What should I buy with the Scarlet-W?

[Ryan Maderic]

What are the must-have pieces of gear to go with a new Scarlet-w?
I'm making a list of accessories to go with it and want to check it twice. Aluminum or titanium EF mount? Looking into the OMOD XLR2 as well.
We will be using it for run and gun operations as well as broadcast commercials and other corporate needs.
Also looking for new:
- Backpacks
- lights (thinking flexible LED and an HMI)

I appreciate any insight you all might have,

Thank you!

Ryan

 

[Rikki Rockett]

Think Tank

Think Tank

The Think Tank/SKB collaboration is a great backpack that drops into a hard shell. Awesome!

 

[Ryan Williams]

Ryan,

I think there are quite a few questions that would need to be answered to help get you a comprehensive list. Some that I can think of are...

-What is your overall budget?
-How much for lighting gear?
-Any specific lighting requirements? Does it need to be mobile? Battery operated? LEDs ok?
-Do you have any lighting modifiers? What do your lighting kit look like already?
-How much of the budgie can go towards the support gear?
-Do you intend to run the camera on a gimbal, steadicam, or any other type of rig?
-Do you need any sort of Easyrig to help support your Run'n'Gun setup?
-What type of glass do you have? Do plan on getting more in the same mount?
-Do you have audio gear built into the budget?
-What are you looking at for recording/mixing? Do you just want scratch audio?
-What type of environments does your mic need to be able to operate in?
-Where are you hauling your gear (for the backpack)? Multi-day hike? Urban day trip?
-How much space do you need in the backpack? How much gear do you need to stuff into it?
-Hard case? Soft shell? Both?
-Need to meet airline standards?

I'm sure there are plenty more but you get the point. The more pointed your request is, the better people will be able to help you out.

 

[Ryan Maderic]

The Think Tank/SKB collaboration is a great backpack that drops into a hard shell. Awesome!

Nice, I like that combo! Thanks for pointing it out

 

[Ryan Maderic]

Ryan,

I think there are quite a few questions that would need to be answered to help get you a comprehensive list. Some that I can think of are...

-What is your overall budget?
-How much for lighting gear?
-Any specific lighting requirements? Does it need to be mobile? Battery operated? LEDs ok?
-Do you have any lighting modifiers? What do your lighting kit look like already?
-How much of the budgie can go towards the support gear?
-Do you intend to run the camera on a gimbal, steadicam, or any other type of rig?
-Do you need any sort of Easyrig to help support your Run'n'Gun setup?
-What type of glass do you have? Do plan on getting more in the same mount?
-Do you have audio gear built into the budget?
-What are you looking at for recording/mixing? Do you just want scratch audio?
-What type of environments does your mic need to be able to operate in?
-Where are you hauling your gear (for the backpack)? Multi-day hike? Urban day trip?
-How much space do you need in the backpack? How much gear do you need to stuff into it?
-Hard case? Soft shell? Both?
-Need to meet airline standards?

I'm sure there are plenty more but you get the point. The more pointed your request is, the better people will be able to help you out.

Thanks for taking the time Ryan.

- Only real budget constrain is to keep it under $50K total with camera and accessories.
- We have some 1x1 pannels and a large LED fresnel. But we're expanding and need another mobile kit and more punch. Open to battery powered or not.
- For punch I'm looking at the Hive Wasp 1000 or Ikan Whitestar fresnel, 1.2K.
- We have a Matthews road rags kit
- Currently considering an easyrig as an option. I think we might rent a gimbal when needed or purchase a smaller unit for our B-cam (GH5)
- Currently have Canon L glass but want to move towards Sigma 18-35 and 50-100mm. I own both and want to use them for my company work.
- We're looking for XLR in with phantom. Been thinking about OMOD XLR2, mini papi, or SD mix3.
- Got a few considerations for a new mic. Audix SCX1-H1 short condenser, Senheiser maybe
- Lot's of interior small spaces for the mics. I work for a large health system so we are in small offices a lot.
- Most the time we are doing day trips around the state or overnights. Need to carry most the gear in one bag as we sometimes are a one man band on the go. Currently thinking the f-stop brand bags or cinebags. Already have a large Peli case so looking for soft bags. We don't fly much so we don't need to worry about that.

Here is some of my wishlist on B&H if anyone is curious: https://www.bnh.com/wish/8642000B09/

 

[Ryan Williams]

Ryan,

I'll hit some of the things I'd change or look at alternatives for...

For the lighting kit, I'm personally a fan of Aperture for the battery power LED lights they produce. It might be worth it to try out the new 300D to see if it will fit into your work flow. For the bigger lights, I have only heard of Ikan and have never used their products. Nor have I used the others, so I can't really comment either way on whether or not they'd be a good buy/fit for you. I'd like to add a Joker 800w or two to my kit but don't have the funds or the means to easily transport them at the moment. The DS-1 looks to be a really cool light as well, I'm hoping to try it out sometime.

I might suggest adding in a bit more for the grip kit. The Matthews kit is great, but what about a butterfly/large book light setup and some large scrims. Might come in handy for some of the stuff you intend to shoot?

I'm getting ready to grab a Mini Papi for on camera audio but will most likely be picking up a SD Mix3/6 or SD 633 here pretty soon for my audio kit. If you are going to be doing interviews and stuff like that I'd highly recommend you beef up your audio kit. A good outdoor/on location shotgun mic like the Sennheiser MK 416 would be a solid pick up. I have an Audix SCX-1 as well and then it is a decent indoor mic. There are defenitely better out there but if you picked up another you'd probably have your indoor piece covered for booming. I'd recommend Lectros for the lavs, if you can swing it. A more budget option is the Sennheiser G3 series. Seems to get a lot of play and hold up to use. Gear Dad's did a good piece on their commercial and doc kits, that I'd recommend reading and checking out. I'd also suggest adding some sound blankets to the kits for creating cleaner audio records.

If you are going OMB and small crew, you will probably have to kill some of the heavier kit items from your list or compromise somewhere. I have a Fstop backpack and will be taking it on its first big trip so I'll let you know how it holds up but everything I've researched about them lead me to believe they are good quality bags or I wouldn't have picked one up. I also have used Tamrac backpacks, and bags from Tenba. I really like my Tenba bag as it seems to be just about the right amount of space for most of my bare bones camera set ups (both photog and cinematog). I almost picked up a cinebag but went with Fstop instead (the modularity of the Fstop bags are what I really like). If you end up going with one of those, please give me some feedback on it. They look nice!

I didn't talk much about support kit for the camera itself. Wooden Camera and Smallrig both make some good accessories. While I bought and used a Zacuto setup for my C100 I find their products to be a bit on the expensive side when compared to Smallrig. Wooden Camera seems to cater to more systems whereas Zacuto seems to really target DSLR and Canon shooters. I've just purchased a new Smallrig setup, with a few WC accesories, for my Weapon and it is all rock solid so far. I'd grab a shock mount for your mic. I like Bright Tangerine for a lot of their accessories. Their follow focus is amazing (Revolvr). Their matteboxes are also solid and lightweight. For filters, try the Rhodiums, Firecrest, or Nisi NDs. I think Firecrest is the crowd favorite around here. For the wireless FF, I suggest taking a look at the RT Motion. It is a bit pricier but it is a well-tested and vouched for system. Also don't forget about mini-mags, and DIT related stuff. You'll want some fast hard drives and a good setup to edit it all.

As with most things you read on the interwebz, take what is given to you with a grain of salt. We all have our own biases/preferences. I think you'll be able to make some great footage with everything you have and/or intend to get. Good luck and I look forward to seeing your work!

Edit: You can pick up a lot of great gear from used listings. If you want to save some money and you can afford to wait for a legit seller, you'll be able to find some great stuff!