Redrock Cinema Bundle - thoughts?

[ICD Films]

You who got it, what's good and potentially less good? (except price). I'm currently using a mixture of DIY and ebay, and i feel there is a need to upgrade cus when stuff gets in your way for creativity... then you get annoyed... Primary reasons for me to upgrade is basicly build quality and a really good mattebox (that takes pro size filters aswell, not only 4x4) and swing-away mattbox.

A question: How do you adjust for fullsize DSLR? (ie with battery grip). All pics iv'e seen are just the DSLR body. Would be neat with a pic of this, or worse if i have to buy something extra for that to work?

 

[Chris Santucci]

My thoughts? No thanks. I've seen people shoot with rods and baseplate only. I've seen people shoot with body only and someone hand-holding monitor.

How would the rig pictured be hand held? Where are the hand grips? Why is the rig so short? How will that hot shoe hold up with all that hardware attached to it and that weight when the handle is used?

IMO...

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[muntus]

My thoughts? No thanks. I've seen people shoot with rods and baseplate only. I've seen people shoot with body only and someone hand-holding monitor.

How would the rig pictured be hand held? Where are the hand grips? Why is the rig so short? How will that hot shoe hold up with all that hardware attached to it and that weight when the handle is used?

IMO...

.

It appears that the handle is not attached to the hot shoe, but to another lightweight arm so there's no risk at breaking that part of the camera.

But ultimately, it's all a matter of personal preference. If you like a longer rig, buy longer rods. If you want handles, buy them.

However, you shouldn't buy anything until you can get different rigs in your hands to experiment with. Otherwise, you will probably spend money on stuff that doesn't work for you.

 

[Chris Santucci]

That top handle can be attached with some form of mounting apparatus, but it sometimes is not as far as I know.

As for personal preference, yeah, but a short lightweight camera, especially a CMOS camera is not all that great of an idea.

.

 

[Loren Simons]

To make the Cinema bundle compatible with a full sized DSLR such as the 1D Mark IV or a 7D/5D with battery pack you just need to purchase a 3link offset: http://store.redrockmicro.com/Catalog/microClamps/microLink3 and an additional rod to mount on the side of the cage to raise the whole thing higher.

Keep in mind though while using a taller bodied DSLR, you also need to bring the followfocus higher to make contact with the lens, so you'll need a microRiser:http://store.redrockmicro.com/Catalog/DSLRClamps/microRiserQuckRelease

In my opinion, if you don't HAVE to use the battery grip, don't. It adds up to a nearly $400 upgrade.

And yes, the Cinema Bundle is large, but it is designed primarily for tripod or studio use. If you plan on doing a lot of handheld I personally recommend the Field Cinema Bundle V2 (http://store.redrockmicro.com/Catalog/DSLRShoulderMountedRigs/DSLRFieldCinemaBundleV2) that you can also attach a mattebox to.