Cooking and food creator — Better (overhead plus a front camera)

Bring your own

• a power point or extension board within a metre of each camera, and one for each light
• a 3-pin universal socket or travel plug adapter for the USB-C charger

Why this kit

This is the tier where the shoot stops being one angle. The CT25 is rated 3 kg in overhead mode and reaches 164 cm, which is enough for a mirrorless body over a hob without borrowing the kitchen ceiling; putting the overhead on its own tripod also frees the counter edge that the starter bracket occupies. The RA-D30 is chosen specifically because SmallRig lists it for the RC60/100 COB, so the key is a direct fit rather than a speedring problem. Two air-cushioned stands rather than one, because the cushion is the difference between a slow descent and a light head landing on a gas burner. The RM 40C is not a second key: at CRI 96 and 2500–10000 K it is there to put an edge on the plate or a colour on the back wall so the frame has depth, and the MoveLink II M2 keeps the cook's voice clean on the front camera through its 3.5 mm output, with lavaliers in the box to run under an apron. Both positions get a Canon R50 with its 18–45 mm kit lens: the 18 mm end is wide enough for the overhead, the middle of the zoom frames the cook. Each camera runs on USB-C power, and Canon's manual allows up to an hour per clip, which covers most recipes in one take.