To figure all this out required many thousands of dollars of experimentation. Enjoy! —JM
HDMI Capture Card
You need a way to get the signal from your camera into your computer. There’s currently a movement afoot for more conventional cameras to go directly into your USB, but I’ve found that the HDMI capture card method is more reliable.
- AVerMedia Live Gamer Ultra / $215
- Cloner Alliance Chert 4KC / $170 (out of stock but this is way easier to use).
HDMI Cable
You’ll need a usb-c cable from the HDMI Capture Card and also an HDMI cable to go to your camera’s Micro HDMI.
- Nanosecond Extreme Slim 2.6’ Micro HDMI Cable / $20 (twice as expensive but worth it)
Camera Recommendation: Used Lumix GX85
You want a camera that doesn’t turn off in 30 minutes. This happens and it’s no fun to manage. You also need a camera that has “Clean HDMI” — that’s not immediately obvious how to figure out. I’ve enjoyed buying used cameras on eBay and think this option is highly economical:
Get a Lumix GX85 on eBay which will go for roughly $400 dollars. Try and get one with the “pancake” lens (12-32mm lens) for beautiful background blur.
Get a battery adapter for the GX85 so you can keep it powered up all day:
- Direct to your wall /$25
- Direct to a USB charger/ $25 (available in July)
Mounting Your Camera
I prefer monopods, but you can find tons of other options online.
- Monopod from Digiant / $100
Wireless Microphone
You’ll need to charge a wireless microphone, so if you want to work in a wired way, then get a lavalier microphone to usb. Otherwise:
- Rode Wireless Go / $200
Lighting
I’ll cover lighting later. But for now you can look at my lighting tutorial:
