I use a 28-75 Tamron lens on my full frame cameras, mostly in the 28-35mm range for full shots, but up to 50-75 for close up stuff. Sometimes I'll have to throw on my 17-28mm for things that are on the larger side. If you're using an APS-C camera or something, the focal lengths will be different, but an 11-50mm should be perfect to cover everything. I also shoot in the f/5.6-f/8 range most of the time to get enough depth of field. Hope that helps!

@@NewLayer Thanks, I am indeed using APS-C camera (sorry for not mentioning earlier). In that case, my sigma 11-50mm f2.8 (Sony E) should work well with this rig. Much appreciated!

I wish i knew! Thanks for watching and commenting :)

Lauten AF boi

Thanks! I'm definitely happy to have mine :)

Doubtful, and you'd then have to buy a separate phantom power box, because the inline preamps need phantom power to operate, which the line input cannot provide.

@@NewLayer thanks, I appreciate the info.

I used internet he RODECaster Pro II on everything, with no processing of any kind for these comparisons. As long as you get an interface from a reputable brand, it’ll sound exactly the same. Stay away from cheap, no-name brands because their preamps suck and will be very noisy.

@@NewLayer Thanks for your reply. i've never used a microphone with an XLR input before, so i have a question, if I buy a "Scarlett Solo 3rd Gen" to connect "Boya BY-BM6040 microphone", will they be compatible? or should i consider a different setup?

@@alexmaroto-zp6pv Absolutely, the Scarlett interfaces are what I recommend to 90% of people, I've had 5 in my life :) The 3rd gen solo is only $99 right now, which is a killer deal amzn.to/3VKe9Dy

Two of my favorite mics for sure! Honestly, I have a hard time choosing between them, so I can't recommend one over the other, haha. The Lewitt is a small footprint, and comes with a shock mount, if that matters. If you haven't seen my review on the Lewitt RAY, check that out. I use it for pretty much everything now: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-IuZG9o0bjtQ.html

It sounds slightly different, but no worse, in my opinion. And it has multiple "modes" with subtle differences, plus, settings to tweak it to sound however you want really. So, still highly recommended.

It's just some generic magic arm I got that came included with something else a long time ago. You can find a ton of different magic arms on Amazon, or, I almost exclusively use the Spider Crab ones from iFootage now because they're so much stronger/better. geni.us/ifootagespidercrabma34 geni.us/ifootagespidercrabma56

The ML60II Bi puts out ~500 more lux, but that is negligible. The would both use the same camera settings for proper exposure, so they are essentially identical in brightness: newlayer.com/gear/lights/compare?light1=Godox+ML60II+Bi&light2=Colbor+CL60

This light is powered only by wall power (or a portable power station), so you need the cable, it has no battery support. Look at my Godox ML60II Bi for a battery friendly option.

Yes, sometimes smaller phones need the adapter with an additional USB power port to provide extra power, like this: amzn.to/3REjlaG

It's a Sekonic C-800: geni.us/sekonicc800u Not cheap (it's actually gone up a lot since I got mine a few years back), but is the standard. Another one that looks promising is this one, www.lit-systems.com/, but I haven't heard updates on it in a long time. Any that attach to a phone and use an app or something, simply aren't accurate enough to be usable in my experience.

@@NewLayer awesome, thank you so much!

I love it! Surprised how good it sounds, but not at the same time coming from Rycote.

That is massive! I've used 48" softboxes with 150-300 watt lights no problem, but that's a whole lot bigger. The 450 watt is only going to be 1/3-1/2 stop brighter than the 300, so it's really not much at all. I would get either the 300 or the 650. It also depends on what you plan to do with it. For photography? It won't be very bright in a modifier that big, I always recommend actual flashes for photography, as continuous lights, even 600+ watt ones, are not comparable. If you're just wanting to film talking head stuff with a giant modifier, 300 watts should be fine.

@@NewLayerAwesome reply thanks! I plan to shoot video and I’m doing something a bit unconventional as described in this video: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-qqtP6-O90hY.htmlsi=Wd7nsm_et8Xt_Dd5 I need a pure white background in a small room, so using two lights to light a simple white backdrop floods the subject too much. I am going to use the large soft box as my actual background to create that look. I will use other lights to light the subject and then focus the camera on the subject to “blow out” the whites in the background. What do you think?

@@KyleTurner-hc3zk Ah gotcha! Then 300 should be even more doable, because you need less light to use the actual softbox as a white background than you would to point it at something and illuminate it to be white. If you want to be shooting at ISO 100, f/8, and 1/250 or something, then I'd say go for a brighter light, but if you're OK using higher ISOs like 400 and maybe 1/125 shutter speed, the 300 should be totally fine.

@@NewLayerTruly appreciate your response! I ended up buying the SmallRig RC350B due to a great sale. It was your comment about the small difference in f/stop going from 300 to 400 watts that gave me confidence to buy it! Can’t wait to test it out. Thanks again!

I just didn't have it at the time. I do now and highly recommend it. The Ulanzi stuff is great, but I've found if you use it daily, it breaks down faster than higher end items like iFootage makes. All my iFootage gear looks brand new after years of daily use.

@@NewLayer Thanks for the reply! I was holding off on deciding between the two as I have the carbon fiber Cobra 3 and now I think I'll stick with ifootage for the ball head too.

Nice! They really are great lights. Hopefully they'll become more easily available over time.

@@NewLayer I was able to get the last piece from a local dealer. I saw it in alibaba.

I would get the Amaran 150c or 300c. There's really no other RGB lights that are anywhere near as bright besides the 300c that I have tried: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-V4csSdpxs-E.html

I mentioned it briefly in the video, but didn't go into too much detail, because the fan noise is a non-issue. Since the fans are so big and the design is so open, these are very quiet lights.

I have no plans to at this point, but maybe one day. I reviewed the Amaran 100/200 here: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-ML0wiwVk6wo.html The main difference (besides the x being bi-color), is that the new S versions have significantly better color accuracy. The color on the original ones was great, and the S versions use the newest low-blue light LED tech, so they are really, REALLY great. Other than that, they are essentially the same light as the ones I reviewed already.

Thanks! I haven't been able to test that light yet. It seems like it's in a similar category as the Inkee Gold Crow lights, which I like a lot. Hopefully I'll get to test them soon.

Zhiyun is definitely good at the visual design of their products at the very least!

Glad you liked it! Thanks for commenting :)

This light does come with the reflector shown in the video at 4:20.

Yes, for small scenes indoors, this is a good key light.

Glad it was helpful!

Thanks for the support! And yes, that's annoying, but I think it's because they're finally releasing a more normal, better Godox-to-Bowens mount adapter! geni.us/godoxmlgb The S2 bracket is pretty good, but kind of cumbersome since it's more universal and meant for flashes. This new adapter will be better for video lights. It's also really inexpensive, should be available very soon.

I see. And it works with the new ml100. That is interesting… will be waiting for your review and samples.

Thanks for the support! I hope it works well for you. The multiple pickup patterns are really cool.

Thanks! And you're very welcome. My mind was blown after finding out Rycote made mics, and they did not disappoint!

Oh hey there 😅

More and more of these are becoming available, so maybe I'll do a part two. There's also the gain boosters from sE Electronics and a couple others...

This is a daylight, 5600K only light, so you can't.

Interesting! I too like the MKH 416, which is no surprise given its history and price. The HC-15 is one of my favorite short shotgun mics, so interesting to hear different opinions :) Overall, I think all 6 mics in this video are very, very good, and much better sounding in every way compared to 100-200 offerings.

@@NewLayer Well there's a lot of variable implicated here (your voice, my listening setup, etc.), but it felt like the mids were overwhelming, compared to the others. I've recently bought a Small Diaphragm Condenser (sE Electronic sE8) for indoor use, and I think I prefer it to short shotguns. And definitely, if you want to capture sound that matters, you gotta bite the bullet!

@@Okiyah Definitely true. Indoor Vs. out can make a big difference too. Some mics sound identical no matter the setting, others sound completely different, so my video is definitely just a snapshot of a couple examples but... I used to have the RODE NT5 and some other pencil mics, which I liked, but I personally prefer certain shotgun mics a little more still. I do love sE Electronics though! I have had a couple of their mics in previous videos, and have a couple more condensers coming up.

The MKH 416 definitely has that high end sparkle right out of the box, which I think is what most people like. But is it a marketing tactic to sound better than others in a raw comparison, or is there a specific reason behind it? I can only assume any production that's going to be using these mics will be doing EQ regardless. Just playing devil's advocate :) The RODE mics have the most low end, and the Rycote mics are in the middle. All in all, they are all clearly better in every way than budget options in my opinion.

I await your thoughts with bated breath...

I was surprised by the Rycote HC-22, had a very similar tone to the Sennheiser.....I actually think I liked the NTG5 better than the NTG3. NTG3 sounded more muddy to me. I could also be Bias because I use the NTG5 lol I do like the lower end frequencies you get out of the NTG5, but the Sennheiser does sound so sparkly. Great breakdown.

@@PaulFeinberg I think I agree with everything you said. Before this video, I didn't know Rycote even made actual microphones, even though I've had a million of their accessories. I really liked them. The RODE mics definitely have more low/low-mid to them, and the Sennheiser MKE 600 is pretty balanced, while the MKH 416 definitely has that signature high end sparkle. All of these mics are great.

@@NewLayer Yep for sure makes me happy with my NTG5, but I think I was most surprised with that Rycote.....like you I had no idea they even made mics lol

That's why I love doing these comparison videos! Always uncovering hidden gems.