Since My Nikon D3100 doesn’t have an Audio-In port, I have to use an external audio recorder to record the audio coming out of the Rode. This review won’t concentrate on how well the Rode works connected to DSLR’s, since I haven’t tested it with any cameras that have Audio-In ports. Other than that, using an external recorder or a DSLR makes no difference.

The clarity of the Rode compared to that of my on-camera mic is amazing. The signal-to-noise ratio is significantly higher, and the dynamic range is much better as well. When I was recording a choir recital, which had lots of loud sounds with lapses of quiet in between, my on-camera mic struggled to keep up. It would raise its sensitivity during quiet parts, and when loud noises came, they would clip. Even when it had adjusted, it still didn’t capture the full range that the Rode did. The Rode Videomic captures a much more natural, realistic sounding sound, especially when dealing with dialogue.

Even though the Rode easily outperforms my on-camera mic under average circumstances, the difference only gets more pronounced as audio-recording situations get worse. Bombing hills on a longboard with my on-camera mic produces nothing but a bunch of wind noise, while with the Rode with a DeadCat, there is still some wind noise, but it actually sounds like wind, rather than 10 787′s flying overhead. Without the Deadcat it works better than my on-board mic, but not that much better. If you’re filming in high winds, definitely get the Deadcat.

As far as disadvantages go, the Rode Videomic doesn’t have many. Its almost 10 inches long so it can get in the way, but as far as actually shooting goes, the mic stays out of my viewfinder even when I have my lens zoomed out to 18m. If you got any wider it would show up, but since I don’t have a lens wider than 18mm, that hasn’t been a problem yet.

Overall, the Rode is amazing. Its not cheap, but the difference it makes when recording audio is significant. If you’re interested in getting high-quality audio without a bunch of hassle with cables and mic poles, I’d highly recommend the Rode.

This post is going to be more of a film-nerd approach to longboard filmmaking (and filmmaking as a whole) than a longboarder’s approach to breaking down the actual tricks performed in the video or the set-up used to perform them on, so if you were expecting the latter, turn back while you have the chance. You’ve been warned!

Of all the videos I’ve shot, this is the one I have the least cinematic reservations about. We had over 30 shooting-hours (3 times what we had on The Divisive Device, our longest movie ever!), so I was able to get a lot of footage. Since I got so much footage  I was able to be very picky as an editor, resulting in a tighter, better cut than most of our other movies. In post I made extensive use of the YouTube Video Editor’s ability to interpolate frames, allowing me to slow clips down 400%, great for the slow, dreamy look so common in action videos. There was a bit of aliasing around the edges of moving subjects, but the end result looks way better than showing the clip at 6fps.

The camera rigs in this video were numerous.  I tested out all sorts of ideas I’d had in the past but hadn’t been able to execute, due to time constraints and laziness. I got moving shots with bikes, longboards, dirt bikes, and a homemade cable-cam, and, to mix things up, I was able to use a bucket truck to get a higher vantage point.

In the end, this video is kind of a “proof-of-concept”, so not all of the rigs and techniques I used worked perfectly, or were used to their full potential, but I’m looking forward to shooting a lot more videos- the stuff I learned shooting this video applies not only to longboard videos, but film as a whole!

Enjoy!

I purchased a Davis & Sanford Provista 7518 Tripod and FM18 Fluid head 4 months ago. I’ve used it a lot, taking it through 10 states and filming hours of footage with it, so I figured I’d do a review.

Pros:
The price is great. $200 isn’t cheap, but compared to $600 and up for a similar tripod from high-end manufacturers like Manfrotto, this tripod is a great price.
Build quality was very good. The tripod is almost entirely metal, making this tripod very sturdy and tough. I feel much more comfortable trusting my camera to this tripod than to some $25 plastic one.
The fluid head works very well. After years of working with $30 plastic tripods with flimsy pan heads, the fluid head is like heaven on earth. Smooth pans are so much easier, especially at low speeds, which would cause non-fluid heads to jerk rather than smoothly rotate.
I love the height of this tripod. Many tripods only reach up to 58 or 60 inches, even with the central pedestal raised. The 7518 can go all the way up to 64 inches, using only the legs (the 7518 lacks a central pedestal).
This is great, as every inch counts when you want your camera to be at eye-level.

Cons:
I said earlier this tripod is all metal. This is great for stability, but not so great for weight. The 7518 tips the scales at well over 10 pounds- not that huge, but every pound adds up when you’re hiking several miles to get to a location. Over half the weight comes from the fluid head, which, while great for videographers, is little more than a heavy, useless chunk of metal for still photographers. If all you plan to do is shoot stills, a lighter tripod with a ball head would probably be a better option.
The 7518 goes relatively high compared to many other tripods, but, because of the long leg sections and central spreader, the 7518 can’t go any lower than two feet. This stinks if you’re trying to do macro work or low POV shots with a tripod.
I mentioned earlier that the 7518 doesn’t have a central column. This can be a turn-off for some, but as a general rule its good, since you don’t have the temptation to destabilize your tripod by raising the non-existant center pedestal.
This tripod is meant for video, so it only has a 2-axis pan-and-tilt head, as opposed to many still tripods, which have 3-axis heads. If you want a tripod that can shoot portrait-oriented shots, look elsewhere.

Conclusion:
The 7518 with FM18 fluid head is a great tripod and head combo, for a great price. Its not perfect, but for the price its a very good option. Still photographers would probably be better served by a lighter, simpler tripod, but for video with some stills thrown in, this tripod is great.

Anybody can make their shutter actuate, but that doesn’t mean anyone can make great pictures.

Out of all the pictures I’ve taken this year, less than 100 were what I’d really call good. That doesn’t sound like a lot, but I’m happy. Last year I had no idea what an F/stop was, how to set your ISO, or how to shoot pictures on anything but Auto Mode, and now I never use Auto Mode.

I’m looking forward to learning even more this year, and looking back over my second year of serious photography!

Enjoy!

Enjoy!

Southwest Trip Pictures

Enjoy!