Every other TH-cam ‘cinematographer’ - “1 year of owning the Sony A7s” Carlo - “1 Year of owning a 1/2 ton production van” I fkn love this channel SOOOO much. Underrated as hell and amazing value
Definitely think about getting a steel divider between the rear of the van and the passenger compartment. Packing everything tightly may work for normal driving but if you're in an accident having all that gear flying towards you is really dangerous. Also look at ratchet straps for the cart while travelling, the van should have mounting points inside
Funny you say this.. I'm at an uplifter right now having my divider installed for exactly that reason. Accidents do happen (thats why I have a new van being kitted up lol)
For pro work and big setups it's essential. Even for a family SUV it's not a bad idea. We had a removable one in our last car for times when we were packed above the seat line.
With TH-cam flooded by tech-influencers cosplaying as professionals, it’s a treat to watch a video from an actual working professional. Good job my man. More power to you and thanks to you and your buddy for taking the time out to record and finksh this video. God bless
I’m a photographer, not a cinematographer but this channel is so refreshing to see. You and Lewis Potts have the most informative videos around the how and why. I can only watch the same video about cameras and lenses so many times. Also your disposition is confident and controlled. Very relaxing as a viewer. Can’t wait to see where it goes 🍻
First of all I want to say that I enjoy how you present your content! I don't feel rushed or pressured (if that makes sense). You are calm and logical all at the same time! You also seem very cool, down to earth and humble! I wish you NOTHING but the best in ALL that you do! Keep grinding, I'm certain you will reach ALL of your goals! 💪🏾💪🏾😃
I have a basic Transit 250 (a bit larger than the Connect), so having enough gear at any given time to use the gear itself to jam everything in place, was seldom an option. The best investment I made with regards to keeping my gear from moving around while driving, was E-Track. E-Track comes in various lengths, so it's easy to custom fit. There is a wide variety of accessories to connect to the E-Track to help secure your items. I don't know what the options are for a Connect with regards to installing E-Track, but it would definitely be worth a look. Thanks for a really insightful video, and being open enough to share details of your business that many of us assume we need to keep to ourselves.
I love owning a van too as an owner operator, if you are able down the road I would heavily suggest getting a metal divider between the driving compartment and the grip. Stands become missiles when in an accident, and a divider could save your life. Converting the van into a primary camera package van with cart, lenses, camera, dp cart with DIT tools for offload and colour could be really great too and you could keep the smaller van size if you focus on just dping and just want to have it stay as an efficient vehicle too.
Great video! But I recommend everyone building production vans to make sure there is a wall between the gear and the front seats. Before I built my van I once had to step on the brakes and a c-stand missed my head with just a few inches… within two days I got me a new van, with a solid wall to protect me.
Love it! I was on a project a couple months back and we needed to pick up all of our rental gear plus all of the accommodations for client comfort (chairs, tables, coolers) the producer was so excited when I was like "okay, great, that will all fit in to my van no problem" ...saved us a PA and a van rental.
We had a Ford Transit Connect XLT build for 3 years prior to our trailer build. Loved that van. So versatile. Great in a city. Great highway cruiser for longer trips. Nice setup you got there!
Away from all you you can learn from this video take time and appreciate the effort put into making this video. Dude decided to carry equipment just for us to learn how to organize equipment and how to get inspired to invest. Great work Carlo
The return on your investment is ten fold in this scenario. Excellent job. I am in the process of doing the same up in Canada. My Van and 50% of the gear is ready. I have a good friend who is a DOP that rents his gear to production companies on top of his day rate - $2000+ a day. The company saves money from avoiding expensive rental houses and the DOP makes 100K in 50 days. These are great numbers and at first most won't attain this, but keep on growing and it is absolutely in your reach. Cheers guys.
Love your work mate, I've been bingeing the hell outta your material lately, so much value and from someone so down to earth and humble, awesome stuff!!
Thanks for all the info and value you put in your videos. Its inspiring to see you bro, that been one of my goals, but honestly its a little hard here in LA, a lot of lowbudget gigs and people dont wanna pay anything
Philly has much more corporate work. LA is a lot more narrative and yeah, independent narrative work doesn't really have a budget. Have you tried doing corporate gigs to pay the bills in San Diego? Carlsbad? Those places have money and a lot less competition. Keep your apartment in LA, but make your down South
I don’t know if you already have them, but I strongly suggest getting dash cameras for your vehicle. If you wrap it with your logo or you have it registered to your business. It may sound crazy, but There are very litigious and opportunistic people who will deliberately jump in front of your truck or cut you off so that they can sue “the company” for negligence. You want and need proof that cannot be refuted. Always have to look out for “the game”. Speaking as one business owner to another, alway protect yourself proactively. You’d be surprised at how many people will do anything to take what you’ve worked so hard to earn. Trust.
Your channel should have 1M subscribers since everyone seems to be a content creator now. But I guess they’d rather buy one wheelers and watch Peter McKinon and Matt whatever-his-name. You tell us everything we need to know. Priceless.
"How do you make your equipment work for you?" part really stuck with me! Because I have a lot of gear I could be renting out on sharegrid or something but I don't. I've been wanting to make a big investment into my business too just on a smaller scale lol. Like a nice cine lens kit or nanlite kit that I could use on personal gigs but also rent out. So it was cool to hear about why you purchased the van how it's been working for you. Thank you 🙏 Also I really love the podcast man, I just finished EP4 keep killin it! 📈📈
Awesome. Truly enjoyed seeing how/what you packed and the "why". It takes money to make money and making yourself stand out and more capable is the way to do it. Keep it up!
Great video! I really appreciate this topic. I’m just transitioning into filmmaking/videography and it seems there is a split happening between traditional big film crews where everyone has a specific role and the “one stop shop” filmmakers that do essentially everything or almost everything for a smaller production. I personally like this approach. I think there is a lot of money to be made in this smaller market working with smaller businesses that don’t have The million dollar budget, but still want good production value. I also see more room for adding most/more of the creative input and isn’t that why we’re doing this? I personally like to have a lot of creative input. That’s my take as a noob. This is very helpful.
Awesome setup dude. Really happy for you and you should be proud of the accomplishment of that van. Younger you would be so stoked for current you - and future you will be at that next level! Continue on my friend.
Man, thanks for making this video and breaking down your model and way to view it. I live in SF Bay Area and I also own most of the necessary need gear for these productions, I just haven’t really figured out the best way to advertise myself but simply have been relying on sharegrid and my few friends in the industry. Thanks again for these tips of guidance, I appreciate how genuine you are 🤙🏻 keep inspiring more folks!
I get it you're probably trying to maximize space and everything, but I've heard enough horror stories and I've heard the sound my bulkhead makes whenever I have an emergency brake with a loaded van. You really should consider having a bulkhead/cargo divider/partition. Stay safe 👍
I always watch your videos from Tokyo. So it will be helpful. You look like you are having a lot of fun at work. that's so good I'll see you again then.
Nice one Carlo, very informative! What I'd love to know is how you managed to build and purchase all the gear in a short time. Weather it's sponsorship deals etc and how you have structured your own business as a sole operator. Thanks bro! Loving your stuff
Working and investing my money properly. I never spend my money much of anything other than my business and good food. From the beginning I always made sure I purchased gear that would make me money in return. Sponsors have helped provide some gear but at the cost of having to do promotional videos etc for the companies. It works well. I structure myself as a business which I think helped me shape my mindset to think bigger
Carlo, thanks for sharing such valuable information with every video. i‘m loving it😍 keep it up!! also, Brady also just uploaded a video on a production van😂
*I really appreciate your business sense Gian 👍. I am re-gearing up to get back in the freelance shooter game after a life threatening illness took me out of operation for 3 years and essentially de-railed my freelance /indi DOP career. 👀 I'm taking a very serious look at the possibility of going with a Ursa Mini Pro 12K. What are your thoughts about this camera ?*
Very Nice. I'm planning on doing something very similar. I have a truck and a new SUV so now I'm looking at buying a 12' trailer for this purpose. Then I can rent the trailer out and charge to bring it on set. Then I'll just need to build a studio cart.
Thank you so much for this! I just wanted to let you know that the sellfy links in the description don't work. Can't wait for the next Video! Greetings from Austria 🤙
Another good reason for having a van versus a pick up truck or suv is that it’s not as attractive for car theft. Depending on where you live? Having a van almost takes you completely off the radar of car thieves.
thanks for sharing!! could you also make a video on the paperwork behind this? for example, how do you get insurance for your gear that you are renting out
Hi love your works and TH-cam video Can u make a video or write a list of ur equipment I don't mind about the money,last video u did about ur van and ur equipment I couldn't see the writing
I live about a hour away from philly and would love to connect with you. I Recently purchased a sprinter my self. I'm literally on the same path . Great video. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for giving us insight on your process of owning a production van, I appreciate it as I've recently bought a used van for my production work. I've been searching for similar ramps but haven't found any that look to fold completely onto themselves like yours. Could you provide a link or product name for yours; it'd be much appreciative!
Did you look at methods for c-stand storage? What methods were appealing, space permitting? Nice truck. My work does a similar thing by having gear with the producers. Thanks for the video!
These videos are so helpful. I am very curious to see how you will develop yourself as you mentioned focusing on your art more rather than the other aspects. Also, a while back I think you also posted a gear list where you mentioned you also offered DZO lenses in your packs. Do you still use those as well?
![[LIVE] : ONE ลุมพินี 80 | คู่เอก "รักษ์ vs ยอดนำชัย"](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/ckLMRorsMeY/mqdefault.jpg)
Every other TH-cam ‘cinematographer’ - “1 year of owning the Sony A7s”
Carlo - “1 Year of owning a 1/2 ton production van”
I fkn love this channel SOOOO much. Underrated as hell and amazing value
Thank you!
Definitely think about getting a steel divider between the rear of the van and the passenger compartment. Packing everything tightly may work for normal driving but if you're in an accident having all that gear flying towards you is really dangerous. Also look at ratchet straps for the cart while travelling, the van should have mounting points inside
i agree
Funny you say this.. I'm at an uplifter right now having my divider installed for exactly that reason. Accidents do happen (thats why I have a new van being kitted up lol)
For pro work and big setups it's essential. Even for a family SUV it's not a bad idea. We had a removable one in our last car for times when we were packed above the seat line.
The dumbass kid read this and didn’t even care for the Advice. I hope someone steals his van! 🤣
With TH-cam flooded by tech-influencers cosplaying as professionals, it’s a treat to watch a video from an actual working professional. Good job my man. More power to you and thanks to you and your buddy for taking the time out to record and finksh this video. God bless
I’m a photographer, not a cinematographer but this channel is so refreshing to see. You and Lewis Potts have the most informative videos around the how and why. I can only watch the same video about cameras and lenses so many times. Also your disposition is confident and controlled. Very relaxing as a viewer.
Can’t wait to see where it goes 🍻
$300 a day for all that stuff seems like a steal. You should charge more.
First of all I want to say that I enjoy how you present your content! I don't feel rushed or pressured (if that makes sense). You are calm and logical all at the same time!
You also seem very cool, down to earth and humble! I wish you NOTHING but the best in ALL that you do!
Keep grinding, I'm certain you will reach ALL of your goals! 💪🏾💪🏾😃
*stares at my one camera that I throw in a tote bag when going to shoots*
That setup looks like a dream🙌🏿🙌🏿
well done m8. well spoken. no shouting at the camera. you have my like
Thanks!
I have a basic Transit 250 (a bit larger than the Connect), so having enough gear at any given time to use the gear itself to jam everything in place, was seldom an option.
The best investment I made with regards to keeping my gear from moving around while driving, was E-Track.
E-Track comes in various lengths, so it's easy to custom fit. There is a wide variety of accessories to connect to the E-Track to help secure your items. I don't know what the options are for a Connect with regards to installing E-Track, but it would definitely be worth a look.
Thanks for a really insightful video, and being open enough to share details of your business that many of us assume we need to keep to ourselves.
I love owning a van too as an owner operator, if you are able down the road I would heavily suggest getting a metal divider between the driving compartment and the grip. Stands become missiles when in an accident, and a divider could save your life. Converting the van into a primary camera package van with cart, lenses, camera, dp cart with DIT tools for offload and colour could be really great too and you could keep the smaller van size if you focus on just dping and just want to have it stay as an efficient vehicle too.
His channel is growing quickly. Very happy for you man.
Great video! But I recommend everyone building production vans to make sure there is a wall between the gear and the front seats. Before I built my van I once had to step on the brakes and a c-stand missed my head with just a few inches… within two days I got me a new van, with a solid wall to protect me.
Love it! I was on a project a couple months back and we needed to pick up all of our rental gear plus all of the accommodations for client comfort (chairs, tables, coolers) the producer was so excited when I was like "okay, great, that will all fit in to my van no problem" ...saved us a PA and a van rental.
We had a Ford Transit Connect XLT build for 3 years prior to our trailer build. Loved that van. So versatile. Great in a city. Great highway cruiser for longer trips. Nice setup you got there!
Stop selling me on these innovid carts - man that looks like it makes life so much easier.
Hahaha it’s worth it
Away from all you you can learn from this video take time and appreciate the effort put into making this video. Dude decided to carry equipment just for us to learn how to organize equipment and how to get inspired to invest. Great work Carlo
Hahaha I appreciate it
Always dreamed of building a big enough production company to need a van. You’re killing it bro ❤
very interesting, thanks for this and all that you do on here
The return on your investment is ten fold in this scenario. Excellent job. I am in the process of doing the same up in Canada. My Van and 50% of the gear is ready.
I have a good friend who is a DOP that rents his gear to production companies on top of his day rate - $2000+ a day. The company saves money from avoiding expensive rental houses and the DOP makes 100K in 50 days.
These are great numbers and at first most won't attain this, but keep on growing and it is absolutely in your reach.
Cheers guys.
Since buying my van I’ve noticed I get more gigs too! It’s a nice little perk!
Agreed!
Thanks for the insights bro! Your videos are so pleasing to watch.
Sadly things are so different in Europe, couldn't apply this to my daily job.
Love your work mate, I've been bingeing the hell outta your material lately, so much value and from someone so down to earth and humble, awesome stuff!!
It was so satisfying seeing the van being packed. Such an insightful video! Thank you, Carlo!
Thanks for all the info and value you put in your videos. Its inspiring to see you bro, that been one of my goals, but honestly its a little hard here in LA, a lot of lowbudget gigs and people dont wanna pay anything
Sometimes when one sees the impossible another see an opportunity.
Philly has much more corporate work. LA is a lot more narrative and yeah, independent narrative work doesn't really have a budget. Have you tried doing corporate gigs to pay the bills in San Diego? Carlsbad? Those places have money and a lot less competition. Keep your apartment in LA, but make your down South
So much value ,full of insights not only on the filming side but also on the business side of things:) thanks Carlo!
Such an underrated channel. Love all the videos, been binging everything. Can't wait to see more!
I don’t know if you already have them, but I strongly suggest getting dash cameras for your vehicle. If you wrap it with your logo or you have it registered to your business. It may sound crazy, but There are very litigious and opportunistic people who will deliberately jump in front of your truck or cut you off so that they can sue “the company” for negligence. You want and need proof that cannot be refuted. Always have to look out for “the game”. Speaking as one business owner to another, alway protect yourself proactively. You’d be surprised at how many people will do anything to take what you’ve worked so hard to earn. Trust.
Tidy little setup. Great vid.
Dude you’re all-in on your career making investments no one else is making, it’s brilliant to see
You worked on the classic tees commercials? those are golden :D
Hahah yes, they’re a blast to work on
I needed this video so much right now. We've been at a crossroads and this really helped. Awesome videos man!
Your channel should have 1M subscribers since everyone seems to be a content creator now. But I guess they’d rather buy one wheelers and watch Peter McKinon and Matt whatever-his-name. You tell us everything we need to know. Priceless.
Glad I found you Carlo. You truly inspire me. Keep it real. Keep it authentic. Subscribed yesterday and thank God I did!
Transit connect gang!! Let’s gooo thanks for the inspo I think it’s time I do this
15:15 Yep. You'll get there soon mate.
"How do you make your equipment work for you?" part really stuck with me! Because I have a lot of gear I could be renting out on sharegrid or something but I don't.
I've been wanting to make a big investment into my business too just on a smaller scale lol. Like a nice cine lens kit or nanlite kit that I could use on personal gigs but also rent out. So it was cool to hear about why you purchased the van how it's been working for you. Thank you 🙏
Also I really love the podcast man, I just finished EP4 keep killin it! 📈📈
Your killing it dude those DOP dreams aren’t far for you
This is exactly what I wanted to do. Funny TH-cam recommended this vid. Subscribed
Awesome. Truly enjoyed seeing how/what you packed and the "why". It takes money to make money and making yourself stand out and more capable is the way to do it. Keep it up!
videos like this = perfect to watch while eating
DUDE...that ford dealership. I've filmed there before. They're apart of a large automotive group and they're a massive client of mine.
I can’t believe how much HE DON’T MISS 😫
My guy
That is a sweet build.
Thanks man!
Love it! One day i hope i will have something similar.
Great video! I really appreciate this topic. I’m just transitioning into filmmaking/videography and it seems there is a split happening between traditional big film crews where everyone has a specific role and the “one stop shop” filmmakers that do essentially everything or almost everything for a smaller production. I personally like this approach. I think there is a lot of money to be made in this smaller market working with smaller businesses that don’t have The million dollar budget, but still want good production value. I also see more room for adding most/more of the creative input and isn’t that why we’re doing this? I personally like to have a lot of creative input. That’s my take as a noob. This is very helpful.
Thanks again for sharing your cool journey with us! keep it up Carlo!
that's dope. glad you've been able to cover the van payment through rentals
Awesome setup dude. Really happy for you and you should be proud of the accomplishment of that van. Younger you would be so stoked for current you - and future you will be at that next level! Continue on my friend.
Man, thanks for making this video and breaking down your model and way to view it. I live in SF Bay Area and I also own most of the necessary need gear for these productions, I just haven’t really figured out the best way to advertise myself but simply have been relying on sharegrid and my few friends in the industry. Thanks again for these tips of guidance, I appreciate how genuine you are 🤙🏻 keep inspiring more folks!
Love hearing your thought process!
I'm happy knowing honestly, I love your support to those who don't have access to things
So glad I followed you. This is really what we want to see.
So great man, we recently added a van to our business also to house our production gear. Best business investment to date.
The van build is sick man. I need one haha or want one tbh. In due time! Also, grandmas beanies are legendary.
I get it you're probably trying to maximize space and everything, but I've heard enough horror stories and I've heard the sound my bulkhead makes whenever I have an emergency brake with a loaded van.
You really should consider having a bulkhead/cargo divider/partition.
Stay safe 👍
100% agreed
Sweet van. You could possibly configure a way to store extra stands (and those grip arms) on the inside of the doors.
I always learn so much from each one of your videos, keep up the great work
I always watch your videos from Tokyo. So it will be helpful. You look like you are having a lot of fun at work. that's so good I'll see you again then.
Thank you!
Nice one Carlo, very informative! What I'd love to know is how you managed to build and purchase all the gear in a short time. Weather it's sponsorship deals etc and how you have structured your own business as a sole operator. Thanks bro! Loving your stuff
Working and investing my money properly. I never spend my money much of anything other than my business and good food. From the beginning I always made sure I purchased gear that would make me money in return. Sponsors have helped provide some gear but at the cost of having to do promotional videos etc for the companies. It works well. I structure myself as a business which I think helped me shape my mindset to think bigger
nice work mate, sounds like it's worked well for you!
Man, sweet setup. Definitely invest in a cargo divider between the cabin area and back area though for your own safety.
Absolutely love this, great informative video and very interesting to watch. Keep up the good work!
Carlo, thanks for sharing such valuable information with every video. i‘m loving it😍 keep it up!!
also, Brady also just uploaded a video on a production van😂
*I really appreciate your business sense Gian 👍. I am re-gearing up to get back in the freelance shooter game after a life threatening illness took me out of operation for 3 years and essentially de-railed my freelance /indi DOP career. 👀 I'm taking a very serious look at the possibility of going with a Ursa Mini Pro 12K. What are your thoughts about this camera ?*
Very Nice. I'm planning on doing something very similar. I have a truck and a new SUV so now I'm looking at buying a 12' trailer for this purpose. Then I can rent the trailer out and charge to bring it on set. Then I'll just need to build a studio cart.
Carlos is the nanlight master
Your hard work and hustle is inspiring!
Nice!! Great van, gear, and prices ...especially since you're doing the editing of the footage.
This was super informative man! I’ve always wanted a gear van, so this helped out a lot🙏🏾💯
Thank you so much for this! I just wanted to let you know that the sellfy links in the description don't work. Can't wait for the next Video! Greetings from Austria 🤙
Amazing stuff you inspire me a lot. Hope one Day I'll own such a Van for my business.
I was wondering today when are u going to do some tour of your van and there it is! :D
Perfect timing
Another good reason for having a van versus a pick up truck or suv is that it’s not as attractive for car theft. Depending on where you live? Having a van almost takes you completely off the radar of car thieves.
Love your videos they are so nicely put together and grading is soft and feel comfortable.
Thank you!
@@carlostigs an oasis amidst al the fake hyped-up screaming of many of your peers. Keep up the good work;-)
✅buy ford transit connect
✅put all of my gear in it
✅make all of my youtube videos from and/or in my sick van 😳
thanks for sharing!! could you also make a video on the paperwork behind this? for example, how do you get insurance for your gear that you are renting out
My man and his half ton package, always worth a rent.
look who it is! Hey there
Great overview of your business! This is VERY helpful for me. I'm in the market for an SUV or van for my business. Keep growing, bro!
This is awesome! Thank you so much for sharing this!
It wasn't really a +Gear video as advertised but was still cool.
Enjoy the journey man!
Such a great video Carl! What’s the reason for not having a wall separating the cargo with cabin? Is it only in the US it’s like that?
Ahhh Carlos posted, today’s going to be great
:)
How many years did it take to own all that gear? I'm so inspired right now!
Hi love your works and TH-cam video
Can u make a video or write a list of ur equipment
I don't mind about the money,last video u did about ur van and ur equipment I couldn't see the writing
20k subs soon, well that was fast!
I live about a hour away from philly and would love to connect with you. I Recently purchased a sprinter my self. I'm literally on the same path . Great video. Thanks for sharing.
loved the vid brother. Keep rockin 💪🏽🎥
Great video.
Would love a van, right now squeezing my giant combo stand into a Suzuki Swift 😅
the prices you mention are just for the equipments or DOP fee included? How much you charge as DP only?
Thank you for giving us insight on your process of owning a production van, I appreciate it as I've recently bought a used van for my production work. I've been searching for similar ramps but haven't found any that look to fold completely onto themselves like yours. Could you provide a link or product name for yours; it'd be much appreciative!
Aye Im a new videoagrapher but from jersey too!
Did you look at methods for c-stand storage? What methods were appealing, space permitting?
Nice truck. My work does a similar thing by having gear with the producers. Thanks for the video!
this is such a great idea
These videos are so helpful. I am very curious to see how you will develop yourself as you mentioned focusing on your art more rather than the other aspects.
Also, a while back I think you also posted a gear list where you mentioned you also offered DZO lenses in your packs. Do you still use those as well?
What’s the trolley??? Looks mint! Thanks mate
I was waiting on this 🔥
Great Video! Great Van! Great DP!
16:30 you can also generate income by cross-hiring your gear to other DPs you know will treat it with respect
smart, did the same with all my gear.