My Equipment: Past, Present and Future
- Connor Hopkins
- Jul 21, 2017
- 3 min read
I by no means am claiming to be an expert but here is a little bit about the gear I’ve used, currently use and plan and purchasing soon.
After using DV camcorders and Sony handycams for my first few years I invested in my very first, and all-time favorite camera of all time, the Canon T3i. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HE-VWdZUM1w I have shot my very first shorts as well as recently brought a hacked one to Seattle and got some beautiful results. https://youtu.be/UrDMakDV5Kk
The t3i has updated versions but the original holds up and is such an insanely cheap way to get a camera and start shooting.
During the days of theghostfiles.tv and A Brush With Evil our main workhorses were a pair of Cannon XA25s and a Sony FS100.. Over the 6 years we were producing ghost files content we used and insane amount of cameras and I won’t waste time reviewing all of them .
Season 1
VX 2000
Sony CX 550V
Sony Z1U
4 or 5 random point and shoots and camcorders.
Season 2
Canon 7D
Canon T3i
Panasonic GH3
2x Sony Pj710V
Season 3
Panasonic Gh4
2x Sony PJ710v
2x Canon XA25
Sony FS100
A Brush with Evil
3x Panasonic GH4
2 Canon XA25
2 Canon XA20
Sony FS100
2x Sony PJ710
Canon C100
Misc. videos and Shorts
Canon 5d mk3
BMCC
BMPCC
Sony FS7
The versatility pro audio inputs and color profiles make the XA25 my favorite camera for this kind of work. When paired with a 5d or better for B roll you can get some cinematic run and gun content. I fucking hated the GH4 then even tho I use it now A lot for events and vlogging. Although the GH4 is great it was just a little light hungry for the documentary work we were doing and we always went with full frame options whenever possible, after the mini DV years of course back then I was just stoked to use a camera with a square front end.
Since then I haven’t really had any hands on with other cameras except the Sony FS700 the A7s and a little bit of Red.
My current camera kit is broken up in 3 category’s Vlogging/Social Media, Video Production and Cinematography
Vlogging/Social Media
Canon SL- 1
Sony NEX 5
Hero 4 Session
Canon T3i (yes I still use it)
I know some of this stuff is dated and I in some of my content you can tell. I recently attempted to update my main vlogging camera to an SL 1 and I hate it so I still use my NEX 5 because of the flip screen and focus peaking. The SL1 is a powerful little tool especially when you hack it. I have yet to really test it but ive vlogged with it a little and it’s no good for that but it’s a good travel sized DSLR, there are defiantly more powerful compact systems out there. I always have it or my SL1 on me and when I know I’m going to be vlogging ill bring a go pro and occasionally dust off the old T3i .
most recent T3i video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrDMakDV5Kk
Video Production
Canon XA25
Canon 70D
DJI Osmo
Canon C100
Dji Phantom 4
When I say video production I mean smaller client work, event coverage, YouTube videos acoustic sessions ect. A lot of my work is either event coverage or documentary/journalism type stuff so I use my XA25 for long hours of shooting and the flexibility of the zoom lens as well as pro audio inputs. For stills and specialty shots I use my 70D and DJI gear. On productions with more time for lighting and crew to wrangle gear we use the C100 as well.
Cinema kit
When I shoot my own shorts or get to do DP work I use a Canon C100, Sony A7S or a Blackmagic with ef primes recorded into a Ninja Assassin. I love motion so I love Glidecam and Gimbal shots or handheld with a rental EZ rig. I’m hoping to upgrade to a Sony Fs5 this year.
Sorry if this wasn’t very informative, thanks for reading and stay tuned for more gear and equipment blogs!
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