DIY IndieSlider...

My 1st video with the zazaslider

My 1st video with the zazaslider

I've been waiting and looking for the best way to use my zazaslider in video features I do for the CBS morning show in Detroit and the Detroit Free Press where I'm a photo and video journalist.

Here is a link to a video poem I just finished shooting and editing about the 1st day of school for kindergartners read by 5 kindergarten teachers to parents on a nervous and emotional day.

I used a Canon 5D and one lite panel and of course the solid zazaslider for various parts of the video

http://www.vimeo.com/channels/ericseals#14741760

Looking forward to using my zazaslider for other video features soon.

Eric
 
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I was trying to get the vimeo player to be attached inside my post like I've seen others do but I can't get it to work. Any advice out there?

I copy the link then highlight it and click on the vimeo button but after submitting it nothing happens

Eric
 
thanks Chris for that tip!!

I've been waiting and looking for the best way to use my zazaslider in video features I do for the CBS morning show in Detroit and the Detroit Free Press where I'm a photo and video journalist.

Here is a video poem I just finished shooting and editing about the 1st day of school for kindergartners read by 5 kindergarten teachers to parents on a nervous and emotional day.

I used a Canon 5D and one lite panel and of course the solid zazaslider for various parts of the video

Looking forward to using my zazaslider for other video features soon.

 
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Another Igus rail begins life as a slider!

Another Igus rail begins life as a slider!

WHEW! I just finished all 239 pages of this thread. I had read bits and pieces over the past week or so, but I finally decided to just start from the top and read it all the way through.

Richard Crowley said:
It is W-A-Y too long to be useful anymore. Nobody coming here and looking for info about "indie slider" is going to slog through >>100 pages of messages, a great many of which are not "sticky-worthy".
Click to expand...

Hmm, I've been told before that I'm a "Nobody" :cheesy:

Seriously, it was a lot of reading, but well worth it. I feel like I've built seventeen of these already!

TONS of great ideas in here. What happened in these pages was actually very inspiring to me. It was really cool to see so many people contribute so much energy to this idea. Great collaboration!

Thanks to everybody, especially ZazaCast!

I ordered the WS-16-60S 1000mm rail, and the WW-16-60-10 carriage (with 4 extra "pillow-mounting" bolts). Shipping will be 3 to 5 days to my door.

I will be drilling and tapping both 1/4-20 and 3/8-16 holes on the carriage. The rail will also have dual mounting holes at each end and at the center. CineGang's slick little end-stops will be on my rail for sure. And I also love Zaza's Easy Carriage Brake idea.

[For those who have not read the entire thread, please check out the very first post here: http://www.dvxuser.com/V6/showthread.php?t=145701 - Zaza has been keeping it current with the best solutions and developments.]

After reading the entire thread, I was still unsure about how I wanted to handle the feet until I saw that ZazaBasic Feet announcement a few pages ago. Brilliant timing! And perfect for me - just within my budget, but still very functional, and easily upgradeable to the full blown ZazaSlider Feet. Thanks so much for solving that dilemma for me!

@Zaza, if you have some ZazaBasic Feet ready to go, PM me, I'm ready to order!

I'm almost embarrassed to share my equipment list after seeing what you guys have, but I am just starting out and I'm hoping my ZazaSlider will help me earn a few more bucks to add to my budget.

From top to bottom:
Casio Exilim EX-FH1 Camera
SLIK Quick Release Plate (1/4-20)
SLIK Pro 800 Ball Head
Igus WW-16-60-10
Igus WS-16-60 (1000mm)
SLIK Quick Release Plate (1/4-20)
SLIK Pro 700DX 3-way pan/tilt
SLIK Pro 700DX Tripod

I'm not sure this tripod/head configuration will be stable enough (I'm nervous about the small quick release plates), but we will all find out soon! My camera is tiny (compared to most of yours) and the tripod is rated for 15 lb. When I add a larger camera to my bag, I'm sure I'll add a beefier tripod, too.

I will make sure to report my observations, because I really do appreciate how much I learned from reading about other configurations and their benefits / drawbacks (even when they were entirely different than my setup).

And of course, when I get some footage together, I will make sure to post here and put it in the ZazaSlider group on Vimeo.

Thanks again! Everybody give yourself a pat on the back! :beer:

-Blake
 
Eric- Excellent job on that video! Love the movement.

SloMo- You're going to love the slider.... and thanks for the ZazaBasic Feet order, you'll like those too!

Cheers to all.
 
Hi folks,

Just wanted to share my own DIY feet for the zazaslider. It's the feet from my plasma TV. Since my TV is wall mounted, I don't have any use for the feet anymore so I thought why not use it. :laugh:

It looks kinda ugly but it does the job very well.
Pics:
img2626k.jpg


img2623p.jpg




img2624ou.jpg




Here's a sample of the zazaslider in action (for those who missed it earlier)
IMPORTANT NOTICE: No media files are hosted on these forums. By clicking the link below you agree to view content from an external website. We can not be held responsible for the suitability or legality of this material. If the video does not play, wait a minute or try again later.
I AGREE



Here's the same video with an alternate ending:




I hope you like it. I'm now working on my second project. :)








---
 
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NEW STUFF!!!

The new stuff is in and ready to order here:
http://www.zazaslider.com/products.html


New ZazaSlider Standard
1000mm rail, 100mm custom carriage (8 bolts) & ZazaBasic Feet



NEW ZazaBasic Feet



NEW ZazaBasic Support Bars



NEW ZazaSlider Carriage Kit
100mm carriage plate with 8 counter-bored holes
allowing you to better lock the carriage in alignment! Include (4) bolts



...and last...but not least....

NEW Budget End-Stop Kit
(4) 1" hex head bolts and (4) neoprene washers



So now there are 3 different sliders... the "ZazaSlider Complete", "ZazaSlider Standard" and "ZazaSlider Basic"...something for every filmmakers budget.

www.zazaslider.com

Best,
-Zaza:laugh:
 
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I'm shooting doc-style run n gun. I would like to try to find a minimum working rail length that I could potentially keep on the tripod all the times, but which would give a dolly effect. Are there any thoughts from people using these things on that? Do you think I could get by with .5 meters? .75m?

I'm also thinking of suspending accessories such as a wireless receiver, shotgun mic, audio recorder from small ball heads mounted through the rail, say within 10cm of tripod center. That would help keep the weight off the bearings. Thoughts?
 
bluesgeek said:
I'm shooting doc-style run n gun. I would like to try to find a minimum working rail length that I could potentially keep on the tripod all the times, but which would give a dolly effect. Are there any thoughts from people using these things on that? Do you think I could get by with .5 meters? .75m?

I'm also thinking of suspending accessories such as a wireless receiver, shotgun mic, audio recorder from small ball heads mounted through the rail, say within 10cm of tripod center. That would help keep the weight off the bearings. Thoughts?
Click to expand...

I use a 700mm length for this purpose. It gives you a good 2' of slide
and balances nicely on the shoulder, the ZazaSlider Feet act as handles.


ZSShoulder2_sm.jpg

ZSShoulder1_sm.jpg
 
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Can anyone suggest a quick release setup that can slide forward and aft for balance adjustment? I'd also look at a fluid head that incorporates those mechanics. Thanks.
 
bluesgeek said:
Can anyone suggest a quick release setup that can slide forward and aft for balance adjustment? I'd also look at a fluid head that incorporates those mechanics. Thanks.
Click to expand...

Bogen Manfrotto

Head #'s

701

501

503


I use the 501 and 503 and they are great. The 503's are on the tripods and the 501's are on the rail carriage.
 
slider-8.jpg


Hi, all.

This is my first post here... signed up to post some pics of mine. Inspired by this thread, I ordered my parts from Igus Canada and they arrived yesterday. Paid for one day shipping from Ontario to Alberta but they were out of stock and needed to get some up to eastern Canada first from Rhode Island so it took about a week (could have had it in 24 hours for about 30 bucks shipping if Igus in Ontario had have had some in stock!).

So I bribed my brother-in-law into helping me tap holes and fabricate some stuff. I didn't like how thin the metal is inside the counter sunk holes... when you tap it you'll only get a few threads and I don't trust putting a couple grand worth of camera and lenses hanging off the end of that rail so we came up with the idea to add another nut on the top as well. There isn't really room to get a regular nut into the counter sink so I told him I'd like to find a smooth cylindrical nut with maybe knurled sides for hand tightening and told him I'd get on google and work on that. When I got up this morning he had already made me the cool nut you see in the picture... it's keyed and he made me a little tool for it out of a large fender washer. The nut was just made from a regular hex one which he rounded off and keyed for me! So the rail is still threaded onto my tripod but there is some extra strength and safety from my custom nut added on top of that... all in all maybe a combined 7 or so threads of "attachment."

Came up with my own budget end stops for now from stuff lying around the house... I couldn't find the nylon spacers mentioned here at my local Canadian Home Depot.

Still working on ideas for feet ;)

By the way, I scored the Manfrotto 055CLB with 501 fluid video head from a local pawn shop for $140 about a month ago ;)

Thanks for the inspiration to get off my ass and DIY!

- Glenn

Here's a link to a whole pile of pics I took today besides the ones posted below...
http://www.skunkworksonline.ca/misc/slider.htm


slider-16.jpg

slider-15.jpg

slider-23.jpg

slider-30.jpg

slider-31.jpg
 
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I ordered 500mm of rail today, and a 100mm carriage assembly.

Because Igus cuts to even out the distance between the outer holes and the edge of the stock, this will give me 4 holes, with no pre-drilled center hole.

I know this will be short, but I'm looking for something that will just allow me to add dolly movement to pan and tilt, for more choices in following a subject or dynamic framing.

I'm thinking that I may be able to squeeze and extra inch of travel by moving two of the bearings more toward the inner part of the carriage plate. Has anyone tried that?
 
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