steadicam, glidecam, flycam, varizon... I'm NEW AND NEED HELP

V

ved

Member
Hi! I'm in a bit of a problem here. I'm starting my new company, and someone asked me to make a documentary, so I said we needed a steadicam, and they said yes, gave me the money and we start shooting on friday.
Also, I have NO idea of how to use a steadicam or to be downright honest with you, i've just seen once in my whole life and didn't pay much attention.
"Crazy kid" you might say, and you say right, but now it's too late to back off. Anyways, my point is: for less than 2k, what the hell do i buy? what do i need? i've been doing lots of research today and i'm just confused, if i buy a smooth shooter and a glidecam pro 4000 (or hd) is that all i need? do i need extra batteries, is the smooth shooter the same as this: http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846
am i gonna die trying to figure it out by myself? should i just buy a fig rig and don't play hero? can someone PLEASE tell me: buy this and this and try to survive...?? please??
My camera is an xdcam ex1r.
The sooner you reply the more i'll love you. Unless you're a dude and don't want to be loved, then I'll just be really really thankful
 
ved said:
The sooner you reply the more i'll love you. Unless you're a dude and don't want to be loved, then I'll just be really really thankful
Click to expand...

How can one not reply? :)
First, if you haven't used a steadicam yet, note that it's not easy to operate the camera itself as it's sitting on a gimbal, touching it will cause rotation and movement, usually you don't touch the camera itself when using it.
So I'm not sure if a steadicam is the right tool for documentary, you will want to have fast access to all controls of the camera at any time I suppose.
I'd suggest a solid shoulder support rig is better suited but maybe some more experienced guys can answer that.
 
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yeah, for documentary shoulder rig for run and gun, tripod for still.

Glidecam/steadycam have a very high learning curve and no way you can learn in a few days.

Ive had mine like 2 months and still struggling to get a nice shot, much less shooting documentary style.

id advise doing your research and waiting for your next project.
 
Plus setup time with a steadicam is much longer than a shoulder support. Say you're outside trying to balance your steadicam and it gets windy. Now the steadicam is blowing everywhere, you can't trust the balance, and your client's patience is quickly depleting.

Get a solid shoulder rig that is BALANCED. A balanced shoulder rig is very important for smooth footage and long takes. An unbalanced shoulder rig is fine for quick run and gun, but if you are shooting for awhile, you'll benefit a lot from throwing a weight on the back of the support to balance the whole rig.

Lastly, if you need it to be smoother, look at getting a stabilizing plug-in for your NLE or compositor. I use one (although it's discontinued) by 2d3 called Steadymove that does a pretty solid job about 80% of the time taking shoulder-rig footage and making it look almost steadicam.
 
well you can rent one of me to try. my glidecam v8 is for sale as well. there is a learning curve ,practice make all the differnce. you can see it at hdimages.ca
 
Ok I gota chime in here too, I've had a lot of experience in these areas

First the Steadicam is a very specialized tool. Tripod and shoulder mount are like our pen and pencil used 80 percent of the time, while a steadicam is like a compass ( the thing that draws circles) In an average film 10 percet or much less of the shots are on a steadicam.

It's not that they are bad, the're sweet I love, they great at getting the epic shots. IE spinning around the couple as they kiss at the end of the movie, They are also commnly used when someone is walking down a sidewalk facing the camera, as the steadicam op walks backward( or don juan)

Any way steadicams have their place, but maybe not so much in a documentary. And A HANDHELD STABILIZER IS NOT AN ESSENTIAL PIECE EQUIPMENT IN A DSLR SETUP! You hear that Dvxusers!, sorry rant off

So what are your options

1. Get a glidecam setup soothshooter or x-10 both great choices. (getting a Smoothshoot would leave some cash for an extenal monitor)

2. Go hand held! redrock shoulder setups are great and you quickly go back and forth from a tripod you have two options

A. (simple)redrock eyespye offset with a loupe ( LCDVF and z-finder Jr. are good options)
http://vimeo.com/6677199

B.(advanced) With cash for the steadicam you get a monitor and shouldersetup and maybe a redrock batteryplate to power the monitor

http://store.redrockmicro.com/s.nl/it.A/id.433/.f
Plus your choice of 7 inch hdmi monitor

the idea would be to end up with a simple version of the rig you see here

http://philipbloom.co.uk/2010/03/15/robert-rodriguez-shooting-music-video-on-2-canon-7ds/


Oh and remember steadicams are often compared to musical instruments requiring hours of practice and tuning

There! I hope I helped and didn't confuse you any further.
 
ved said:
My camera is an xdcam ex1r.
Click to expand...

You are probably posting in the wrong area since we may think you are using a DSLR :)

That camera would work nice on the Halo Rig HD. It has a very short learning curve, very lightweight and will definitely be a good solution for the style you are looking for.

Check us out - http://halorig.com
 
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