Video making tutorials needed

Hi,
I am new to DSLR video capability and still trying to learn more on this. Could someone please guide me to some good tutorials to pick up on videography?
Basically trying to learn details on video mode on 5D2 for a documentary.

Would appreciate any help/pointers on this. Thanks

Deepak

go on youtube and search 'learning dslr video' dave dougdale is pretty good at explaining stuff and keeping it simple. other than that honestly videography isnt an easy thing to just learn online. you can learn the basics of how the 5D2 works but its one thing to learn how to do it online and its another thing to thoroughly understand how your camera operates from countless hours of using it in video mode. no better way to know the capabilities of your tools than to actually use them

Also search youtube for a show called DSLR Film Noob, that guy is very good at teaching technique and tech for DSLR video production.

Other than that, just keep reading this forum and ask specific questions when you have them. Do a search for that question here first and then ask if you don't find what you are looking for. You can learn so much from this site. There is a wealth of knowledge here. You just have to ask the right questions.

And finally, take your camera out and do some shooting with it. It doesn't have to be any specific subject, just shoot it and learn from your mistakes. You will make them and you will learn from them. And you will get better eventually.

Good luck!

So here's three thing I suggest investing or start saving up.
1. Audio - buy the best (shotgun and audio recorder)
2. Purchase a smallHD DP4 (it's will be your BEST investment)
3. Tripod or monopod.

and last but not least, you buy cheap you'll spent twice and will waste your time.

this is after you taken some of the advises from the guys about!

A lot is also in the editing of the footage that you obtain.

Perfect.. thanks a lot guys... No doubt this is one of the best places to learn. Thanks. I'll check on these tutorials to get myself started.

Can anyone explain how is a video tripod different from still for a DSLR video shoot? I understand the fluid head provides better control on pan and tilt. Or is there anything else that I am not getting?

Orguss wrote in post #14916339
So here's three thing I suggest investing or start saving up.
1. Audio - buy the best (shotgun and audio recorder)
2. Purchase a smallHD DP4 (it's will be your BEST investment)
3. Tripod or monopod.

and last but not least, you buy cheap you'll spent twice and will waste your time.

this is after you taken some of the advises from the guys about!

i would suggest for a complete new comer to video not to invest in the best audio until that person learns about the different types of mics and how audio capture is achieved that way they dont buy something and regret purchasing the wrong thing later. i also would not suggest a HD field monitor until the new comer has more experience. video is rather intimidating when you first try and it would feel awful to sink money in equipment and not understand why your movies dont look amazing

i suggest get a kit lens and a cheap prime like the 50 1.8, and some cheap lights, and a middle of the road hotshoe mounted microphone and tripod to start. and learn the basics and then when your equipment is not capable of assisting you in recording something you need thats when you purchase dedicated gear for it.


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also search for filmRIOT on youtube. he is a graduate of fullsail i think and does video/filmmaking tutorials that are pretty great and a little humorous as well.

Just invest in a Manfrotto 561BHDV-1, use it 90% of the time, specially if you want to move fast it better than a tripod.

Looks good... But before investing much, let me first try to learn if I can actually take it or not. what say?

Some strange recommendations for this person, telling him to buy some pretty expensive stuff, like a SmallHD monitor?? I think a cheap LCD Loupe would make more sense for this person.

Anyways, here is what I recommend:
Cheap Tripod
Cheap Tripod head
Cheap LCD Loupe
Magic Lantern 2.3 (free)

With just these things you could make an incredibly good video if you learn how to use them.

+1 to what Kento said with the exception of tripod. No matter what he ends up doing, a good tripod will always be useful. Anyone who can afford a 5d can likely afford at least a middle of the road tripod. Cheap tripods can frustrate experts and beginners alike. Nothing worse than feeling completely inept because you can't get a decent pan due to the piece of crap tripod you cut corners on. Then again we may be thinking of different things when we say "cheap". When I think cheap, I am thinking department store 99% plastic with integrated head.

I don't agree with suggesting specific optional preference items to someone just learning their way. Although I do shoot with magic lantern, the OP should be warned that such things may void your canon warranty since it is still basically an unauthorized hack to their software. An HD LCD dscreen may be the solution, but I would ty the cheap LCD loupe first simply because it may still prove useful if you do end up getting an expensive monitor later.

The youtube searches are a good idea, Several people like the DSLRnoob guy show a lot of these accessories in easy to understand language

Very much with recommending Dave Dougdale and also add Phill Bloom. Some great stuff on both those sites.

I'm also much of a view that you can learn some worthwhile lessons from using cheap gear. You will ditch it very quickly but you will also learn a great deal and appreciate why the expensive gear is worth spending the money on, or not. You have to look at the cheap stuff as a write off though so you will spend more in the long run. (But you will spend it from a position of experience so you will better judge how far you want to go with your next purchase.)

You don't appreciate how good a Porsche is unless you have driven something else first.

The best way to establish what YOU want is to get on and shoot some (lots) of video. It will quickly become apparent what YOU need. If you shoot outdoor events in the sunshine, fast glass and lights wont be as important as an ND filter for example.

Get an average price tripod and a monopod and see how you get on. You don't want to spend £300 on a Gitzo Monopod if you never use the one you have or £600 an a Schatler tripod and head (which is still exceptionally good value) if you always use a monopod.

If you spend £130 on a tripod and £130 on a head you will be surprised how much use they still get even after you have upgraded (as you will if you carry on doing video) but they should be adequate not to annoy you in the first instance.

My first mic was £30 and the next 5x that (and that is still cheap) but I appreciate the difference. My current mic does what I want at the moment. In due course I have little doubt I will be spending £500+ on a mic but, by then, I will know why I am spending that amount. I could have saved myself £30 and bought my current mic first but then (perhaps) I would now be closer to the next upgrade.
Audio gear is hugely complex and also very subjective. I know people who swear by eBay lav mics because the look at them as a consumable. Others would shudder at the thought. Audio is helped considerably by proximity which is where even a cheap lav scores - because it is closer to the sound source than any other noises. Once you have got to that point it is then down to you how much the quality annoys you, or not, as to how much more you want to spend to improve upon it.

Pick up this book: LINK

Some great piece of advice here. Sorry, I was out for few days so could not check the page. BTW, I already have a Gitzo and a Markins ballhead. Does having a fluid head help in video making? I have never used a fluid head or a video tripod earlier, so absolutely no clue on what they do and how they are different from the ones for still photography. Can someone please explain the differences? May be then I'll be in a better position to understand the gear requirement.

A quality video pan head will allow you to set what is known as "drag" in both tilt and pan axis.

Drag controls how freely each axis will move. Less drag and the camera will spin freely in pan and probably fall over (if not balanced) in tilt. Adding drag actually makes you work against the tension such that you retain total positive control. The camera won't pan beyond or tilt beyond where you start and stop your move.

There are mechanical heads that can do this but fluid heads are traditionally smoother and won't wear out as fast.