Recently, we put out a huge payment to pick up a Red Gemini, one of the most expensive yet extremely high quality cameras in the market. It’s one of the biggest investments we’ve made to date and it’s been proven to be a good decision for us so far.
Not only has the Red given us quality footage. It’s also taught us various lessons. Not all of them are directly connected to storytelling and film, but they’re extremely valuable to us nonetheless. Here are five of the most valuable lessons we’ve learned since getting by Red Gemini.
Gear Matters Just as Much as Skill
There has been a long-standing debate amongst filmmakers and photographers about whether the quality of a camera has any effect on the final output. So where do we stand at Pluggas? To be honest, the battle raged in our minds for a very long time. But we’ve come in the middle and put a premium on both.
The quality of your gear definitely matters and so does the quality of your skill. It’s not an either/or game. Why not have both if possible? That’s why we put in serious investments in our skills when I enrolled in Muse Storytelling and in our gear when we purchased the Red.
Passion Is Sacrifice
People like to talk about passion a lot nowadays. That’s a good thing! But what is passion really? We think of passion as loving what you do, but it goes beyond that. Passion is loving what you do whether it’s hard or easy. Passion is nearly impossible without sacrifice.
That’s what the Red was to us- a sacrifice. The downpayment alone for the Gemini is already more expensive than the other cameras we’ve purchased. But the financial sacrifice is fine with us because we are passionate about story and film.
Be Proactive
One thing that the Red has allowed us to do is to be more proactive about the shots we take. Before, we would often just react to situations and chase after the shots we wanted. But now with the Red’s power and precision, we have more room to be more deliberate and purposeful in the shots we take.
We try to apply that to life as well. Take a proactive stance in life and you will win more. It allows you to be a step ahead all the time and be more intentional about every move you make. Getting the Red taught us that.
You are What You Value
We didn’t buy the Red just because it’s an expensive camera. We also went for it because it stands for all we stand for- quality stories told through the lens of quality. At Pluggas, we try to make our values very clear and we find ways to communicate that in various ways.
One of the ways we make that clear is through the business decisions and purchases we make. We bought a Red. That means something to us because Red has the same values we have. We try to do the same with every client we work with. We want to work with people that share our values. When we share values, it becomes a whole lot clearer where we want to be.
