Ditty Bag

Ditty Bag

5 Important Tips for Shooting Your Digital Video

In digital video production, there are five key things you should consider while packing your camera gear and shooting your video. There are actually several hundred things I could cite, but I've chosen five that many people forget when thinking about how to make videos.

 

1. Pack a Separate Bag (usually called a "ditty bag") of camera-related materials including:

1. A slate. I make mine out of a piece of stiff cardboard with a slate face printed on paper and glued to one side. I cover this with celluloid material and use a dry-erase marker to mark the slate and a paper towel to erase it. If the celluloid gets worn I can easily replace it. The slate doesn't need a clapper stick on top if you're recording audio only to your camera.
2. A lens cleaning kit - lens cleaning fluid, lens cleaning tissue and a squeeze bulb with a soft brush attached to it to dust off the lens.
3. A pen to write on the tape label. Hey, it's easy to forget!
4. A rain jacket for your camera (not often needed in an indoor location unless the sprinkler system triggers).
5. Perhaps some lens filters or a close-up attachment.
6. Anything else you decide are camera-related necessities that won't fit in the camera case itself.

 

2. Go Over the Shots you're going to make to be sure you pack all the equipment you need, but not a bunch of gack you won't require. It's amazing how much equipment can be left in the truck all day because it isn't needed. Conversely, you don't want to leave the doorway dolly at home-base if you're going to need it on location.

 

3. Identify a Staging Area. When you arrive at your location choose a "staging area" – a place where all your equipment can be safely stored. You take equipment from here when you use it and put it back when you don't need it. This area should be:

1. On the floor. If you put things on tables, chairs or shelves eventually something will be knocked off and it'll end up on the floor anyway . . . likely broken.
2. Out of the way of general traffic. You don't want people tripping over your stuff.
3. Guarded in some way. If you can't afford to leave a crew member with the equipment to guard it then your staging area should be as close to your shooting area as possible yet still on the floor and out of the way.

 

4. If you're using only a small light kit (or two) at a location that only has standard power outlets you should be aware of some basic electrical theory. For example, if your kit includes two 1000 Watt lamps and one 600 Watt lamp, how many can you plug into the same circuit without blowing a breaker? Here's an excerpt from my digital production textbook : North American power is 110 to 120 Volts and most outlets are 15 Amps. Since you already know the wattage of your lamps the formula is:

 

Total Wattage of Lamps/Voltage of Power Supply = Amperage Required

If the answer exceeds 20 amps then you cannot do it. For instance, two 1000 Watt lamps equals 2000 Watts. So, 2000/120 = 16.66 Amps. If you divide by 110 the answer is even worse (18.18 Amps). In short . . . you can't plug two 1000 Watt lamps into the same receptacle without tripping a breaker. You'd be better off plugging one 1000 Watt and one 600 Watt into each receptacle (1600/110 = 14.54 Amps).

5. Pack Extra Light Bulbs. Always pack extra light bulbs for your fixtures. They seem to last forever, but are bound to blow when you need them most.

 

This is all basic filmmaking school stuff, but it's amazing how easy it is for even seasoned professionals to forget these important things. I often do myself.

There are many more tips about how to make videos in my digital video production ebook

 

In the meantime, I hope these tips help make your shoot easier.

About the Author

I am now about to enter my fourth decade as a professional producer of film and video programs and creator of videos for my clients and I have been teaching eager students how to make videos in filmmaking school for over 30 years.

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