Videographer Gifts Under $50: 20 Rigging, Power and Grip Parts
Short answer
The best videographer gift under $50 is the NEEWER NP-F970 two-battery kit with charger, around $48, because every monitor, light and recorder on a small rig runs on NP-F and no shooter has enough of them. If you do not know what they shoot, a NATO top handle, a magic arm and gaffer tape fit every rig ever built.
Under $50 the question is not whether a gift is good, it is whether it fits. About a third of what a shooter rigs onto a camera is keyed to a specific body, lens diameter or mounting standard, and the rest fits anything. This page sorts twenty items both ways: by price band, because that is how gifts are budgeted, and by what it needs to attach to, because that is how gifts go wrong. The NEEWER NP-F970 Two-Battery Kit with Charger leads, because it fits every rig, it is used on every shoot, and the recipient is short of them right now.
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Which of these fit any camera, and which need something to attach to?
This is the sorting question, so it comes first. Fits anything: the NP-F kit, the magic arms, the cheese plate, the shock mount, gaffer tape, sandbags, the rain cover and the XLR cables. Needs a NATO rail: the top handle and the monitor mount, and nearly every cage in the cages roundup has one on top. Needs 15 mm rods: the lens support, and the baseplate on this list is what provides them. Needs a specific body or lens: the FZ100 dummy battery is Sony only, and the matte box clamp and gear rings depend on lens diameter, though both ship with adapter rings for the common sizes. The mounting standards guide explains every thread and rail named on this page.
$20 to $50: the rigging and power upgrades
Ten items. This is the band where a rig stops being a camera with things clipped to it and starts being a system, and the rig-building guide puts these parts in the order they should be bought. The two audio items, the shock mount and the XLR cables, are for a shooter who already owns a shotgun microphone or a recorder; the audio for video guide is the page for one who does not yet.
| Gift | Right for | Check before buying |
|---|---|---|
| Tilta 15mm Lens Support | A shooter with a long or heavy lens on rods | Needs 15 mm rods. Pair with the baseplate below. |
| NEEWER NP-F970 Two-Battery Kit with Charger | Everyone | Universal. Two packs, dual charger. |
| SmallRig Matte Box with 67 to 82mm Clamp | A run-and-gun shooter fighting flare | Fits 67 to 82 mm lenses. No rods. |
| NEEWER 14-Piece 0.8 MOD Focus Gear Ring Set | A shooter heading toward a follow focus | Fourteen sizes. Photo lenses only. |
| SmallRig Shotgun Microphone Holder | Anyone with a shotgun mic | Cold shoe and 1/4-20. Universal. |
| SmallRig 7-inch Rosette Magic Arm | A shooter whose monitor droops | ARRI rosette one end, 1/4-20 the other. |
| SmallRig Monitor Mount with NATO Clamp | Any cage owner with a monitor | Needs a NATO rail. |
| SmallRig NP-FZ100 D-Tap Dummy Battery | A Sony shooter with a V-mount | Sony FZ100 bodies only. Needs a D-tap. |
| XLR Cable Two Pack, 15 ft | Anyone with a recorder or XLR handle | Universal. Two 15 foot cables. |
| SmallRig Baseplate Kit with 15mm Rod Clamp | A narrative shooter starting a rod-based rig | Provides the 15 mm rods. Arca and 1/4-20 base. |
Two of these deserve context. The SmallRig Baseplate Kit with 15mm Rod Clamp is the foundation of every rod-based rig: the matte box, the lens support and a follow focus all bolt to the rods it provides, so it is the first purchase on the narrative path and the one that makes three other gifts on this page possible. The SmallRig NP-FZ100 D-Tap Dummy Battery is the most specific item here and the most transformative for the right person: a Sony shooter with a V-mount on the rig can run the camera off it too, and stop swapping camera batteries mid-interview. The V-mount versus NP-F comparison explains why that matters, and the rig power guide covers the D-tap side.
Tilta
Tilta 15mm Lens Support
A 15 mm rod-mounted lens support that takes the weight of a long lens off the camera mount. For a shooter whose cine zoom is slowly bending the lens flange.
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NEEWER
NEEWER NP-F970 Two-Battery Kit with Charger
Two high-capacity NP-F packs and a dual charger. The battery that monitors, lights and recorders run on, and the one thing no shooter has enough of.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig Matte Box with 67 to 82mm Clamp
A clamp-on matte box that fits 67 to 82 mm lenses with no rods. The flag that kills flare on a run-and-gun rig, for the price of a filter.
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NEEWER
NEEWER 14-Piece 0.8 MOD Focus Gear Ring Set
Fourteen 0.8 MOD gear rings that let a follow focus drive any photo lens. The gift for a shooter who wants to pull focus on the glass they already own.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig Shotgun Microphone Holder
A shotgun holder that isolates the microphone from handling noise carried through the rig. For anyone with a good mic in the clip that came in the box.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig 7-inch Rosette Magic Arm
A 7 inch magic arm on an ARRI rosette, which locks with a pin instead of relying on friction. For a monitor that has ever drooped mid-take.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig Monitor Mount with NATO Clamp
A NATO-clamp monitor mount, on and off in one motion and unable to rotate under load. The mount most cages should have shipped with.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig NP-FZ100 D-Tap Dummy Battery
A D-tap dummy battery for Sony FZ100 bodies, so the camera runs off the V-mount with everything else. For the shooter who swaps camera batteries mid-interview.
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Cable Matters
XLR Cable Two Pack, 15 ft
Two 15 foot XLR cables. Every recorder and shotgun needs them, and the recipient has exactly one, which is frayed.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig Baseplate Kit with 15mm Rod Clamp
A baseplate with 15 mm rod clamps, the foundation a matte box, lens support and follow focus all bolt to. The first rigging part on any narrative build.
Check priceUnder $20: the stocking stuffers
Ten items, and only two need anything specific: the filter tray needs a 4 x 5.65 matte box, and the follow focus whip needs a follow focus. The other eight fit every rig. If you are choosing three, the SmallRig Lightweight NATO Top Handle, the SmallRig 9.8-inch Magic Arm and the Gaffer Power Black Gaffer Tape, 2 inch together cost under $70 and are the three things a new shooter reaches for first.
| Gift | Right for | Check before buying |
|---|---|---|
| SmallRig Lightweight NATO Top Handle | Every cage owner | Needs a NATO rail. Most cages have one. |
| SmallRig Multi-Functional Cheese Plate | Anyone stacking cold shoe adapters | Universal. 1/4-20 and 3/8-16. |
| Foldable Monitor Sunshade Hood, 5 inch | Anyone with a 5 inch monitor | Check the monitor size. |
| K&F Concept 4x5.65 Filter Tray | A matte box owner | 4 x 5.65 only. |
| 18-inch Flexible Follow Focus Whip | A shooter who works with a focus puller | Needs a follow focus with a whip port. |
| Gaffer Power Black Gaffer Tape, 2 inch | Everyone | Two inch, black. |
| SmallRig 9.8-inch Magic Arm | Every rig | Universal. 1/4-20 both ends. |
| Sandbag Weight Bags, Four Pack | Anyone with a stand | Ships empty. |
| Movo CRC11 Camera Rain Cover | Anyone who shoots outdoors | Sized for a caged mirrorless body. |
| SmallRig Removable Gimbal Counterweight, 200g | Gimbal owners | 200 g. Fits DJI RS and 1/4-20 mounts. |
The SmallRig Removable Gimbal Counterweight, 200g is the one item here that fixes a problem the recipient may not know has a fix. A gimbal balanced with a front-heavy lens hunts and drains its battery fighting the imbalance, and 200 g on the back of the plate settles it. The gimbal balancing guide shows where it goes, and the gimbal payload calculator shows whether the lens was ever inside the rating in the first place. The Sandbag Weight Bags, Four Pack are the other quiet essential: the C-stands roundup is blunt that an unweighted stand with a light on a boom arm is a lens waiting to break.
SMALLRIG
SmallRig Lightweight NATO Top Handle
A lightweight top handle on a NATO clamp, off in one motion without tools. The single most-used rigging part on any cage.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig Multi-Functional Cheese Plate
A multi-hole plate that adds a dozen 1/4-20 and 3/8-16 threads anywhere a rig needs them. The part that ends the cold-shoe adapter stack.
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OPENMOON
Foldable Monitor Sunshade Hood, 5 inch
A folding sunshade for a five inch monitor. The cheapest fix for a screen nobody can read outdoors.
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K&F CONCEPT
K&F Concept 4x5.65 Filter Tray
A spare 4 x 5.65 filter tray, so a second filter can be swapped in without unloading the first. For any matte box owner.
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foto4easy
18-inch Flexible Follow Focus Whip
An 18 inch flexible whip that lets a focus puller stand clear of the operator. For anyone who works with a second person on focus.
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Gaffer Power
Gaffer Power Black Gaffer Tape, 2 inch
Two inch black gaffer tape. Marks, holds, fixes and leaves no residue. There is no such thing as too much.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig 9.8-inch Magic Arm
A 9.8 inch articulating arm with 1/4-20 both ends. Every rig grows two or three of these.
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Aimosen
Sandbag Weight Bags, Four Pack
Four sandbags, shipped empty. The first thing on every light stand and the thing skipped until a stand goes over on a lens.
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Movo
Movo CRC11 Camera Rain Cover
A rain cover sized for a caged mirrorless body. Sits in the bag for a year and then saves a shoot.
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SMALLRIG
SmallRig Removable Gimbal Counterweight, 200g
A 200 g gimbal counterweight for a lens the gimbal can almost balance. Fixes the front-heavy tilt that makes a gimbal hunt.
Check priceHow to build a small bundle from this list
For a brand new shooter, whoever is giving the camera: the SmallRig Lightweight NATO Top Handle, the SmallRig 9.8-inch Magic Arm and the Gaffer Power Black Gaffer Tape, 2 inch, which is the cheap layer of the run and gun starter build. For a shooter with a monitor: the NEEWER NP-F970 Two-Battery Kit with Charger, the SmallRig Monitor Mount with NATO Clamp and the Foldable Monitor Sunshade Hood, 5 inch, which is a monitor that stays up, stays readable and stays on. For a narrative shooter starting on rods: the SmallRig Baseplate Kit with 15mm Rod Clamp, the Tilta 15mm Lens Support and the NEEWER 14-Piece 0.8 MOD Focus Gear Ring Set, which is most of the way to the narrative starter build. For anyone with a light: the Sandbag Weight Bags, Four Pack and a printout of the three-point lighting guide.
If the budget stretches past this page, the full gift guide carries the recorders, gimbals, monitors and lights above $50 in the same format, and the one big gift is the page for a single present that decides the year.
Next, from here
- Gifts for videographers
Twenty-five ideas from the big gift down.
- The one big camera rig gift
Eight big-ticket items matched to how they shoot.
- Rig mounting standards
Every thread and rail named on this page.
- Best camera cages
Where the NATO rail comes from.
Common questions
- What is the best videographer gift under $50 if I do not know their camera?
- An NP-F battery kit, a NATO top handle, a magic arm or gaffer tape. None of those depend on the camera body, and all four are used on every shoot. Avoid cages and dummy batteries, which are cut for one body, and avoid anything sized to a lens diameter unless you know the lens. If you can find out whether they own a matte box or a gimbal, the filter tray and the counterweight become safe too.
- Are NP-F batteries really a good gift, or too boring?
- They are the most-used consumable on a small rig and every shooter is short of them, which is exactly what makes a two-pack with a charger a good gift. Monitors, on-camera lights, field recorders and wireless receivers all run on NP-F. The high-capacity 970 size runs a 5 inch monitor for most of a day. Buy the kit with a dual charger rather than bare packs, because the charger is the part people never own enough of either.
- What is a NATO rail and why do so many of these gifts need one?
- A NATO rail is a standard dovetail strip, 44 mm wide, that a matching clamp slides onto and locks with a lever. It matters because a NATO-mounted handle or monitor cannot rotate under load, which a single 1/4-20 screw can, and it comes off in one motion without tools. Nearly every camera cage sold today has a NATO rail on top, so the handle and the monitor mount on this list fit almost any caged camera.
- What should I add to a camera someone else is giving?
- A NATO top handle, a magic arm and gaffer tape, which together cost under $70 and cover the first three things a new shooter reaches for. If the camera is going onto a gimbal, add the counterweight. If it is going to be lit, add sandbags. A printed copy of the rig-building guide on this site, which lays out the order to buy the rest in, is a thoughtful extra that costs nothing.
- Is a matte box worth it on a small rig, or is it just for cinema cameras?
- A clamp-on matte box is worth it on any rig that shoots toward a light source, because a lens hood cannot flag the sun the way a top flag can, and flare is the thing that most often makes a small-camera shot look cheap. The clamp-on style fits a 67 to 82 mm lens with no rods, so it works on a bare mirrorless body. The rod-mounted style needs a baseplate, which is also on this list.
Totalling your own rig weight against your gimbal payload? The Camera Rig Build Planner is the paid version of these pages: 8 printable worksheets you fill in with your own numbers, plus the full PDF, $29.