Holding your HVX/DVX w/ adapter alternatives?

[Steven Bogda]

I recently got an SGpro, but this goes for any adapter user with rails:

How do you hold your rig when shooting?
How do you hold it if say you are walking around inbetween shooting?

Before I got shoulder and hand support, I held the DVX hande in my right hand, and I put my leg hand under the front of the adapter and also used it to focus. I usually held the set up at waist level and rested the back end of the rails/battery area of the DVX on my hip. It seemed to be fine.

I find myself walking around a lot with the set up but every few minutes I have to change positions of how I am holding it. I don't want to hold the whole thing by just the DVX handle because I don't know how strong it is. I either cradle it under my right armpit like a woman does with a short strapped purse, or I hold it upside down by the rails. I favor the under the armpit position because it supports the whole set up, but hurts pretty bad after five minutes.

Does anyone have any input or suggestions on this?
Are there any products that might go onto the rails that create some sort of handle?

Thanks,
Steven

 

[Jeff Anderson]

I've been curious about this too. I'm getting ready to get a zacuto handheld rig and am not sure the best way to carry it or lift it. I'm not shooting with an adapter but I'll have a battery plate with two AB's on the back and monitor off an arm (panny lh80 - heavy!) as well as an on board light.

 

[robertwerden]

Ive seen handles that some how distribute the weight so as not to put stress on the camcorders handle. I think they connect to the rails.

When shooting you need handles on the front of your rails and a shoulder rest or a belt pole mounted to the bottom.

 

[Jeff Anderson]

Hmmm just had this thought after reading your post Robert - what about two fabric (heavy duty webbing) handles that attached to the rails and velcroed together up top just for carrying around? Seems like that wouldnt be too hard to make and when not being used they could just go down and to the sides...

 

[Avenger007]

I've seen the red cage adapted before but costly. The new redrock system is pretty modular so you can add a handle off the rail system if you construct it right. Watch the freshDV NAB footage of the redrock booth.

 

[Chris Santucci]

I got Cavision handgrips that mount to the front of the rods and the Cavision shoulder pad that I use sometimes. The baseplate actually sits on my shoulder just fine as it is but if I need more stability or a place to mount packs to, I use the shoulder pad.

I built my own lightweight aluminum square tubing mount that bolts onto the top of the handgrips for my onboard monitor that I power from a battery that I keep in my back pocket.

It's all light weight, simple, and I have very minimal extraneous hardware to deal with.

The cages and arms that people use, make the rig look like a Rube Goldberg contraption and so far I've not had a need for any of it.

.

 

[hungrych]

The redrock shoulder pad is cool I ordered it already.