I'm on a low budget!

Yep, just like the Kinks song from the '80's, I'm on a low budget!

Part of my philosophy of filmmaking is to not only make good movies, but to do so as cheaply as possible. While this may seem to be a noble gesture, it's driven by the cold hard economic realities of my current fiscal situation. Translation: I'm poor.

Okay, in all truthfulness, technically I'm NOT poor, but I've budgeted most of my disposable income for other areas of my life, not the least of which is my 30' sailboat. The boat is paid for, but the yearly upkeep and dockage runs thousands of dollars. Since the boat is absolutely required for my sanity (I have a doctor's prescription for "One Large Sailboat" to prove it!), I have to keep it. So that leaves me very little extra cash for trifles like a Canon XL-2 camera or Adobe Premier Pro editing software.

Hence, the necessity of using borrowed cameras and studio facilities.

But in the interest of attaining creative independence, I've begun collecting production related items for my video efforts. Here's a list of what I've bought so far:

Pinnacle Studio 9 Plus Software $89.00 (2 March 05)
Wide angle lens $25.60
Two Chinese lamps $16.81
Mini DV tape $7.00
Twin halogen 500w work lights $21.20
Two metal scoops $9.00
Crappy homemade dolly $25.00
Not-so-crappy but still cheap homemade steadycam $14.00
12x18" Dry Erase board for production slate $2.11
(more to come as I remember them)

I'll revise this list soon, but I have to do some pickup work today. Yeah, I hate working on a Saturday too, but it's good money and I've got more stuff to buy.