Recommended Equipment: digital filmmaking, photography, & stop-motion animation

Camera

The PennWest Philm faculty recommends this camera for the following reasons:

  • Manual focus control
  • Manual f-stop, ISO, and white balance control
  • 20MP Full-Frame Sensor
  • 4K60 and Full HD 120 Video Recording
  • Dual Storage Card Slots and Wireless Connectivity
  • EF Lens mounts are compatible with those available for loan from PennWest Philm

If you already own a camera with similar features, check with your professor to avoid an unnecessary purchase.

 

Audio Recording

  • Zoom F3 2-Input / 2-Track Portable Field Recorder
  • Batteries and memory cards
  • Studio monitor headphones.  Not earbuds.  Not wireless.  Closed-back, over-ear.  Designed for deeper bass, lower distortion, and wider dynamic range.  Essential for minimizing background noise in the field and in post-production labs.  Choose one:  Sony MDR-7506 (better, $99.99) or Sennheiser HD 280 (cheaper, $79.95).

 

Smart Phone

  • Storage capacity: 64 GB (minimum recommended)
  • Cloud-based file back-up and transfer:  iCloud, Google Drive, Samsung Cloud
  • Video resolution: 1080 HD.

Smart Phone Tripod

Spend a lot, spend a little.  Your choice of device to steady your phone and distance you from it.

File sharing account

OneDrive: operated by Microsoft as part of its web version of Office.  Free accounts with Dropbox (2GB), Box (10GB), and Google Drive (15GB) are dwarfed by the full terabyte (1TB) available for easy file sharing between Edinboro students and faculty.

Internet Access

Internet connection and registration are necessary for required Adobe software activation, validation of subscriptions, and access to online services.  File transfer times are profoundly affected by bandwidth.  According to Ookla, the average U.S. broadband download speed is 96 Mbps (Megabits per second) and average upload speeds are now at 33 Mbps (as of Jan 30, 2020).  The difference in these numbers means it will always take more time to send large media files to someone else than it will to receive it.  Please plan accordingly.  Also, be aware that the speed of your Internet Service Provider (ISP) might be compromised by the speed or placement of your personal wireless router.

Computer Software & Apps

  • Adobe Creative Cloud ($19.00/mo student pricing with institutional affiliation).  Buyer Beware!  Click on the following software titles to see each app’s minimum system requirements: After Effects, Audition, Bridge, Illustrator, Media Encoder, Photoshop, Prelude, Premiere Pro, and other desktop and mobile apps and services for designing images, graphics, layouts, user experiences, video, and audio.  Creative Cloud is included with your enrollment in Philm and other Art courses.
  • Storyboarder.  Free from Wonder Unit.  Compatible with Photoshop and Premiere Pro.
  • Moment Pro Cam (or equivalent).  This smartphone app allows for manual control of ISO speed, white balance, focus, exposure, and audio recording level.
  • Sun Surveyor.  ($9.99).  Location planning app that tracks sunrise, sunset, and moon phases on any date at any location on earth.

Computer Hardware

macOS
    • Processor: Intel® 6thGen or newer CPU
    • Operating system:  macOS v10.13 or later
    • macOS v10.13 or later RAM:  16 GB of RAM for HD media; 32 GB of RAM for 4K media or higher
    • Graphics Processing Unit (GPU):  4 GB of GPU VRAM; see this list of recommended graphics cards
    • Hard disk space:  8 GB of available hard-disk space for Adobe software installation; additional free space required during installation (Adobe software will not install on a volume that uses a case sensitive file system or on removable flash storage devices). Additional high-speed drive for media.
    • Monitor Resolution:  1280 x 800 (1920 x 1080 or greater strongly preferred)
    • Network storage connection:  1 Gigabit ethernet (HD only); 10 Gigabit ethernet for 4K shared network workflow.  Unrelated to your internet connection, this describes the speed of file-sharing with a server on campus or at a production house.
Windows
    • Processor:  Intel® 6thGen or newer CPU – or AMD equivalent
    • Operating System:  Microsoft Windows 10 (64-bit) version 1803 or later
    • Graphics Processing Unit (GPU):  4 GB of GPU VRAM; see this list of recommended graphics cards
    • Hard disk space:  8 GB of available hard-disk space for Adobe software installation; additional free space required during installation (will not install on removable flash storage).  Additional high-speed drive for media.
    • Monitor Resolution:  1280 x 800 (1920 x 1080 or greater strongly preferred)
    • Sound card: ASIO compatible or Microsoft Windows Driver Model
    • Network storage connection:  1 Gigabit ethernet (HD only); 10 Gigabit ethernet for 4K shared network workflow.  Unrelated to your internet connection, this describes the speed of file-sharing with a server on campus or at a production house.