RIGS

Really getting into DSLR video now and all its toys. I have been looking into supports and rigs for a while now and whilst the likes of Zacuto are extremely good, they attract a premium. Their "Striker" retails for about £800 alone which is too rich for my blood.

I have therefore been looking at the "Half Inch Rails" website which details more of a DIY approach but who sell really well engineered and light kits. For a complete solution, together with rail mount for an HDMI field monitor etc., and a simple follow focus which can be accessed via your thumb (so no need to move hand away from grip), you're probably looking at about £600, which whilst expensive does allow the option of quickly moving the whole rig onto a tripod. For this, the Manfrotto 577/501 plate combination is recommended. I am looking at the possibility of a 501HDV video head for my tripod, together with a 577/501 plate for the rig so that they can easily be interchanged.

I am also looking at another new lens for my camera and for me, I think it's got to be the Canon 70 to 200 f4 L lens. I cannot find a bad review about this lens any where and, with the cropped sensor of my 550d, would give a zoom range of about 112mm to 320mm and a constant aperature of f4. Ideally, the f2.8 version would be better, but this costs much more and weighs a lot more too! The IS (image stabalised) version is also recommended but again, I'd rather not spend £1000 at least on a lens! Therefore, I think the non-IS f4 lens will be great for me.

The whole rig, when finished, should comprise the Half Inch Rails rig, together with Zoom H4N for audio, some kind of HDMI field monitor and tripod. I already have the LCDVF viewfinder as well.

Just need that lottery win :)