Ruben Sluijter

Truth is that both Jerry and Garrett know me too well, they finally got me to give up my "Bitch". Anyway, am I to conclude that you'll finally be coming to say hi in Amsterdam this year? About bloody time Fracol! Peace, Ruben "You had me at 'Hello'" Sluijter

Wow, thanks a bunch guys...I'm feeling a whole lotta 'a love, makes me feel all mushy inside!!! Had a great day and be warned, I may be slightly intoxicated...which makes a nice change from my regular,everyday state of completely blasted! Also, Kareem, great getting to know you and I can't wait to hook up in Paris again for more MAC/PC related insults and I loved the short film you showed me! It was a tough week but dammit we had us some fun! Thanks again guys and everyone's invited to the afterparty at my place, if you're expecting booze and women then may I suggest you bring both! Oh and my country is not that strange, it's just that nobody 'gets' us...no wait, strike that...I've just been informed by several people that we are, in fact, extremely strange...nevermind... Peace, Ruben "Now where the f*ck are my presents!!!" Sluijter

Guys, thanks again for the compliments...just wish I had more resources to make it even better... Still not 100% the way I imagined it but time constraints can be a bitch (got this stupid day job lugging the heavy piece of metal around on sets) As for what's next...no idea, suggestions are still welcome NAB was a blast, let's do it again real soon at my place...everyone's invited! Peace, Ruben "Enjoying every second of his jetlag" Sluijter

Hey y'all, long time no post! Just thought I'd share a link with you of a project I did many moons ago (this site was only recently brought to my attention) it's called My Big Head. A bunch of short idents for Nickelodeon. It was a very interesting mix of using Steadicam with greenscreen to make a bunch of short, animated station I.D.'s I used Steadicam mostly to add movement where there was none (i.e. a car driving) Certainly not a very overt way of using Steadicam but it was an interesting project (especially working with so many kids!) A lot of the movement is very subtle though there's a few films where it's very obvious (the rock-band promo for one) Also, if you check out the "About this project" page you can see some behind the scenes pictures (and they even spelt my name right...a real first!) Hope you like it, at the very least you'll have to agree it's original. Peace, Ruben "Extremely animated person" Sluijter

Wow guys, thanks a bunch for the compliments....I'm feeling all special now, I believe now is the time to call my mother. And yes, the line will be a little tougher at future workshops, I believe you newbies are getting too lazy dammit!!!!!!! :angry: There will be more animations in the future, just keep an eye out on Garrett's site or the SOA site. So I hope you will enjoy those as well, I hope to have a Skycam animation finished before the new year and then follow it up with a series of tips for operators (hopefully in a funny way!) Any suggestions are welcome, feel free to PM or mail me or just scream in my general direction. Though it may take a while...too tired, too much work...must sleep...not enough hours in the day. Peace, Ruben "A gig is a gig" Sluijter

Damn...I look blurry as hell! The one day of the year I decide to wear short trousers and it's all over the damn interwebnethighwaysuperfasthightechthankyouAlGorenethttp/htm/web! Peace, Ruben "Feeling slightly out of focus today" Sluijter

Yay! go Dan!! Please do tell, it does sound interesting but IMDB isn't really giving any details on the film. What type of shots are we talking about here? How long was production? When can we see it? Come back and give us answers! Peace, Ruben "Ve have vays of making you talk!" Sluijter

Ooh, sorry to take this a little off-topic but I had to add my own escalator story, also in a casino. During a show I had to change locations after the opening (guests arriving in limo type stuff) and rush upstairs through the back way to catch the guests coming up to the first floor on the main stairs (very little time) I actually got stopped by security! They wanted me to show them my pass, even though I was wearing the Steadicam at the time and trying to get off a moving escalator while the 'regular' casino visitors where trying to get by me. Director yelling in my ear "What the **** **** ** ********-*****, **** **ck is keeping you! WHERE ARE YOU!". Some days you just want to go right back to bed.... Anyway, back to topic...what where we talking about again? Oh yeah, the one hand thing...certainly agree with that, much safer and it raises your confidence level making you feel a little more secure and allowing you to focus on the shot just a little more! The compromise, to me, is acceptable Peace, Ruben "Access All Areas, baby!" Sluijter

I've never suffered any injuries so far (knocks quite feverishly on several conveniently located pieces of wood) I have enjoyed the sensation of falling once but luckily came out of that without a scratch (I've written about that more than once so I won't bore you with the details) By the way, David...dude....what the hell is that avatar of yours? For some reason it's seriously freaking me out....don't know why.. Peace, Ruben "Hurt me baby, hurt me...." Sluijter

Exactly what I thought... In spite of the slight delay in recognition, kudos to you Larry! You're still one hell of an inspiration and one hell of a fast talker! Peace, Ruben "Now also wants a damn award" Sluijter

It is with a heavy heart that I bring this sad news and I admit that I don't really know what to say or how to say it, this is nearly impossible for me to write. The Flying Dutchman, Floris Sijbesma, passed away last week. A good friend, generous, filled with humour and an incredible operator and teacher. He's the man that gently forced me into this job and for that I shall always owe him. He wasn't active on the forum but for those that didn't know him, Floris has been around since the early years, both as an operator and as a teacher. His personality was an acquired taste for some but you could never deny his presence, you always knew when Floris has entered the building! It's always too soon when something like this happens. I hope nobody minds that I posted this here but I felt that the community needed to know, especially the Dutch community. Goodbye my friend, you were taken from us too soon and I miss you Rest in peace Ruben Sluijter

Brilliant stuff Dave, I especially loved the Clinton bit...."What did I do?"....hahaha, that had me rolling on the floor! Funny stuff! Peace, Ruben "Vote for me!" Sluijter

here's a couple, birt dark but they are from the movie http://www.arniesairsoft.co.uk//projects/aliens/support.jpg and http://www.arniesairsoft.co.uk//projects/aliens/firing.jpg Peace, Ruben "Say hello to my leetle friend!" Sluijter

Well, from what I've heard so far this one uses a cradle for tv recording (which comes standard) and it has an optional video in unit as an accesory that will allow it to have video in without the cradle (i.e. when it's on a sled). If it's anything like the 300 series it will have svideo and a normal video in. Battery life if about 3/4 hours but, as it's only 6v, it should be relatively easy to get power from the sled (depending on the rig you have you may already have 6v out) and power it indefinetly at also has video out so I guess you could send it through that. The disadvantage of the (older) 300 version was the rather low resolution but apparently this one will go a lot higher (it can playback at 704x380 but I don't know if it can record at this res) Also, the attachment for video-in was rather large, hopefully they've made it a bit smaller this time. This technology is still not on the (quality)level of a DV recorder but it does have advantages in price, weight and storage capacity. There are a few others but in this price range the Archos is the best choice. Hope that helps Peace, Ruben "Accidental salesman" Sluijter

Archos have a new version of their hard disc video recorder coming out soon, thought I'd mention it. You can check it at http://www.archos.com/products/overview/av400_series.html Dimensions: 20 GB model: approx. 125 x 78 x 20 mm (4.9" x 3.1" x 0.8") Higher capacity models (up to 100 GB): approx. 125 x 78 x 26 mm (4.9" x 3.1" x 1"). Weight: 280 g (9.88 oz) for 20 GB model and 320 g (11.29 oz) for higher capacity models. Technical specs are here: http://www.archos.com/products/overview/av...tech_specs.html Could be interesting as they've kicked up the resolution a notch and it looks thinner than the 300 series (which I use now). Just thought I'd mention it, goodbye now Peace, Ruben "Use Viagra for your soft disc!" Sluijter

Now now Dave, share the whealth... don't be so selfish! Peace, Ruben "Hasn't seen any color since the nightstick incident" Sluijter

That's extremely interesting Larry, do you think there will be an easy way for us all to see this video? Maybe put it online or something? There is still an awful lot of voodoo involved with gyros I think, might be good to see a side by side! I know I'd watch! Peace, Ruben "Waiting for the theatrical release" Sluijter

Ask and you shall receive Charles, all hail the mighty Google! http://lazybastard.ehuna.org/archives/000047.html You may have to scroll down a bit to see the video but it's there. Peace, Ruben "The thruth? You can't handle the truth!!" Sluijter

Congratulations man, feel free to give her my phone number 18 years from now ;-) And no, a DSD vest does not make a good gift for a toddler so find something else! Did you name her yet? Peace, Ruben "Still trying to grow up myself" Sluijter

Don't know if you guys had already seen it but for those who've never seen these films, check it out: http://zoomazooma.com/timClips/TH_reeltruth1.html and http://zoomazooma.com/timClips/TH_reeltruth2.html Just saw them and laughed my ass off, it's all so true...it's frightening how they nailed it. I wonder if all those directors,copywriters,producers,etc. would also get a laugh out of this Peace, Ruben "The thruth is out there..." Sluijter

Hey dude, are you calling us crazy?!?!?! You starting something? Wanna take this outside???? C'mon, bring the pain! We're not crazy, we just have very interesting and diverse personalities okay! And Meg, by all means go for it however I would recommend learning about things like framing, composition and basic camera operating first! Once you throw all the extra distractions that the Steadicam provides into the mix you'll find that it becomes nearly impossible to concentrate on your framing (which is still the most important thing!) Remember that Steadicam operating, no matter how cool it may be, is still a form of camera operating requiring all the same skills of framing. And by all means, take a workshop! Atleast you'll find out if this is something you really want to do, and you'll have a lot of fun finding out as anyone here can tell you! Don't let anyone tell you that women can't/shouldn't operate! Hell, some of the finest operators are women and you do have a few extra muscles already developed (for pregnancy) that most men don't ever develop, though most male operators end up developing these same muscles (so we are now physically able to carry a child, though the actual birth might create some problems). These muscles allow you to carry more weight up front (I have no idea what the scientific name of these muscles are but I believe there are four of them). Also, women tend to have a better sense of balance and a more fluid way of moving than most men. Have fun with it, build experience and become a great operator! Peace, Ruben "I'm not crazy, the voices in my head tell me so" Sluijter

Congratulations, welcome to our humble art. Feel free to have a cup of coffee and stay a while, put your legs up. Did you take a workshop? I couldn't make that out from your post but by all means, save a little more money and chalk up a workshop. As has been mentioned many, many, many times before it truly is the absolute best way of getting started. I won't bore you with the how and why, just take my word for it (ofcourse, if you have already taken the workshop you'll already know all this) And don't worry, any hate you may find here is purely for humor and educational purposes and not to be taken too seriously. Most of us don't bite much anymore Hope you'll enjoy your stay with us and don't worry about the dishes, I'll clean up. Peace, Ruben "Have you taken your workshop today?" Sluijter

There are some aftermarket toys available that will allow you to dynamically balance the EFP, I don't know if the DeRose mod is still available somehow but you might also want to try and as Howard Smith (MK-V) as he once made a great little battery mount as a custom job. If you ask him nicely enough he might be persuaded to make another one. You might even be able to do it yourself with a little tinkering, all you need to do is to seperate the battery part from the electronics part and allow it to slide in and out somehow (maybe with some rods). The cable that goes from the battery to the electronics should allow for this and can otherwise be extended. Being able to extend the battery far out is going to make a huge difference and make the EFP a great lil' rig for you. It will make your shots much better to have both a static and dynamically balanced rig. Good luck Peace, Ruben "EFP: Extended Feels Proper" Sluijter

Actually, in defence of wireless, I've been shooting pretty much every tv thing I've done over the past two years or so with the new Thomson wireless system. Most of the tv stuff I do is of the entertainment show variety (mostly big shows). In fact, one show that both Patrick van Weeren and myself have done relied completely on this wireless system for it's look (that show went on to win an award for innovative television). To me the quality of these wireless systems has improved tremendously over the old, analog style, line of sight things with that huge phallic thing sticking out of the camera. There are still occasions where the signal can drop out but they are much less frequent and usually very brief. In my opinion, and that of most directors, the freedom that wireless provides for Steadicam far outweighs any possible disadvantages inherent with wireless and has allowed me to do some pretty neat shots for some of these shows without all that cable hassle restricting you. There is not any noticable difference anymore in picture quality (perhaps maybe on a scope but not really visible to the human eye) so I don't see it as any form of sacrifice. I'm sure some more technically inclined people might disagree with me but I feel that wireless has matured enough for it to be useable on pretty much any tv show without fear. Just my humble opinion... Peace, Ruben "Death to cables!" Sluijter

Hey Marc, I know this trick has been/is used by some operators and why not. Ideally you'd use a really light monitor, LCD type, so as to not add too much weight. I'm thinking of getting the new Flyer monitor for just that purpose (I'm sure those who've seen it will agree that it's surprisingly well in daylight!) as it's real light and doesn't draw too much power. The only problem you might have has been covered by Larry earlier (the mirrored image problem) and his solution sounds interesting to say the least, certainly worth a try. So why not try it, at worst you'll add a little weight to your sled and end up not using it and relying on your main monitor. No big risk in my opinion. Peace, Ruben "Can always use the second monitor for Baywatch re-runs" Sluijter