Videography Gadgets

• 22 Comments

•

717ah-fluid-head

When it comes to throwing a spare fluid head onto your DIY slider, Spidertrax Dolly, or other DIY tools, there's nothing with the quality and price as the 717AH Video Fluid Head. When I first found this cheap video fluid head it worked perfectly for my little projects. You can find my little over view video here: http://cheesycam.com/hidden-treasure-awesome-video-fluid-head-717ah/

Within just 4 hours of my post the entire inventory was sold out, and has been for months. Other vendors of this head were charging quite the premium, and at that cost you've got alot of other options for Video Fluid heads. So if you're looking for a decent sub $80 dollar fluid head to throw onto some of your DIY projects, check out the 717AH Video Fluid Head which I anticipate will be again out of stock within hours of this post.

Available via eBay for $79.99 found here: 717AH Video Fluid Head
717ah-fluid-head

Or available via Amazon for $74.99 found here: 717AH Video Fluid Head

•

sanyo-xx-battery

Thanks to a tip in the readers comments, it looks like Sanyo's not completely happy with it's existing Eneloop Battery performance, as they decided to announce a new longer lasting rechargeable battery due end of year. They are announcing these batteries as the XX or Double X. One more X and it's possible it would have been banned in the USA or placed in the adult section for only adults to purchase. They will be rated at 2500 mah, an extra 500 from the standard Eneloop. Doesn't sound like much when talking about a single battery, but most LED video lights are using 5-6 batteries. Multiply that extra 500mah each and you've added quite a bit more run time. You can find their press release information here: https://eu.sanyo.com/portal/News-Releases/2010/20-September-2010/

Standard rechargeable batteries worked great right after you pull them from the charging station, but a week later they would pretty much be drained. Unlike other rechargeable batteries, the Eneloop can hold a charge for up to one year. These rechargeable batteries are the only thing powering my house from all my flashes, portable audio recorders, LED lights, TV remotes, Wii, Xbox, wireless speakers, lights on the Bikes for night riding, etc. etc. With the handy C and D adapter cases those same AA rechargeables can be used in many other items. You just can't go wrong with these things. The initial investment into Eneloops sounds expensive, but if you use them as much as I do, you'll make up for it in a week. Now I haven't had any problems with run time on my Eneloops so i'm not sure if i'm ready to upgrade to the Double X. For those of you who haven't looked into this tech, cheaper than Amazon, cheaper than eBay, you can find the Sanyo Eneloop power pack kit over at B&H.

sanyo-eneloop-power-pack-kit
Sanyo eneloop Power Pack Starter Kit

• 18 Comments

•

canon60D-now-shipping

Damn, i've been catching Twitter pics and news clips about the Canon 60D in stock and shipping all day today. It's still a very rare find, but I managed to check out a few of my 'secret fishing holes' and it should drop in on Tuesday. Yeah, I tried to get it in earlier, but Jewish holiday they say.

Check out an early review @ https://nicolesyblog.com/2010/09/16/hands-on-with-the-canon-60d-first-impressions/ who shows off some of the in-camera filters. I think the 'Toy Camera' filter looked pretty good, and would be tons of fun in a Timelapse project. Curious if they stuck with the same Intervalometer as the T2i.

So i'm excited to see how this thing sizes up against it's 'older' siblings. I have another big event out of state that i'll be dragging this thing to, so I stocked up on the 32GB Transcend SDHC Class 10 Cards which is a deal right now.

Sandisk-8GB-MicroSDI also noticed that the Zoom H1 and Tascam DR-08 only come with 2GB microSD cards. At the highest bitrate, i'm getting short of one hour total record time. If this this is going to be useful in a Catholic ceremony it's gotta run at least half a day! I managed to find some Sandisk 8GB microSD Cards for fairly cheap. With 8GB at the highest 96/24 I should be able to get close to 4 hours of total record time.

• 7 Comments

•

bg-e8-battery-grip-t2i

Thanks to a tip from 'c n', these uber cheap battery grips orignally posted in this article: http://cheesycam.com/unusual-new-battery-grips-for-550d-t2i/ seem to have a slight upgrade. Originally the unit was super cheap, mainly because it still used very old battery types from the T1i. Now these sub $35.00 550D Battery grips are using the proper LE-E8 battery fit, and appears to have a slight cosmetic upgrade too. Maybe threw out the old junk and now selling an entirely new product. Either way, it's the standard model now, but looks like they kept the pricing at under $35.00 bucks (no batteries). You can find more information by clicking here: BATTERY GRIP FOR CANON EOS 550D /Rebel T2i SLR BG-E8

bg-e8-battery-grip-t2i
Shop for Aftermarket 550D Battery Grip

[Update] If the link above doesn't return any results, they sold out very quickly. Here's an updated link shared by a few readers.
Battery Grip for Canon 550D T2i with Batteries

• 6 Comments

•

mini-flexible-tripod

I like these flexible tripods, and the $10 dollar DSLR one is great. I also wanted something much smaller to carry around in my backpack. I thought these mini ones would be quite handy to mount onto the many of the light stands I have hanging around. What can I say, it's $3 dollar shipped with a handy mount I can use for several small cameras and devices. Find it here: Mini Flexible Gripping Tripod

• 32 Comments

•

transcend-32gb-shdc-class-10-zipkit
Transcend 32GB Class 10 SDHC Kit - Amazon

I'm in search to fill the card slots in the Canon 60D on order. For those who swear by the affordable Transcend SDHC cards, i'm surprised that SDHC cards have really dropped in price. Considering every new camera announced is practically using this format, and Nikon's new D7000 has dual slots, there would be some demand inflating prices. I've been looking at other options, but wow the Sandisk brand is going for more than twice the price!

I have to admit that i'm sold on those Transcend 32GB Compact flash cards I received. They are now standard issue in my cameras and have had absolutely no issues offering fast dump times through my Belkin card reader. So I think i'll take my chances. Available at BHPHOTOVideo and Amazon, these Transcend 32GB Class 10 SDHC Cards should be a hot seller after Photokina. I think i'll try these for the new Canon 60D I have on order.

If you're not feeling the Card Reader kit, you can save a few more dollars for just the card itself over at BHPhotoVideo.com

transcend-32gb-class-10

• 5 Comments

•

The Swintronix Powerbase 70 Battery Pack is back in stock again. Supposedly 6 times longer run time than a single Canon LP-E6 Rechargeable Lithium-Ion Battery, it is designed with two optional power ports for powering up other compatible accessories. Yeah I know, Swintronix Powerbase is old news right? Not really, since this battery pack is designed for use with the Canon 5D Mark II & Canon 7D which shares it's battery type with the Canon EOS 60D. Get where i'm going with this? Theoretically it should have absolutely no problems powering up the new Canon 60D camera, and with it's mounting capabilities can double up to be used as that rear weight on your new shoulder rig. Double function means lighter run and gun rig since you don't need to add on that extra battery grip + extra rig weight. Soon as the Canon 60D DSLR starts shipping, expect these power packs to sell out just as quickly. The charger for the packs are sold seperately which might be a good thing. You can purchase several battery packs without having to incur costs of having multiple chargers.

swintronix-power-canon-5d-7d-60d
Switronix PowerBase Battery Pack Canon EOS 5D Mk II & 7D Pricing

swintronix-power-base-charger
Switronix POWER CHRGR f/PB70/NP-L60/EX-L96/XPL90

• 5 Comments

•

caster-wheels-studio-light-stands
find-price-button Light Stand Caster Wheels

Not sure how many of you are already working with Light Stands, but i've been working on my studio slowly and one of the things i've been trying to build is a rolling platform for the many different light stands I have. Because I use sand bags to prevent the lights from toppling over, it's a bit awkward to move them to a new spot. Calumet has some rolling stands but they are BuKu bucks.

calumet-rolling-light-stand
Calumet Rolling Light Stand $249.00

My first idea was to sand bag the stands over furniture dollies. Most dollies that I found were wide enough were quite expensive though. Recently I just found exactly what I needed! These Caster Wheels for Studio Light Stands are perfect. They simply slide on and bolt on over the feet of light stands. Not too bad for the $10 dollars each price but the convenience for me outweighs the cost and it keeps a small footprint in the studio. The listing shows an image of 1, but they come in a quantity of 3. Just thought i'd share. Find them here: Slip on Caster Wheels for Studio Light Stands

• 34 Comments

•

nikon-d7000-dslrcanon-60d-dslr

The end of 2010 is an exciting time with all these manufacturers introducing new cameras. There's a whirlwind of features Nikon is throwing down in their new Nikon D7000 DSLR. The new Nikon D3100 Digital SLR was also announced which should make some Nikon shooters happy stepping things up to 1080p video. The Nikon D3100, we say, is paired up against the T2i market. This new Nikon D7000 is the more advanced model that will be competing against Canon 60D shoppers. It's about $100 dollars over the Canon 60D, but here's some of the new Nikon D7000 features. Coming in at 16 megapixels, the D7000 can shoot 1080p or 720p. Nothing special there. Options for 24frames per second and 30fps video. That's pretty standard these days.

If you care, this Nikon D7000 has Full time Auto focus in video mode and 39 point AF system. Like more expensive Nikons this one is rockin' dual SDHC/SDXC card slots, 6fps shooting up to 100 images, a new longer lasting battery, and a Magnesium alloy body. Whoa. There's quite a bit of features that the 60D lacks. The 60D can shoot almost as fast and doesn't have a magnesium alloy body. (60D had a slight upgrade adding some weather proofing though).

The Nikon D7000 doesn't appear to move into Variable Angle LCD (swivel) territory. The Canon 60D also has 60fps frame rates which I hear is hard to live without these days, and Nikon doesn't seem to have this option. No full time auto focus on the 60D like the D7000 has, but most of us wouldn't use it. Canon doesn't go with Dual card slots, but does come in 2 megapixels more in resolution. The Canon 60D also carries the new infrared trigger to fire flashes remotely, which I don't see an option for in the D7000. The Canon 60D might be better in low light from the ISO specs, but we'll just have to wait and see. It's a tough call with pros and cons for each one, but keep in mind that DSLR bodies always change, and your real investment is going to be in your lenses and other accessories. Sooner or later you'll have to make your DSLR bed and lay in it....lay in it for quite a while..

If anybody cares about why I shoot Canon, here's my story. Decades ago (it wasn't really that long) I shot with Canon, Nikon, Fuji (which was a nikon body and Fuji chip), Olympus, and Kodak DSLR's. Canon, year after year, and to this day (my opinion) has been the 'leader' in DSLR technology. There's controversy about this, and you might say they don't make the best glass, or produce the best images, but they've always had the best balance in latest features, pricing, and quality. I can always change bodies, but it's hard to change everything else. It's why I stuck with Canon a long time ago. Today it seems like a whole new ballgame with the switch to video and kinda feels like what it did over 10 years ago. It's a new market of shooters, and who's going to end up the leader? So for the newbies who aren't quite invested, looks like you've GOt some CAreful thiNking to dO Now. (<--subliminal message embedded) nikon-d7000-dslr
Nikon D7000 Pricing

canon-60d-dslr
Canon EOS 60D Pricing