guide: 5 grip & electric essentials – 2023 edition!
This post covers the 5 most used pieces of my kit from 2023. Do you have all of these grip and electric essentials?
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Hello hello! Today I’m going to cover the 5 most used pieces of my kit over the last year. From mathellinis to 6×6’s, these are items you’re never going to want to leave home without.
item #1
In no particular order, the first item on the list is the mathellini clamp. I carry a few 2” and 6” end jaw clamps, and these are everything the mafer clamp wishes it was. Not only are they great for grabbing onto stands or speed rail, they’re also useful for rigging to points on location. I’ll use a mathellini to grab onto overhead ledges, shelves, pipes, pretty much any surface wide enough for them to latch onto.
A few tips I’ve picked up for using these on location: make sure you have some scrap wood so you don’t muck up the finish in the multi-million office they’re letting you work in that day. Wrap the wood with a scrap piece of duvetyne to be doubly careful. Lastly, make sure the light isn’t going to torque itself into a dangerous position, fall onto talent, or otherwise ruin whatever you’re rigging to.
Some other fun ways I’ve seen mathellini used the last year are: clamped to a pancake in a shorty c-stand for a makeshift coffee table, mounted to a 2×4 in between drop ceiling panels, and as tube holders. Just don’t crank down too hard or you’ll crack the casing!
item #2
For everything a mathellini is probably overkill for, the grip clip comes in to save the day. A set of number 2’s, 1’s and 0’s will make the set run so much smoother.
Some ways I’ve seen them used are: for attaching backdrops between stands, clipping duvetyne to emergency lights that can’t be turned off, attaching 6×6 rags to window overhangs, cable organizers for overhead runs, as weight on the bottom of gels when they’re waterfalled, the list goes on and on.
item #3
Next up, the big boy of my kit, the mack daddy, the aputure 1200d. It’ll be the only light on this list, and I’m at a point where the 1200d is guaranteed to be my first key light option. I’ve gone to a few sets without it, and have regretted it every time. The DP and I inevitably find a frame with a window in the background, and the extra output is always appreciated. With modern cameras generally having 5-7 stops of dynamic range above middle grey, the 1200d allows me to use heavier diffusion with my 6×6 or 8×8 frames to achieve a soft look while maintaining highlight data from the blue sky. Worst case I just turn the power level down on the light!
item #4
Can’t have a favorite key light without a favorite modifier, and I consistently found myself reaching for my collapsible 6×6 frame from Chimera the last year. This lightweight frame collapses tent-style into 3′ segments, allowing easy storage on the passenger side of my car, and meaning I’m less pokey when walking around office spaces or peerspace rentals. Finally, the tubing of the frame is 5/8″, the same diameter as a baby pin, meaning it rests comfortably inside a standard gobo.
Of course, I love to use my 8×8 when the space allows. I think it’s the easy button for the soft look most DPs I work with are going for. But being my first year open for business with a 3/4-ton package, I’m mostly running G&E solo in smaller spaces. So the ease of rigging this frame when I’m by myself combined with how it fits into any location is an unbeatable combo.
One of my favorite ways to use this is by combining two rags to get a double-diffused look with a small spacial footprint. I skin the 6×6 with an ultrabounce and angle it around 30-45 degrees. Then, I dangle a muslin or magic cloth off the front. To light this setup, I’ll put my 1200d on the floor using what’s called a pigeon plate.
Another way I use this frame is by rigging it over my talent, bouncing light into it, and turning it into an overhead key light source. The frame is so lightweight that it can easily be boomed in with just two c-stands. By skinning it with an ultrabounce and using a focusing modifier on my lights, like a fresnel with barn doors or a spotlight, I can achieve an overhead light without needing a large studio space.
If the location allows it, I’ll even skip the frame altogether and just tape the rag to the ceiling to make it even safer for the talent below. I’ve even done things for narrative projects like tape my amaran F22 to the ceiling, tape the 6×6 rag so it’s dangling about a foot below the panel, and then skirt the whole contraption with a bit of duvetyne. This allows me to create a large overhead source in a tiny space, AND keep the light from spilling on the walls so that there is contrast between the subject and background.
item #5
The last item on my list can be found at any home improvement store, and if you don’t have it in your kit, then you should run out and make one of these as soon as possible. It’s the bead board!
Made out of insulation foam and cut to whatever size you need, or fits your car, bead boards lie at the perfect intersection of affordability and utility.
The most consistent use for them on my sets has been to control the contrast levels on the talent’s face. By positioning it closer to the talent I can increase the amount of light bouncing in from the key light, and when I pull it away, the light reduces. One of the handy things about using a bounce to “light” the shadow side of the talent, is that the ratio stays the same as the intensity of the key light is changed. Once I’ve locked in the proper ratio that the DP is asking for on the talent, 2:1, 4:1, 8:1, etc., I know that won’t change as we fine tune intensities on the lights.
Another use for bead board is that it’s much lighter and easier to rig in places than a light and softbox combo would be. By rigging the bead board into these places, and bouncing light off it by using a spotlight or spotted-fresnel from across the room, I can reduce rigging time, increase on-set safety, and defeat the inverse-square law in smaller spaces.
One tip for controlling the color output of them is to keep a piece of unbleached muslin on hand to cover this with in case you need a quick way to warm it up. Use some of those #2 clips from before to secure this quickly!
One final note: I’m always rigging this with a quacker clamp, but if those aren’t available, you can just use the good ole’ mathellini that you’ve already run out and bought since I mentioned it in tip #1, right?
honorable mentions
No set is complete without some amount of negative fill being used – whether that’s with 18×24 or 24×36 flags, 4×4’s, leftover duvetyne cuts, or enough visqueen to cove a day for night. The exact dimensions always change on a set by set basis, but having enough negative fill on hand to control existing lighting, and shape the lighting that’s being put up is a must.
The last thing I’ll mention: tubes are definitely the best accessory light after you have a few point sources. Hair lights, kickers, space fills, in-camera practicals, their uses are endless. Having a set of tubes handy always makes the day easier.
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– Some of the links in Tyler’s blog posts are affiliate links, which means that qualifying purchases will help financially support Tyler at no extra cost to you. If you wanted to purchase something else but still support Tyler, please use the following link: https://amzn.to/3WdnsdM
– This blog post contains only Tyler’s opinions about G&E, gaffing, and LED lighting, and was not reviewed or paid for by outside persons or manufacturers
– Tyler Trepod is a freelance owner/operator gaffer of a Grip & Electric truck based in Denver, Colorado and serves the Boulder, Denver, Colorado Springs, & Fort Collins markets