Cineos In Action!
This week, our brand new Cineo lights are on set up and down the strip shooting entertainment television at iconic spots like the Bellagio Fountains, Le Reve at Wynn, the Ka Theater, and many more. So stoked to have these great lights up and working, and looking great!
F11 Rentals Procures Some Fantastic Lights
F11 Rentals, your go-to Las Vegas video production rental house, just received two Cineo HS2 Remote Phosphor light kits. These awesome lights, which are used worldwide on motion picture sets and in broadcast studios, are the second generation of Cineo's HS fixture, and are superior in many ways to it's predecessor. The HS2 lamphead features a single piece design for durability in multiple environments, and the RDM450 (ballast) is smaller and lighter weight than the legacy DTZ450 power supply. There are a bouquet of other new specs and features, including digital display and control, remote programming, and many more, but I'll let you take a look for yourself, here. We're really stoked to get these in your hands, we'll post reviews as soon as possible.
Sound Devices 664 and 663 #sounddevices #audiodepartment
It's been about a year now since we've invested in our Sound Devices 664 audio mixer/recorder and a little less for our 633. At first, as you may remember, we had a bit of a strenuous relationship with the audio department. However, here at F11 Rentals, we aim to be the best Las Vegas video production gear rental house, even if that means offering up, and learning how to use the best audio gear available. Our mantra is: if you want to be the best, you've gotta know more than the rest. (That's not official.) I'm sure there are bigger, fancier, more sophisticated audio mixers- I mean, I doubt they mixed the latest Star Wars picture on one of the aforementioned mixers (maybe, but I doubt it); but for the vast majority of what we see shot here in Vegas, they work great.
** If you or someone you know is interested in renting one of these fine mixers, just head over to the respective pages for the package information. An overview: The Sound Devices 664 or 633 mixer/recorder, two to three lavalier microphone kits, a shotgun microphone with boom poll, xlr, wireless transmitter plug, and two MP90 batteries to last you pretty much forever. **
There's a lot to learn off the bat: navigating the menus, figuring out what goes in the multitude of slots and ports, what the heck all those dials do... and so many other terrifying things. We have found, much to our surprise, that it won't kill you or give you itchy diseases to use audio gear; and although you get some guff from those jerks in the camera department- and craft services... it's rewarding to have our clients return with positive feedback.
Well, I'm feeling feverish talking about audio so much, so I'm going to go watch The Revenant on mute. Good day.
F11 Rentals Reviews Grip Gear #americangripinc #gripgear #filmset #filmgearrentals
On a recent trip to L.A., we stopped by American Grip Inc., one of our favorite grip-gear manufacturing companies, to check out their inventory and do a little shopping. While we were there getting some awesome gear for our 1-ton Sprinter, we couldn't resist poking around... heck, that's what company credit cards are for. We found all sorts of fun things, but our favorite pick-up from that trip has to be these cool extender arms. Now, as anyone who has worked with grip and lighting knows, the gear often has some pretty interesting names, these tools on the other hand, didn't seem to have a name at all, nor were they in their catalogue. However, after a little back-and-forth, we agreed on a price, and have been ultra happy ever since. These awesome extender-arms, as we've started calling them, measure in at 26 1/2 inches retracted, and nearly double in length to 43 1/4 inches fully extended. We recommend them for flying in back and rim lights, especially with green screen setups, or when you have a wider lens on, and the C-stand is creeping in on the side.
So, make sure to ask about adding one or two to your next Las Vegas production gear rental order, as we're not sure if you can buy them from American, because we don't know what the heck they're called, and can't find them in the catalogue. Until next time, happy shooting.
4,000,000 ISO!? #canoncamera #canonusa #lowlightcamera
From time to time, we here at F11 Rentals like to poke around that internet thing, and find out what's the hap's with cameras and stuff. Well, needless to say, we found some pretty crazy hap's happening over at Canon. The ME20F-SH is a new, multi-purpose camera that can be used for a bouquet of scenarios. A 2.2MP high sensitivity CMOS sensor enable users to shoot crisp, colorful, detailed photographs at low-light conditions. Using the 35mm full frame CMOS sensor, an equivalent ISO of 4,000,000 (that's right, million!!!) can be achieved. So, whether you're shooting Hollywood stars, or stars in Hollywood, you can do both with amazing crisp, clear results. Also, it's shaped like a cube- fun fact.
We don't have one here at F11 Rentals, but once I find which club I left my company credit card at, I'll see if I can wrangle one up. Go here to check out all the fancifulness of the camera from Canon's own mouth; and also, go here, to return to our camera selection and get going on your next Las Vegas video production rental gear order.
F11 Rentals on the Red Carpet #BBMAs #lasvegasvideoproductionrental
F11 Rentals spent the weekend on the red carpet (it was actually T-Mobile magenta) for the 2016 Billboard Music Awards over at the T-Mobile arena here in Las Vegas. Las Vegas production rental gear needs often find their way into such situations, and we here at F11 are happy to fulfill any and all requests possible. We recommend our Sony PMW 300s, or Panasonic HPX 500s for their great image, and ENG-favored designs. There isn't much room on the red carpets, so we also suggest one of our smaller tripods. Some prefer to go handheld or with a monopod, while we can't provide actual hands, we do have monopods. Lastly, one of our smaller audio mixers with some good handheld microphones will make life easier (remember, no wireless, so we'll get you set up with plenty of xlr). So, there you have it, some quick, basic recommendations for the next carpet you work. Our best, friends.
F11 Rentals Revolts! #boston #lasvegasvideoproductionrentals
Las week, F11 Rentals sent two of our trusted Canon C300 Mark 1s and our favorite LED panel lights off to Bean town for a few days of shooting in the Cradle of Liberty. From the Boston Common to Fenway Park, the Old North Church to MIT, we crisscrossed and zigzaggeddown cobble stone streets and across the Charles river in pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness. It looks like we have an order for Atlantic City, so we're going to clean all the forgotten "R"s out of the camera packages, and send them to the land of fist pumping, iron pumping, and Bon Jovi.
F11 Gear Goes to Court. #Uhoh #ImInnocentITellYa
Recently, F11 Rentals sent a production rental package to court. No, we haven't been on a crime spree... recently... this was part of a campaign commercial shoot that we helped out with over the weekend. We sent our standard Arri Lighting package, our Divas (the lights, not the guys in FiveSix Productions editing department), a couple of our nifty LED light panels, and our fan-favorite Dana Dolly. Yes, we had a great time, especially during the recess (who doesn't love recess!?), and can't wait to go back... hopefully for work, not real judgment. Until next time, this blog is adjourned.
Small HD = Big Benefits #smallhd #lasvegasvideoproductionrentals
Adding a Small HD monitor to your shoot could equal big benefits in the long run. Utilizing our Sony PMW 300s or Panasonic HPX 500s is a great choice for most types of shoots, they produce a great picture, are versatile, and have the capability of shooting HQ, broadcast-quality images. Where the Small HD monitors come in to play is in the cameras' monitors. The built-in monitors on the aforementioned cameras will certainly do the job, but in order to really give the shooter a high quality, workable viewing image that can turn your shot from good to great, and assure you have exactly what you want, adding the Small HD is the answer. So, for your next Las Vegas video production rental, ask about our Small HD monitors, and let us show you what they can do for you.
Colin Rich: Timelapse Extraordinaire #kessler #cinematography #timelapse
If you have a couple minutes to see some amazing cinematography by a gentleman named Colin Rich, you should read this interesting article by Kessler. Rich, who is an L.A.-based (and L.A. native) cinematographer currently working on such shows as Fear the Walking Dead, and the television series Face Off, among other cool projects, has developed a very sought-after skill shooting time lapse videos using Kessler products. So, pop on over to this article, and then come on back here and book our Kessler Cineslider.