Conceived to be the exact answer for the aspiring filmmaker, the Video Creator Kit for the most recent model from Canon includes an EOS Rebel T6i DSLR camera with the versatile EF-S 18-55mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM lens, a Rode VideoMic GO On-Camera Shotgun and a SanDisk 32GB Class 10 UHS-I SDHC memory card. With all these items you’re read to record your Full HD master piece, with enhanced audio.
The Canon EOS Rebel T6i offers a 24.2 Megapixel CMOS (APS-C) sensor, ISO 100-12800 (expandable to H: 25600) for shooting from bright to dim light and high performance DIGIC 6 Image Processor for outstanding image quality and speed.
Using technologies designed for professionals and refined for simplicity, the EOS Rebel T6i camera is enough of a creative tool to create polished Full HD videos at the press of a button. Technologies like advanced Hybrid CMOS AF III mean the camera focuses fast, and stays focused, even if the subject is moving. Advanced EOS optics help deliver shallow depth-of-field to provide the beautiful cinematic ambiance seen in professional films. Canon STM lenses provide smooth AF when shooting moving subjects, and the high ISO sensitivity allows the camera to record videos in low light with reduced image noise for clear, sharp footage.
The EOS Rebel T6i DSLR was launched simultaneously with the more sophisticated EOS Rebel T6s, which offers some more options when it comes to video, but this was the model chosen by Canon for their Video Creator Kit. In fact, the EOS Rebel T6s offers more features, including a digital zoom mode pioneered on the EOS T3i /EOS 600D, which allows when filming Full HD footage to magnify the center of the sensor by 3x – 10x while maintaining Full HD quality, according to Canon.
While some users do not find the feature interesting, others have discovered it is an easy way to extend the range of a lens. A 100mm f/2.8 macro, for example, becomes a 300 f/2.8, even without going beyond the 3x from the digital zoom. The truth is that this feature is not present in all Canon models and while the Rebel T6s has it, the Rebel T6i does not offer the option to extend the zoom range this way. If there is a logic, Canon has never explained it.
Although the EOS Rebel T6i offers sound recording which includes an automatic wind noise elimination feature to make sure voices and music do not get drowned out by the sound of the wind blowing, the truth is that nothing beats an external microphone (or any other means) for sound capture, and for this Video Creator Kit the choice was a Rode VideoMic GO On-Camera Shotgun.
The Rode VideoMic GO On-Camera Shotgun microphone features an integrated Rycote Lyre shock mount for better sound isolation during handheld recording. The mic’s directional design utilizes a super-cardioid polar pattern to attenuate off-axis sound and provide a more natural audio quality well suited to working with subjects at a distance. With the SanDisk 32GB Class 10 UHS-I SDHC memory card you are all set to go out and start shooting. The Video Creator Kit can be found for $999.99.
Besides the EOS Rebel T6i kit, Canon also has two others kits. A similar kit with the EOS Rebel T5i, for $899.99 and the EOS 70D Video Creator Kit with EF-S 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 IS STM Lens, Rode VideoMic GO Microphone & Sandisk 32GB SDHC Card, for $1,649.00.