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- Wanna know something interesting?
The further I go in my career,
I'm noticing, the less gear I'm using.
I mean, in the beginning it was kind of like,
more, more, more and then
its just started to go down, down, down.
It's like I started figuring out what kind of look,
style and filmmaking I actually enjoy.
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I don't know if it's just a phase I'm going through,
but I'm noticing I'm using very, very little gear
and yeah, I have a ton of gear,
but most of it, I pretty much never, ever use.
For example, these two lenses.
I don't know the last time I used this lens,
probably like, three years ago, maybe?
This lens, pretty much never.
I think I used it for one, like one B-roll clip.
Especially when I'm traveling, I pack super light nowadays.
I pretty much just run with a camera,
either the Canon EOS R, if it's a little bit more
of a vlog heavy trip or the 1D X II if I want more
of that cinematic slow motion B-roll, that kind of stuff.
Then I bring the Canon 16-35 F2.8.
This is pretty much the only lens that I use nowadays.
Literally I would say, at least 95%, if not more
of my channel is just filmed on the 16-35.
I bring an ND filter, batteries, a charger,
memory cards, a GorillaPod
and then either the Mavic Air or the Mavic 2 Pro,
just in case.
Sometimes I'll have a GoPro or a 360 camera with me,
sometimes I'll bring a gimbal, like the DJI Ronin-S.
It's still a little sandy from Dubai.
Haven't used it since.
Sometimes I'll take a 24 mil or a 35 mil,
but all of those things, I don't use as much.
I mostly just stick to my camera
and the 16-35 and a GorillaPod.
Forgot to mention a microphone, Ronin Videomic Pro.
I've really become, kind of, a minimalist
in filmmaking, using only what I need
and not what I could use.
Now why am I only using the bare minimum of equipment?
Why am I not using all of this other stuff?
And well it's because I'm trying to focus on the story.
If I have all these different pieces of gear
and I'm lugging around tripods
and gimbals and 100 different lenses,
it all starts to distract from the story.
And if you think story is king,
which pretty much everybody says,
why are you spending so much time thinking about
what lenses to bring on a shoot,
what camera to bring?
If story is king, why aren't you spending thousands
of dollars on making the story really good
instead of buying new cameras and lenses
and all this other equipment?
If story is king, does it even matter
what gear you're using?
Now, I'm not saying that gear doesn't matter.
I kind of laugh when people are like,
story is king, you don't need anything.
Well, if you have a great story,
but you can't hear it 'cause you don't have a microphone
or you can't see it because you don't have a camera,
well then, does it matter that you have a good story?
So it's not as simple as just saying story is king,
but I do notice that I spend way less time now
thinking about the gear when I'm going to shoot something
and instead thinking about the story.
What am I trying to say?
What do I want it to look like?
What kind of emotions am I trying to convey?
What am I trying to get across?
What's the point of this video?
And one of the great things
about being a minimalist in filmmaking
is you become, kind of, a master at what you use,
you become a master in using a specific lens
or a specific camera or a specific tool,
like a stabilizer, you really learn how to get the best
out of that setup, instead of knowing, kind of,
how to use a whole bunch of stuff.
Usually, I think, it's more advantageous
to be really good at something than just okay
at a whole bunch of things.
I love how comfortable I am with the 16-35 now
because I've used it so much,
I know exactly how to make it look really cinematic
or how to use it for vlog filmmaking.
I know that lens inside and out.
I've really mastered that lens.
Now I'm not saying that I know
how to use every lens perfectly,
but I really know how to use the 16-35
and that kind of wide range really well
and that's how I want it to look
and I think that's the best part
of being a minimalist filmmaker
is really knowing what your style is,
what makes your eye unique and then just sticking to that
and only using the tools that help you create your style
and make your types of films.
So for me, because I like that wide look,
I want you guys to feel like you're here with me,
I don't really use zoom lenses nowadays.
I don't need them to achieve my style or my look.
Another great thing is that it's way, way cheaper.
You don't need to buy every single lens out there
and you don't need a whole bunch of different cameras
and different stabilizers and all of that stuff.
You basically just need a few pieces of gear
to create your look.
Therefore, you don't need to make as much money
from filmmaking to pay it all off,
therefore, you're less stressed,
therefore, you're more happy.
Marie Kondo your gear and I guarantee you your mind
will be more at ease.
And I'll take it one step further,
being a minimalist in just your whole normal life
will make you a better filmmaker
because you're not gonna be as focused on, you know,
getting new clothes, a new car
and getting all that stuff that you don't even really need.
Instead you can turn down more jobs
because you don't need as much money to live
and you can just focus on the things
that you actually like making instead
of all the other video projects
that you're just doing for money and that's it.
Having just the things that you need
instead of having all of this extra stuff
that you really don't need
will make you a happier person
because every single thing that you own
has a cost to it,
whether it's a maintenance of money or time or stress,
there's always some sort of cost
to everything that you own.
And be again, the less stuff you have,
the more money you're gonna have
to put into your career
and the less money you'll have to make
in your career in order to sustain yourself in life
because you just don't have as many expenses
because you don't need all of these extra things.
By the way, I really do think that being a minimalist,
both in filmmaking and outside of filmmaking,
will make you a better filmmaker.
Figure out what you need to achieve your style,
figure out what your style is,
what you need to achieve that
and don't just watch other people's stuff
and think, oh I need that, oh that's a really cool thing,
I need that thing too, oh those people are using
those lenses, well I need those lenses.
Forget about all that stuff,
just think about what you actually need.
More stuff equals more problems.
(upbeat music)
Anybody need a lens?