Today, we're making some changes around here
and up here, because I'm moving my whole set around
and I'm chopping all my hair off.
Let's get undone.
[offbeat music]
♪ Gerald Undone ♪
♪ He's crazy ♪
What's happening, everybody? I'm Gerald Undone,
and this is why we can't have nice things.
So, it's December 4th, and it's my birthday.
I turned 34 today, and that's important
because that means I've been growing my hair out
for exactly two years, which was the challenge
I gave myself two birthdays ago.
So, I succeeded in the challenge,
but it's time for the hair to go.
Not because it doesn't look good,
but because it's inefficient. And this channel often
promotes function over form,
so it's moderately paradoxical to have something
growing on my head that undermines
that philosophy. Essentially, I'd rather spend more
time making videos than fussing with my hair.
But before I go get my hair cut, I want to show you
the changes I'm making around the studio,
and for that, I'm gonna use my new birthday
present to myself: the Sony a6600.
Now, prepare yourselves, because I'm gonna attempt to vlog,
but I'm not very good at it.
First up, though, I'd like to show you the things
that I dislike about the way it's currently
configured. So, this is a tight space,
and I've got curtains on either side of me,
because I'm actually in the middle of a room.
And I have my camera on a shelf on that wall
to give me more space,
because this shot isn't actually that deep.
And although this shelf idea works,
it's actually pretty tedious at times to set up,
because you can't access the back of the camera,
and you can't make the fine movements
that you would be able to with a tripod.
The other problem is I can't really get
any decent second angles in here
because of this wall, I have to go completely off
to one side in order to put the camera sort of, like,
shooting me in profile, or I can put it over
my shoulder, which works, but it's not ideal.
There's also no space to do any standing shots
or large product demos unless I use my workbench
on the back wall, but then, again,
we're back to the limited angles thing
because I'm shooting against a wall.
So to fix these issues, I decided to open up
the space and shoot lengthwise instead.
But to do that, first I had to redo the wall
to my right to make it appropriate as a backdrop.
And it's also time I get rid of these curtains
because they won't be needed anymore
and I'm happy about that since I no longer
have to worry about these grommets
and paracords showing up in the shot,
which I never thought looked very good.
[easygoing music]
♪
So now, as you can see,
the wall is a glorious purple colour. What?
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There, we've satisfied the sponsorship overlords,
so the wall is back to its vast, purple self.
I've still got my DIY bass traps in the corner,
and I'm gonna add some warm lights to throw some colour
on the wall, but also act as a little set dressing.
I'm just picking those out now. I'll also have to test the sound
and see if I need more treatment in here now
that there's a giant reflective surface
that used to be more filled,
but I have added curtains on the left
and the right to still provide working confines
to my studio and control light spill
from other rooms. This new shot is also
gonna involve the same walnut table
I've been using, but I'm gonna move it over here
so I can shoot into the wall,
and either stand behind it or sit on a stool.
And now I have enough space to put
multiple camera angles, and lights,
and an overhead rig, without the limitations
I had before. Now, I'm still gonna leave the shelves
and these other components here on this wall
so I can still recreate that shot if I want to.
I would just set a camera up over here,
but the current camera configuration is going,
because like I said, I don't want to have it
on the wall anymore. And the table is much easier
to move now. I used to have to lift it
and it's really heavy, but now I've put it on wheels,
which I actually filmed the process of. Check it out.
OK, so one of the things I wanted to do
with the studio rebuild was get this table
on casters so that I can wheel it back and forth
to make it easy to change angles,
and I think I've come up with a pretty decent way to do that.
So, you can see this one here is already finished,
and it's pretty minimal. There's not a lot of, like,
wood added on or anything. I didn't even need
to epoxy anything. And what I did is I found these...
you know, these things designed for table legs,
and you can actually just pop into the metal part off...
like...that, and then you can take this
and jam it into the--
this is one-inch black steel pipe--
you can jam it in there, hammer it down,
which is what I'm gonna do.
And then you saw off the excess and, you know,
this much gets sawed off, and then this is jammed
in there, you drill a hole, and then you can take
the casters with these threads and just thread it in there
and tighten it down pretty good.
And it's really, really solid, so...
that's what we're gonna do now.
[clinking]
[thudding]
[buzzing]
[whirring]
And speaking of black pipe DIY,
I also made this pretty rad stand rack over
in the unoccupied corner.
Alright, so the next thing that I'm working on
is a rack for my stands-- like C-stands, light stands,
and tripods and stuff like that--
and it's gonna be right here on the wall.
So, first of all, I've got this wood here
because I need to cover up--
there's baseboard radiators underneath there,
which you can see here,
so I want something more stable, more level.
And also, you know, up and clear of the radiator.
So that's what these two pieces of wood are for.
They're gonna cover all the way along.
This one's shorter so it can butt up against this.
I'm gonna screw those together
with these L-brackets, so I'll put them like this
but on the inside, and then I'll use the other two
to attach it to the wall, so to keep it nice
and secure. And then I'm gonna use black pipe
to make, like, a rack. And I already have
some finished ones, so I can show you.
So I'm gonna build another one of these,
and this is gonna go here on the wall
at two different heights--
like, one here and one up there--
and it's gonna be, like, just section it off
so everything's not sliding together.
Now, when it comes to black pipe,
a couple tips about that. I bought this stuff
at Home Depot. This is half-inch black steel pipe.
And what I like to do is I like to wash mine,
for two reasons: one, because they put stickers
on them with the label, and it's that kind of
gooey stuff that doesn't come off,
so that's annoying. You don't want stickers
all over your--you know, your furniture, if you will.
And so I washed them, but the problem is
when you wash them and then you leave them,
they do get rusty because they're not really treated
for exterior stuff. So I don't know if I have one
to show you, but...basically, they get this,
like, orange--yeah, you can see some here
a little bit. It's, like, orange rust all over them.
So after you wash them, it's good if you use
a little, like, WD-40 on a rag,
and then you can just, you know, wipe the rest off
if it's important to you.
But when you do this, when you wash them,
and then WD-40 them, and then sort of
clean them, you get this kind of nicer result
where it looks almost like a...kind of like a faded...
I don't know. Carbon, charcoal,
kind of grey-look colour. And it's more uniform
that way, too, and I think it's nicer
than some of the ones that I've seen online
when people build their own black pipe stuff.
♪
[drill whirring]
♪
[whirring]
♪
Now, in order to accommodate the space needed
for the lights and camera, I need to get
my computer out of here.
So it's going to go over to its new home
on the far wall on this brand-new desk
from Autonomous. This is their SmartDesk 2,
which is not only awesome, but quite affordable.
[low whirring]
It's a fully automated sit-stand desk
with surprisingly robust parts and rugged design.
Based on the process of building it and using it,
I would have expected it it cost $1,000-$1,500,
but it's only, like, 300-something,
depending on the options that you choose.
So I'm really, really impressed with it so far,
and this white oak top is very nice.
I was half-tempted to not even use it as a desk
but instead use it as an adjustable product
photography table, but I don't have enough space
in here to devote entire tables to that purpose.
Anyway, so I'm gonna be moving my entire setup
over there to here, and I'll make a new video
on that, sort of a desk tour, so that you guys
can finally get that updated workstation gear list
that you've been asking about,
including the new monitors that I've been using lately.
So, expect to see that in the next few days.
And you'll also notice that above the desk,
I've installed the shelf using that same purple to tie
the studio together. Alright, so now I'm off to get
my haircut, and when I get back,
I'll show you how the new shot looks all set up.
♪
OK, so here we go! This is the new shot.
Everything's set up.
Obviously I might make some tweaks as we go,
this is the first time setting it up.
But I'm just gonna go over and show you
all the gear. So right now, the main shot
that you're seeing me on is this one here,
and it is the Blackmagic Pocket 4K.
And there's that teleprompter
that you guys have been asking about in front.
It's the Padcaster Parrot... yeah.
And it comes with this remote in the package,
as well as some step-up rings to mount it
onto your lens. The thing that's displaying the text
is just a phone. I just got a cheap phone
on Amazon for, like, $100,
and it uses the app that's made by
the same company, the--
it's, like, the Padcaster Parrot app.
So that app, you just load you text files into,
and then it plays them as a script.
And you can adjust it using the remote.
You can go up and down, or play it and pause it,
just from here, and this is connected via Bluetooth
to your phone. So, I haven't used it that much,
only maybe five, six times.
That's why I haven't really made, like,
a review about it. I'm probably not gonna make
a review about it, but you guys have been asking
me about it, so that's what it is. It's pretty good.
Anyway, that's the Blackmagic Pocket 4K,
the Sigma 18-35mm is on there
with the Metabones ULTRA 0.71x Speed Booster.
Then, over here for this shot, that is the Sony a7 III,
and there's a Tamron 28-75mm on there,
and that's being recorded onto an Atomos Ninja V.
And then up here is the Sony a6600 that I just got,
and on there is the Sigma 30mm lens,
so we're gonna be getting a crop factor equivalent
to about 45mm focal length,
which, uh, is pretty good, I think,
3for the overhead shot. This is the Sigma 16mm.
I got this lens, that lens, and the body all
from Camera Canada for a good deal as--
like I said, as part of my birthday present
or whatever. Um, and I'm happy with that.
So I can use a 16mm as kind of, like,
a vlogging lens. It'll give me about
a 24 mm equivalent, and I think that'd be
really good because the autofocus on this thing
is insane. I've found that when I was, like--
I didn't have to calculate the depth of field.
I'm using auto focus on that
because if I'm talking about this object--
so, say I'm showing you guys this remote,
it just stays in focus. And if I lift it up higher
or bring it down lower, and then if I set it down
and say I want to talk about something else,
I can keep everything in focus all the way
without having to find, like, a super-deep depth
of field to make the shot work. So I'm really happy
about that. Uh, I also-- the Tamron 28-75mm,
I should mention that I borrowed that
from Camera Canada as well,
so thanks to Camera Canada for hooking me up
with some of this stuff! Stuff I bought
and stuff I borrowed. Microphone-wise,
I'm still using the Samson C02.
Uh, I haven't really heard how it sounds in here yet,
but I think it's going to work.
The audio's not too bad. I am hearing a bit more...
a bit more reverberance than before,
but I've treated this wall pretty heavily now,
because that was where my desk and everything was before.
So I put up a bunch of panels.
I got the guitar and the keyboard there.
Um, and then there's panels going up and around.
And then this side's really busy with--
you know, there's panels, lots of stuff there,
so it should be OK. It's not too reflective over there.
That's the same shot as before.
And then over in the corner there,
there's those shelves. There's my new, you know,
editing setup. And I put some treatment up there,
just acoustic foam. It's not that great,
but obviously the wall behind me
is the most reflective. Still got those bass traps
in the corner that I was talking about.
And there's the Aputure 120d with the Light Dome Mini.
This is an Aputure 300d with the regular-sized Light Dome.
These are the curtains that I was talking about that--
now, instead of running curtains this way,
I'm running them just along here,
just to block the doorway. And I think they're nice.
We've got that same GVM RGB light
putting a little warm light on the wall,
and then I've got another curtain over here,
like I was talking about. So, I think that the audio--
sorry this is a little obnoxious, but--
[clapping]
It's not completely dead in here.
It is a little bit lively, but it's not bad
considering I have a giant reflective wall,
and I'm talking into the... sort of deadened part
of the room. So we'll see how it sounds,
but I think it'll work out.
Uh, I know I've been testing other mics
and I keep going back to the Samson.
I have some more mics coming my way
that might replace this one. I'll let you know,
there'll be future videos on that.
And I have this light behind me,
which I think looks nice.
Let me show you what that looks like.
So if I turn off the main light here,
it's giving me a little bit of fill on the objects
over here so they don't have
a completely dark side, because often with,
you know, black objects,
like the lens and stuff like that,
they can kind of get lost in the shadows.
So it's gonna fill a little bit of that,
plus it's giving me a nice rim, as you can see,
to separate me from the background on this side.
This side, I don't need it as much,
because of the colour that's over there.
And then when I throw the main light on,
then it washes out a bit of that colour, so it's nice,
they're blended together, and just kind of fills
the whole thing in. So, I think it looks really nice.
I don't have a hair light anymore up above
'cause I don't need it. I took that down from the ceiling
And, uh, this is the shot, and I'm happy with it.
But I'm excited for this new phase of the channel,
because we're gonna be going into 2020
with a new set, a new haircut, and likely 100,000 subscribers.
Oh, and I've got a new series I'm gonna be announcing soon
that I think you're really gonna like
that's going to feature a lot
of your other favourite photo/video YouTubers.
So I'm really pumped about all this.
Thanks so much for the continued support
and for coming along with me on the ride.
Now let's go make some videos.
Oh, one more thing! I actually got, uh,
sort of another late birthday present from...
a shoe company!
[grunts]
Gonna do a little bit of a Jacques Slade video here.
What does he always do? He's always like, "Yo yo yo!"
[tapping] "What's poppin'?" I don't know.
Anyway, this is not sponsored,
I paid to have these made myself.
But I got some custom MTE Vans
in that I was pretty pumped about.
Check these out. New birthday shoes.
So, they're gray, you got your white balance gray
in there. And--oh, I'm not actually wearing
my bracelet or my watch. See, you always forget something!
Anytime you shoot a video, you always forget something.
Anyway, uh, so they got that gray colour.
Also got a little bit of a... it's called, like, a plum.
It's kind of like a purple, but a nice, you know,
rich colour there.
And these are MTE, so they're, like,
winterized for Canadian-- you know, Canadian winters.
You can-- they're Scotchgarded, so, like,
water and snow just comes right off of them,
and they're a little bit more thermal-lined.
So, pretty exciting. I'm not much of a shoe reviewer.
I just thought you guys would think
these are pretty cool, 'cause, you know,
I'm into like gray and purple,
so...the official Gerald Undone shoes
for the harsh Canadian winters,
with the white balance gray and the snazzy purple accents!
[tapping]
What's poppin', Jacques?
But that's gonna be it for me.
I hope you found this video entertaining,
or at least helpful.
And if you did, make sure you leave it
the old thumbs-up, and consider subscribing
if you haven't already.
But if you did not find this video helpful
or entertaining, then you probably need to watch it again.
Alright... I'm done.
♪