Have you ever watched a movie shot with a bad camera or audio? I’m sure you have, and it probably annoyed you.

Getting the right equipment when you need to start a project, whether it be filming a movie, videoing an event, or recording sound, is crucial in ensuring your final product doesn’t look subpar.

So, what types of camera accessories will you need? Do you want the kind of atmosphere your movie provides to influence the lighting? How many cameras do you want to use in the scenes?

All of these questions, and more, will help shape the kind of equipment you’ll need in your camera bag. You can also check out Expressway Cinema Rentals for a list of filmmaking accessories.

Here are ten products that every aspiring photographer and filmmaker will want to have as part of their equipment collection.

Microphones

It doesn’t matter if you’re shooting a documentary or a short film — sound quality is paramount.

Like with cameras, there are plenty of different microphones on the market today, but not all are made equal. So which one should you choose?

There are two main types of microphones: dynamic and condenser microphones.

Dynamic microphones

Dynamic microphones usually have better sensitivity and less distortion than their condenser counterparts (they’re also much cheaper). Still, they tend to pick up more background noise due to their omnidirectional polar pattern.

Condenser microphones

Condenser microphones offer more precise sound quality because they only record from a specific direction (i.e., stereo).

They also come in different polar patterns: shotgun, bi-directional, and hypercardioid (the latter is suitable for interviews).

A good microphone can be a game changer for your production, especially if you’re planning a feature film.

Tripods

Tripods allow you to keep your camera steady while shooting scenes, giving you better quality footage and eliminating unnecessary shaky camera movements.

It also allows you to shoot scenes from different angles or locations simultaneously without moving the camera between takes.

This saves time and allows for greater creativity in your filmmaking process.

Section: Lights

Lighting can make or break a scene. It can help you create the mood you are looking for in your movie, whether dark and gritty or bright and cheerful.

There are many different types of lighting available for filmmakers, but there are two basic types: natural light and artificial light.

Natural light

Natural light is sunlight that comes through windows or doorways into a room.

Artificial light

On the other hand, electrical devices such as lamps, bulbs, and other sources of electricity produce artificial light.

Dolly

A dolly is a machine that allows you to move your camera so you can film smoothly.

You must mount the camera on a wheeled platform to use it. Thus you can move it in any direction by remote control or manually by an operator.

You can use these dollies in many ways. You can use them from tracking shots and pans over large distances to moving the camera closer to or away from a subject.

Dolly shots are often used in action movies to convey speed and energy.

They come in two main types: rail dollies and wheeled dollies.

Rail dollies use rails permanently attached to the ground, so you can only use them on flat surfaces such as roads or sidewalks.

Wheeled dollies are more portable, but because they rely on wheels for movement, they’re not as smooth as rail dollies.

Slider

This device attaches to your tripod and allows you to move the camera on a track or rail smoothly.

These are used for panning effects and tracking shots where you want smooth motion from one point to another.

The most common types of sliders are made from aluminum or carbon fiber materials, but there are also ones made from plastic materials, as well as ones made from pipes and tubing.

Some people even create their DIY sliders out of wood or metal rods.

Memory cards, and lots of them!

The first thing you need when working with video is a memory card large enough to hold all your footage.

You’ll also want to ensure it has fast read and write speeds so that you aren’t waiting for long periods while recording or downloading footage.

As any filmmaker can tell you, memory cards aren’t cheap. And when shooting in 4K or high dynamic range (HDR), they can fill up even faster than average.

So why not invest in a couple of 16GB top-tier memory cards? You never know when you’ll need them.

Camera bags and backpacks

It’s essential to have everything you need close at hand. A good camera bag or backpack will help keep your gear safe and organized, which is crucial when making a film.

If your budget allows for it, we recommend getting a bag with compartments for each piece of equipment and plenty of room for extra batteries, chargers, and other accessories.

If not, many smaller bags will work just as well.

Filters and ND filter accessories

You can use filters to alter the light entering your camera and provide a variety of effects.

They can be attached to the front of your lens to control exposure, color, and contrast or protect the lens from scratches and dirt.

You can also attach them to the end of a lens for creative effects.

Here are some of the most popular types of filters:

UV/IR filters

These filters block out ultraviolet rays and infrared light from reaching your lens, which helps protect it against dust, scratches, and other damage.

Circular polarizing filters

These filters block reflections from non-metallic surfaces, so you can get a clear shot of anything reflecting light.

They’re handy for landscapes, waterfalls, and other outdoor scenes with lots of reflective surfaces.

Neutral density (ND) filters

ND filters reduce the light entering your camera, allowing you to use wider apertures when filming in bright conditions or slow shutter speeds when filming in low-light situations.

Cables and Adapters (HDMI, USB, audio)

While it’s true that many cameras come with HDMI output cables, not all of them do.

If you want to record from your camera to an external device such as an SD card reader or a computer, you will need either a USB cable or an HDMI cable.

These cables are usually included when you buy your camera, but not always.

If you don’t have any cables and adapters for your camera yet, then it’s worth investing in some so that you don’t have to worry about missing footage because you forgot to transfer it from the memory card to the computer.

Remote shutter release cable/remote.

This is one of the most critical accessories filmmakers must have in their arsenal.

It allows you to fire off a shot without touching the camera, which can cause vibrations that will show up on the screen.

You can also use it when recording sound so that you don’t have to keep pressing records while filming an interview subject or getting footage of a crowd at an event.

Final Thoughts

The camera is an essential part of your filmmaking equipment. Without it, you won’t have anything to capture your ideas and stories.

But like any other technology, the camera can be improved with additional accessories.

If you’re a filmmaker, you know that many different types of equipment can help you capture fantastic video footage.

However, having expensive camera equipment is not necessary to create great movies.

Just make sure that you have the ten accessories listed above to help enhance the quality of your film.