Most people have no idea of how much really goes into planning for even the simplest films. My biggest job was to come up with the right mix of gear that would enable me to shoot both still images and video in a high-end way, yet remaining to be portable and lean as far as what we would be bringing with us. That can be an overwhelming task – but the more I break it down and prepare for it with a Plan A, B and C – the more confident and relaxed I feel as our departure date nears.
Please watch the video that I created (nothing fancy) showing the gear that I’ll be bringing around the world on a 99 day shoot for my passion project Opening Our Eyes.
I’m embracing the HDSLR system since I want to shoot both stills and video but by no means is it streamlining my equipment needs. Quite the contrary, I’m bringing an assortment of lenses that I wouldn’t be taking if I were shooting with a traditional camera, as well as a lot of third party gear to augment audio capture and rigging for stabilization. What you don’t see in the video are the two (redundant) MacBooks that are essential when shooting any tapeless workflow.
Of course there are a million other details to cover for a 3 month trip around the world.
I’m still trying to determine my mobile phone and service needs. I’ve set up Skype on both laptops – yes 2 laptops because when you’re shooting tape less you are totally dependent on a computer and a back up if one fails. I’ll most likely upgrade my Blackberry because it’s been two years and that’s light-years in the tech world of communications. And I need to activate travel/medical emergency insurance as well as register my equipment with US Customs and add new gear to my business insurance policy.
There are also accommodations for 99 nights and a slew of internal airline tickets that needed to be taken care of. Read about it more at: Opening Our Eyes
Journeys of a Hybrid 
Have you used your zacuto with your DSLR yet. I rented a rapid fire and it was very awkward for me to use… what am i missing?
They changed their plates for their latest rigs making the balance better. I bought the Striker – and I find it the most natural to use with 3 steady points. But it all depends on what else you’ve got attached to the rig or camera – microphone – xlr adaptor like JuicedLink – or digital recorder. I opted not to get the follow focus knob.
Wow! Severe gear envy! We’re getting ready to move overseas and I wanted to make nice videos to send home, but we were gifted a very expensive yet bottom of the line video camera, so all this beautiful HD equipment makes me teary eyed! heh. Can’t wait to see what you shoot! 🙂