Beer Cozy Screen Shade for Your Camera

So I was given a tip about using a beer cozy as a screen shade that I could use to slip over my swivel LCD screen on my Canon T3i to help block sunlight.  So I thought hey, why not take it a step further!  Check it out, share and subscribe for more!

Attach your LCD viewfinder to your Swivel camera screen!

So I came up with a simple way to attach your LCD view finder or LCDVF to the swivel screen on your camera or camcorder.  The main purpose for this was to avoid physically attaching a metal mounting plate to the screen.  Doing so would cause, in most cases, the user to be unable to close their screens properly inwards to avoid any damage to the display.  But the method I came up with allows you to firmly hold your viewfinder against your display using this simple trick.  Take a look and take care!

Monopod Dolly Adapter

So something I noticed after a bit of searching is that it seems no one has ever bothered to use a monopod on a camera dolly.  Then again, how could they, there wasn't any simple way to do so...Until now!  In the video below I show you an extremely simple way to build a monopod dolly adapter.  Something you can attach to your existing dolly...well, one that has a flat surface and can have holes drilled through it.  In the video I use an 1.5 inch pvc pipe but you could also use a 2 inch version if your particular monopod does not fit into the 1.5 inch.  Here is the video and best of luck!  Let me know if you build this in the comments of the video or this post.

Use Your Monopod as a Dolly

Hey everyone, in this video I show you a simple trick that allows you to use your monopod as a dolly.  Check it out, try it out and let me know how it went for you!

Free White Balance Card - Indie Tip

Hey guys, here is something you can pick up at your local Home Depot for free and you can use it for when you white balance.  Check it out!

Perfectly Sync Your Audio in Adobe Premiere Pro

Hello everyone, today I wanted to share with you a way to perfectly align you audio in Premiere Pro.  I know this seems to have been covered by a lot of different people, but unfortunately most of them did not show how to do it correctly to this degree.  (I actually haven't seen one video with this method yet)  So feel free to watch this video and prepare to be amazed!

This method is excellent for all purposes, but comes in extremely handy when syncing multiple clips together that you plan on using both sets of audio.  This will help avoid weird vocal distortion or echo.  Thanks for stopping by and feel free to check out my YouTube channel for more great videos!

Zalman ZM-MIC 1 as a Lavaliere Microphone

If you are looking for a cheap yet very effective microphone with a long cord and can record in both channels, then look no further.  The Zalman ZM-MIC 1 is very impressive for its price and will save me from performing an extra task in post.  Since it records in both the left and right channels.  Give this a watch and hear it for yourself!

Cycles - Directed by Chad Bredahl

Cycles was an interesting short that I had the opportunity to make.  The idea behind it was conceived on my drive down state.  Upon arrival I started laying out shots on paper and in my head.  The story and concept grew from there.  It was shot in a pretty short amount of time only consisting of a late night and a portion of a morning.  Yet I was figuring out my shots on the fly and the angles I wanted as well.  I used my DIY led lights to create atmospheric lighting.  Mainly just the individual lights themselves and scattered them around the room and areas we shot in.  So here it is, give it a watch, and let me know what you thought of it!  Thanks!

Passed 1,000 Subscribers and Climbing!

I just want to say thank you to everyone who follows me and a warm welcome to those that now do or will.  I hope to create more and even better content as my channel continues to grow.  At this point I still have multiple DIY's I still wish to create and share along with some reviews of products that I own and are on order.

One of my goals is to show you these neat DIY ideas of mine and actually put them to use in short films.  That way you know what can be done with them.

Thanks again and take care!

Krotocrane Featured on IndyMogul!

Hey everyone, I have some great news!  The Krotocrane was featured on IndyMogul's YouTube channel along with Awake in the Woods.  This is very exciting for a few reasons.  One is that spreads the word on the Krotocrane.  Two, from this I have now surpassed 1,000 subs and am actually moving towards 1,200 already!  Anyways, here is there channel and the featured video.  Check it out and subscribe to IndyMogul for more great stuff!  Cheers!

IndyMogul Channel:  http://www.youtube.com/user/indymogul

Why Indie Filmmakers Should Shop at Goodwill

So I decided to share why those on a budget should shop at Goodwill by  displaying some of the finds that I have purchased myself from various Goodwill stores.  Check it out!

To name a few items I now have for just a few dollars:  CamGear heavy duty tripod with a fluid head - $7, 80-200mm Minolta lens, 50mm 1.7f lens, camera bag, adjustable flash totaling $7, two more nice tripods - $3 each and some nerf guns - $2 each.  I even just got a Audio Technica ATR20 microphone for $4.  Ooohh, yeah!  So go check out your local Goodwill and see what you can discover for your future projects!

DIY LED Light Panel - $6

Update:  I just did a little soldering and was easily able to combine the single beam led with the other four.  Now it appears my light output has almost doubled!

Hey everyone, its been a while, but I am back.  I wanted to share with you a simple light panel I designed.  Its cheap and easy to build.  It uses three led lights I purchased at Dollar Tree, a tupperware container with a clear lid and a velcro set with sticky sides.

Since Knoptop did such a great job with his write-up on this, I am going to refer you to check out his site:  http://knoptop.com/quick-fx/6-dollar-light-panel

To add to this build, I may create an updated version.  Possibly combining the first led light with the other four, which should result in a good light boost.  Anyway, here is the build, thanks for checking it out!

HelmetCam

Say hello to the HelmetCam. Now to come up with some cool first person stuff. Glad I got the motivation to finish it. I got the helmet for $3 and essentially had to replace old padding, paint helmet, clean it, and add a liner, which may need some more work. Anywho, fun times ahead!

KrotoCrane - $20 Camera Crane / Jib

Its been a while, but I will simply just post my DIY videos that I created and add additional info later.  Thanks for stopping by!

Awake in the Woods - My DIY Camera Crane / Jib Demo

This is a quick post of the video I put together testing out my new DIY Jib / Crane I developed.  Hope you like it and feel free to comment and subscribe!  Thanks!

ISO 100 vs 160 with Magic Lantern + Technicolor Cinestyle

So I performed a test between ISO's to see how they would fair in the video below.  Watch video first, then look at pics.  Check it out!

But here are some screen captures that I took for a much clearer comparison.  The only thing that changed between shots was the f/stop.  It was increased from 1.8 (both ISO 100 and 160 used f-1.8) and up to counteract the increase in ISO.  Other than that the only software adjustment performed was adding some sharpening to all the shots.  Let me know what you thought of this in the comments! Thanks for stopping by!

ISO 1250 - F/stop 3.5

ISO 100 - F/stop 1.8

ISO 160 - F/stop 1.8

ISO 320 - F/stop 2.2

ISO 640 - F/stop 2.8

Film by the Minute - CPU Basics for Video Editing

This is my third episode of Film by the Minute where I discuss CPUs for video editing and what to look for when buying one. 

Follow me on Google+, Twitter and Facebook.  Just search for Krotoflik and stay up to date!

Film by the Minute - Video Card Basics for Video Editing

This is my second episode of Film by the Minute where I discuss graphic cards for video editing and what to look for when buying one. 

Follow me on Google+, Twitter and Facebook.  Just search for Krotoflik and stay up to date!

Here is a link to my video card in case you are wondering: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16814130738

What SLI and Crossfire means:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scalable_Link_Interface  and  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMD_CrossFireX

Film by the Minute - Hard drive basics for video editing

Hello hello, so this is my first episode of Film by the Minute!  Although rather bland looking as I work on the rest of the stuff, its an informative chat about what to look for when buying hard drives and some other helpful times when setting up hard drives for video editing purposes.  Thanks for watching and I plan to release weekly episodes on Mondays!  Next show I will talk about graphics!

New YouTube Layout Design

So a lot of people are upset about the new layout.  For me I welcome it and you may wonder why.  Well, first we have to realize that the old style was like a bad MySpace flashback.  Things were everywhere, couldn't read half the stuff on the page due to crude color mixing of text and backgrounds.  Some of us remember, while the new generations will not.  But with the new layout I think it will help create structure and bring a flight professional edge to it.  I myself have developed a new wall for my channel that takes advantage of the style.  I would love it if who ever may read this to visit my channel and leave me a comment!  Thanks all!

http://www.youtube.com/user/krotoflik?feature=mhee

I also plan on redesigning this website as well.  Which will most likely reflect that of my channel...Kind of like when you go to WalMart and you already know where things are because they are all the same. 

Power Grab!

So here is a little video I came up with as a way for my to extend my knowledge of creating vfx assets and videos.  Its short and sweet I like to think.  I will be releasing one of the assets I created and used at my new channel FreeVideoAsset as well.  Thanks for watching and please comment, like and subscribe!

Tree Farm - Using Tree Asset

So I was experimenting with creating tree assets and wanted to see how it would look it reapplied to the environment in which it came from.  Here is what I came up with and all I did was simple paste the tree image a Ton of times over at different sizes.  Seeing how this is only a test and all.  Let me know what you think.

I think if done right, this could be a pretty nice way of covering buildings and eyesores.  Or simply if you are trying to give your shot an outdoor look if you live in the city.  My advice would be to take a picture of a tree, more like as many trees as you can for variety, then key it out and paste to your hearts desire.

This took me no time at all to do once I had the tree keyed out.  Which wasn't to hard either.

Free Stock Footage from XStockvideo.com

I just discovered a great site with Free stock footage!  http://xstockvideo.com/  Make sure to read the agreement before downloading though.  Its free for everything, but there is a couple things you can't use it for.

I downloaded a 30 second clip of just clouds in 1080p and I thought it looked very nice.  So go check it out!  Free for commercial use as well!  Can you tell yet that I like free stuff?  Ohhh Yeah.

Free Textures - Pack 1

Free Textures! This is my other YouTube channel "FreeVideoAsset" that I have created for simply creating free video assets. Everything on this channel is free for whatever you want! Please subscribe to it if you like free stuff and tell others about it! Thanks guys and gals!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORvdS0qsMAg

YouTube Render Settings - Sony Vegas / Adobe Premier

Hello everyone, I am going to answer the number one frequently asked question.  What is my render settings for YouTube?  Well, to find that out, watch the video below!  It would be best to watch this in full resolution so you can see what I am doing.  Thanks!

Free Pre-keyed Powder Hit 01

Hey guys, for those who follow me or randomly stumble across this post.  Here is a download link to a powder hit asset for your commercial or non commercial pleasure!  Please share and subscribe to my youtube channel, Krotoflik!  Thanks.

http://www.mediafire.com/download.php?1663idijk7kqrd6

Candle Mage - Free Pre-keyed Candle Flame!

This is a free pre-keyed candle flame that you are free to use for commercial and non-commercial purposes.  It would be swell if you mentioned me though in anything you use it in.  The clip download length is about 46 seconds long.  But to download the file you will need to go directly to the video here:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CyfB4H5Y57k

Hope you enjoyed the dinky intro clip as well.  I wanted to make something to go along with the file so you could see how I put it to use.  This clip only uses this asset, nothing else.

Twitter:  https://twitter.com/#!/krotoflik
Google+:  https://plus.google.com/u/0/105093875048269804573/posts
Facebook:  http://www.facebook.com/pages/Krotoflik/209823419027980

DIY Shotgun Microphone Mount - $3.22

So here it is, probably the most professional looking DIY mic mount you are going to find.  On top of that, it is easy to make and cheap!

Here is a few photos to lure you in, Muahaha!

DIY Hot Shoe Adapter

Hello again, this posting is on how I made a DIY hot shoe adapter...or cold shoe. 

Whatever you want to call it.  This build will probably cost a couple bucks or perhaps $5 to $6 if you buy baggies of parts, but then you should be able to make at least four of these.  The key part to all of this is the 1/4" T-Nut.  Normally it is tipped with four spikes, but it turns out perfect if you break those points off that the base of the t-nut will slide right into the shoe mount like it were shaped like a square.

Along with the t-nuts you will also need a length of 1/4" threaded bolt.  The length simple depends on how long you want it as you will be cutting the head off the bolt so it is straight threads.  You will also need 5/16" washers, 7/16" nuts, 1/4" nylon lock nuts, and 1/4" wing nuts.

Basically you will end up cutting the bolt to the length you need, threading on the t-nut to the bottom of the cut threads, then on top drop on your 7/16" nut, then washer, thread on a wing nut, then thread on a wing nut facing the other direction.  It should look like this.

In the video you will see me explaining how to do this but I show you what I did to keep the threaded bolt from spinning inside the t-nut and also what you can do so you may attach this to a quick release plate!  So now you have a 1/4" thread on top so you may attach something like a portable audio record to the top of your camera or anything else you may wish to.  Now if you are wondering what the lock nut is for here is how I used this idea for my DIY shotgun mic mount.

$20 DIY Fig Rig Cube with attachable shoulder Supports!

Hey everyone, I have developed a DIY that will help protect your camera, is a fig rig, is a dual shoulder support stabilizer, and is designed to allow attaching your camera strap to it.  It is what I call the Cube.  Since I started getting into filming videos and what have you I have probably seen almost every diy camera stabilizer on YouTube.  Now of course their are a variety of designs but every single design had its flaws....I don't like flaws.  I fix them.  With regular one sided shoulder rigs its obvious, the whole rig is held awkwardly to the side of your body.  People try to make up for this by adding rails, extended handles that come across their chest and weights.  Which is really unnecessary.  Fig rigs are just odd and in the shape of a huge steering wheel.  How many do you know of that you can just set on the ground when you are tired of holding it?  Finally, non of these rigs protect your camera.

So I took the collective flaws in these and removed them by creating a dual shoulder rig with removable shoulder supports.  Thus leaving me with a fig rig cage that I could set on the ground, hold it any direction I desired to shoot, and could even let it hang from my neck if I chose to do so.  While this is truly a simple rig to make the only issue was figuring out how to glue everything in a order that was simple to follow and left me with even and straightly glued pieces.

Now this rig is pretty robust with its uses by design but obviously any rig like this, such as a shoulder or fig rig, will never match the smoothness of a glidecam or merlin.  But will definetly get the job done and much better than without one.

If you are deciding on whether or not to build this and have watched my demo short of me using this.  You probably noticed that it appeared shakier than others.  There is a simple explanation for that.  Most people in an attempt to "sell" you there idea to build and share will use a wide angle lens combined with image stabilization built into the camera/lens.  Resulting in a very smooth image which is deceiving.  I wanted to break that mold by showing you what it would look like with a 80mm (50mm x 1.6 crop ratio of T3i) unstabilized lens.  If you are wondering how could a wide angle make a difference, its simple.  Try looking at something...like THIS word.  Now kinda bob your head around.  It appears still perfectly readable and not much motion is occurring.  Now cup your hand to your eye and make a hole just big enough so that you can once again see THIS word and bobble your head again.  And now you know...the rest of the story.  That's the difference.  So if you thought my video looked pretty good, imagine what it would like look with a wide angle lens and image stabilization on.

Ok, enough chitter chatter, I give you the tutorial!  Its long, but not everyone follows along at the same pace and catches everything the same as others.  So I tried doing the best I could so that all could build this.  As a side note I used a crappy hand saw to cut my pipe just to prove that it is possible to use the bare minimum and still have a great looking product!  Good luck and PLEASE comment below, thank you!

DIY Camera Cube Rig - Demo Short

Hello everyone, today I would like to share a demo short I made up using my camera rig I designed.  Expected cost of the build is probably around $20.  For the short I used only my 50mm 1.8f lens.  I also used absolutely zero image stabilization in camera or software.  This was filmed with me running in big boots through crunchy snow and on uneven ground.  I wanted to make this short a challenge for me using my rig since I think anyone with a lens like this will agree that getting running shots while simply holding it makes for some awfully shaky footage.  The actually DIY itself will be released soon but thought I would share this portion now since I had completed it.  Enjoy, comment, share and subscribe!  Thanks everyone!

Most Anticipated Movie of 2012 - Short Skit

Updated:  A short 10 second skit I put together for Film State on YouTube. My most anticipated movie for 2012!  This was a simple submission video I made real quick for Ryan Connolly of Film State / Film Riot.  He simply wanted to know what our most anticipated movie was going to be for 2012...Of course I don't know the meaning of simple!  Oh and as a side joke, his last episode he did this had No girls in it at all.  Maybe this will be his first!

But the movie I am waiting to see is "Act of Valor."  Which according to Ryan was shot with about 80% DSLR!  They even used LIVE AMMO and a rocket launcher!  Check it out and watch their trailer here:  http://actofvalor.com/#/TRAILER

My skit is on Film State!!  :D  at the 12:30 mark!  W00T  Check it out and Thumbs up the krotoflik comment below to help it get noticed.  Thanks!