Recommended Video Production Gear for Virtual Sets
With so many options for video production gear, it can be difficult to determine what items to purchase within your budget. Because of this, we have created the following recommended gear page to give you some ideas of what hardware / software combinations work well together at various prices / budgets for use with virtual sets in a video production.
Recommended Retailers:
https://www.bhphotovideo.com
https://www.amazon.com
Cameras
Cameras play a vital role in your production since they are the lens through which your audience will see your final video. There are a wide variety of cameras to choose from, so it can be a daunting task to determine which is the best for your production. Below, you will find our recommendations for well built cameras in 3 categories of quality and performance.
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Cameras |
Panasonic AG-CX350
 |
JVGYHM170UA
OR Lumix GH5
|
Canon T7i
|
Camera Tripods
Camera Tripods are another important element in any video production. If you are mostly using stationary shots, you can get away with a less expensive tripod. If you are using your tripod for pan or tilt shots, you will want to invest in a decent tripod that will allow you to smoothly start and stop your camera movement. Check out our recommendations below:
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
| Camera Tripods |
Manfrotto Pro Video Tripod Mid Level Spreader with 504HD Pro Fluid Video Head 75 + MB MBAG100PN Padded Case and 2 Free Ivation Video Quick Release Plates
|
Manfrotto MT190XPRO4
|
Ravelli AVTP Professional 75mm Video Camera Tripod with Fluid Drag Head
|
Lights & Lighting Kits
If you are filming on a green screen, there is nothing more important than lighting. You will want to purchase the best light kit your budget will allow. Also, you will want to position the lights so that your subject is fully lit and your chroma backdrop is as evenly lit as possible. This will make it easier when you go to key out your subject in your video editor to place your talent in a virtual set.
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Light Kits |
ikan IB508-v2 Bi-Color LED 3-Light Studio Kit
|
Dracast LED1000 Kala Bi-Color LED 3-Light Kit
|
Westcott uLite LED 2-Light Collapsible Softbox Kit
|
Audio / Microphones
One thing that can be a dead giveaway for a low quality production is poor audio. You will want to use a good quality microphone which will allow your presenter to be clearly heard. Here are a few we've used that we recommend:
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Audio / Microphones |
Sennheiser EW 112P G3-A omni-directional EW system
|
Shure VP83F LensHopper
|
Blue Snowball iCE USB Condenser Microphone
|
Green Screen Backdrops and Screens
If you are working with a virtual set, you are going to need a green screen to shoot on. These come in a variety of styles, but ideally, you want the most smooth, consistent background you can achieve with your lighting and space. We have even had good results working with a portable green screen outdoors since you can easily achieve a consistent light across the backdrop. Here are a few that we have seen and tested that will work for most video productions:
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Green Screen Backdrops |
Lastolite Panoramic Background
|
Digital Juice ChromaPop Studio
|
Impact Collapsible Background
|
Teleprompters
Teleprompters allow your talent to feel more at ease when delivering extended dialogue and information. Rather than needing to memorize lines or talk from memory, the presenter can simply read the words on the screen. This can increase the speed of the production process and give the presenter a confidence boost. Most teleprompters are hooked up to either a computer or an ipad which allows a script to be loaded and controlled via remote or automatically.
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
| Teleprompters |
T2-15 Teleprompter
|
Ikan PT-ELITE-U-RC Elite Universal Tablet Teleprompter Kit with Elite Remote
|
iPad Mini Teleprompter R810-10
|
Video Editing Software
This is where it all comes together! The video editor allows you to piece together footage and combine your talent with virtual sets. From over 12 years of experience, we highly recommend Adobe software for it's ease of use, capability, price and compatibility.
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Software |
Adobe Creative
|
Adobe Premiere Pro CC
|
Adobe Premiere Elements
|
Live Production Software
Running a live production can be stressful, exciting and labor intensive...but it can also be rewarding, dynamic and interesting to your audience since you can relay information in real time on your program
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Software |
Live Stream Studio
|
vMix
Sling Studio
|
OBS -
[FREE!] |
Video Editing Computers
At VirtualSetLab, we run both Mac and Windows based computers. However, we highly recommend Macs because of their reliability, build quality and longevity. They may cost a bit more to start with, but they are generally a solid platform from which to edit, create and share video production.
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Computers |
Apple Mac Pro
|
Apple iMac 27-Inch Retina 5K
|
Macbook Pro
|
Computer Monitors
An often overlooked piece of hardware is the computer monitor. If you can afford it, we recommend having at least 2 monitor on any workstation. This will give the editor more room to work and will speed up the efficiency of the editor. Below are a few we have used and recommend:
|
Recommended Gear |
PROFESSIONAL |
ADVANCED |
BEGINNER |
|
Computer Monitors |
Dell Ultra HD 5K Monitor
|
Dell Ultra HD 4K Monitor P2415Q
|
LG 34" Class UltraWide IPS Gaming Monitor 34UM57-P
|
