Want to take amazing videos like those you see on YouTube and Vimeo? What you might not know is that you don’t need a ton of expensive gear to do so. In fact, you don’t even need a dedicated video camera. Your everyday DSLR is capable of making solid videos, and with a few well-chosen accessories, you can create some pretty impressive movies!
Have a look at these four must-have items to get starting taking high-quality DSLR videos today.
A Solid Tripod
Just like a well-built home needs a solid foundation to stand, a well-built video begins with a sturdy tripod. When shooting still photos, camera shake can ruin an otherwise wonderful photo. But when shooting video, camera shake can make the video unviewable.
When looking for a tripod, look for something with solid legs with leg extensions that lock securely in place. Additionally, you’ll likely want a tripod that has a center hook for adding extra weight to give it even more stability. If you are shooting in areas with rough terrain, articulated feet are a good feature as well, as they can better adapt to uneven ground.
Beyond that, a good tripod head is needed too. An ideal option is a fluid head because they offer smooth motion for panning shots. The movement of the head - be that pan or tilt - is dampened, which reduces friction as the head is moved. The result is the kind of steady movement that the pros demand.
A Great Microphone
Without impeccable sound, even the best-looking videos will fall flat. So, as you prepare to use your DSLR for shooting video, you’ll need to include a high-quality microphone on your list of needed items.
There are a lot of microphone options out there, but for us, Sound Shark offers the best product for the money. Sound Shark microphones provide top-notch audio, even at long distances. This means that you don’t have to be right in front of a person to pick up their voice cleanly and crisply. In fact, with a Sound Shark microphone, you can record audio from up to six feet away, and the person will sound as though they have a lapel microphone right under their chin. Better still, since Sound Shark is wireless, you don’t have to worry about hiding microphone wires from view.
What’s more, you want a microphone that’s lightweight and won’t get in your way. Again, Sound Shark fits the bill as their microphone attaches to your DSLR’s hot shoe mount. And because the Sound Shark provides focused sound that minimizes wind noise and background noise, you can rest assured that you’re getting the audio you need for the most impactful video possible.
Don’t let poor audio stand in your way of making incredible videos with your DSLR. Visit Sound Shark today to learn more about their high-quality audio products.
A Screen Loupe
Unless you shoot exclusively at night, actually seeing the video you’re recording on your DSLR’s LCD can be difficult, to say the least, because of glare (as seen above). Since you do all of your compositional tasks based on seeing the LCD (and focusing your shots to boot), minimizing glare is a critical component of creating breathtaking videos. You can do just that with a screen loupe. These devices attach to your camera, covering the LCD so you get a clearer picture of what’s going on. If the loupe has an eyepiece, you can shoot video with your camera to your eye, just like when you take still photos, for a comfortable and familiar shooting position.
A Top-of-the-Line Memory Card
Just like a top-notch microphone is essential to a high-quality DSLR video, so too is a fast memory card with plenty of storage space. Even when you’re shooting in standard definition, your memory card will fill up fast. Naturally, high definition video takes up far more space, thus necessitating a card that will hold a lot of data.
Of course, speed is equally as important. If you’re constantly waiting for your card to write, the process of creating a video will be significantly slowed. As a result, shop for a class 10 memory card. These cards are plenty fast to handle all the data from HD shooting video. The only downside is that the larger and the faster the memory card, the more expensive it will be. If budget is an issue, a Class 6 memory card is capable of full HD video recording as well.
There you have it! These four accessories will make your life much easier when shooting video with your DSLR. If you want to maximize the quality of the videos you create, add each of these items to your DSLR videography wish list.