - sarcastic trolling, pulling people's legs or actually having bought a $40K professional tool without any experience whatsoever and ideas for ROI and publicly asking professionals for advice.... if squirrels are all fine it would be benficial to mention that on some forums you'd get slammed pretty hard for this and on some your post would be deleted immediately with potential for immediate ban, so at least here you got some room and advice from good people.

Try approaching construction crew with "hey I got this new crane for my squirrel hobby and now I want to make money with it but don't know how" and check out how that goes.
 
Aaron michaels said:
If you have no skills or ideas spending 40K won't get you jack. You wont make a dime unless you sell it..the camera is a tool that you use to enhance your craft.
Click to expand...

Dont post if you have absolutely nothing tangible to contribute. not very nice
 
One year later, I'd sincerely love to hear an update from Carl (whom I commend for his original post). I'd also love to hear Dan Kanes' idea. :)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top