Peter Abraham

Hi Rob, Totally agreed- and I believe you of course. Wonder why Tom provided that reply. Wondering if he misunderstood the VFX Team's reply, etc.

Welcome to the Forum ! Might I respectfully suggest that you get some basic pointers on how to wear and "fly" a Steadicam from someone who is experienced? It may save you quite a bit of pain. Don't buy a vest and arm. What city are you in? Find someone willing to let you borrow/ rent the arm and vest. The arm has a 5/8" post sticking up from it. That's the hole you need to have in your "rifle". Having the prop rifle made may be fairly easy, unless you want absolutely picture-accurate. But hell, don't buy and arm and vest. Just borrow one and get some tips on how to walk with it in the most stress-free manner possible. And enjoy !! Best to all, Peter Abraham,, S.O.C.

This interesting fact from a Facebook post, re-posted by our colleague Dave Chameides. Written by Tom Del Ruth, ASC:

It seemed to me the last time I saw a Klaussen that they are the same width as the ratchet assemblies used by Tiffen. Call Marc Flamm at the Steadicam factory in Burbank and see if you can stop by and try out their ratchet parts. Might be a good fix ! He's at Marc Flamm <mflamm@tiffen.com> or at 818-567-7945. Best, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Since the first production run sold out and I've been shipping a few out of the second run, I thought I'd re-post into this thread and let folks know who perhaps would want to take a close look at this upgrade for Gen 1 Flyer Handles. Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Since the first production run sold out and I've been sending out some of the second set of Zalex Flyer Handles, I thought I'd bump this thread and spread the word again. Glad that the older Gen 1 Flyer sleds are still out there, being used consistently to make good shots ! PM me here with any questions on the Zalex Flyer Handle. Remember, it goes for $ 200.00 USD + Shipping. Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Hi guys, just seeing this. Victor, I'd have been happy to help out my old pal Dash. Folks, I must say that Marc has stepped in and stepped up with Tiffen. He's a superb addition to their crew out in Burbank and is making people happy. No surprise he got on with Dash.

Indeed. And those were mine. One person telling another person how to think or speak makes me uncomfortable. Sarah Jones' Obituary, with information on her funeral.

<------ Laughing. " It gives you that nervous feeling. " It appears that for the moment, our jobs are secure.

There are nations on our fragile planet where those who believe themselves to be in a position of authority take upon themselves the "right" to tell others how to mourn, what to say, what to think. Fortunately, I do not live in one of those nations. For any who believe in dictating the thoughts, feelings and behaviors of others, there's a plant ticket to Uganda with your name on it. Go, fly, surround yourself with loathing, brutality, rage, violence, repression, censorship, hatred and bullying. Wallow in it, for it is now the loudly proclaimed law of the land. Here in the United States? Not so much. I will be the first to admit that I do not remember the names of all camera department crew members I have worked with since my first professional gig in winter of 1981. It's the way of life. Do I know the name Brent Hirschman? I do. Do I know what show he was on when he died? Yes- Pleasantville ( where, I am grateful to find, Mr. Hirschman's credit is rightfully listed ). Do I know of the documentary film created by Haskell Wexler in the aftermath of Mr. Hirschman's death? I do. I've watched it through. All of us should. All by way of defending an individual's right to mourn in their own way, to remember and to pay respect to someone who has died.

I am told by crew members in Atlanta who had worked with Ms. Jones that she was killed by flying debris. They all had +/- 1 minutes warning before the train passed through the area where they were doing their "tests". They all stepped off, the debris was violently ejected from the tracks, killing Ms. Jones and injuring others. Jens, I am in agreement with you 100%. With no escape route, one does not go out onto a train trestle.

Again, as I mentioned in my post #5, Meddin Studios has filed for Chapter 11 Bankruptcy protection.. Nothing anyone connected to that place says in the press holds an ounce of water. They are in profound Circle The Wagons And Deflect Deny Defend Mode. In about 1989 I was on a low budget feature in Santa Ana, California. The Amtrak station there was made famous as the scene of the closing of "Rain Man". The tracks, as they passed through the station, were " on grade ". That is to say the metal rails were surrounded for several hundreds yards of running track by hard rubber surface, then the sidewalk. One could walk across the tracks from one platform to another without stepping up or down. The hard rubber surface came right up to within a few inches of the rail- just enough gap for the wheels to fit in. I've no death wish, but I did see an opportunity for a nifty shot involving my standing in the middle of the two rails, with a passenger train coming around the curved track to the station. I'd walk off of the mark, arc around and meet an actor as they descended down the steps to the platform level. We owned the station, the tracks in their entirety for the week. The VERY first person I asked about it was the Amtrak Safety Officer. As far as I was concerned, the stunt coordinator was nothing compared to him on that set. He agreed it was fine to execute as long as he was directly involved and had his hand ON my vest in case I lost my mind and did not walk off the tracks on cue. We did a half-dozen takes, the shot was fine and I felt entirely safe while doing it. My A.C. stood away from me, 90º off of my lens on the platform. He pulled focus. The 2nd A.C. held her hands apart where I could see them, and moved them together slowly. When her palms touched, I started walking. That idea was vetted by the Amtrak fellow and the stunt coordinator. It took only a few moments to discuss, and while they were lighting the shot we walked and rehearsed it again and again with someone acting as the nose of the train as it was slowing to a crawl and stopping. The more I read about this incident the more atrocious the entire situation appears. Edited To Add: It is no old Hollywood Myth. The helicopter crash and related deaths during the filming of Twilight Zone: The Movie happened. Books have been written. The court records are public information. For people in any public discussion- be it here, Facebook, what have you- who are going down the self-righteous path of " Well, I'M a seasoned VETERAN and I KNOW better and how dare you question my experience?? ", might I suggest that those people silence themselves and take a few moments. Consider the collective centuries of large-scale feature film on-location production experience represented by the crew on Twilight Zone: The Movie. Hacks? Amateurs? Low-budget? No, no and no. And yet an adult and two children died in the accident- Vic Morrow and one of the children were decapitated. Finger-pointing will not bring our late colleague back. Working that much harder to protect one another and insure safe working conditions no matter what the job or scene is all we can do.

Articulated with care as always, Dave. Crew has sadly always been regarded as expendable. With the advent of digital cinema systems that have removed the words " Camera Reloads " from the rhythm of production, things are done over and over- and with less regard for stopping and adjusting, checking in, being safe, looking things over. ( I am paraphrasing a painful and brilliant post written here years ago by our esteemed colleague, Chris Haarhoff ). If we don't have a moment, a few moments, to check in all around and make sure we are ALL okay and good to go, then we will always be in peril just as this sister member of the Camera Department was. As far as the choices we make as far as WHO we work for and WHO they are, it is a painful reality that Ms. Jones was employed by Meddin Studios based in Savannah.. Meddin Studios is now bankrupt.. I suspect any legal ramifications or even the decency of taking care of funeral arrangements will not be forthcoming from this company.

Food for thought, Will. I've always worn show blacks. Never thought to wear a collared long sleeved black shirt. Something new to try !!!

I'm with Dave here. Fair to say that sometimes, Show Blacks can be more pricey than others. Tuxedo from formal wear shop: $ 350.00 Custom work on oversize Tuxedo jacket that fit over Steadicam Vest: $ 125.00 Black Nike sneakers: $ 100.00 Look on Producers face when I showed up in formal wear to shoot Hispanic Heritage Awards ceremony at the Kennedy Center: Priceless. :D

Glad to have been in a position ( vertical ) to help Rob out. As an aside, I must say this. One of the Producers of Rob's gig walked up to us as Rob was fine-tuning the balance of Matt's sled. ( Now, who am I to question the wisdom of a 19-second drop time? :D ). This Producer introduced himself and with utter sincerity thanked Matt and I for helping Rob out in his moment of need. He literally said, " There aren't a lot of departments that have this level of community support. You really pulled it off, thank you so much. " Unexpected and much appreciated, that Production took a moment to do that. Don't remember the guy's name, but it was delivered with honesty and respect. No matter what the job, one cannot ask for more than that. Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

I've a sad bit of news to pass along and it reaches far beyond the New York City area. For those of us who work in live television, we frequently work in front of mammoth and incredibly precisely designed and mounted video projection systems. These video walls and immense panels become an integral part of our shot composition and we frequently get to make good use of them in our moves. There are but a few very very fine designers and implementers of high end video projection systems. The leader of that pack has died. His name was Dale Cihi and he died suddenly on Sunday night of as-yet unknown causes. I've known him since 1986, when I would hike up to Connecticut to pick up BetaCam packages at his rental house. Once that business collapsed, he got into the high-end video IMAG and projection business. His company is called VideoFilm Systems. He was the go-to for the Republican and Democratic Conventions. For Election Nights. For concerts, for any and all live events. His design work, choices of gear and presentations were remarkable. He was a kindly fellow, intense and just brilliant. Because he knew the impact that very good projection ( fore and rear ) has on events, he was generous with his skills. He personally drove a truck out to Scranton, PA for two different yearly performances of the Ballet Theater of Scranton. My wife gaffed those jobs, and worked with Dale for many years on gigs. He showed up, mounted the best gear he had, and left- without a penny changing hands. Because he knew it would HELP, and it wasn't always about the paycheck. He was- when he ran his video rental house- reknown in the New York / Connecticut area as being the biggest fan of both Brother P-Touch labellers AND Velcro of anyone we knew. And- coming from a Steadicam Operator- that was something. He collumated his own broadcast video lenses. Such was the level of his engineering acumen. ( He was also the ONLY rental engineer I ever met who put Shock Alarms onto the lens, body and deck of a BetaCam. Smart ! ) Dale worked all over North America and into Canada. He may have done overseas work as well, I don't know. A tip of the rig and a moment of silence for a superb technician and gentle caring human being, gone from our midst and from the countless crews he was a member of. Miss you, Dale. Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Good afternoon, Here's a niche market find ! This plate was made by Cinema Products. It saves the Operator 2-3 valuable pounds by removing the Ikegami mounting plate from the equation. In one piece, the plate is both a geared Steadicam Mount Plate AND an Ikegami Camera plate. The custom made shoe clamps allow the standard range of Ikegami cameras to be attached. If your Ikki plate is vibrating or you just wish to lose the additional weight involved in using a standard Ikegami Plate, this is the item for you. Fits the following stages: EFP / IIIA/ III/ Model I and II as well, and any other branded stage that makes use of the older style gear rack- adjustable Mount Plates. Price is $ 450.00 USD. Free shipping to the Lower 48 United States. Express or International Shipping extra. PayPal payment only. PM me here or email me to discuss at: peter@steadicamproductionservices.com Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Good afternoon, Here are two identical IIIA/ III/ EFP Top stage plates. They come with the gear rack intact and both rabbit ears for mounting focus rods are in place, with Helicoils. Each plate is priced at $ 250.00 USD. No discount for buying both. Shipping to the Lower 48 United States is free. Express or International Shipping additional cost. Payment by PayPal only. PM me here to email me at: peter@steadicamproductionservices.com with any questions. Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Good afternoon, Here's a Cinema Products IIIA Stage for sale. The brass gearing assembly is intact. The locking knob is tight and holds very well. The small safety lock screw is intact and in place. Additionally, the two screws at the front of the stage used to attach a Junction Box are in place. This stage comes with 1 Mounting Plate. Priority Shipping in the Lower 48 United States is free. Express Shipping or International Shipping extra. Only Paypal payment accepted. This stage has X / Y adjustability. The side to side tracking is smooth. I have maintained it, keep the small set screws matched for pressure against the side to side dovetail. This insures that the stage will track smoothly across the range from left to right. For anyone putting a sled together or looking for a lower fore/ aft and side/ side adjustable stage to mount at the bottom of their centerpost, this is the perfect find. Price: $ 750.00 USD. Serious requests only. Other sale listing shows additional plates for sale for $ 250.00 per plate. PM here or email me directly to discuss purchase at: peter@steadicamproductionservices.com Best, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

I would be concerned that I come off as some curmodgeonly oldster, but I've been preaching this my entire career. FILM is...what- 130 year sold give or take? Learn from the mistakes of others, build on the successes of others, be inspired by both. Wanna know about hubris, greed, self-consumption and arrogance? Read Final Cut: Dreams and Disaster in the Making of Heaven's Gate. So what if the film was made in the late 1970's? ALL of the details are rich, the lessons are deeply sobering. And- the first half of the first chapter is as concise and heart-warming recounting of the founding of The United Artists Film Corporation as any I've read.

Hi Daniel, It is something I manufacture myself. I have been a Freelance Steadicam Operator again since July of 2012. This product is not manufactured by someone else. Email me at : peter@steadicamproductionservices.com or PM me here. Best, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.

Hoping to attend said GeekFestRecordCon. It's a BlueTooth/ IR thing I suspect. If a deck can take either of those, and one could somehow couple Camera Run off of a Preston / BFD/ what have you, then a deck could be controlled by wireless. On my sled, I had to awkwardly tip the sled to roll and cut, but again I don't live with the Shuttle and it didn't bother me much. With a different mounting form factor, I could reach down and press the Rec button easily and cut with equal ease. Not as sexy as wireless but then again, hell it's recording so much data that a few seconds wasted on either side of the slate wouldn't break my heart.

Apparently my EVO-220 showed up at a flea market in Encino.

Interesting. Having never touched the device until yesterday, I borrowed one from Matthew Fleischmann here in NYC. ( A tip 'o the hat to a great guy and fellow Op, stepping up to loan me a bit I don't own !! ) Matt had 90º SMB connectors put onto his cables. Really made it fit nicely on my lower rods. My battery rods protrude past my sled base up under my monitor rods. This has allowed me to eliminate all vibration from my monitor ( I keep it rather far out from the post ), and offers me a place to mount stuff. Like this deck ! For what I needed it for today, it was perfect. The file format was explored on Wednesday and Matt was able to set it using the USB laptop cable. It's lightweight and did what I needed. For the price, I can see owning one. Start stop automatically? Love the idea. No way on this deck. One gets what one pays for- but in terms of weight and signal quality, yeah. I'd own one. Best to all, Peter Abraham, S.O.C.