Griffin is on the campaign trail, days before the Iowa Caucuses—with drone shots, gimbal maneuvers. Is the Peak Design Travel Tripod up to the challenge of political press events?

Hey Indie Filmmakers - a DIY filmmaking podcast

Covering Presidential Politics with the Peak Design Travel Tripod

Using tools like youtube-dl, and sources including presidential libraries and Archive.org, Nick and Griffin explain how to locate and download historical news footage for documentaries. It’s the workflow behind Griffin’s weekly archival web series "Rewind."

How to Locate Free-to-Use Archival Footage

While covering the campaign trail in Iowa, Griffin accidentally broke his Panasonic GH5S camera, and busted a lens as well. How he managed to complete the video assignment regardless.

I smashed my camera on the campaign trail

For the video version of this podcast, Griffin and Nick use decent cameras, lighting, and a few filmmaking tricks. But can it be simplified, replicated by budget-conscious non-filmmakers to achieve the same look?

Recreating this podcast look on a budget

Griffin is in Villenave-d’Ornon, France, and Nick explains why Apple added a third camera to their newly released iPhone 11 Pro.

Why does the new iPhone need 3 cameras?

Griffin is selling a lens and a microphone! Email griffin@hey.film if you’re interested. Plus, your questions about ugly slow motion footage, what questions to ask in a documentary interview, and why that purple fringe creeps into your shot.

The lens that shot “Sriracha”

Ukranian filmmaker Artem Gavr marketed a spinning boomerang-like device for capturing “bullet-time” slow motion effects. Problem is, GoPro says he infringed on their trademarks.

When GoPro shuts down your Kickstarter campaign

Griffin upgrades to the untethered Oculus Quest, a portable virtual reality headset that uses “inside-out tracking”—that is, four infrared cameras on the headset see the controllers and recognize the shape of your living room.

The VR headset that goes anywhere

In 10 days, Peak Design has already raised over $5 million for their new travel tripod. Nick is one of nearly 12,000 Kickstarter backers. But would you spend nearly $289 for a small aluminum tripod? Or $479 for lightweight carbon fiber? (Final retail price will be $599.)

Would you spend $599 on a travel tripod?

I attempted to hire Vistaprint to create a plastic card with my name, face, and the word PRESS on it—a press pass that I designed. But the proof was rejected as “suspicious.”

Can I make my own press pass?

If a client from six years ago emailed you, would you still have their wedding video? Nick and Griffin discuss their data retention policies for freelance clients.

How long should freelancers save clients' video files?

Nick and Griffin each solve a couple technical issues plaguing their filmmaking processes this week.

Solving the Audio Sample Rate Mismatch

Griffin uses a light-painting wand called the Pixelstick to create the intro sequence for his new Indy Mogul show—“Cheap Thing vs. Expensive Thing.”

I created these intro titles with Pixelstick

Indy Mogul is back! This is first episode of The Indy Mogul Podcast, hosted by Ted Sim: Today we catch up with fellow co-host Griffin Hammond about his work covering the 2016 Presidential election with Bloomberg News and the process of creating his festival darling documentary “Sriracha.” We also discuss the fundamentals of documentary filmmaking and how to film a documentary in one day.

One-Day Documentaries with Griffin Hammond

Swiss tourist Paolo Prosetti was arrested after crashing his drone near Times Square in New York City. When Griffin attempted to film his court case, the judge denied his request.

Judge Denies My Request to Film in NYC Courtroom

"Hey Indie Filmmakers" is a weekly podcast about DIY filmmaking, cameras and technology, hosted by documentary filmmaker Griffin Hammond and tech expert Nick Bodmer.

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Hey Indie Filmmakers - a DIY filmmaking podcast

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