chris fawcett

A final few places are available in the Gold workshop to be taught by Jerry Holway, Sebastian Jewell, myself and others in Stockholm, Sweden, September 27-October 2. For more information, follow the link: http://shop.hofmann.se/Meny/Workshop/Kommande_Workshop

Tried it. It's still in the 'toy' stage :( You can't turn on the spot. All cornering is with forward or backward motion. Chris

Welcome, Daniel!

Watch out! They don't deliver as much torque as a Segway. If you push the rig too far out in front of you, the machine won't recover. Fly safe, Chris

Sure thing Louis!

Hi Nathaniel, You're right. Taking a workshop is the way to move forward. I'll be talking to Brett tomorrow about the possibility of organising a 2016 workshop broadly in your region, but my advice to you is to sign up for the next available place on a workshop anywhere. In the meantime, by all means hire a fellow operator to give you some tips, and get a copy of the Steadicam EFP training DVD. To your problems: Your side-to-side wobble might be too tight a grip on the gimbal handle. It's hard to tell without seeing you work. See if this helps with your DB www.youtube.com/watch?v=H9W8bOZLM9g Post photos of your setup, and I'm sure you'll get plenty of comments from fellow Zephyr users. All the best, Chris

I'm in complete agreement with William. When fancy covers get wet, you have to dry the buggers out. With clingfilm, as we Eurps call it, you just rip it off and toss it into the North Pacific Gyre when you're done with it. Chris

Janice, I've seen rows of old Digibetas in rental houses that are only used for pretend film crews or press packs in movies. They're easy to power (4-pin XLR), and put out a decent SD image. The old zooms aren't up to HD, but they give you a range of focal lengths. The older they are, the heavier—and cheaper—they are. Ask around! Chris

Hi Matt, You remove the four large Allen bolts, then dismantle the wheels. Unfortunately, it won't gain you much, because the fenders still stick out. It works on the Steadiseg because the fenders move in and out to accommodate anything from i2 to x2 Turfs. See PM for more info. All the best, Chris

Andrew, You can try the vest at the Steadicam facility in Burbank. Just give them a call at 818 843-4600. Let me know how it goes! Chris

Accepting bookings now for the Eastern Gold Steadicam Workshop, October 18-24, 2015 at the Historic Banning Mills in Whitesburg, GA, just outside Atlanta. Come join if you can, and be sure to leave time to take the zip-line course on the Saturday after the workshop. It's becoming a tradition! Hope to see you there. Chris

To whoever bought the vest. Contact me for a video fitting, if you like. Skype: steadivision All the best, Chris

Andrew, where are you based?

What Rupert says. Make those fore-aft and side-to-side adjustments looking in a mirror, to ensure you are standing upright when you set the float point of the rig. Centre of shoulder girdle directly above pelvic girdle, no leaning back. No leaning to one side or the other. All the best, Chris

Welcome!

John, Here's a couple of exercises. Stand with the rig in front of you, feet 2' apart, then shift your weight from one leg to the other moving side to side keeping your body erect and your knees locked. Feel how your pelvis moves, and the vest with it, then take a few steps allowing the same movement to happen naturally. Also try taking a few steps deliberately swaying your pelvis like a catwalk model just to stretch out the muscles that are usually in tension, then continue walking normally, just allowing your pelvis to move normally. Your gluteus medius and your abdominal muscles should be relaxed. http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gluteus_medius_muscle Let us know how it goes! Chris

Hey John, Glad you're loving it! Maybe your pad problem is due to your keeping your pelvis level as you walk. That's an old habit I struggle to get out of, but it causes the vest to rub as it's trying to pivot with your movement. Let me know if that's the case, if not, we'll sort something out for you pad wise. Keep in touch. All the best, Chris

Gregor, Let's try to arrange a Skype fitting for next week. This week, I'm at the NAB show full time. What you describe is most likely caused by working with the rig off to your side. The closer you are to a good missionary, or Don Juan, position the better the Exovest works for you. Check out this preview of Jerry's book for details: http://books.google.com/books?id=tfaBAAAAQBAJ&lpg=PP1&pg=PP1#v=onepage&q&f=false All the best, Chris

Wankers.

Alec, I put horizon, battery level, and timecode down there, then try for a clean monitor feed, so the image is clear. Love it like that, Chris

Hey Karl, Have a great evening in Santa Monica, but don't get hammered. It's going to be an intensive week! See you Sunday, Chris

I'm with Jens. I find the form factor of the Transvideos perfect already. I don't like anything overlaid on the image. The 16:9 inside the 4:3 leaves the right amount of space for information like level and battery level to be displayed at the bottom of the screen. My €420000¢ Chris

Knights of the Order of the Gimbal? http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Order_of_the_Garter

Great idea, thanks!

Hi Thomas, In that steel is cheap and dense, and can be rigidly mounted, I'd count it as being 'practical' weight too :) All the best, Chris