“It’s not the gear; it is the photographer,” or some variation of that phrase, is something you have likely heard before. This is a mantra that many often bring up when a photographer or videographer friend is lusting after a new piece of equipment, or bragging about some gear. You can find countless examples online of inexpensive gear being used to great effect, and we have another one of those for you to enjoy here today.
Griffin Hammond is a YouTuber and videographer with Bloomberg, and he recently posted a video on his personal YouTube channel with an inexpensive and very easy to use portable on-location gear setup for video interviews. But you could use this setup for portraits or other images as well.
The primary piece of kit in this setup is a small LED light called the Lume Cube. This little light pairs with your cellphone via Bluetooth and can act as either a flash or video light. It is also waterproof, incredibly durable and can get quite bright. Paired with the Lume Cube, Griffin used a small soft box and an orange gel to soften and warm the light.
Then he pulled out an expandable background, which you can find easily for under $25 on sites like Amazon to use as the solid black background. The interview itself took place in a cramped hotel room with little room, and terrible light, but with this affordable portable setup Griffin was able to produce some quality video interviews with some big names like Mandy Moore to be used on a big-name publication.
If it was good enough for him and for them, then you have no excuses, and it is good enough for you. So next time you start to think that you can’t get it done on your budget, think again and look outside the box.
