In my course, Photo and Video Gear Hacks, I show how modifying and adding simple enhancements to your kit can improve performance and extend the life of your gear. Each of these lessons requires some additional equipment and tools to accomplish, however, so I've put together a list of the supplies and tools I recommend for photo and video gear hackers.
Tools and Accessories
Simple Fixers: Gaffer Tape & a Multi-Tool
You can do a lot with just the basics. Gaffer tape is like duct tape but the adhesive is both stronger and less prone to sticking when you remove the tape. A multi-tool is a folding tool with a bunch of handy bits to help you fix things when you're on the go. It's not as good as a real screw driver, sax, needle-nose pliers, and wrench, but it does fit in your pocket. These two essential bits pieces of kit come with me on every job I do.
I also have a “Bag of Stuff” that I take with me on most shoots. This bag
contains ¼ 20 and ⅜” hex cap and socket cap bolts, ¼ 20 and ⅜” nuts,
and washers in various sizes. I keep several extra ¼ 20 and ⅜” camera
quick release plate screws in there as well. I also have a few metal binder
clamps and the odd extra screw, nut or bolt that fits my gear.
I keep a handful of extra hex wrenches (one that fits everything in my
kit) in the bag, and a hardware store L bracket, a few mini ball heads
with ¼ 20 stud mounts, hot shoe studs, and cold shoe
receivers—basically, anything that might come in handy.
Many of products mentioned in this lesson are available at your local hardware store or theatre supply store, as well as online.
Pro Gaffer Tape
Industry Tape
Tunnel Tape
Releasable Cable Ties
Velcro Ties
Leatherman Wave
Modifying Your Kit
Pack It Up
Cases and packs for photo and video can be pretty expensive. In this lesson I show how to modify some affordable general-purpose cases. I like using handgun cases, but an old suitcase or makeup box would work too.
What You'll Need
Handgun case
Scrap cardboard and plastic
Packaging foam, the sturdy kind that returns to its shape after being compressed, not hard styrofoam that breaks apart
The Hack
This hack is pretty easy: take out any existing foam or structure in your case and replace it with foam and cardboard you've cut to size for your equipment.
Make Your Own Case
General purpose cases still aren't free, though. We can go even cheaper: cardboard. In this lesson I show how to make a super sturdy case out of hot glue and scrap cardboard. It looks a little weird, but it really works! Great for packing up gear you store in the trunk of your car, like spare light bulbs, cables, and delicate lights.
What You'll Need
A glue gun. I used an 80 watt “high temp” glue gun.
High temp glue sticks
Heavy-duty self-adhesive velcro
Sturdy cardboard
Scrap foam
Utility knife
The AC Stand Adapter
In this lesson I show you how to modify an AC Stand Adapter. Inexpensive AC adapters make using LED or CFL lights with your softboxes or umbrellas easy. The only problem is that they don't play nice: the cheap clamps tend to crush the umbrella poles.
The
main idea in this hack is to add a nut and bolt to the AC light stand
adapter so that we can adjust the pressure on the light modifier shaft.
To do this we need to open up the AC light stand adapter and determine
where we can get a nut and bolt to fit without altering any of the
important components in the adapter. You want the nut to remain
stationary in the adapter and when you turn the bolt it drives into the
small metal part originally intended to hold the shaft.
What You’ll Need
AC light stand adapter used in this lesson
Safety glasses
Ear plugs: Anything with 28-33dB of protection should be fine
Small Philips screw driver
Sturdy pliers
Dremel tool: Any high speed rotary cutting tool should work
Rotary cutting bit: At 35,000 RPM just about any small bit will work as it will melt the plastic as it cuts into it
Panavice or similar. Any sturdy vice or clamping mechanism should work fine.
¼ 20 nut and 1.5” ¼ 20 thumbscrew or hex bolt, can be found at your local hardware store.
JB Weld JB Original Epoxy, available at your local hardware store.
The Hack
The
first step is to cut off flatten out the metal tensioning piece so that
it is not going to put pressure on the modifier shaft. When you flatten
it out, you will have to cut off the back end of the tensioning piece
because it will no longer fit in the adapter. When done properly, the
modifier shaft will pass through the hole easily.
The next step
is to use the Dremel or other rotary cutting tool to carve out space for
the nut and bolt. Again, don’t remove any more plastic than you need to
and try not to remove important parts of the adapter. Removing material
for the bolt is fairly easy. You will have to remove material from the
sides of the AC adapter because a standard ¼ 20 nut will not fit and you
will not be able to get the adapter to close all the way. You don’t
have to remove much. Carve out a little at a time until it fits snugly.
This will also help create a pocket to help hold the nut captive. If the
nut moves around in the adapter, you will not be able to drive the bolt
up into the shaft.
Once everything is fit properly, you can use
some epoxy to hold the nut in place. Be sure that you do not get the
epoxy in the threads of the nut. You might want to epoxy the nut with
the bolt threaded through so that you don’t get epoxy on the inside of
the nut. If a little epoxy gets on the threads of the bolt, you should
be able to scrape it off fairly easily once it is cured.
Once
it’s fully cured, you can put it back together and test. If you have
applied too much epoxy, you can use your rotary tool to remove some so
that everything fits snugly.
Lighting Mods: Using Old Speedlights
In the second part of this lesson I show how to make some
collapsible snoots for your speedlights. To do this you will need a
pencil, utility knife, some old black DVD cases, and some strong tape
(the tape used in the lesson is Industry Tape IT-30).
What You’ll Need
Optical slave triggers
Yongnuo 603 II C3 radio triggers: This is the link for the Canon version but a Nikon version is also available.
Industry Tape IT-30
The Hack
This hack is pretty straight forward, too. Cut the DVD boxes into flat sections, cut them to size, then tape them together to fit over your flash.
DIY Light Modifiers
This lesson explores some simple and effective light modifiers you can scavenge, scrounge, and hack together using everyday objects.
For flags (used for blocking light) you can use just about anything that is
fully opaque and black. Black foam board can be found at discount stores
for a few dollars per sheet. If you have some sturdy cardboard you can
paint it flat black and you will have a super cheap flag! Also mentioned
in this lesson is the use of moving blankets. Dark blue moving blankets
were used in the video but you can find them in black)
as well. Be aware that many moving blankets are not fire retardant, and
some smell like they were made from petroleum! Be careful using these
around heat sources for get some fabric that is flame retardant from a
fabric specialty shop. Look for blackout or opaque
fabric.
The v-cards can be made from 8’ x 4’ sheets of 1” foam
insulation board found at a local building supply store. 1” is the
minimum thickness you want to use. 1.5” will be more sturdy. These
products change frequently so look for a sheet that is completely or
mostly white on one side. Sometimes there is a plastic wrapper that can
be peeled off. If you peel it off and there is color left behind, you
may need to paint the panels white. Having mostly white panels is better
to start with because they require minimal paint. If you do need to
paint your panels, use standard latex interior paint. You can use any
type sheen you desire, but flat white is a good place to start. If the
back side of the panels is also white, consider painting these black so
you can use them as a large flag. To cut the panels in half you can use a
sharp utility knife. Use a wide tape with good adhesive to join the
panels back together and create the hinge. In the lesson 3” Gorilla Tough Tape
was used. If you find your panels are getting tiny foam bits
everywhere, consider taping around all the edges so that they are nice
and clean and resist shredding.
Filter Your PC
Computers are dust magnets. In this lesson I show how to glue stocking material to your PSs vents to stop dust. A ten-minute hack that can save you thousands in heat damage and extend the life of your computer considerably.
The tools used in this video are a utility knife, filtering material
(panty hose used in lesson but any fabrics with a good air flow will
work), and a hot glue gun. To help cover up the larger openings in the
case you can use some sturdy cardboard. It is
much easier to glue filters and cardboard to the computer case when
everything is out of it. If you have to glue some filters when the case
is full of components, you want to protect any stray globs of glue on
internal components (especially fans).
Electronics Mods
DIY Audio Cables
Good quality XLR cables can be expensive to buy, but they're not hard to make and the raw materials are affordable. This haack is great if you need a special-purpose cable, too, like a very short cable with a right-angle plug to fit your video camera, for example..
The tools used in this lesson can be found online or you can find similar tools at your local electronics hobby shop.
What You’ll Need
Aoyue 936 soldering iron: A basic soldering iron around 20-30 watts should work fine.
Hakko 599B-02 Solder Tip Cleaning Wire and Holder
Kester 245 Lead Solder Wire
Hakko CHP-170 Micro Clean Cutter
Klein Tools 11046 Wire Stripper
Solder Sucker
Rosin Paste Flux
Helping Hands
Panavice
Heat Shrink
Embossing Heat Gun
NEUTRIK NC3MX XLR
Neutrik NC3FX XLR
GLS AUDIO Bulk Microphone Cable
The Hack
Basically, strip a bit off each end of the wire, tin the wire and the connectors with your soldering iron, and fit them everything together. It's that easy!
It
was mentioned in the video that you can fill up the cups on the XLR
connector with solder, but this is not necessary as excess heat can melt
the plastic housing of the connector. This will make the pins shift and
get out of alignment. If you have tinned both the wire and the
connector you shouldn’t have to add very much solder (if any) to the
joint for a secure connection.
Always keep your soldering iron tip
clean as this will make for faster soldering. Heating metal causes it
to oxidize quickly and oxidation will prevent the solder from flowing.
The flux in the solder wire will clean the oxidation and help the solder
to flow more easily. You also use a bit of flux paste to help clean the
parts if they are not brand new.
DIY Lavaliere Mic
In this lesson I show you how to make a DIY lavaliere microphone.
What You’ll Need
Aoyue 936 soldering iron: A basic soldering iron around 20-30 watts should work fine
Hakko 599B-02 Solder Tip Cleaning Wire and Holder
Kester 245 Lead Solder Wire
Hakko CHP-170 Micro Clean Cutter
Klein Tools 11046 Wire Stripper
Solder Sucker
Rosin Paste Flux
Helping Hands
Panavice
Heat Shrink
Embossing Heat Gun
You will also need the following parts for this project:
Mini MIC Capsule Electret Condenser Microphone: You can also scavenge a microphone from old devices. Just about anything that has a tiny microphone will work!
⅛” TRRS Connector
Wire:
Shielded single conductor wire will work. A super thin RCA cable should
work for this. Cut off the ends and strip it back to find out.
The Hack
When
you are soldering small wires and parts be careful of using excess heat
or holding the heat on for too long. Soldering these tiny connections
should only take 1-2 seconds at the most. If the parts and your tip is
clean, the solder should flow quickly.
Depending on the microphone
element you are using your results may vary. None of the tiny
microphone elements I have tested sounded amazing and all required a
little processing. What you may find is that some elements are much
quieter than others. You may also find a mic elements that has a higher
output but will not handle super loud sounds. These are important points
to keep in mind. If you have a loud talker or are micing someone who
will be shouting, a microphone element that is more sensitive might
breakup and distort, even if the level on the recording doesn’t clip.
The microphone used in the lesson is probably 6-8dB quieter than the
first microphone I used when creating this hack. Even with the slightly
quieter microphone, the signal was fairly clean and there wasn’t enough
noise in the recording to warrant using a noise reduction plugin.
Power Anything
Everything these days is power hungry! Getting good, clean, reliable energy for all your gear is a struggle. This hack shows how to make a "power anything" box that draws from a simple battery and outputs the correct supply for your equipment.
Selecting components for this project will depend on your needs and
what you are looking to power. Below is the list of parts that were
used in this lesson. If these parts don’t fit your voltage and current
needs, you should be able to find similar products from these suppliers
that will work. The battery connectors and wire you can find at your
local electronics hobby shop.
What You'll Need
UPG UBCD5745 Sealed Lead Acid Batterie
10 Pairs XT-60 XT60 Male Female Bullet Connectors
ABS Project Box
DC/DC Adjustable 4.0-40V to 1.25-37V Voltage Regulator Buck Converter
DC/DC BUCK Converter Regulator 4.5-40V To 5V/2A USB Charger
DC/DC Buck Converter Step Down Module Power Supply
Panel Mount Metal DC Power Jack: Also available at your local electronics hobby shop
2.1mm x 5.5mm DC Power Male Plug Jack: Also available at your local electronics hobby shop
Micro Momentary Tactile Push Button Switch
The Hack
Most
of of the time in putting this project together was fitting everything
in a tiny box. Had I just focused on powering the light it would have
taken much less time. Although it looks complicated, it is actually
quite simple. The battery plugs into the boost converter input, the
voltage is set with a small screw, then you connect your device and turn
it on. You do not have to set the voltage every time you use the
converters. Once you set the voltage it stays there every time you use
it.
Conclusion
Hacking is more than just a way to be cheap; it's a perspective on working that emphasizes knowing your equipment, resourcefulness, economy, and carefully investing in your gear. As an on-the-job skill, the ability to quickly fix something, rig up a solution, or troubleshoot a problem is invaluable. It's also a lot of fun!