Remote follow focus for £150/$300

I see alot of people replacing their existing follow focus system with this. I mean why not? It's wireless and its around the same price hopefully.
 
Things change, and I couldn't really bare to put out a low quality device, It would not be right. I'd rather spend more time and effort developing a more solid system that won't fail and will outperform all expectations.

I think once you see the finished article, you will forget all about the original $300 thing.

Some more progress:
5127_93427372569_506442569_1877374_6983045_n.jpg

5127_93427427569_506442569_1877375_5018388_n.jpg

5014_93640667569_506442569_1880249_5104098_n.jpg

(five axis CNC)
 
Peter,

Incredible progess and the power options are fantastic. Going PowerTap to 4-pin XLR will be brilliant for most pro users. So, why am I not getting updates? I've entered our email address on your site at least once!

Hopefully, we'll have two of these on our jib in the weeks to come! Please add me to the list if we're not already there.

Cheers,

e

erik@expeditionfilmpartners.com
 
Hi Erik,

So as not to annoy or spam our mailing list contacts, we were going to use it purely to send out an email once the unit is ready to ship. I had assumed that all those that were interested would check this thread every now and again, but I think maybe an update really is worth it now.

Will talk to webdude tonight.


Pete.

PS, you are on the list Erik.
 
syncman said:
I have removed my post, as it has angered you.
I think what Peter has achieved is fantastic, and I have told him this. I spent 30+ Years building Electronics for Research so I know how much effort goes into designs.
I still think there are members that were hoping the price would be lower simply because $1000 is still too much for them.
I even considered asking Peter if I could take over the design of a "Budget" FF
for those who have limited funds.
Click to expand...

Didn't intend for the post to sound angry, or targeted at you syncman :) I did take a round about way of saying my point, and apologize if it came off heated. I think it's safe to assume that in this forum specifically, many users who can afford 35mm adapter set ups can theoretically also afford a system that will probably end up >$1000. But that's for another time and place!
I offer my sincere apologies for the inflammatory typing :P
 
Some more progress:

5014_94637117569_506442569_1896333_2759334_n.jpg

The motor mounts being cut out with the brass wire machine. It puts a current through the wire and the spark slowly erodes the metal away. The motor mounts are cut seven at a time on a plate. Each plate takes 12 hours to cut and uses about 16-17 miles of brass wire (which is binned, as using it again is inaccurate)


5014_94637127569_506442569_1896334_5273502_n.jpg

The lathe making knob disks for the TX units.
 
Sorry to jump in at the end, but 87 pages is a bit much to read!
Can I just get a price for this fantastic looking unit?

Also, in your feedback from NAB how did people compare it with the C-Motion?
 
Great expectations. Hope to see a final version before I die(joke).
What can be better than a combination of this great product with a wireless monitor.
The focus puller can sit in a chair and do his job(-:))
 
Personaly I don't like to see focus pullers using a monitor. Focus pulling is an art, and should be done by judging the distance, using floor tiles and things on the set as a guide. A real focus puller would never use a monitor.

Either way, you get to sit in a chair.



Just picked some bits up from the anodisers,

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Mmm really should get a stills camera.
 
Looking good Pete - am ready to send money your way :) Have a few shorts and a feature coming up with lots of steadicam that would really benefit from this... keep us posted!
 
Thats a shame, the art of focus pulling is dieing out. I have a few friends who are proper focus pullers, honed their skills with 35mm film cameras and they can focus on anything without needing a monitor. Its a really tough job, a lot more than just turning a knob and stopping when its sharp.
 
Matt Choules said:
I was working on a feature the other day and both focus pullers for A and B camera were using the monitor constantly...
Click to expand...

As Pete stated there are a lot of reasons why not to use monitor.

-You wont be able to see where at the actors are or how much they have travelled
-You will ALWAYS be behind in pulling focus
-Even if you have a monitor, you still might be off.
-If you use a monitor you will have to switch between actor positions, witness marks and the monitor, making it very complicated.

Some AC's I use go to a monitor to spot check their work but they almost never use it during an rolling take.

Also what do you do when the shot is very complicated and you have no experience judging distances?

We recently did a shoot where it was a 2.5 minute take of 3 actors going from room to room, the steadicam constantly spinning around them, whipping to extras and chasing them. The AC was running next to my rig, dodging lights, ducking under props and he did it all by rehearsing and measuring the scene in advance. Then during the shoot he compansated for the actors (and me) missing their marks. In the end, out of 11 takes 10 of them had flawless focus.

If you are planning of purchasing Peter's product, get it and then practice, practice, practice. When you are done practicing, practice some more.
 
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