Cheaper "Alternative" to the MoVi set for release in July, the Omnirig.

[R Hudson]

^^exactly!

 

[davidp158]

Amen! Even owning an oh-so-superior MOVi gizmo won't justify bad camera work.

Your camera moves should be motivated. There's a reason you slowly dolly in, rack focus, follow with a steady cam. You don't do it just because it looks cool. You're trying to focus the audience's attention to better tell your story.

Shaky cam can be used effectively to create tension. You should use it sparingly. But if you use it for no reason at all then it really distracts from the scene and you're constantly thinking, HEY! Get a Tripod for Christ's Sake! Is the camera man on crack?

 

[davidp158]

Charles,

Can you explain more about "spring mounted or deflated volleyball heads"? Sound interesting, but I'm not familiar with either.

thanks,
Dave

 

[CharlesPapert]

You partially deflate a volley/soccerball (sandbag etc) and put the camera on top of that. Some examples of commercially available systems on middle of this page and here.

 

[davidp158]

Thanks for the links, Charles.

You partially deflate a volley/soccerball (sandbag etc) and put the camera on top of that. Some examples of commercially available systems on middle of this page and here.

 

[joe 1008]

They shot the demo for this device with a DSLR. Warp stabilization plus rolling shutter always lookls crappy. I wonder how the demo would have looked like if they had stabilized in post footage of a camera with a global shutter.

 

[Tzedekh]

They shot the demo for this device with a DSLR. Warp stabilization plus rolling shutter always lookls crappy. I wonder how the demo would have looked like if they had stabilized in post footage of a camera with a global shutter.

Nearly all cameras that would fit the OmniRig have rolling shutter, though dSLRs are generally worse than video cameras in that regard, so the videos -- with or without warp stabilization -- are fair demonstrations of the OmniRig's capability. As with any new device, there will be more-skilled operators after it's been in general use for a while.

 

[CharlesPapert]

Charles,

Can you explain more about "spring mounted or deflated volleyball heads"? Sound interesting, but I'm not familiar with either.

thanks,
Dave

Per this and a previous request, here's a picture of one of my operators with the springy head in use on today's shoot at Universal. It delivers a very believable handheld look without having to shoulder this front-heavy rig.