Okay… I think I’ve recovered enough to blog about last week’s day-trip to New York City. If you missed it, I posted about my extended stay. The short story is storms pass through, flights cancel, hotels fill-up… equals a long night at LaGuardia.

I have never been awake for a longer time… 41-hours.

Now you know why it took me a while to be ready to blog about it.

Today’s post isn’t about storytelling. It isn’t about shooting or editing techniques. It’s about being able to do a lot with just a little.

When you’re shooting somewhere close to home, you can bring everything and the kitchen sink. When you’re traveling, you can’t do that. You have to pick your gear carefully and know how to make things work.

I went on the New York trip solo. That meant I could only take what I could carry, and it also played a big role while getting around the city. I shot in Brooklyn and the Bronx and took the train from location to location.

Take a look at the photo. The only thing I had with me that it’s seen is a small bag that carried my DSLR. Otherwise, I had a backpack carrying a video camera and audio equipment, a hard case for my light kit, and finally, a baseball bat bag on wheels I use for my tripod and miscellaneous other things.

That’s it. Funny thing is I didn’t even use the light kit. We shot the interview outside and the indoor b-roll was fine with the room’s existing lights.

You don’t need the kitchen sink to create good videos. Minimal gear will never be a problem when you know how to use what you have with you.

–Tony Gnau

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