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Joseph Robinson

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About Joseph Robinson

  • Birthday 04/21/1993

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  • Location
    Westchester County, New York
  1. Hello All, My name is Joseph Robinson, and I decided I would pursue a career as a Steadicam Operator back in March of 2013. Since then, I have had two semesters of experience operating Steadicam, including a course based solely on Steadicam. Not too long ago, I posted my first reel after a semester of course-work (here) looking for feedback. Many of you were kind enough to note certain things I should try to improve on, though I have not had the opportunity to operate since December. As for the Summer, I know that as of now I have time, and was looking to see if there are any Operators local to NY/NJ (I can commute to the City without an issue) and know of any situations in which I could shadow on-set. As of now, I have only worked on course-related work, though I held an internship at the production studio of a hospital. I have never been on an actual set outside of my course-work. I feel that my lack of on-set experience will hold me back, so I have been trying for a while to get experience. I would like to know if anybody here knows of any opportunities in which I would be able to get some experience and/or knowledge of what it's like on set. I am not necessarily asking for a job or internship opportunity, but more like shadowing, as I would love to see first-hand what it's like for a Steadicam Operator more than anything. If anybody knows of such opportunities, or other advice they would like to share with me, it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you. Best, Joseph Robinson
  2. Mitch: I have currently saved up enough money to be able to attend a gold workshop, but I have not seen any announced yet (I check thesteadicamworkshops.com pretty much every day). Daniel: I have also spent a large amount of my time practicing steadicam, but something I found worked a lot better for me was practicing on actual shots rather than repeating line-dances. All of the shots (aside from the outdoors one, those were improvised) I had designed myself without any supervision in ways that I would learn from them. For example, if I wanted to practice Don Juan, I would include it in the shot design, etc. I would then do all shots at least 10 takes each. I had been shared similar feedback to what you are saying about skills outside of steadicam, and I understand and agree. That said, my biggest concern right now is that I do not own a rig, and next semester I will not have access to borrow my universities' for anything outside of practices in a small room. I understand completely what you are saying when you waited before you felt comfortable about taking peoples' money, as I started to get that feeling the other day; it's not so much as I am eager to make money, but rather scared of how the lack of work will affect me (because as mentioned, I find actual shots more helpful than line-dances, etc.). Shawn: I remember one time I had asked my professor probably towards the end of the semester what the average focal length was for steadicam, and I believe he told me 35mm. I was shocked; at this point I had only operated within probably 4-18mm (our camera lenses have no distinction on the ring, they only state 4mm and I think 71mm). I remember doing the box line-dance the next day with a much higher focal length. I remember attempting to include a higher focal length in some of my other shots, but because of the movements or shot design I was looking for, I could not include anything too high. Sorry for the lengthy responses, but I think each of your pieces of feedback/advice includes something I can gain from, and I now have a better idea of different ways I can improve my operating. I will definitely wait to improve some more before I begin to work freelance, and hopefully will be able to improve my skills over time. Thank you.
  3. Hello Everyone, This semester I managed to get enough footage I am happy with in order to make my first Steadicam Operating Reel. All of the footage was shot with a Steadicam Scout, without a follow focus, and for course-related purposes (including recording a live-event for a separate course). I am quite pleased as to how my operating has developed over the semester (been operating since March 14, minus the summer break, so about 6 months total in experience). https://vimeo.com/82858951 I have yet to work on anything outside of course work, but I was wondering if you guys would consider me ready to work as an operator (even small starting points like short films, etc.) based on my reel. A lot of the shots I did cut in the reel because I felt they would make my reel too long, so I was also considering posting those by themselves on my Vimeo account as well. Any advice/feedback will be greatly appreciated.
  4. Although I am still new to the forums, I would consider myself impressed by the Steadicam community. A lot of what I read on this forum helps reinforce me on my decision to pursue becoming a Professional Steadicam Operator, and I thank all of you for that. Regardless, I hope all of you are enjoying your Holidays as well!
  5. Dave - Thank you very much for your words of encouragement. The rig is a Steadicam Scout, shot with a canon xf300. My university has a total of 5 Steadicam scouts, but we do not have any wireless follow focuses, forgot to mention that as well in case anybody was wondering about the focus.
  6. I'm still very new, but I would consider this to be my best shot: http://youtu.be/Ozb7fyaUpmo I first learned to balance a Steadicam on March 14th of this year, constantly practiced until the end of the semester (May), and have now been taking a course my school offers on it since September. This shot is something I came up with on my own, and was taken in late October.
  7. Hello, I was wondering if there are any specific practices to do when operating (or even when not operating) to work on improving feet/leg movement/placement. My posture seems to be fine, but sometimes I will find myself getting my legs getting into weird positions or I will walk irregularly. My Professor also noticed this, he described my movements as getting myself stuck in figurative corners, limiting my range of movement. Thank You.
  8. Hello Everyone, I am an aspiring Steadicam Operator currently taking a semester-long Steadicam course at my university (located in Westchester County, New York). Even though I am taking the course this semester, I first started learning March 14 of this year from my Professor, who has been a Steadicam operator for about five years now. I have only had access to what my university has, which are five Steadicam with applicable cameras, but no accessories that an operator would normally have on their camera set-up (such as wireless follow-focuses, weight-plates, etc.) and have never been on a real set to watch a Steadicam operator in action. My biggest concern, is although I have been learning and practicing so much, I have yet to see what it's like to be an operator on set. As of now I have done small class-assignments and actually just worked at a live event for my university on October 23rd, but I do not think this will be enough to transition me into a career. I have and will continue to learn a lot from my professor, but I feel like I could be learning a lot more from being on a set. I was wondering if any operator out there would be interested/willing to allow me to shadow them on-set or during a job. If it makes any difference, I unfortunately do not own a car, but I am close to the Harlem line that goes into NYC, subways won't be much of a problem either. Thank You.
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