Looking for expert (Barry Green?) dslr shoulder rig discussion

BFever

BFever

Active member
I've tried searching through dvxuser and through google but can't find the post I read so long ago. Basically, I'm buying a shoulder rig for my 5dmkii and reading thousands of posts and looking at a bunch of different companies. However, the only rig I have been able to try is the redrock. I liked it.

But as I cannot try every rig out there that's cheaper, I was wanting to go back and read this really informative post about the different rigs and price ranges. Any one know where to find that? It may have been a different mod.

Thanks.
 
What I have found with shoulder rigs is that they are so subjective. It's a matter of comfort which is different for every person (much like car ergonomics), the type of shooting you do (content and shooting style), and also the accessories you want on board (connected to the rig). There is no right or wrong. The proof is in the pudding, if the rig is comfortable, sturdy, and the footage looks great, then not much else matters. Just because the next guy has something different just doesn't matter.

I started with the DSLR rig from Indifocus over a year ago. Took it all apart and made something better, then bought the Gini rig from Korea (Zacuto knockoff) and am completely happy. The quality is quite impressive, the price was $350 for an entire shoulder rig and nothing has been a problem with it at all. I have configured it to my taste, but that's the goal anyway.

Personally I don't enjoy Redrock gear. A friend has a big RR setup and he loves it because it works great for him, but some of the parts were never made for DSLR work. The Zacuto gun style rigs don't float my boat either from personal testing.

These are things most important to me for a shoulder rig:
- an LCD viewer
- offset design
- lightweight, easier to add than take away
- shoulder pad comfort
- a quality follow focus
- quick release for camera
- carrying the rig while not on shoulder
- method for quickly starting and stopping video mode (I use a Canon RC-1 mounted at my index finger, right handle)

Personally my advice is buy the best parts that fit your needs from different companies. None of them make the ideal of each in design and/or price.

Jag35 has some inexpensive rigs. Shoot35 has a new follow focus, high quality for a great price, lower than RR. I use a Cinevate Durus, expensive but built like a tank and only requires a single rail for mounting, quite handy in reducing rail clutter. I also use an LCDVF, great design, great price, has never failed me.

Everyone will have different gear, different needs and some people are very brand specific. I'm brand agnostic and quality, price and ingenuity specific.
 
Thank you Barry and photonashville. I like the idea of getting different parts from different companies, I read a lot about doing that. Plus, thanks for the record button tip, I was looking into something like that. A friend of mine just got the Jag35 rig and I hope to be able to see it when it arrives in the mail.

It's just nuts to go to a site like Indiesystems and get a rig, ff, slider, for under a basic RR eyespy set up. Messes with my head and I can't just take something for a test spin.

Oh BTW I saw gini post a full shoulder rig WITH FF and it sold for $510 (plus $150 shipping). Under the reserve, so who knows if it went through, and who knows how the FF works.
 
For some dumba$$ reason, Canon discontinued the RC-1. I bought 2 of them. I wouldn't part with those ever, or until I no longer shoot Canon. I have one permanently attached to the handheld rig and one on my jib with an TOS optical cable extension (cheap from Amazon).

In all practicality and a little fortune telling, we won't be shooting these DSLRs for video in a few years because better cameras more aptly designed with pro features will become the norm. So "invest" lightly in what works, not expensive over the top gear. I have put more money into a good follow focus that can be camera independent and now much more audio gear, because of how important sound really is (thank you Barry, great DVD by the way). Good lenses will last, good audio gear will last. These camera bodies will change fast therefore changing some of the rigging, handheld specifically.

Express35 is another rig maker. CheesyCam.com website has a ton of ongoing daily posts all about inexpensive setups and accessories. Spend money on sound, lighting, lenses.
 
photonashville said:
For some dumba$$ reason, Canon discontinued the RC-1. I bought 2 of them. I wouldn't part with those ever, or until I no longer shoot Canon. I have one permanently attached to the handheld rig and one on my jib with an TOS optical cable extension (cheap from Amazon).

In all practicality and a little fortune telling, we won't be shooting these DSLRs for video in a few years because better cameras more aptly designed with pro features will become the norm. So "invest" lightly in what works, not expensive over the top gear. I have put more money into a good follow focus that can be camera independent and now much more audio gear, because of how important sound really is (thank you Barry, great DVD by the way). Good lenses will last, good audio gear will last. These camera bodies will change fast therefore changing some of the rigging, handheld specifically.

Express35 is another rig maker. CheesyCam.com website has a ton of ongoing daily posts all about inexpensive setups and accessories. Spend money on sound, lighting, lenses.
Click to expand...


Cool. What's your deal with the Gini rig? Do you have to be gentle with the joints? I've heard great things about it, but they also look like they could be delicate.
 
I find the Gini rig I have is rock solid. The joints tighten down and don't move. I can hold the heaviest version of my rig at about 18 lbs. with just the right handle.

The Gini rig I bought was the DSL-17 model but an interim version. Meaning it has the dense silicone shoulder pad, red joints, silver rods. Their rigs are very inconsistent in naming and parts listed. Over a 6 month period a "model" can be changed multiple times. My experience has been very positive. I would buy that rig way before any more Indifocus. I would prefer to support American small businesses, but I just don't like a lot of what is being made, and the prices are all over the place without good reason sometimes. I would love to own a Sound Devices 702 or equivalent, but would never think of spending that kind of money on some Zacuto rig of rods and machined connectors. Machining can be done well by many and done poorly by many, but good sound gear is done by few and thus should warrant such pricing.
 
I modified the shoulder pad with extra padded strips that came from my Indifocus rig. The issue I see with all the shoulder pads is that they simply aren't contoured over the shoulder, just padded to sit on the shoulder. Redrock's may be decent in that way since it's much more contoured.

I bought the Easom cage when first available. I use one riser with handle on my shoulder rig and the other riser with top rails for a second cage on sticks that helps to hold accessories. I got #3 cage back when they were $299 for the full halo cage. I think the price has gone up quite a bit. Some of the best designed and machined pieces I have. I wish those two brothers would get their rears in gear and get their business model tighter. They create superb parts.

I got in on the front end with Gini and Easom before the "genie got out of the bottle" and prices went up. Both make shooting a pleasure.
 
Lucky. That cage looks nice. There's some gini rigs with a a similar cage too. I'm getting specific now about what I'm looking for.

Dual Handle Shoulder offset with counterbalance. I can buy a RR weight locally if need be.
FF- shoot35 or Cinevate? Saving somewhere else may allow me to splurge on a vital DSLR component

optional (depends on how much the rig is going to cost)
cage/handle
Quick release baseplate.
Mattebox??? I'm going with a fader circle and screw on polarizer but I have always wanted to shoot a camera with a matte box. It looks so official!
 
trying to figure out how to even order something from easom is insanely difficult. I went to one site for them that doesn't link anywhere. Plus I'm reading about refunds being issued recently. Ugh.
 
Don't buy from Easom for a week or two. He posted on Cinema5D.com that they are freezing their sales for a short term to regroup and restart better. Best to follow that thread for updates: http://www.cinema5d.com/viewtopic.php?f=33&t=6401

Also best to read starting at the end of that instead of all 100 pages. Cory has great potential but he hasn't committed himself 100% to the business which is a must for it to succeed. But I am very happy with his product. I got in early and received the "special" treatment. Cage came overnight or 2 day packed in a $50 Stormcase included complimentary for us early birds trusting him with our money. One heckuva deal back then for the price.

If I were to buy a follow focus today, I'd buy the version2 Shoot35 FF. Quality and price, best bang for the buck out there right now, also hear great things about their customer service. Cinevate Durus is superb, but $1200 is hefty. I too got lucky with that one when they had an early pricing of $1000. Personally, I LOATHE the Cinevate lens gears. I use dvcity.com lens gears and found a few Redrock lens gears on ebay. I think they are simply the best design. And with a lot of lenses geared, they will all have roughly the same outer gear diameter. Shipping charges from Cinevate are hefty just coming from Canada.

I have the version2 FaderND from Lightcraftworkshop, awesome. I sold my matte box a while back, never used it, extra and unnecessary weight, silly for shoulder rig/handheld use. But I am waiting for the matte box from Shoot35, it looks quite impressive and a great price, also somehow may be compatible with the Easom cage for swing away at some point.

I have said this elsewhere, if I were stripped of all but only the minimal gear to shoot DSLR video (audio excluded here), ALL I would want is my 5DII, 24-105 image stabilized lens, LCDVF, FaderND, and Sennheiser MKE400 for decent ambient audio, that's it. All the other gear is just gravy and at times only equals the same quality footage as my minimal setup.
 
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I hear you on the basic setup. I have been shooting with a naked 5dmkii. It does well, but I get creative with the limitations. All static interior shots, or using a lens baby for walking shots so focus is allowed to go in and out. I was physically worn down from using the neckstrap and my muscle to keep the shots steady.

The Genus fadernd was recommended to me, but I can't find it in stock.

All that shoot35 stuff looks exciting, but they are sold out! The mattebox looks nice and affordable, but do I want to buy the 4x4 filters too? Not sure. Might be a future reward after a good paying gig.
 
I've been buying the OptiFLex 4x4 filters from B&H for 10 years or more. Thin resin gels, thickness between a Kodak gel and Lee/Hitech style resins. Great bang for the buck at around $45 each, plenty of ND variations to choose from and high quality.

There should be another batch of 60 Shoot35 R2 follow focuses right around the corner, the first batch of 60 sold fast. Hot item in a matter of days. I'm not "all knowing", just notice enough comments around the main forums and blogs.
 
That doesn't sound bad at all for the 4x4's.

Quick question about Gini, would you be feel comfortable putting a HPX170 on it?
 
Look at the Cavision stuff on B&H. The quality is good and very affordable. You can also buy straight from Cavision but the price is the same as B&H.
 
Thanks guys. I ended up with the Gini DSL17 silicon upgrade for 300. Shipping and import tax should take it to 400. I may end up getting a few RR pieces to make the offset stronger and add counterweights, possibly a shoulder rest. Still should be cheaper than the RR eyespye, and I can still use the rail system for my hpx170 or future cameras.

Unsure about the follow focus, shoot35's price in pounds converts to about $540, but $630 if you add in addition focus rings. Before tax and shipping. I may end up trying to get the RR ff v3 for about 700 if it ever comes out.
 
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