Hi all. I'm pretty new to all this equipment, and could use some pointers. I got two c-stands from my friend, a Manfrotto Avenger and a Mathews stand. Neither have arms or heads of any sort, just the mounting stud on top. What do I need to invest in to make these stands useful? Specifically, how would I set this up to mount a reflector at various angles? And since I'd prefer to build the reflector myself, how does a reflector usually attach to a stand? Grip terms aren't very clear to me from browsing B&H so far. Also, are these universal sizes? I don't see much mention of compatibility in the product descriptions. Thanks for any help.
C-Stand arms, refelctors
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PerroneFord
Deals in Lead
First, yes, these are VERY standardized. A C-Stand has a "mounting stud" in 5/8" also known as a "baby" size. You'll see TONS of references to both Baby and Junior. The bare c-stand is most useful as light stands which may be why these don't have any arms.
The typical way you'd mount a reflector is to use an arm (Gobo arm) and mount a clamp to the head of that gobo arm.
So, you need:
A Hollywood head and arm:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...y=Matthews_655020_Hollywood_Head_and_Arm.html
And what is referred to as an afflac clamp:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/282226-REG/Matthews_B429500_Afflac_Duckbill_Clamp.html
or this:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/139521-REG/Matthews_429042_Quaker_Clamp.html
Then you can use them like this:
The typical way you'd mount a reflector is to use an arm (Gobo arm) and mount a clamp to the head of that gobo arm.
So, you need:
A Hollywood head and arm:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/con...y=Matthews_655020_Hollywood_Head_and_Arm.html
And what is referred to as an afflac clamp:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/282226-REG/Matthews_B429500_Afflac_Duckbill_Clamp.html
or this:
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/139521-REG/Matthews_429042_Quaker_Clamp.html
Then you can use them like this:
Last edited:
Barry_Green
Moderator
Stands are pretty much standardized, 5/8" studs and arms. You'd want a grip head and a grip arm (which is a grip head permanently attached to a 5/8" metal pole). Avenger sells a "grip kit" (http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/151581-REG/Avenger_D800KIT_Grip_Kit_and_Bag.html) which pretty much has everything you'd need.
For holding reflectors, you can use spring clamps or mafers in a grip head (the aforementioned grip kit has a mafer and a grip head), or a foam core holder , or ... well, there's probably about a million different ways to hold a reflector. Don't dismiss the idea of getting a dedicated reflector holder stand, maybe something like this or ... for even less money, you could get a kit like this ). It's not that a c-stand doesn't make a good reflector holder, it does, but -- there's so many other things that stand could be used for, so if you can pick up a cheap reflector holder instead, that frees up your c-stand and grip head & arm for other tasks.
For holding reflectors, you can use spring clamps or mafers in a grip head (the aforementioned grip kit has a mafer and a grip head), or a foam core holder , or ... well, there's probably about a million different ways to hold a reflector. Don't dismiss the idea of getting a dedicated reflector holder stand, maybe something like this or ... for even less money, you could get a kit like this ). It's not that a c-stand doesn't make a good reflector holder, it does, but -- there's so many other things that stand could be used for, so if you can pick up a cheap reflector holder instead, that frees up your c-stand and grip head & arm for other tasks.
Barry_Green
Moderator
EDIT: too slow, perrone beat me to it.