I & A Friend Looking To Invest In RED...

[Mike Krumlauf]

It's finally looking that I will be getting/sharing A RED ONE with a friend of mine.

She and I are wondering what all we need to get for the most inexpensive camera package. What parts (including a lens) would we all need to get in order for a fully opperating system. (i beileve we are looking at opperating of the CF card system)

Thanks,
Mike :)

[Andrew Walker]

Get a Nikon mount on your camera as that will save you a ton of money as far as glass goes.

[Vladimir Eugene]

Get the Red Body- skip the CF option 17,500
Red Production package 1250
power pack 1500
Red Drive/cable 1100
Used 18-50 about 3500
Red LCD 1700

Around 26,000

or look for a used one for 22,000 that will include an even more robust accessory list

vlad

[CK Olsen]

At least IMHO...It's 500 bucks very well spent, particularly for hand held and/or run and gun work. Oh. And I agree the Nikon Mount is a must to keep lens costs down while keeping quality up.

[Craig Schober]

could you indicate a price range? to some, $25,000 is the basic kit and to others, $50,000 is barely enough to start. what kind of productions are you targeting your red camera for?

i can tell you that while you should get the cf option (i think it's required just for upgrades alone), you should definitely get the red drive too. If you're doing work on sticks or even handheld, there's just no good reason to use cf exclusively.

also, don't discount the canon mount. there are a few options out there that will handle all your ef lenses. i'm a canon guy so if you are too, go with the canon mount (birger) to save thousands in addition to controlling iris and focus remotely. they're now shipping those mounts from stock with the wireless knobs trickling out slowly.

red's lcds are great but you might want to consider some of the new 720p backlit lcds out there for 1/3 the price. smallhd has a great 9 inch that will scale enough to see a full frame and all of the red's menus via hdmi. however, you still can't find a lighter, crisper display than red's 5.6".

after the basic production package, there's not much more i can recommend except maybe red's carbon fiber x rods but that's if weight is a real consideration.

[Jeff Dunant]

I actually read somewhere (From Jarred I think) that you can not buy a Red Camera without a CF card reader. Plus, it is just a good thing to have some CF cards laying around in case you ever need to do a total bare bones rig or if for some reason fate hates you and you have a drive crash (The show must go on!).

I agree with everyone else though, a lot of money goes into the glass and if you can utilize some photography lenses you will still have great looking footage but at a fraction of the price.

I am not sure I would skimp out on something like the EVF though. You may think you can get by with just a monitor but this is not always the case. Red's EVF is great and it also adds speed to your setup because it as three short cut keys and the rotating dial is a quick way to adjust some settings on the fly. It is a pain to use monitors in sunlight.

[Roger Crouse]

Reds can be ordered without CF.

[Michael Epple]

Why don't you wait for the new cameras?

[Andrew Wilding]

also, don't discount the canon mount. there are a few options out there that will handle all your ef lenses. i'm a canon guy so if you are too, go with the canon mount (birger) to save thousands in addition to controlling iris and focus remotely. they're now shipping those mounts from stock with the wireless knobs trickling out slowly.

But doesn't the Birger void the warranty and rule out upgrading to an epic?

[Michael Hastings]

But doesn't the Birger void the warranty and rule out upgrading to an epic?

No, that was sorted out long ago.