Peter Abraham
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Posts posted by Peter Abraham
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Good afternoon,
The Tiffen Company is pleased to announce additional Steadicam Flyer/Pilot Workshops for 2009. More and more events will be added to our calendar. We encourage anyone who is interested in two days of intensive and fun training in the art and craft of Steadicam Operating to consider one of these events.
The tuition for all of these is $ 500.00 USD, prepaid at time of registration. The groups are limited to 9 students to allow all attendees to have plenty of time in the rigs.
The Steadicam Workshops for Flyer/Pilot that are scheduled so far are as follows:
January 17-18. Montreal. Hosted by CinequitWhite.
February 7-8. Hauppauge, New York. ( NYC area). Hosted by Tiffen.
March 13-14 ( Friday/Saturday ). San Francisco. Hosted by Calumet Photographic.
April 4 -5. Austin, Texas. Hosted by Texas Media Systems.
The Flyer / Pilot Workshops will be visiting dealers and venues across the United States as it has in years past. Bookmark our Workshops web site to keep a close eye on new events. Please contact me with any questions regarding Workshops or Steadicam sales.
The Steadicam Workshops web site
Best to all,
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services
Tiffen / Steadicam
6 Lake Street
Monroe, New York 10950
Cell (917) 453-1219
Fax ( 845) 595-2270
email: pabraham@tiffen.com
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Shane,
Give me a call, be glad to discuss it with you.
Best,
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services, Steadicam
The Tiffen Company
917-453-1219
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Good afternoon,
The Tiffen Company is pleased to announce that we are holding a Steadicam Workshop in Montréal, Canada. This Flyer/ Pilot workshop will be held on the weekend of February 17 & 18, 2009. The tuition is $ 500.00 prepaid.
Students can register through the web link provided below. Anyone with questions about this workshop may contact me at the cellular phone number and / or email listed here. Looking forward to a great event !
Best,
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services, Steadicam
Workshops Coordinator
The Tiffen Company
pabraham@tiffen.com
(917) 453-1219
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Good evening folks. We still have a few slots left for the Eastern Classic Steadicam Workshop. The September 15th deadline has been lifted of course, and anyone interested in attending is welcome to register at the link just below, or phone and/or email me with any questions.
A beautiful location, quiet and filled with great spaces indoors and outdoors for composing Steadicam shots.
Best,
Peter Abraham
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My first day of work with a Steadicam.
Well. Truth be told, I did exactly what I beg my students not to do. I took a day of work the weekend after I got my first rig. It was with an Arriflex BL-IV and my Model I simply flipped upside down. That was with the "long set" of posts and the metal weights on the post at the bottom. Then.... I waited 6 months, practiced like mad.
And did my first day at the Philadelphia Zoo. Unmodified Model I sled, which now resides in Garrett's collection. Serial # 022. Built in April of 1976, near as I could determine.
Named "Old Smokey" because of the life-ending damage done during the fire at Seitz Technical Products.
First thing I did? Make a black Delrin cylindrical hand grip, knurled. Quite similar to the new lovely handgrip on our Flyer LE sleds !! Second thing I did? Cut off the battery mount and put on an Anton Bauer. Machining costs? Zero.
Battery upgrade costs? Bazillions !!! :blink:
Yes. My left hand is too low. Yes. Charles' left hand is placed perfectly........ So???? What of it ???? :)
I loved that sled...........
Peter Abraham
Dir. of Technical Services, Steadicam
The Tiffen Company
pabraham@tiffen.com
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I've been on it, with his client, for a day or so. Will have firm answers once we have examined the G-50 arm in Glendale at the factory !
Best to all,
Peter Abraham
Dir. Technical Services,
The Tiffen Company / Steadicam
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The Lake Arrowhead Classic Steadicam Workshop
March 22-29, 2009
The Tiffen Company is pleased to offer the 3rd Annual Lake Arrowhead Classic Steadicam Workshop. It is held at the U.C.L.A. Conference Center at beautiful Lake Arrowhead, California. The combination of quiet location, access to interesting spaces and rugged terrain, terrific lodging and food makes for a week of eating, sleeping and breathing Steadicam.
The reknowned Steadicam Classic Workshop began in Malibu California in the 1980?s. It has developed into the premiere Steadicam Workshop in the world, offering excellent instructors, state of the art Steadicam gear and workshop experience.
The group is limited to 16 students. There are 5 Instructors, including our lead Instructor, Jerry Holway. Jerry has been a Steadicam Operator for more than 25 years and is the co-inventor of the Steadicam Ultra 1 and Ultra 2, as well as many other inventions. He will be joined by 4 other highly experienced Steadicam Operators who have instructed together before.
Syllabus Highlights:
* Flying the Rig
* Details of sled, arm and vest
* Vehicle Mount
* Use of ultra long post feature for super low mode and super high mode
* Balance of the Steadicam. Dynamic and Static Balance.
* Running
* Hand Work
* Work on stairs and uneven surfaces
* Operating from both sides. ( Left and Right side Steadicam )
* Compositional skills and techniques
* Integration of accessories: Follow Focus, on-board recording, HD/SD
* Evening discussions of shots, screening clips and deconstructing shot
design.
Tiffen hosts an Instructor's Evening, where working Steadicam Operators from the Los Angeles area come up to share experiences and frequently bring their kits for students to see.
The Tiffen Company will be providing a selection of the newest and best systems, from our S.O.C. Award-winning Ultra 2 and our new Clipper 324 and Clipper 312 and Archer systems to the new Flyer F24LE with telescoping post, as well as vehicle mounts and other accessories.
Tuition for the workshop is $ 3,000.00. A $ 500.00 deposit is required at the time of registration. Full payment is due by February 1, 2009.
The tuition includes the following:
* Steadicam Workshop
* Meals
* Housing
* Certificate of Completion
* Steadicam T-Shirt
Students are required to transport themselves to the facility. Below is direct contact information for the U.C.L.A. Lake Arrowhead Conference Center. Registration for housing is taken care of by Tiffen. We recommend that if possible, you arrange to fly into the Ontario, California airport. Tiffen will send a SuperShuttle bus to that airport to transport any students flying in there. We will also return students on the wrap day to that airport. For anyone flying into L.A.X., or residing in the Los Angeles area, you are responsible for your own transportation.
http://www.uclaconferencecenter.com
UCLA Lake Arrowhead Conference Center
(909) 337-2478
To register for this workshop, click on Reserve A Workshop and fill out the form. Any questions regarding the details of the Eastern Classic Steadicam Workshop should be directed to Peter Abraham at pabraham@tiffen.com . Phone # (917) 453-1219.
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Good morning ! Samy's Camera is hosting Steadicam workshop the weekend of October 25 & 26th. It is being held at one of their large buildings next to the Fairfax location. We'll also be doing shots IN the store on Day 2.
Here is the information: 431 S. Fairfax Ave., Los Angeles, CA 90036
Tel: 323-938-2420. Tuition is $ 500.00 pre-paid. You can register by visiting the official Tiffen Steadicam Workshops web site. That link is at the very bottom of this posting.
We cover it all- technique, theory, set politics, low mode, hard mount and so on. Students receive a Steadicam T Shirt and Certificate of Completion from Tiffen / Steadicam.
Anyone with questions regarding the workshop should contact me. The phone is always on !
Best,
Peter
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services
Tiffen / Steadicam
6 Lake Street
Monroe, New York 10950
Cell (917) 453-1219
Fax ( 845) 595-2270
email: pabraham@tiffen.com
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No kidding, Jeff. My flipside experience was Atlanta 1996. Sweat reigned supreme. Camera meetings during the afternoon, meal break as the sun set, work in the dark. It was still swampy hot.
Rob, the situation with cuts was the same in Atlanta. I worked for Centennial Events. We provided the World Feed. NBC had our line cut but not individual camera feeds. I got on camera once at the Opening as far as I was told, and that is once too much. ( Face made for radio here ).
It is unique in the world of live t.v., that a Director cannot call cameras, but has to cut hoping that the camera he/she cuts into does not suddenly reposition or flip up to the sky. There were, IIRC, 24 cameras + 2 blimps in Atlanta for the Opening and Closing. 2 Steadicams for Centennial Events. Myself and the amazing Marcus Cole from L.A. We were dedicated to the Director of our show- Don Mischer, who I know you've worked for.
NBC was in the position of having close to 50 cameras to use, but only 20-something to line cut.
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services
The Tiffen Company / Steadicam
New York
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The Eastern Classic Steadicam Workshop
Good morning,
Tiffen is hosting a full 6-day Steadicam Workshop in the countryside south of Atlanta, Georgia. There are still slots open for this international workshop- we draw students twice a year from across the United States and around the world.
Below is all of the information on this exciting intensive Steadicam Workshop experience !
November 2 - 8, 2008
Hosted by The Tiffen Company. We are once again holding our Eastern Classic at Historic Banning Mills. This beautiful facility is located south of Atlanta, Georgia. We enjoy the combination of a luxurious main lodge and the rustic visuals of the abandoned paper mill site along the Snake Creek. Come and spend a week of day and night intensive training using the newest systems. Eat, sleep and breathe Steadicam Operating.
The reknowned Steadicam Classic Workshop began in Malibu California in the 1980?s. It has developed into the premiere Steadicam Workshop in the world, offering excellent instructors, state of the art Steadicam gear and workshop experience.
The group is limited to 16 students. There are 5 Instructors, including our lead Instructor, Jerry Holway. Jerry has been a Steadicam Operator for more than 25 years and is the co-inventor of the Steadicam Ultra 1 and Ultra 2, as well as many other inventions. He will be joined by 4 other highly experienced Steadicam Operators who have instructed together before.
The Syllabus includes:
* Flying the Rig
* Details of sled, arm and vest
* Vehicle Mount
* Use of ultra long post feature for super low mode and super high mode
* Balance of the Steadicam. Dynamic and Static Balance.
* Running
* Work on stairs and uneven surfaces
* Operating from both sides. ( Left and Right side Steadicam )
* Compositional skills and techniques
* Integration of accessories: Follow Focus, on-board recording, HD/SD
* Evening discussions of shots, screening clips and deconstructing shot
design.
The Tiffen Company will be providing state of the art equipment, from our Ultra 2 system and our new Clipper 324 and Clipper 312 and Archer systems to the new Flyer F24LE with telescoping post. This is a ?Big Rig? workshop. As always, there will be one each of the Flyer, Pilot and Merlin systems as well.
The workshop dates are November 2-8, 2008.
Historic Banning Mills. 205 Horseshoe Dam Road
Whitesburg, GA 30185.
Phone: 770-834-9149.
Tuition for this workshop is $ 3,000.00 USD.
Deposit of $ 500.00 USD reserves your slot.
The balance is due no later than September 15, 2008.
This tuition includes housing, all meals while on site, instructional manual and training and a Certificate of Completion. Students are responsible for their own transportation into the Atlanta area, and for transporting themselves down to Historic Banning Mills. For transportation from Atlanta Hartsfield Airport, contact Banning Mills.
To register for this workshop, click on Reserve A Workshop and fill out the form. Any questions regarding the details of the Eastern Classic Steadicam Workshop should be directed to Peter Abraham at pabraham@tiffen.com . Phone # (917) 453-1219.
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I met Andy a few times at shows, events in NYC. A gentle fellow indeed. My condolences to his family and close friends. The loss to our community is sad, the loss to his family is incalculable.
Peter Abraham
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I used to shoot Cribs for a few years. Maybe..... 1998-2000. Did a bunch of 'em. Merciless hours indeed. The fun was balanced by the frustration of it being a near-documentary gig. We'd get a light on a stick sometimes- and that might be handled by a novice, which would make for momentary harsh shadows.
One of the benefits of doing them is that it forces you to increase your peripheral vision substantially. Tight spaces, uncontrolled locations, walls, windows, furniture, glass, etc. All are in the way, all cannot be moved, and all must be accounted for on the fly. Some rooms were shot without even a walk-through. We DID have lighting sometimes but not consistently.
I know I'm forgetting a bunch, but here's a rough list:
Redman
Ja Rule's Crib
Miami Star Island House Party hosted by Ja Rule
Russell Simmons ( penthouse directly across the street from South Tower of WTC )
Missy Elliott
Ozzy Ozbourne home while still under reconstruction ( pre-series )
Halle Berry and Hugh Jackman's "Cribs" shoot in NYC
O-Town
Jamal Anderson ( Atlanta Falcons player )
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services
The Tiffen Company / Steadicam
pabraham@tiffen.com
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I've been teaching the 2-day Flyer Workshops since the Flyer was introduced, and that was what- 4 years ago? Now we have the Pilot in the mix as well, because their weight capacity is so close that it overlaps somewhat ( very much by design ! ). We typically have 3 Flyers and a Pilot, sometimes 2 Flyers and a Pilot.
Come and check out one of the workshops !
Best,
Peter Abraham
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I am goofy foot,
My instructor (Paul Taylor) was goofy foot so I ended up that way. That was 7 years ago but I found no reason to go regular. I am ambidextrous but still find goofy foot more comfortable to operate, especially for HD jobs and having the smart side of the camera facing me.
I'd no idea you were a goofy foot. This might impact all of our future communications. Pity :D
Seriously, here is what I tell my students. Goofy foot is fine IF your body/brain is wired in that unique way. If it IS, then it is more maddening to operate a Steadicam on the "regular" Operator side. There are drawbacks, however, to feeling like you need to be on that side:
If you can see information given to the Camera Op, you are powerless to make adjustments. Even if you were agile enough to take a hand off of the gimbal, you couldn't tweak audio levels or anything else without compromising the integrity of your shot.
As a regular side Operator, it actually made sense to me. If my body is on the "dumb" side and it is a video job, my audio person can SEE the VU meters easier than if I were on the Operator side. That way, he/she can ride levels by wireless mixer and keep a sharp eye on the VU on the camera as well.
I've never gotten stuck, but once, needing Goofy. Otherwise, I've used Don Juan moving forwards and backing up, to make the shot. This includes running.
Bottom line is, if your hands and brain are more in control and happier, go Goofy ! Paul Taylor is an excellent example of why it just does not matter.
One last remark. We should remember that the Steadicam was originally invented as a single-handed operated device. Garrett only used his left hand to do all of the work. That is why the Steadicam 35, Model I and Model II had a white "bicycle handle"-style grip on the centerpost.
This is not to say that one couldn't swap and go righty. Just saying, it didn't even require two hands originally.
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services
The Tiffen Company / Steadicam
pabraham@tiffen.com
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The Tiffen Steadicam facility in Glendale is going to be hosting our annual Open House just prior to CineGear.
We invite all members of our community to come in to the factory for an evening of socializing and meeting the Tiffen Steadicam staff members. We'll be starting the festivities around 6:30 and winding up around 9:30 on Thursday, June 19th.
In addition to fine food and drink, we will make our newest Steadicam systems available for test runs. We'll be showing our Ultra 2, our new Steadicam 312 and 324 and the hot new Steadicam Flyer LE.
Garrett Brown and the rest of the Steadicam creative and design team will be present, along with many of our sales and support personnel. We invite one and all to spend some time with us !!
Best,
Peter Abraham
pabraham@tiffen.com
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Good morning,
We're happy to announce some additional Steadicam Flyer / Pilot Workshops. These continue to be held all over the United States and are always a fun and high-energy event.
Here's the schedule of 2-Day Flyer / Pilot Workshops through November. For the details on each location and full syllabus and registration information, please click on this link to visit the Tiffen Steadicam Workshops web site.
Hope to see some of you there !
Best,
Peter Abraham
June 22-23 Glendale CA
July 11-12 Atlanta area
July 26-27 New York City area ( Hauppauge NY )
August 9-10 Holllywood, CA
August 16-18 Boulder, Colorado. This is a 3-day big rig workshop.
September 20-21 Minneapolis, MN
October 11-12 New York City area ( Hauppauge NY )
October 25-26 Glendale CA
November 14-15 Chicago IL
Additionally, we are hosting the 2nd annual Eastern Classic Steadicam Workshop in Banning Mills, GA. That is November 2-8. The same web link has the information on this full-size 6 day workshop.
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The Eastern Classic Steadicam Workshop
November 2-8, 2008
Hosted by The Tiffen Company. We are once again holding our Eastern
Classic at Historic Banning Mills. This beautiful facility is
located south of Atlanta, Georgia. We enjoy the combination of a
luxurious main lodge and the rustic visuals of the abandoned paper
mill site along the Snake Creek. Come and spend a week of day and
night intensive training using the newest systems. Eat, sleep and
breathe Steadicam Operating.
The reknowned Steadicam Classic Workshop began in Malibu California
in the 1980?s. It has developed into the premiere Steadicam Workshop
in the world, offering excellent instructors, state of the art
Steadicam gear and workshop experience.
The group is limited to 16 students. There are 5 Instructors,
including our lead Instructor, Jerry Holway. Jerry has been a
Steadicam Operator for more than 25 years and is the co-inventor of
the Steadicam Ultra 1 and Ultra 2, as well as many other inventions.
He will be joined by 4 other highly experienced Steadicam Operators
who have instructed together before.
The Syllabus includes:
Flying the Rig
Details of sled, arm and vest
Vehicle Mount
Use of ultra long post feature for super low mode and super high mode
Balance of the Steadicam. Dynamic and Static Balance.
Running
Work on stairs and uneven surfaces
Operating from both sides. ( Left and Right side Steadicam )
Compositional skills and techniques
Integration of accessories: Follow Focus, on-board recording, HD/SD
Evening discussions of shots, screening clips and deconstructing shot
design.
The Tiffen Company will be providing state of the art equipment, from
our Ultra 2 system and our new Clipper 324 and Clipper 312 and Archer
systems to the new Flyer F24LE with telescoping post. This is a ?Big
Rig? workshop. As always, there will be one each of the Flyer, Pilot
and Merlin systems as well.
The workshop dates are November 2-8, 2008. Historic Banning Mills.
205 Horseshoe Dam Road, Whitesburg, GA 30185. Phone: 770-834-9149.
Tuition for this workshop is $ 3,000.00 USD.
Deposit of $ 500.00 USD reserves your slot. The
balance of the tuition is due no later than September 15, 2008.
This tuition includes housing, all meals while on site, instructional
manual and training and a Certificate of Completion. Students are
responsible for their own transportation into the Atlanta area, and
for transporting themselves down to Historic Banning Mills. For
transportation from Atlanta Hartsfield Airport, contact Banning Mills.
To register for this workshop, follow the link at the bottom of this posting and click on ?Reserve A Workshop? and fill out the form. Any questions regarding the details of the Eastern
Classic Steadicam Workshop should be directed to me, Peter Abraham at
pabraham@tiffen.com . My phone number is (917) 453-1219.
Best wishes to all,
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services, Educational Program Coordinator
The Tiffen Company
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Greetings all !!
The Tiffen Company invites all of our Steadicam Operator colleagues to join us tonight, Monday night April 14th at the NAB show for a Gala 70th Anniversary Party. We are celebrating Tiffen's decades of contributions to the world of photography.
Our Operator's Night will be held at the Flamingo Hotel. The Suite number is 24078. Please do come and enjoy an evening with your colleagues from across the country and around the world.
The party runs from 6pm- ???
Hope to see you all there.
Best,
Peter Abraham
The Tiffen Company
Steadicam
pabraham@tiffen.com
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Good morning,
The Tiffen Company is pleased to offer a workshop in the New York City area. This is the first of several that will occur this year. I've been able to secure space at our production facility in Hauppauge, Long Island.
This workshop is happening in one week and folks are already signing up ! To register and reserve your spot in this intensive two day event, use the web link below and send in the information as directed.
We will cover both Flyer and Pilot in this workshop. The group limit is 9 students and all slots are first come first served. I will be the Lead Instructor. Depending on availability, we may have a few guest Steadicam Ops coming in to address our group.
All aspects of operating are covered. Basic skill set, shot design, on-set protocols and politics and clip screenings are included.
Feel free to email with any and all questions. We're very excited about this new program of bringing our educational program to the Steadicam community in the greater New York area.
Details:
Location: The Tiffen Company. 90 Oser Ave. Hauppauge NY. 11788.
Date: March 29 & 30.
Time: Saturday- 8:15 am to 5pm.
Sunday- 8:15 am to roughly 6pm.
Tuition: $ 500.00 pre-paid
Breakfast and lunch provided by The Tiffen Company. CD-ROM Manuals, t-shirts and Certificate of Completion granted to each student who completes all work.
Best to everyone,
Peter Abraham
Director of Technical Services/ Educational Coordinator
The Tiffen Company / Steadicam
(917) 453-1219
pabraham@tiffen.com
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--clears throat-- Well. Yes......
We look forward to seeing all who can attend. Arrive around 3pm, visit, meet the new crop, have dinner, and so on.
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Good evening. We would like to invite any and all Steadicam Operators in the LA area to come up to the UCLA Conference Center at Lake Arrowhead on Thursday. Come and spend the afternoon with our group of students and join us for a terrific dinner.
Feel free to email me so I can get a head count on this. I'll also keep a close eye on this post ! Hope to see many of our esteemed colleagues here.
Best to all,
Peter Abraham
pabraham@tiffen.com
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Email went out to all attendees this morning ! Looking forward to a great group again. Still have a slot or two open for any last-minute students.
Best,
Peter Abraham
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Hi Folks,
I will be instructing the New York Flyer / Pilot Workshop. Details still being arranged. Many kudos to Dave for creating such positive inertia !!!! Keep an eye on the Tiffen Steadicam Workshops web site for all of the details as soon as they are locked in place. Registration will be as per the usual route.
Notice that both rigs are now shown in the name of the workshop. Because they are both lighter rigs, and their payload capacity overlaps to a degree, we have decided to couple them in the same 2-day intensive workshop.
Looking forward to seeing you all there,
Best,
Peter Abraham
Lead Instructor
Director of Technical Services
The Tiffen Company / Steadicam
pabraham@tiffen.com
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Ah- forgot to mention the important stuff !! Jerry Holway is our Lead Instructor !
:)
Stolen Equipment
in General Discussion
Posted
Do we have any updated information on this situation? We're keeping an eye out for it.
Best,
Peter Abraham
Dir. Technical Services, Steadicam
The Tiffen Company
pabraham@tiffen.com
917-43-1219
http://www.thesteadicamworkshops.com