Erwin Landau

Also check into these puppies... http://www.supercircuits.com/index.asp?Pag...mp;Category=465 Cheaper and meant for reference only. Erwin

Thanks Dave, The DP e-mailed me a PDF of that article... First he thought it was a joke when they interviewed him for that article... once he saw the print, he realized it was the genuine thing. It was quite a while ago... Be safe, Erwin

Hi Marcos, Call Geoff Shotz: 310-880-2233 He has quite some parts from his UHF Preston... Good Luck, Erwin

I received that picture from Michael Tsimperopoulos... sorry my e-mail is acting up again... for people that e-mailed my but have not received an answer... Panaglide: Die Hard 3 (1994) Operator: Craig DiBona Erwin

Check this post and the following threads... http://www.steadicamforum.com/forums/index...?showtopic=4889 Erwin

Hi Mark, Try BVG - Broadcast Video Gear, they have a shit load of b-stock and used or for consignment equipment and they are resellers for Anton Bauers. They had a stack of dead batteries last time I came by... talk to Mimi and tell her I send you (The Yugoslavian steadicam operator from Switzerland): 1-800-224-0509 1-818-841-4800 1-800-842-5111 Also try BandPro again an Anton Bauer reseller, they have a bunch of display batts sitting around. Talk to David Jones or David Rosner: 1-818-841-9655 Good Luck, Erwin

Charles, The XCS Gimbal has a hole but its hidden under the neoprene, you can punch a hole or just make a slice... the ergo has no hole as it's a different style operating... you never invert the gimbal, you just use the J-bracket. Also I would discourage to drill a hole into the ergo... because of the longer design of the ergo, there are larger powers working on the arm post receiver... so don't drill. It was never designed to have a hole. I talked to Howard Preston a couple of months ago... the Gimbal mount does fit. Just take the insert off of one of the sides and it will make it just wide enough to let the mount slide onto the Gimbal handle... it worked on mine... Take care, Erwin

Hi Mark, Backstage Equipment used to rent carts and the like try them. Call Zig : 818-504-6026 --- 800-692-2787 Also try Filmtools again they used to rent as well: Talk to Stan: 818-845-8066 --- 888-807-1900 If non of them works for you call me and I can give you some more contacts... Good Luck, Erwin 818-448-2639

Thank You Jerry, That is good news... I'm hearing of more and more people buying bootleg VHS copies of shitty quality, for ridiculous amounts of money... mainly of e-bay. Many have heard of that tape but as new guys are emerging less people actually have one... my copy has made quite some rounds here in LA. Keeping my ears peeled, Erwin

Let's warm this topic up again... shall we. Any news on the EFP Video Training Manual and it's DVD release yet? Jerry? Frank? Anybody....? Let me/us know, Erwin

The Mini was replaced by the Flyer. Because of obvious reasons... The Arm... no comparison and other vast improvements. The SK2 was a step down from the ProVid and had only a single action articulated arm. Price guides... sorry. You have to do the leg work / Online research. Just make a list of the rigs available and contact all the manufacturers and resellers... Good Luck, Erwin

I just came across the December issue of the DV (Digital Video) Magazine and an article by Mike Elwell where he reviews the "new" Artemis DV Pro. But the most stunning part was that the set up uses a "dual-parallel-action arm with gas-filled canisters" versus the traditional spring setup. I thought that the gas canisters went the same way that the Panaglide did... again I guess I'm wrong. It comes with three two canister sets with a range of light, medium and heavy. 11 to 17.6 pounds, 17.6 to 23,4 pounds and 22 to 28.7 pounds. Canisters... I heard that one before... More head scratcher... he states that the weight of the Arm and the vest (which is a very obvious aluminum knock off of the Klassen Harness) together equals the weight of a full size rig which would be around 20 pounds... So much for a lightweight rig... Any thoughts? Erwin

I re-watched the movie 'Crocodile' Dundee II (1988) a couple of days ago. And for the first time realized it had some BTS footage as bonus. There are 4 scenes of Geoffrey Wharton (he also did 'Crocodile Dundee' (1986) )shooting with the Panaglide... it was even a very early model with 3A arm and Gimbal... I was sure that Panavision had destroyed all Panaglides before 1988... I guess not. Credits are as follows: Geoffrey Wharton .... panaglide operator: Australia Larry McConkey .... steadicam operator: New York (as Larry McConky) Which makes me to believe that the Panaglides was kept alive longer and got sold and not cut up as I raised that suspicion about 'The Matrix' (1999) in another post, as it looked as if a Panaglide was used... It turned out to be a Panaglide/homemade deal... Robert Agganis .... steadicam operator Anyhow, Just wanted to share for the Steadicam History buffs, Erwin

Remember the BTS senses from The Shinning... Garrett on that ancient Victorian Wheelchair... I can see some resemblance... BTW: Simon got one from his crew for last Years birthday... Erwin

Shameless Rob, shameless... But check here: http://www.steadicamforum.com/forums/index...?showtopic=5057 Erwin

I tripped over this website by accident a couple of days ago and today I saw it again in the ASC magazine... Looks very familiar doesn't it... check it out: http://www.cinerover.com/ Erwin

Hi Curt, These questions would be more interesting for manufacturers then users. And as history teaches us it doesn't matter how good your motor is (SLD) if your whole system is not worth while (LC3/WRC4) than that is a mood point. For instance the M-1 motor is at some points out performing the Preston Digital Motor, like speed or torqueness , but at some point, every operator here in the US, when reaching a certain level, has or will buy/switch to the Preston system. As long as the AC is happy, the motor drives any Lens at extreme circumstances like heat and cold, and the dailies are in focus... And the costumer service is outstanding, I couldn't care less what the nominal torque or the maximum speed is... Thoughts? Erwin

I wouldn't call myself paranoid (maybe I am), but... All my cases are lockable. Firstly for the reason that the drawers are a little on the sliddy side and will pull out if a corner is taken to harsh, But at the same time I can walk away during lunch or if we shoot close to uncontrolled crowds, but then there is always a PA that can have an eye on it. And after they got me a cert and know how much the replacement cost are... there is always a Firewatch. I'm always making sure that "Walk Away Items" (small items as well as electronics, i-pods, Cellphones, PDA's, digital cameras, etc.) are secure and locked away. If you don't need it leave it in the car (Mine got burglarized, under the watchful eyes of 11 Deputy Sheriffs) or on the Truck (I can't count all the stories of stuff just walking off the truck) so leave it at home... thats another story. Unfortunately most of the theft on set is committed by your "colleges" then strangers wandering onto set, which is almost impossible unless you act like and know how to appear as if you belong on a set. (I think the most famous/infamous incident involving a Camera Truck would be on "Beverly Hills Cop 2" shooting in Downtown LA, Eddie had 15 Bodyguards and security at all times watching him and while everybody was guarding him the Camera Truck was cleaned out, the whole camera package walked away from set nobody had seen anything.) I always build my sled myself and put away all items like cases, back ups unused items myself and leave the least amount of stuff "lying" around. If you don't need it don't let it bounce around. I'm keeping my working shelf clean exempt for active items everything else goes into the drawer. I give my Assistants access to all my stuff and don't give'em to many rules "Everything is for you to use, as long at the end of the day all items are back where they started" (I can tell with one gland if all cut outs are filled or not). Most of my AC's do proved them self getting all my equipment, that I brought to make there lives easier, exactly in the same order in which they found it. I want a certificate of insurance and I usually get one. But you still have to look out for your equipment yourself. There is no excuse at the end of the day to not quickly go through your stuff and make sure everything is back in the cases, especially on day playing. I'm very often getting phone calls from other ops that go like "Can I borrow that item from you today, I'm sure I had one on the last show I did, but it looks like my Assistant misplaced it... it didn't make it back... this item was send back to the rental house... Someone took it...". By then it's to late to claim anything with production... it comes out of your pocket. It's so hard to get anything replaced these days on set, so be smart and prevent. If no certificate is issued my operating gets more cautious and (I was stunned when I got a call from HARPO, yes Oprah's Production Company, and they said I had to provide my own Insurance), I will say no quicker... running, no... in the woods, no... beach, no... gunfire, no... Ooops... rambling alert, Sorry. Erwin

Hi Alec, Preston already makes interface cables from the Radio Dimmer to the Kino Flo mini Ballast, you can manipulate the mini/micro Flo's and the Kamio... The change is about 2 stops... I will drop of my Panel Light on monday... Later, Erwin I knew I had a picture somewhere... Here the Kamio with mini Ballast:

Hi Ibon, That could be a tough one. I heard that people traveled to the states and hand picked up there gear and just walked through the customs at there native country and had no problems. I'm not sure if that is still the case. Walking just through customs with $100'000.- worth of technical gear that was not manufactured in Spain??? Playing with fire? Usually gifts have no import duty on them. And they don't check if it's send from a private address to a private address. One possibility. You should inform yourself if your country requires a carne when you travel up-road. So that they can verify that it was in-fact already in the country before. Also later if you have to travel, How can you prove that the rig was in your country for the time it was there if you have no paperwork proving it ever got into the country in the first place? (Sorry tong-twister...) Check with operators in europe that have bought equipment in the states and/or bought over the net. See how they did it. You could piece mail it in several packages. Lie on the value. Not insure it... all very risky if it goes missing. Uninsured packages with value under $200.- they don't even bother... What's the fine if they catch you? Could they just impound the equipment... You would be shit out of luck! Finally you have to determine if all that hassle is worth the couple of grand that you would save... Good Luck, Erwin

Just found that... DP: John Inwood and Op: Rich Davis on the set of Scrubs with the Kamio.

I used to have the PRO Vest actually through strange and involuntary circumstances, like theft, I had 3 over the years. For the last 4 years I had the DSD and now the Klassen. (I have yet again a PRO on order). After very long and fruitful discussions with Mark O'Kane (he designed the PRO Vest) and other operators, we came to the conclusion that, in a perfect world, you should have both. Mark actually, before retiring, was about to order a Klassen Vest. It basically comes down to that... Your equipment is a tool chest or belt and each vest is a tool. Each tool is designed to do certain tasks. Different tools are designed for different requirements. The more tools you have, the better you will be prepared for any on set requirements. You will reach limits with each of the designs: You can stay longer in the backmount, you are able to handle heavier loads, it facilitates breathing after long takes and makes your look offs more solid. It gives you a better posture. But also... I have damaged door frames and taken out set pieces... I had my circulation cut off by the harness and crashed because of it. Design got blamed for damages to the Socket block set up. Frontmount... lower profile, less trouble to hide under your cloths for foul weather. Better for running and on stairs. 30 year proven design. But also... Quicker fatigue and soar backs after long days. Lower weight limit on cameras. Easier transmission of chest movement to the camera after running shots. I was told that of late, the general opinion is shifting back to the front mounted Vest, after a huge stint with the backmounts. More people are opting for the front mount. I heard that a certain DP will not hire ops with backmounts because of the increased damage on set from the carbon arm and the back-screw. It used to be preference but as of late with wider use of both designs, it has shown its self that both have strong as well as weak points. It's up to you to determine which point are neglect-able... Also money should not be a driving factor, it usually is, even though the different models of both vests have shifted so much that you can find models in comparable price ranges... Front mount mid $3000.- up to low $5000.- as with Back mount mid $3000.- up to high $8000.- Hope that helps, Erwin

Are you now talking about the vest in general or just to add the Drop down arm? Anyhow... The Vest in general is a great addition to your tool kit. It makes a bunch of shots easier to manage, like long shots. Your Look Off's will improve. You can stay longer in the rig and handle heavier cameras (both not necessarily a good thing). It makes breathing easier. It saves your back... taking in consideration that your hips, knees and ankles will go first... I have been using my backmount for over 4 years now and only had miner issues (like the leg tingle)... but I recently added a Front mount too (actually on order from PRO). Running and stairs are not ideal with the backmount. As well as sometimes you can't afford to take out door frames or the like... specially in antic or multi million dollar mansions. My suggestion is have both, Also check more topics under Vests in this forum... there is an abundance of posts, like "Multiple Vests" and the like, Erwin

I would love to come, but I'm sure I would die and there is not enough meat on me to make it worth your while... I'm so out of shape... I'm amazed I haven't collapsed under that darn 535B I log around... I haven't punched anyone in a while... Also I don't drink beer but I'm over 30 and my IQ is low enough... does that qualify? Two out of four... I guess not, Erwin

Hi Brooks, I think that Larry McConkey has the most time in and with the suspender rig, then Mike O'Shea and Charles Papert... Anthony Hardwick and Geoff Shots tried/used it on "Medical Investigation". You should give Walter a call he was working on a update/replacement/improvment unit... as I was told should be a huge improvement over the current set up... and way more compact. Erwin