The "big job" invoices have been submitted... and once I actually get the checks, I can finally move up to the EX3. (Too bad I have apparently missed the rebate period but what are you gonna do, right?)

I am budgeting $10,500 for new capital equipment. (Maybe a little more if another pending job comes in).

So after $8300 for the camera - What else should I invest in with the remaining $2000 or so?

I am good on the computer side (New Mac Pro & monitors from the last "big job) so I'd appreciate advice purely on the camera/production side. What are the essential add ons you kids recommend?

I shoot training films (lots of greenscreen/Interview stuff and indoor footage under lousy lighting conditions); promotional films (lot of factory stuff indoors and theme park stuff outdoors) plus other odd projects.

Thanks...I really look forward to hearing wish list thoughts.

Lucky

Good tripod, matte box, filters, production monitor, Pelican case, headphones, mics. Lot more than $2K if you really want to have the best but the specifics are up to you.

Noah

Don't forget media. SxS (my recommendation) or SDHC card with adapter (I have some but don't trust them, OK I am paranoid I have the PHU-60 as well and hardly ever use it).

A better mounting plate is a must:
DM-Accessories - EX3-PLATE Reinforcement Plate for EX3 Camcorders (http://shop.dm-accessories.com/products/ex3-plate)
EX3 Heavy Duty Base Plate System | VFGadgets.com (http://www.vfgadgets.com/grip-camera/ex3-heavy-duty-base-plate-system)

The Vortex Media Field guide is a great thing to have. The DVD too.

Other than that it is like any other video camera, bag, mikes, raingear, I like the Miller Solo sticks for EX3 and of course Extra batteries. I am sure I am forgetting something.

On Location lights, I love the Chris Gyoury’s Lighting System:
Lighting for film, video, photography by Gyoury Evolved (http://www.evolvedlighting.com/)

OK it is really easy to spend money.

Thanks for the ideas so far...but I was of those dads who always told my kids tell me exactly what they wanted for Christmas..."A bike? What bike? At what store? What Color? As a result they were never disappointed.

So, can those who are kind enough to respond be more specific?

I do indeed understand I need mics...travel cases...tripods (I am actually digging on the SOOM but for $3,000 that is some heavy lifting.)

Can you be more specific to gear that specifically is working well with EX3's? What bag in particular? What Matte Box? Any Ideas on the relatively New ARRI rig? What mic is really working well for you? The reinforced base plates was great input I would have never thought about.

Just got some new business from an old client this morning, my budget just went up to 5 grand over the cost of the camera so feel free to spend my money vicariously.

Again thanks for the input.

So many choices...i have about $15,000 in audio; you want the whole list? Same for the lighting package :)

I like my vinten vision 3 fluid head & stix, about $3000
I like my W/A lens, about $4000.
I like my manfrotto zoom controller, about $300
I like my Dolgin 2 place battery charger & 2 extra large size batteries, about $600
I like my 4 MxR adapters, about $50 each.
I like my 8 Transcend 16gb cards, about $40 each
My matte box is too old to remember what it cost! But I do like having one along with a 4X4 pola
Like the clear filter for the lenses too

I like my W/A lens, about $4000.
I like my manfrotto zoom controller, about $300

Slightly off topic... Ed, please post up stills or a clip showing the Fujinon in it's wide angle glory against a bunch of vertical & horizontal lines. Interested to see what the barrel distortion is like.. I assume on the cost of the lens you mentioned that it is the Fujinon wide angle made for the EX3.

Back to Lucky's post. Like Ed, I had most of his stuff on my hit list. I went for the .75 Century Wide Angle/Zoom through. I am happy with it as it pretty much lives on the camera but it is now not a hand holdable camera anymore. The auxillary zoom control is pretty much "a first purchase". I have the Manfrotto one but there are others. Bebob makes one, Libec and maybe one or two other manufacturers (there are a few threads on the topic). Sounds like you need microphones. There is a great review/bakeoff on 2 Sennheiser hypercardioid/short boom mics. Go for the more expensive one. Seriously.

You probably need an on camera light for the kind of work you do. There are lots of options. Tried & true could be a Frezzi. More modern there is an inexpensive Lite Panels LED fixture that runs off AA batteries. More posh is the Zylight but way more expensive and requires big 12 volt batteries to power for long stints.

Cleaning supplies. If you haven't shot HD, you got to realize that you have to keep your lenses clean, clean along with lots of attention to focus in your shooting. Typical stuff and inexpensive. Blower blub, cleaning clothes & cleaning pens.

Memory. Spend some time getting to know the options for SDHC cards and adaptors. You can buy them from Amazon marketplace and eBay. There is also a nifty Pelican case for the SDHC cards. Essential in my mind. Also CaseLogic cases for the adaptor cards (use the forum search to get the scoop).

Kata makes a good bag for the EX3 and there are a couple of others.

All the info is here on the forum. Spend a few evenings doing the research and all will become clear.

Andrew
Pretty busy right now. Maybe next week?

Sorry.

e

Don't be sorry Ed. Good to be busy.

If you are able to post up with stuff down the road your feelings about the Fujinon lens over the other wide angle zoom throughs available, assuming you have had experience with the others out there... Now that I am thinking about it, it might be productive to start a separate thread showing some stills from the various wide angle solutions out there for the EX3 (and EX1).

I have that new Fuji EX wide and it's great. I use it on a jib, and performs just like a $12,000 lens. The front diameter is 100mm, so most matte boxes will work as well. Great lens for the price. Only down fall, is that it just makes the front end, that much more front heavy. It's the same weight as a 2/3 Fuji wide. But that's not the len's fault.
Here's some screen shot and info from Abel.
Sony / XDCAM / SxS | CineTechnica - Page 2 (http://blog.abelcine.com/category/sony/page/2/)

Something to consider on your shopping list as well:
One of the first things I got for my Ex3 was the B+W 486 IR filter to fix the "red contamination". If you want your blacks to be black and not crimson red or some weird dark brown tint that is the way to go. especially filming in bad lighting conditions.
not essential but nice and effective are Warm cards, just if you want to get some more from your white balance.

Do you have no equipment at all?

A good tripod and microphone are the most important pieces of equipment outside of the camera itself.

- Buy a #2 Soft/Efx Tiffen filter (for interviews, it soften faces)

- If you shoot interviews, buy a softbox and some Chimera window patterns.
CHIMERA Window Patterns (http://www.chimeralighting.com/dspProduct.asp?productid=33)

If you are doing interviews, please consider the new Sennheizer EW 100 ENG G3 wireless set. Impressive signal/noise!

Another thing that you need to invest is in archiving ( though you might have already calculated that in computer expenses). store your material on dedicated external Hard Drives for backup, burn to discs ( dvd, blue ray...).

Sorry, I forgot my Chevy Express 1 ton extended van. if you're gonna load up with the tools, you gotta have a real truck to haul it all in!!!!
C-stands, 6X6 silks, 12 X 14 ultimatte, 4 chimeras, over a dozen lights, cables, misc grip, etc etc, etc all need storage space.

Thanks for all of the great input..though I have to say I will be dead and gone before I can glom all of the stuff Ed Kukla suggested...

After reading your posts and others on the boards I do have some questions...

Sounds like the little Sony PHU 60K sux...So a combo of 8 -16 - 32 cards is the media answer...I know I can do the workaround with the cheaper cards/adapters but OE Equipment seems smarter at the beginning. (on the other hand the new AJA Ki looks very sweet). Agree?
Seems like UV and or UV/IR filters are essential?
Seems like the baseplate add on is essential?
My old BM sticks and head seem a bit on the light side so I am sniffing out the new 0742 FSB-8T Tripod System with DA 75LTripod...good choice for under $2000?
What about a case/travel case...The VIDEOCRUZER case seems smart for travel but a PortaBrace or other seems like a smart thing to have for everyday hauling around as well.
Also could I get a bit more imput on a mic...perhaps one that will be good on camera but can also be hung on a boom for one or two shot indoor inteviews.

Thanks again...

Thanks again for your input.

One more thought . . . EBAY!!!

I found an excellent Schoeps CM4 mic for only $800.00 on Ebay.

EBAY might be a way for you to make the most of your very small budget.

Look at the following, organized by price. My preference is the 416. No one ever gets fired for buying Sennheiser and it's tough as nails.
Rode NTG-1
Sennheiser ME67/K6P
Sanken CS1
Sennheiser MKH-416
Schoeps CMIT5U

For UV filter I still recommend the B+W 486 slim Ir filter. it is also a UV filter. Try filming some different black material and you'll see that you often get dark brown instead of black with the EX family (and is nearly impossible to fix in post), there are whole threads about this problem. anyway it is always good practice to protect your lens with a UV filter.
The base plate is also pretty essential as the tiny screws that hold the mount of the EX3 are not reliable (the screws can fall off and the plate isn't all that strong, I had a previous sony camera with the same piece and it eventually broke). I have the DM mounting plate and feel much better knowing that the bottom is solid and well connected to a tripod, it is really well built and has many more mounting options.

First, this is only a suggestion to try and be helpful. A Devil's Advocate approach, with a little outside-the-box thinking.

Don't spend $8300 on an EX3 and leave $5K for other essentials. Maybe buy an EX1 (same quality image) for $6100, or about $5K used, and have a bunch more money for the tools you need to really take advantage of the image the XDCAM EX series can produce.

Redrock Micro's M2 Encore Complete package: $4100 -- includes matt box and filter holders, follow focus, rails, bases, tools, crank and whips, and of course, the M2 Encore lens adapter and flip accessory for using low cost and wonderful SLR lenses. Everything for less than the cost of a second lens for the EX3.

An EX3 alone won't give you a matt box, filter holders, or great depth of field. Renting lenses for the EX3 will cost you a lot of money before you get experienced with them, and you have to deal with the availability. The $4K Redrock package on top of a $5K EX1 lets you have a lot of gear to use right away, and you can own a couple great Canon or Nikon prime lenses for less money than renting a couple of lenses for an EX3 for a week.

That should leave about $3500+ for other gear. Budget up to $2K for a good fluid head & tripod. I use a Sachtler DV6, but I don't have a ton of gear on top adding extra weight. The HD image of either EX will make you regret using a cheap head - my old Bogen 501 (not the newer HDV) was just too sticky to get smooth pans, and it showed on screen.

Unless you need awesomely pristine sound, you could scrimp a tad on mics and get by for a while, and upgrade later. Rode NTG2 = $270 and decent sound, plus the battery means you're not stuck using phantom power (but can if you want). An Oktava MK012 kit for $350 gets you a good sounding mic with cardiod, hypercardioid and omni capsules. They seem to be more susceptible to handling noise, but if you boom mount it overhead on a stand for interviews, it should work well, and you don't need a sound guy. The AT875R is getting nice reviews for both on-camera and off, $200. None of these will sound like a Schoeps or a Sennheiser MKH60, but will leave you a lot of money for cables, a small mixer (SoundDevices MixPre, 2 inputs - $675, or SignVideo ENG-44, 4 inputs for $545 shipped). A decent Sennheiser wireless lav setup will run about $600 with the stock mic, not as good sounding as with a better lav mic, but commonly used with success. Of course, you may need two for an interview if going all wireless. You can almost always sell your decent (but much cheaper) mics later when you want to buy more expensive ones of better quality.

Greenscreen and crappy indoor lighting means you need at least some lights. Steve Kaeser sells cheap daylight-balanced fluorescent lighting kits with decent quality stands and great 3-second open softboxes for $300–$900, depending on the set-up and how much light you need. CoolLights.biz has a 600w LED light with barndoors that dims and you can switch off banks as well, $425. You never change a bulb, they don't get hot, they can can run off a battery (optional adapter required) and they only weigh 3 lbs (10" x 10"). Daylight or Tungsten, spot or flood. Comes with a very well-designed nylon case. For on-camera or hairlight (or lots of other uses), consider the Microbeam 128 LED from FloLights, $329 - you get 686 lux at 3 ft, dimmable, 5400K with filters to convert to tungsten, etc. Requires a camera battery (your choice of mounts) that you probably already have.

$4100 isn't much to outfit a video biz, but you probably have some stuff you already use. A used EX1 (typically sold with an extra battery and SxS cards) and some wise choices on the rest of the gear would let you end up with a camera that produces images every bit as good as the more expensive EX3, and allows you to afford better audio and critical lighting components that will last a long time (longer than the camera, probably). Having the coolest cam won't make your video as good as using a cheaper cam with enough lights and much better sound. If you go for the EX1 and don't get the $4K Redrock setup, you can have a really complete set-up with a choice of good mics for all conditions, a good audio mixer, an array of lights to handle most any job, good light stands and backdrop supports for your greenscreen work.

Spending most of your money on a cam and not leaving enough for other tools is like buying a new Jeep to drive off-road but then having to settle for used tires. The end result will leave you less happy than if you have a great total package. Best of luck to you, and be prepared to visit countless sites for information on all the products out there to drop your money on.

This is how I configured my new EX3.

ex3 on Flickr - Photo Sharing! (http://www.flickr.com/photos/39123560@N03/3598439316/)

The Bebob V-lock adaptor is solid as a rock since it attaches to the top and bottom, and the battery in back makes the camera much more stable for hand held work. I have my wireless mounted to the battery adaptor so both front and back shoes are available.

I think you're being wildly unrealistic, Lucky. To get the camera up and running requires a much bigger expenditure than you have in mind. When just buying two bpu60 batteries is going to run you $400 and 2 sxs cards $1500, that $2k is already gone. Saying the ex3 is an $8500 camera is like saying the red costs $17K. Double it.

$2k will go towards any ONE of the ancillary areas needed for shooting: audio, lighting, memory/storage, greenscreen, tripod/bag. And there's no point in trying to skimp on quality.

A good wireless system, like the Lectrosonics, will run you over 2k (including mic). If you don't go wireless, then you're looking at close to $1k for shotgun mic, boom pole, stands, cables, headphones.

A good tripod system, like the Vinten 3, will run you $2k. People have been happy with the Kata bags, either 195 or 197. (You can't just get any bag, the viewfinder won't fit-check the older threads.), another $250.

A good lighting package, like an Arri kit, (but not including greenscreen lights), is over $2K

A greenscreen package, including flolights, screen, stands, sandbags will run you about $1k-1500

And last, but what should be first on your list, memory and storage: You'll need to decide whether you're going to spring for sxs cards, or go with sdhc's/adapters.

2 32gb sxs cards will cost $1500;
2 drives for the field could run you $900, if you go with something like the g-raid minis, altho people have been using cheaper usb drives, but download times are slower.
2 drives to dump your footage onto once you're back in the edit room, another $1k
If you don't have a laptop for the field, another big expense. And even if doesn't have an express card slot, add another $200 for usb reader.

That's why people are gravitating towards the adapter/card solution, so you don't have to monkey with footage in the field, but you have to weigh that against the risks, which are quite evident in recent threads.

Also, the phu does not suck, and is an excellent tool for filming long interviews. I've not had any problems with it, but if you're nervous about it based on some posts here about bad units, then look into Barry's new SSD solution in a recent thread.

And you still haven't touched editorial: to start editing you're going to need a big monitor in addition to your desktop lcd's--even a Vizio tv is going to run you $1k--and you'll need a minimum of two more drives to archive your footage, and that's presuming you already have your computer, NLE, and LCD's, (unless you're cutting on a MBPro.)

As for baseplate, filters, matte box, 35mm adapters, wa lenses, field mixer--you're going to have to put those on your next Christmas list.

Don't know if anyone's mentioned it, but the Nanoflash is at the top of my shopping list.

Convergent Design, experts in HDMI, SD, HD, and HDV (http://www.convergent-design.com/CD_Products_nanoFlash.htm)

If you read his post - not just the budget but what he shoots, then it does not make sense to suggest many of the "must have's" here.
A $4100 matte box set-up is not required to shoot indoor interviews or inside factories. Neither does he need a $2,000 tripod. He can easily spend $500 on this since he probably shoots locked down most of the time. At this stage he has enough going on by acquiring the Ex-3, so the stock lens is fine for most of his work. Neither does he need to spend $1500 on 2 SxS cards - if his interviews run past one hour, worst case: he can stop the interview and switch cards.

Let's be realistic. I am pleased he is moving up to the Ex-3. He can build has he goes. For now a Libec tripod or similar and 2 budget mics - say AT875R (as someone suggested) would work fine (he can boom his interviews). Some SDHC cards/adapters and he's all set. He still has spent only $1,000. Down the road, a wireless lav set-up would be nice.
I am presuming he has soft-box lighting for shooting green screen and he has post taken care of.

Thanks for all of the input so far.. I really appreciate it.

And for those of you who have commented about ancillary items like lighting packages...wireless mics etc. I do have all of that kind of stuff along with dollies, jibs...all of the grip stuff one could think of. I have been at this for a while.

This is simply a camera upgrade along with specific additional gear for the EX3.

And for the record I did indeed get another gig I was not expecting so my total budget on top of the camera is now...$6500 - $7500 give or take.

Again thanks for the great comments...please feel free to continue with any ideas.

Lucky

I hope everything worked out for you and you are enjoying your EX-3 !

You may want to consider the EX-3 shoulder mount from EXMount.com (http://www.exmount.com/) - a Custom Shoulder & Tripod mount for PMW-EX3 cameras