It feels like Christmas came early for the members of Hawk Productions. Between a brand new, state of the art camera and one of the best camera stabilizers one can buy, the new equipment will prove useful in aiding the creative work of Hawk Productions, however if one is not being productive with their current camera, they won’t be any more productive with a more expensive camera. That doesn’t mean new equipment in Digital Media is not exciting. Hawk Productions is ready to fully explore their new equipment.

Sony A7 III

An impressive, full-frame mirrorless camera. This camera can record at full 4k resolution at 30 frames per second, and 1080p at 120 frames per second. Not only does the resolution bump naturally improve the quality of the footage, but also the increase in frames per second capabilities allows for impressive slow motion shots. The camera is also capable of 6k photos. Paired with the 24 mega-pixel censor, the camera has unlimited potential. Robert Hansen, one of the cinematographers of Hawk Productions, loves the new camera.

“The camera produces some of the cleanest and highest quality shots I’ve seen, especially for a camera so small.”

The new Sony is a huge step up from the previous flagship of Hawk Productions’ inventory, which was a collection of Nikon D610s. The old Nikons could only record in 1080p at 30 frames per second, while the new Sony can record at full 4k resolution at 30 frames per second, and 1080p at 120 frames per second.

Zhiyun Crane 2

An incredibly versatile gimbal which allows for incredibly stable, cinematic shots to be filmed. The gimbal has three motorized axis’, so no matter what direction the camera is thrown, the shot will remain steady. These two additions will provide useful in video challenges, such as the 84 Hour Film Challenge, and general camera use within the program. Marko Gutierro, leader of Hawk Productions, can’t wait to use the new equipment,

“We’ll have much cleaner, more stabilized shots,” said Gutierro.

“Sometimes, with the old camera, the shots would be distractingly shaky, and the gimbal fixes this problem.”

Another advantage of the new camera, is the macro lense.

“The new lense is great because it acts as a long lense,” said Gutierro. “We can work more with zoom if we’d like.”  

With exciting challenges ahead, the crew is motivated, now more than ever, to create something that people will remember. Despite how exciting new equipment can be, it is extremely important to understand that new equipment does not equate to a better end product. A camera is only as good as the person holding it.