What's that Click?

D

dudeguy37

Well-known member
Just kidding... ;)
I just got my DVX a few days ago..."me so happy" I got it from Rush...he's a great guy and extremely helpful. I have a few questions though, most importantly about my new tripod. I got Bogen 3046 legs with a 503 head. It seems like a solid highly reccomended package, but when I put it together and tried it out, I noticed that when tilting, the head won't stay put when I let go, it simply springs back to the neutral position. The panning action is fine, but this springy characterisitc seems odd to me. Is this a problem, if not, any way I can change it? What's up with this...
Thanks in advance for your help

-Harry
 
Re: What's that Click?

Also, has any one had any experience with the Cokin filter system and want to shed some light on how it works (if at all) with the DVX with the understanding that it certainly will be lower quality than a full blown mattebox with Tiffen filters.

Thanks in advance,

-Harry
 
Re: What's that Click?

[quote author=dudeguy37 link=board=Links;num=1095284049;start=0#0 date=09/15/04 at 14:34:09]Just kidding... ;)I noticed that when tilting, the head won't stay put when I let go, it simply springs back to the neutral position.  The panning action is fine, but this springy characterisitc seems odd to me.  Is this a problem, if not, any way I can change it?  What's up with this...-Harry[/quote]

The "spring-action" is the head's counter-balance at work. The counter-balance is intended to allow smooth, controlled tilts (because it prevents gravity from taking over, so the operator won't have to compensate) while simultaneously preventing the camera from ever tipping over uncontrolled and obviating the need for any operator effort to keep the camera from tipping down.

For a fixed counter-balance (as the 503 has) to work properly, however, the camera's weight must be matched precisely to the weight for which the counter-balance is set. In the case of the 503, I believe it's something like 5 or 5.5 lbs. Anything lighter and the counter-balance will tend to return the head and camera to horizontal.

The DVX weighs in at slightly under 5 lbs. unless you add on a bigger battery or other accessories, like a matte box, follow focus, etc.

I chose the 503 over the 501 mostly because of the counter-balance, even though I don't have my DVX weighted down to match the counter-balance perfectly.
 
Re: What's that Click?

I forgot to add that a perfectly counterbalanced head will basically allow you to do tilts without the camera either returning to horizontal or tipping farther forward/down on its own if you let go of the pan bar.
 
Re: What's that Click?

Thanks again Stas...
I worked on it last night trying different camera positions relative to the head and I figured out a set-up that works well enough for my needs. Thanks for your help

-Harry
 
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