Tools

The key to tools is how well you use them, not how fancy they are. An old wooden hammer in the hands of an experienced carpenter is better than the newest carbon steel hammer in the hands of a weekend warrior. Similarly, a cheap video camera in the hands of someone who has used it on many shoots will capture better video than a top-notch camera in inexperienced hands. The best of both worlds is to have excellent tools you know how to use.

Blip Account

If you're new to Blip, take a look at our Walkthrough. We offer two types of accounts, the Free account and the Pro account.

• Free account. Our free account will give you all the features you need to distribute a show. Your original upload will not be watermarked with our brand, or re-compressed. We'll make a Flash version for you that will play on all browsers and give you all the permalinks to your different formats. You can cross-post, upload and syndicate wherever you want, and you can use our show player on your own Web site.
• Pro account. A Pro account provides additional features to your free account. You must first open a free account before upgrading to a Pro account. With the use of a Pro account, you can schedule uploads (while you're vacationing in Hawaii), designate videos as private, have priority transcoding over Free account users, and have iPod or MP3 versions made automatically.

Computer

Video is a hard drive space, memory and processor hog. You'll quickly find that you run out of room on your hard drive, and that you dream of buying a faster computer, with a bigger monitor.

• Mac or PC with at least 20 gigabytes of free space on your hard drive. This much space will last you at least one episode! Ok, maybe two. Your computer should be fast enough for most everyday video production tasks. Typically, this means owning a computer that fulfills the system requirements of the video editing software you use. We suggest starting with a new computer, if you can. It should have at least twice the RAM as the manufacturer suggests. Blip show producers we've interviewed usually suggest starting out on Macs because they come with free iMovie and use QuickTime software to export movies in .mov format.
• Updated Operating System. On a Mac, use the updated OS X. On a PC, use XP or Vista. Before you start editing video on an older computer you need to make sure your software is updated and things are running smoothly.
• External Hard Drive. You will run out of space and you will need a back up solution. It's just the way it is. Get external Firewire 400 or 800 drives running at 7200rpm (or higher) with a fast seek time. This is for making your show on. You can back up on any external drive (USB2, Firewire, etc.), but it is generally recommended to stay with Firewire 400 or 800 drives, such as Other World Computing, or LaCie Inc..

Software

This is a very basic list of software that Blip users tell us is indispensable, but here are plenty of other programs that may get the job done for you. If other software works for you, use it!

• The latest iMovie (Mac) or MovieMaker (PC). They're free! And you'd be surprised how many shows use them, especially iMovie. This is excellent software to learn on. If you outgrow these applications, the editing applications we hear the most about are Final Cut Pro, Premier and Avid.
Most people use Adobe Photoshop for editing photos and text.
• QuickTime Pro (QT). QT is needed to make video that works with iPod, iTunes, and Apple TV. Macs come with the free version of QT which which iMovie uses to export. QT works on PC and is a free download. To export on a PC you'll need to "Go Pro" for about $30. The Export section has detailed export settings.
• Graphics editing software. You've got to be able to make thumbnail images using photos, text, and graphics. Paint.net for PC, and Seashore for Mac are both excellent free alternatives to Photoshop.

Cameras

What kind of camera you use depends a lot on what kind of show you are making. Most shows will need to start with at least a budget camcorder. No matter what camera you get, shoot and edit lots of very short videos, in a variety of locations. This is a good way to learn how to get the best video from your camera.

Quality video can be captured by a cheap camera if you understand lighting and audio basics which we'll cover below. If you have the budget, get a still camera to make thumbnails and production photos for your Web site.

• Webcam. Tiny built-in camera on your computer screen, or built to be clipped on to your computer or desk. <$50. You can do a talking-head show with a Webcam, but the resolution is sub-par because they use CMOS instead of CCD sensors and have low-quality lenses. If you do use one, bathe your face in good quality light, either from high quality bulbs or from indirect sunlight via a window.
Video cameras are going the way of still cameras and using Flash Cards making for no moving parts. There's also a move to DVD or hard drives, but the card system is seeming like it will win out. At the consumer end you've got card cameras like thisPC Mag's Secure Digital reviews. And new standards like the Sony and Panasonic joint venture AVCHD. At the professional end there's the P2-type solid state media cards, cameras and decks. The much loved < $6000.00 Panasonic HVX200 is the bees knees for indie film/TV makers for example. Here's a CNET review, a camera geek review. It uses a CODEC that is 100 Mbit/sec true DVCPRO HD inter-frame, not HDV's 25 Mbit/sec intra-frame MPEG-2. And of course, we can dream of a Red Camera.
• Still Cameras. About $200-$300. Some digital still cameras shoot acceptable video. Look for cameras that shoot at least 640x480 pixels and 15 frames per second. Still cameras are amazingly portable and unobtrusive, but they usually don't have an external mic port. You'll have to stay very close to your subjects to get good audio, and avoid zooming in at all! It cuts the light and increases shake. We recommend keeping a good, small digital camera around for documentation and thumbnail creation. Check out PC Magazine's Editor's Picks for ultra-compact digital cameras.
• Consumer Video Cameras. About $300-$900. Whatever camera you go with, be sure it has an external mic jack, headphone jack and manual focus. For now, miniDV tape cameras are the best bang for the buck, but card and hard drive cameras are fast on their tail and will eventually become the norm. Check out CNET's Editor's Pick/Budget Camcorders.
• Pro and prosumer Video Cameras: About $1000 +. At this level, look for rugged construction, more manual controls, mic and headphone jacks, and "HD" video. If you can, get progressive scan capability. HD video compresses very well and is certainly the future. However, just as it is with still cameras, image quality is not always about megapixels or resolution. The quality of the lens (aka. optics), the chips that record the light, and how the media is saved is also critical. Editor's Choice, Camcorders Over $800, from PC Magazine.

Mics

The use of external mics is the single biggest difference between amateur and professional video. Amateurs think of video as video. Professionals think of video as video complimented by audio. Think of a movie theater. Say your home TV is 10 times as small. The sound is probably 20 times as bad. Sound can make a movie sink or swim. On a Hollywood set, the audio is so important that it is recorded separately by a separate crew. This is where the famous clapboard slate comes from. It is a tool for syncing up audio to video. The good news is that you don't have to spend a lot of money to get good sound.

There are three main types of mics. Even cheap ones will be better than using the built-in mic on some video cameras. Make sure any mic you buy has the right cable connections to plug into your specific model of camera.

• Hand-held dynamic (not battery powered) or condenser (battery powered). Good for interviews, especially in loud areas. Hand-held dynamic mics are the way to start because they are cheap and durable. Examples: This is a very affordable wired dynamic hand-held. If you can afford it, the legendary Shure SM-57 is worth every penny of about $100.
• Shotgun condenser. Mount it to a camera and one person can get usable audio, while also moving around quickly with the video camera. Use on a boom pole to shoot dialogue on movie-like shoots. Example: Shotgun Mics.
• Lapel. Wired lapels are good for TV studios and interviews. Wireless lapel systems, used in reality TV and documentary production, are much more expensive. Example: Wired Lapel. .

Lights

Remember, it's "lights, camera, action!" So let there be light. And lots of it! In full spectrum brilliance - but diffused a bit and from multiple directions, thank you very much. And while we're at it, let there be a pox on fluorescent light!

• Natural Light. aka. the Sun, yes, the Sun. It's our favorite light bulb. In the daytime, shoot with your subjects facing a window and you'll be amazed at the difference. Buy some foam core and you can bounce sunlight to simulate more than one light. But natural light will only take you so far. It moves around a lot, flirts with clouds and tends to go off every night.
• Consumer Lights. You can use cheap clip lamps with "natural lightbulbs" from your local hardware store. Halogen construction lights have also been known to light more than a few low budget films.
• Video Lights. Once you get a budget, you'll need lights made for video production. Here's an example of low-budget lights from B&H Photo starting with the cheapest.

Miscellaneous

• Tripod. You need a tripod or mono-pod. Camera shake is the mark of the home movie. If you are totally broke, use objects like a stool or ladder. Start with an inexpensive one. Dream of a nice one. Examples: Low-end Bogen Tripod. People also like the Gorilla Pod.
• Headphones. (if your camera has a headphone jack, use your iPod-type headphones if you have to, but ideally you want a pair of "Around The Ears (Circumaural)" headphones so you can judge the quality of your audio better by blocking out outside noise. There are plenty of headphones for under $30. Here are headphones available from B&H Photo sorted from lowest to highest priced.
• Stuff that is commonly used on every set, no matter how small. Duct tape, Sharpie pen, clothes pins, spring clamps, leather gloves, knife or "Leatherman" type tool, flashlight, clipboard, pencils/pens, drinking water, snacks, aspirin, business cards, step-ladder, power-strips, batteries, lens wipe, towel, and back-ups of everything.

Links

• Digital Camcorder News. Good place to keep track of all the new cameras and where they are being reviewed. Aimed at consumers and prosumer.
• Radio Shack. Great place to start.
• We love the famous B&H Photo. They usually have good staff to talk to about any and all gear for video and still cameras. If you're ever in New York City, make sure to stop by and check out their amazing store, but leave your credit card behind!
• Steve's Digicams trusted reviews of digital cameras and camcorders.
• Simply DV from the UK. Great for camcorder reviews.
• Ken Stone, Journal From Making a TV Pilot Using P2 System and HVX 200s
• Video Maker Reviews. Video Maker Magazine camera reviews. A site geared for the professional.