Sports videography

[kye]

I video my kids sports games, and have figured out a few things but have questions too.  I figure we can share our experiences and learn some stuff?

Here's the rig I have developed so far:

It is GH5, Rode Video Mic Pro+, Gorillapod 5K, Minolta 135mm f2.8, QR plate with wrist-strap attached to it.  I also use the Minolta 200mm f4 lens for extra reach as our football fields are quite large.  I sit beside the field on a chair, and I film highlights of my kid, not the whole match or anything.

Things that work well:

• Bending Gorillapod to have single leg as support allows smooth rotations while resting on my lap, and other leg bent to form a handle that I can use to steady the rig and also still manually focus
• Viewfinder is great in bright conditions
• 135mm and 200mm on crop sensor
• IBIS on those focal lengths is just great, it's not perfect, but you're moving the camera around so much tracking the action that small hand-shake doesn't really show that much
• Manual focus + focus peaking works pretty good
• Rig is light, very portable, and pretty cheap

Things that don't work well or I'd appreciate advice on:

• 135mm and 200mm are good but it's not fast to change lenses so I'm tempted by a zoom, something like a 70-200 would be great.  However, I don't want to sacrifice IQ in the ways that vintage zooms were never as good as vintage primes, and I can't afford a modern fully manual zoom lens.  Unless there's a lens I'm unaware of?
• I spend the whole game with the audio jack from the Rode mic sticking into my forehead trying to use the viewfinder.  Help?
• It's not quite tall enough on my lap - is there some easy way to extend it up maybe 10-20cm (4-8in) that anyone can think of?  Or should I just put the mic on a flash bracket or something off to the side?  I'd rather not get a cage for it, as I use the GH5 handheld quite a bit for non-sports situations and want to keep the weight and bulk down.  Or maybe for football I just use the Rode Video Micro that I have that isn't as large.

 

The 200mm gives nice profile shots as people run on or off or as things get closer, but is still reasonably good at the far end of the field.  Here's a random and relatively non-identifying pic from the 200mm with the kids at the other end of the field:

Do you shoot sports?  

What is your setup?

What have you learned?

[IronFilm]

1 hour ago, kye said:

It's not quite tall enough on my lap - is there some easy way to extend it up maybe 10-20cm (4-8in) that anyone can think of?

Get yourself a proper Video monopod:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/SIRUI-EP-204S-Aluminum-Portable-Tripod-Monopod-Multi-function-Stable-Travel-Tripod-Professional-Photography-Set-For/32901870376.html

 

& fluid head:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/miliboo-MYT801-65-mm-Bowl-Size-Base-Flat-Fluid-Head-Ball-for-Camera-Tripod-Monopod-Stand/32833684731.html

 

[Mako Sports]

I'm a big sports guy so this thread is exciting for me. For you i'd recommend something like this but for a 3.2'' GH5 screen - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007POA58G?tag=makspo-20

I shoot lacrosse mainly (High school, college, and pro) as well as pro soccer. I don't work for broadcast so most of my stuff goes direct to web. Instagram and YouTube.

I usually film action tight but not like NFL Films 600mm & 800mm Lens tight. So for me 150mm - 400mm is where I live. 

 

My kit is as follows..

 

A Camera/Daylight rig

Sony PXW Z90 with this I only ever shoot 4K 24 and 1080 @ 120fps 

I purchased the Z90 because I started to get into more documentary stuff. For anyone that shoots sports knows you don't have time to change lenses when going from on field action 300mm to a wide 29mm for a huddle with audio. So i've found having that built in lens to be invaluable. This setup lives on a tripod which is a Libec RH25D Fluid head on the Benro A373T Legs. Also I run a lanc controller so I can control pan, tilt, and zoom with my right hand.

With this setup it takes me less than a minute to get completely setup for a game wheres if I was using a mirrorless body or S35 ILC it would be something like 2 or 3 minutes. Also I get a 29 - 350mm F4 lens in front of a 1 inch sensor with 2 XLR's for when I need game audio. Which is usually a shotgun going into 1 channel and sometimes a wireless lav with either a coach or player mic'ed up into the other channel. 

Pros - Great image quality, a lot easier to use, faster to setup, built in lens, dual XLR's. 

Cons - Terrible in lowlight, autofocus in 120fps  slowmotion switches to contrast instead of phase detect. No audio in slowmotion and 240fps is manual focus only. 

 

 

B Camera/Low light rig

Sony A6300 + Sony 70 - 300 FE + Smallhd 701

I've had this setup for almost 3 years and its been a trooper. I shoot the same frame rates and resolutions as the Z90.

@ 3200 ISO I still get a rather clean image and with Noise Reduction either Magic Bullet Denoiser 3 (Back when I used Premiere) and Now Resolve Studio I can do 6400 ISO. 

With this setup I have better lowlight performance, shallower DOF, and usually better autofocus in 120fps. I don't love manual focusing with the 70-300 but I can do it if need be. I thing I like is the focus hold button which I can use if I see another player or Ref that's about to walk in front of my shot.

This setup I always run on a monopod, also I can use it for photos which is always nice. 

Pros - Good in lowlight, sound in 120fps, focus hold button due to lens, can take photos, 

Cons - The color straight out of camera isn't as nice as the Z90, No 10bit like the Z90, mirrorless camera ergos aren't as nice as a legit video camera. 

 

I have attached some photos and link to my reel to see this equipment in practice. 

 

[kye]

21 minutes ago, IronFilm said:

Get yourself a proper Video monopod:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/SIRUI-EP-204S-Aluminum-Portable-Tripod-Monopod-Multi-function-Stable-Travel-Tripod-Professional-Photography-Set-For/32901870376.html

& fluid head:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/miliboo-MYT801-65-mm-Bowl-Size-Base-Flat-Fluid-Head-Ball-for-Camera-Tripod-Monopod-Stand/32833684731.html

I've been toying with the idea of a monopod for some time now through my travel film-making, but it never quite got over the line, but it makes all kinds of sense for this.

For my situation right now I think I'd go a slightly different approach and get a tiny monopod and just use it without a fluid-head and just on my lap, as I can adjust the height to suit.  I wonder what the cheapest monopod available is, I suspect I might find out very soon.

Thank you!

16 minutes ago, Mako Sports said:

I'm a big sports guy so this thread is exciting for me. For you i'd recommend something like this but for a 3.2'' GH5 screen - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B007POA58G?tag=makspo-20

That might work, although I do like the additional point of contact that the eyepiece / my forehead provides.  I just worked out that I have enough adapters to play cinematography legos and create this, which might work:

I'd trim down the flash bracket (I have several) but it sure gets the mic out of the way.

I've spent so much time in the mindset of hand-held travel where less is more to the point that as little as possible is almost everything, I'd forgotten that at football my camera is so large that making it larger won't really have any downsides except as it applies to my using it.

36 minutes ago, Mako Sports said:

I have attached some photos and link to my reel to see this equipment in practice. 

 

That is seriously impressive!  WOW!!  Great stuff

How do you decide which shots to get in 4k24 and 1080p120?
I have battled with the quality of 4K vs the lack of quality with slow-mo for the last two cameras I've owned and haven't really gotten a good rationale on when to use what.  I normally shoot 4k25 10-bit on the GH5 but this morning I shot 4k50 8-bit so we'll see how that goes when I come to edit/grade it.  I also went to my first rodeo last night, which was an absolute blast, and I shot that in 4k50 8-bit too, at night under flood-lights, so we'll see how that turns out.  The 135mm was looking straight into a floodlight and being vintage it raised the black levels a heap, so we'll see how I get around grading an ultra-low contrast 8-bit image.  The riders should look pretty good in slow-motion though, and I'm pretty sure I got some really nice shots.  There was some serious action - rodeos are no joke!

[IronFilm]

1 hour ago, kye said:

• 135mm and 200mm are good but it's not fast to change lenses so I'm tempted by a zoom, something like a 70-200 would be great.  However, I don't want to sacrifice IQ in the ways that vintage zooms were never as good as vintage primes, and I can't afford a modern fully manual zoom lens.  Unless there's a lens I'm unaware of?

Why not a Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8 ?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-AF-80-200-2-8-ED-Camera-Lens-Excellent-From-Japan/254219916491

With a little hunting I'm sure you can find even cheaper prices. (waaay cheaper if you go third party like Tokina/Tamron/Sigma, or even just go for a camera manufacturer which isn't Canikon. Such as the dirt cheap Pentax 85-210mm f4.5, or the Pentax 70-200 f4, or Olympus 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5, or Minolta 75-200 f4 etc)

[kye]

20 minutes ago, IronFilm said:

Why not a Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8 ?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Nikon-AF-80-200-2-8-ED-Camera-Lens-Excellent-From-Japan/254219916491

With a little hunting I'm sure you can find even cheaper prices. (waaay cheaper if you go third party like Tokina/Tamron/Sigma, or even just go for a camera manufacturer which isn't Canikon. Such as the dirt cheap Pentax 85-210mm f4.5, or the Pentax 70-200 f4, or Olympus 50-200mm f/2.8-3.5, or Minolta 75-200 f4 etc)

The Nikon has the focus ring backwards, so that rules it out for me, but the idea is interesting - I didn't know 2.8 zooms could be had so economically.   I'd prefer a fully manual lens, but assuming a smart adapter isn't that expensive I could also go that route and map a dial on the GH5.

How good are these likely to be compared to my Minolta 135/2.8 or 200/4?  I don't really know what point in lens history the zooms overtook the older primes   Plus there is the advantage that the crop factor on the GH5 means that the camera can't see the lens issues at the edges of the image circle that a FF camera would see.

[Trek of Joy]

I use a monopod a lot, I have the older manfrotto video monopod with the fluid cartridge thingy on the bottom. Pros: more portable and easier/faster to move around than a tripod, can get cool jib-style overhead shots, lighter than a tripod, weight below the camera makes it a pseudo steadicam too. Cons: pans and tilts aren't as smooth, the head is crap, its kinda heavy compared to a photo monopod. Though mine is 5 or 6 years old, I'm sure some of the newer options are better as Manfrotto has updated its line and others like Benro, Siuri and countless Chinese knockoffs have since joined the mix.

I don't shoot a lot of sports, but I was at a karting track a couple weeks ago and my Sigma 150-600 did the job nicely. I've shot lots of wildlife with it too. If its not a job, one of the consumer superzooms like a 24-200mm seems like a good option. I'm sure you could pick one up pretty cheap.

Mako Sports' setup looks ideal and his reel is fantastic.

Personally I've been debating just getting a regular photo monopod since the only thing I use the crappy tilt-only head for framing - its always locked down when I'm shooting because the drag is just friction - so its garbage. I feel like I'm carrying around extra dead weight at times, a photo monopod will be about 1/3 the weight and even less bulky. But I'm a one-man-band travel shooter, so I'm trying to cover a lot of bases shooting both stills and video with a kit that mostly carry-on sized.

Interested to see where you wind up.

Chris

[IronFilm]

2 hours ago, kye said:

For my situation right now I think I'd go a slightly different approach and get a tiny monopod and just use it without a fluid-head and just on my lap, as I can adjust the height to suit.  I wonder what the cheapest monopod available is, I suspect I might find out very soon.

When I started out I got this Yunteng as my first "video" monopod:

https://www.aliexpress.com/item/Yunteng-288-Camera-Monopod-Fluid-Pan-Head-Unipod-Holder-For-Canon-Nikon-Camera/32502452781.html

It is ok, certainly I feel the best you can get for its price!

 

39 minutes ago, kye said:

How good are these likely to be compared to my Minolta 135/2.8 or 200/4?  I don't really know what point in lens history the zooms overtook the older primes   Plus there is the advantage that the crop factor on the GH5 means that the camera can't see the lens issues at the edges of the image circle that a FF camera would see.

Remember at 1080 you're only resolving 2 megapixels, even at 4K you don't exactly need the sharpest of sharp lenses. 
And Canikon/Pentax/Minolta constant F stop zoom lens from 1990's onward I'd say is on average a good quality lens. And even equivalent third party lenses from 2000's onward are often as well. 

[Mako Sports]

6 hours ago, kye said:

How do you decide which shots to get in 4k24 and 1080p120?
I have battled with the quality of 4K vs the lack of quality with slow-mo for the last two cameras I've owned and haven't really gotten a good rationale on when to use what.  I normally shoot 4k25 10-bit on the GH5 but this morning I shot 4k50 8-bit so we'll see how that goes when I come to edit/grade it. 

A good rule of thumb is if I need audio then 4K 24. Usually huddles and the occasional B roll shot. 

[webrunner5]

I can't help but thinking using a camera like the RX10 mk IV is not a better, easier way to just go about it. Why worry about lenses. All in one stuff is, even a camcorder is designed for a reason, potability with less hassle. It is why ENG cameras are used, ease of use in fast changing situations. Who needs the bulk and hassle on family outings.

You can even go backwards on models with the RX10 and have a constant F stop, and ND filters. I doubt you need all the reach of the latest model lens wise.

[Mako Sports]

8 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

I can't help but thinking using a camera like the RX10 mk IV is not a better, easier way to just go about it. Why worry about lenses. All in one stuff is, even a camcorder is designed for a reason, potability with less hassle. It is why ENG cameras are used, ease of use in fast changing situations. Who needs the bulk and hassle on family outings.

You can even go backwards on models with the RX10 and have a constant F stop, and ND filters. I doubt you need all the reach of the latest model lens wise.

I considered the RX10 IV a few times ended up going with the Z90 for the built in ND filters, however that RX10 600mm F4 zoom is no joke. 

[mercer]

35 minutes ago, webrunner5 said:

I can't help but thinking using a camera like the RX10 mk IV is not a better, easier way to just go about it. Why worry about lenses. All in one stuff is, even a camcorder is designed for a reason, potability with less hassle. It is why ENG cameras are used, ease of use in fast changing situations. Who needs the bulk and hassle on family outings.

You can even go backwards on models with the RX10 and have a constant F stop, and ND filters. I doubt you need all the reach of the latest model lens wise.

Yeah, or the FZ2500 to match @kye ‘s GH5. The FZ2500 is a great little camera and it has one of the coolest features that some old Super 8 cameras had... touch button slow motion... so you could shoot at 24p, then push and hold a button and it goes into slow motion, or fast motion if that’s your thing, until you let go of the button.

Plus the Tracking AF isn’t... horrible. 

[anonim]

11 hours ago, kye said:

• 135mm and 200mm are good but it's not fast to change lenses so I'm tempted by a zoom, something like a 70-200 would be great.  However, I don't want to sacrifice IQ in the ways that vintage zooms were never as good as vintage primes, and I can't afford a modern fully manual zoom lens.  Unless there's a lens I'm unaware of?

Nikon 75-150mm f/3.5 Series E

http://www.ishootshows.com/2011/06/21/review-nikon-75-150mm-f3-5-series-e/

[newfoundmass]

I shoot a lot of sports with the GH5 and G85, mostly handheld and up close to the action:

My go to lens for handheld is the Panasonic 12-35mm f/ 2.8. I use single point auto focus and it works really well. I find it to be very reliable, and the f/2.8 handles the less than ideal lighting conditions I'm usually shooting in pretty well. 

I use a cage with top handle and wooden grip. With dual IS I don't need a monopod or any other support, it's wonderful. I'm literally running around a wrestling ring and I'm still blown away at how stable my shots are. 

My "hard camera" shot is a G85 with kit lens. I'm saving up to get another 12-35 and the 35-100 f/2.8 to match. After next month I should be in a place to get both.  For a tripod I use the Magnus VT-350; it's cheap and far from the best tripod BUT it goes up to 82" which gives it considerably more height than most tripods. I just wish that you could replace the tripod head. 

For audio I use the Rode Video Micro on the GH5, but it's mostly for scratch audio and crowd noise since commentary is being recorded live into a Zoom recorder that is also feeding audio into the G85. I also usually put a Zoom H1 under the ring to make the moves sound better. 

For me external monitors aren't ideal for sports. The lag for HDMI ones, though slight, is still enough to cause issues. 

I should note that I also shoot events from start to finish as opposed to clips, since I'm editing the entire event to be streamed online or on DVD/Blu Ray (yes that still is a thing!) So shooting slow motion, etc normally isn't in the cards. 

For your use I'd consider maybe a B4 lens with a x2 extender as a zoom option? Those can get great reach. 

[kye]

 

6 hours ago, Mako Sports said:

A good rule of thumb is if I need audio then 4K 24. Usually huddles and the occasional B roll shot. 

Interesting.  So, you shoot slow-motion by default, instead of shooting normal by default.  That gives me food for thought as my videos are mostly highlight reels without a lot of dialogue, so I tend to use sound as ambience, unless there's a joke or funny moment in there which works in the edit.

I also remembered that the GH5 has some nice 1080 modes, so I'll have to try the FHD 1080p50 10-bit 422 mode and see how I like it, as it might suit how I push and pull the footage in post.  I only deliver in 1080 normally anyway, although I'm not above scaling it up if I start uploading in 4K.

5 hours ago, webrunner5 said:

I can't help but thinking using a camera like the RX10 mk IV is not a better, easier way to just go about it. Why worry about lenses. All in one stuff is, even a camcorder is designed for a reason, potability with less hassle. It is why ENG cameras are used, ease of use in fast changing situations. Who needs the bulk and hassle on family outings.

You can even go backwards on models with the RX10 and have a constant F stop, and ND filters. I doubt you need all the reach of the latest model lens wise.

It's all about compromise and what you prioritise.  I really liked the XC10 but I just felt too restricted in the fixed lens and the slow-motion (which was 1080p low bitrate only and in C-Log with difficult lighting was just awful to work with).  With the GH5 I can always put on a slow zoom and get the equivalent of a fixed lens, or I can go for faster primes for low light, crazy long focal lengths for sports, etc.

But, there's a reason that the kit zooms and one of the Holy Trinity of lenses is 24-70, that's where most of the keeper shots are for the average general photographer.

5 hours ago, mercer said:

Yeah, or the FZ2500 to match @kye ‘s GH5. The FZ2500 is a great little camera and it has one of the coolest features that some old Super 8 cameras had... touch button slow motion... so you could shoot at 24p, then push and hold a button and it goes into slow motion, or fast motion if that’s your thing, until you let go of the button.

Plus the Tracking AF isn’t... horrible. 

That 'burst' slow motion sounds like a great feature.  I remember back in the day using pocket cameras and wishing there was a shutter button for still images and a separate one for video, instead of having to go into the menus and change modes then use the shutter button because you missed shots.  Having one button to record normal speed and another that records in slow motion would be great.

I wonder how assignable the GH5s buttons are, maybe I can emulate a record-in-24p and a record-in-1080p120 button

[mercer]

What’s really cool about it is that you can record your son in regular motion and the push the button in the middle of the recording and it will slide into slow motion during the same recording. 

[kye]

9 minutes ago, newfoundmass said:

I shoot a lot of sports with the GH5 and G85, mostly handheld and up close to the action:

My go to lens for handheld is the Panasonic 12-35mm f/ 2.8. I use single point auto focus and it works really well. I find it to be very reliable, and the f/2.8 handles the less than ideal lighting conditions I'm usually shooting in pretty well. 

I use a cage with top handle and wooden grip. With dual IS I don't need a monopod or any other support, it's wonderful. I'm literally running around a wrestling ring and I'm still blown away at how stable my shots are. 

My "hard camera" shot is a G85 with kit lens. I'm saving up to get another 12-35 and the 35-100 f/2.8 to match. After next month I should be in a place to get both.  For a tripod I use the Magnus VT-350; it's cheap and far from the best tripod BUT it goes up to 82" which gives it considerably more height than most tripods. I just wish that you could replace the tripod head. 

For audio I use the Rode Video Micro on the GH5, but it's mostly for scratch audio and crowd noise since commentary is being recorded live into a Zoom recorder that is also feeding audio into the G85. I also usually put a Zoom H1 under the ring to make the moves sound better. 

For me external monitors aren't ideal for sports. The lag for HDMI ones, though slight, is still enough to cause issues. 

I should note that I also shoot events from start to finish as opposed to clips, since I'm editing the entire event to be streamed online or on DVD/Blu Ray (yes that still is a thing!) So shooting slow motion, etc normally isn't in the cards. 

For your use I'd consider maybe a B4 lens with a x2 extender as a zoom option? Those can get great reach. 

Great stuff.  If you have some stuff online I'd love to see it

Just a thought, if you're after a better head for the tripod, can you lock that head down and just mount a better one on top with the QR plate?  I'm not sure if it would be stable enough for you, but adding height doesn't seem to be an issue for you.

Are you being streamed live, probably via a switcher of some kind, or are you doing a multi-cam edit in post?  or both?  Workflows are interesting, and (should) inform the choice of equipment, so I'm curious.

[newfoundmass]

50 minutes ago, kye said:

Great stuff.  If you have some stuff online I'd love to see it

Just a thought, if you're after a better head for the tripod, can you lock that head down and just mount a better one on top with the QR plate?  I'm not sure if it would be stable enough for you, but adding height doesn't seem to be an issue for you.

Are you being streamed live, probably via a switcher of some kind, or are you doing a multi-cam edit in post?  or both?  Workflows are interesting, and (should) inform the choice of equipment, so I'm curious.

All of my most recent work is behind pay walls or pay per download / DVD. I'll ask my clients if they mind me posting something though! 

I've thought about that for my tripod but honestly it's not worth it. My hope is to soon buy one of those 12 foot tripods as seen here:

Height is important when you're shooting above crowds

I've done tons of live switching in the past and am doing multicam edits right now. My old company, for live switching, used PXW-X70's because of the SDI out. I haven't done any live streams since parting ways with them (long story, it's a legal matter now) but I'm actually looking into doing it with my GH5 & G85's once I'm in a position to do so. We used a custom PC rig with Vmix, though I've always preferred hardware switchers in the past since I've found they're more reliable. 

 

[kye]

9 hours ago, newfoundmass said:

All of my most recent work is behind pay walls or pay per download / DVD. I'll ask my clients if they mind me posting something though! 

I've thought about that for my tripod but honestly it's not worth it. My hope is to soon buy one of those 12 foot tripods as seen here:

Height is important when you're shooting above crowds

I've done tons of live switching in the past and am doing multicam edits right now. My old company, for live switching, used PXW-X70's because of the SDI out. I haven't done any live streams since parting ways with them (long story, it's a legal matter now) but I'm actually looking into doing it with my GH5 & G85's once I'm in a position to do so. We used a custom PC rig with Vmix, though I've always preferred hardware switchers in the past since I've found they're more reliable. 

My completely uneducated impression was that professional photographers normally had a clause in their contract about being able to use footage for promotional purposes, which is how we get showreels and the like, but I guess if you're employed or have a different contractual arrangement then that might not be the case.  It would be great though

Cool tripod!  At that height you're well into fake-drone-shot territory

Anything computer based has the potential for less reliability, but I'm guessing it's a cheaper setup?

Back before all the cool music software was available there was a free program called Buzz that provided a virtual studio where everything was modular as it was emulated in software, and anyone could write modules for it.  I was really into it because the next cheapest option for that amount of equipment was probably $20k or something ridiculous.  Anyway, because anyone could write a module for it, some of them had bugs and it would just crash, but when it crashed it would put out full volume white noise straight out of the computer.  Because any sensible person is making a mix at quite a bit lower than that level when it crashed it would be extremely loud and would scare the living cr*p out of you.
I still remember when someone posted a picture of themselves on the forums playing it live in front of a 2000+ person crowd at a New Years event, and I still remember the other people who were just gobsmacked that they would risk such a thing.  With the size and power of a PA like that if it had crashed (which it didn't) it would have caused real damage!

[Jimmy G]

On 5/5/2019 at 3:34 AM, kye said:

>snip<

Do you shoot sports?

What is your setup?

What have you learned?

Since going digital in the early mid-'00s (Canon 300D > 30D > 5D2 > 7D) my search for "the perfect fast, low light telephoto zoom" led me to the obvious (and apparently only) choice on the market, the Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG APO HSM. This was a non-stabilized (OS, in Sigma parlance) lens that, while not quite Canon L-prime sharp, produces excellently sharp images with beautiful bokeh with smooth and swift AF...

Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG HSM Lens Review:

https://www.the-digital-picture.com/Reviews/Sigma-120-300mm-f-2.8-EX-DG-HSM-Lens-Review.aspx

Sigma 120-300mm f/2.8 EX DG IF HSM APO Lens Sample Photos and Specifications:

https://pbase.com/cameras/sigma/120-300_28_ex_if_dg_hsm_apo

...you don't mention a budget but one can find these used in the ±$1K range. (This lens has seen optical design improvements over the past 10-years with an OS version and now the OS Sport version...I've owned all 3 and currently still have the one listed above (it still sees use!) and the Sport, the Sport now being my go-to tele on cloudy days or when I'm looking to shoot at shorter distances.) On the GH5 (by my math) one should see an effective FOV at the long end of 384mm at f/1.8 when using a MB 0.64x Speedbooster, otherwise straight-through it's an EFOV of 240—600mm at f/2.8 with the 2x crop.

To manage its 5.7lb. heft I employed (still do, actually) a Manfrotto NeoTec 685B trigger-release monopod (~30–67" working height with removable rubber foot with a retractable ball foot that reveals a spike foot) with their 322RC trigger ballhead combo with their 357 quick-release plate system that provided latch-and-twist-lock-free height and angle adjustments for quick-and-solid positioning. The combined maximum height here put(s) the EP at better than the 6-foot mark.

As for a mic selection, I've recently outfitted my sweetie's G9 with Panasonic's DMW-MS2 mid-side stereo shotgun mic that the camera can "talk to" (there are Special Mic menu settings to adjust it's field angle)...the wire for this mic can be wrapped around the front, CCW from the hot shoe, keeping it neatly out of the way from the camera's controls and away from one's forehead! (And, just to add to the mix here, her tele-zoom choice is the Panasonic Leica 100-400mm which provides Dual-IS so she doesn't need a tripod or monopod.)

Anyhoo, these choices work well on our end, I hope this was helpful. Keep us posted as to what you decide.

:)