Best Accessories for Filmmaking | 2024

Pros:

• Expands recording capabilities of many cameras
• Beautifully bright and responsive scream
• HDMI in and out

Cons:

• Cables sold separately
  
  

An external recorder can expand your filmmaking potential in all sorts of ways – there are plenty of cameras that won’t shoot their highest resolutions internally and require a recorder to do so. For our money, the best recorder for its price on the market right now is the superb Atomos Ninja.

Offering 4K ProRes recording, among many other formats and codecs, the Atomos Ninja V also provides monitoring for mirrorless, DSLR and other camera systems; it’ll work with pretty much every camera in the class it’s aimed at. Thanks to its HDMI 2.0 connection, you can transfer files quickly and efficiently, while the 1,000-nit, 5-inch screen on its rear is bright, even in daylight. This is a truly excellent piece of kit, and you’ll be amazed at the difference it makes to your filmmaking.

Pros:

• Extremely affordable
• High-quality with metal construction and deluxe windshield
• Impressive sound quality for the price

Cons:

• Serious filmmaking will demand higher quality and versatility
  
  

At least half of any great film is in the sound design. The first step to great sound design is capturing great audio while on a shoot. Ideally, you’ll have a sound recordist with you, but this is not always feasible. In this case, you may want to use radio lavalier mics for any dialogue or interviews, or an on-camera mic like the tiny RØDE VideoMicro to improve the scratch audio or at least get a bit of background/ambient sound.

Incredibly affordable, the Rode VideoMicro is not likely to be the best choice to record an entire film’s audio on, but is a much better option than an in-camera mic, and is a great starting point for getting your head around the ins and outs of audio.

Pros:

• Generous 22,500mAh capacity
• USB-C and USB-A ports
• Charges multiple devices simultaneously

Cons:

• On the pricier side for a power bank (but well worth it)
  
  

The more gear you have, the more power you need and this just increases the possibility that one day you’re going to be embarrassingly caught out when some vital device or another dies mid-shoot. You’ll likely be shooting in locations where you need to power everything via batteries, including cameras, lights or monitors. Consistent, reliable and predictable power is key.

As video is such a power-hungry activity, you’re going to want a beefy power bank. Something like the Zhiyun MOLUS 130W Power Bank is a good choice, offering 22,500mAh power capacity, and while it’s more expensive than standard power banks, it’s realistically going to be much more useful on a busy shoot. It can quickly charge up multiple devices at once via its USB-C and USB-A connections.

Also, make sure you have spare batteries! As they’re light, plentiful and inexpensive, you really can’t have too many — make sure you get the right type to go with your camera, and charge them all before your shoot. 

Pros:

• Hardy and waterproof
• Plenty of storage and transfer speed
• Compatible with Thunderbolt 4 

Cons:

• Price goes up as capacities get higher

Also available in 1TB, 2TB and 4TB.

Like batteries, the other crucial item for not missing a shot is lots of storage. Most consumer video cameras will use inexpensive SD cards, which you should ideally have dozens and dozens of. It’s also a good idea to have separate labelled card wallets for full and empty cards; you’d be surprised how easy it is to get them confused. 

It’s also a good idea to have a portable hard drive with you to back up footage immediately after a shoot — especially if you’re going to be out on location for several days. Nobody in the video world is going to argue with a LaCie Rugged Mini SSD, which is a hardy drive that’ll keep your data safe, and supports fast transfers for quick uploading and downloading. It’s available in 500GB, 1TB and 2TB configurations, and while you may be hamstrung by budget, the more space you have, the better.

Pros:

• Lightweight and portable
• Extremely effective stabilisation
• Teflon-coated axes provide smooth movement

Cons:

• 3kg payload suited to beginner and mid-range setups
  
  

This 3-axis handheld gimbal boasts more stabilisation power than ever, thanks to teflon-coated axes and enhanced intelligent algorithms that can compensate for all kinds of camera movement, resulting in footage that’s delectably smooth. It’s lightweight enough that it’s suitable for solo run-and-gun filmmakers, and it can support camera kit up to 3kg in weight, which is realistically going to cover most mid-range mirrorless and DSLR camera/lens combinations.

Stabilisation systems may be improving all the time, but as far as handheld filmmaking is concerned, there’s still no real substitute for a dedicated gimbal if you want smooth moving footage. In-camera systems may well get there someday — but they’re not there yet, so a gimbal remains a no-brainer of an investment for the serious filmmaker.