James Livingston

Rich... Having lived through the evolution of post design (Aluminum to Titanium to Carbon Fiber) I have learned there is a lot of different approaches to tackling this issue. The posts are manufactured by winding a carbon fiber thread over a mandrel (a metal core that determines the inside diameter of the tube). The flexability of the post is determined by the angle that the fiber is wound. If the angle is too shallow (more wraps per length) the post will flex too much from the camera to the base. If the angle is to sharp (less wraps per length) the post will have too much twist in the pan axis. For instance...if you were to make a tube with fiber sheets and the grain was running the length of the tube, the post would not flex (Camera to base) very much, but the twisting of the post during a whip pan would be intense. This would cause a visible "ringing" in the image where the camera would bounce left to right at the end of the pan until it settled. So...there is a compromise that needs to happen to manufacture a post with the least amount of flex and twist. This can also be dealt with by varying the direction of the fiber windings and the angle in which they are wound. Remember a post is many winds thick. The finish on the posts is due to a grinding process. In order to get the posts to maintain uniformity so the gimbal will move the entire length, the outer layers of fiber are ground down to a very tight tolerance. You can see the effect of this grinding with some of the posts that have a camouflage texture. This grinding is considered in the post design and does not compromise the strength of the post...much. Regarding the banging and standing on a post to show durability...this is mostly for show. Considering the post is made up of continuous lengths of thread, breaking one of these threads is nearly impossible. If you do see a carbon fiber product with chips in it, this is because the manufacturer has used a material that is made up if chips of carbon fiber. But this type of manufacture is normally done with molds and not with tubing. I hope this helps, James

Brad...This is a difficult spec to corelate to any other lighting specs. Luckily most monitor manufacturers are writing their specs in NITS or Cd/m2. In my experience, for a monitor to be visible in daylight, the Brightness will need to be at least 800NITS. There are brighter monitors available depending on the price you are willing to pay (ie...HD-Ulrabrite @ 1400NITS). Another Spec to watch for is the contrast ratio. A higher contrast ratio will provide an overall better image and less diffusion will occur. Ed Digiulio best described it referring to his LCD watch. Because the Contast ratio of the black over white crystal was so high that there was little need for backlighting. Most LCDs run in the 200:1 Contrast range. The higher the contrast ratio means the less brightness is required to be visible in daylight. Also, check into what AR (Anti-reflective) coatings the manufacturer is using. All the brightness and contrast in the world will do you no good if there are reflections on the monitor's front glass. I hope this helps. James

Hello Thomas, There are a few companies that are using these LEDs in their products. Most however are using an LED out of Japan that is less expensive. There are many different levels of lights available from Luxeon. Small - 1 lumen out, Mid-level - 20-40 Lumens out and High - 120 Lumens out. Most companies are using the 1 Lumen LED and putting 140 of them in a light. For the light I produce (ML-155), I am using their brightest LED (approx. 120 Lumens). The cost is approximately the same once enough LEDs are stacked up, but the packaging is much smaller. A few ops have purchased the lights I produce and are now using them. The cool thing about LED lighting on Steadicam is the very-low current draw. A well designed light can pull less than 700ma. That is less than a monitor. James

Hello Matt, The connectors are the same on the SLD-100 motors as Heden, so they will connect and move with the Seitz system. However, the Seitz amplifier does not have sufficient power to run these motors. When these motors are driven by the Seitz amplifier, the output driver of the amplifier burns out. (Lots of pretty blue-tinted smoke) Many Seitz users upgraded to the CP amplifier that was configured to use with the Seitz controller. If your buyer has a CP amp, then there is no problem. I hope this helps, James

Ruben, Thank you for the post and letting us know this very unfortunate news. I knew Floris for many years. For those who never met Floris, he was a great artisan of Steadicam. One of the ?old Guard? that was responsible for breaking new ground and elevating the Steadicam into the well-accepted craft the industry enjoys today. I know his presence and influence will be missed. James

Hello Joe, The trick to getting a Master/Ultra stage apart is removing the roll pins that hold the knobs to the cross-shafts. Regarding the play in the stage: Did your rig get set down on its side? If the rig did get hit, or sometimes just laid on its side, the knobs will bend the stage housing. This housing is also the support for the bearings that carry the shafts, so the play is nearly impossible to remove without replacing the housing. If the play is coming from the bearings inside, it is best to take it to Robin Thwaites or Jonathan Hill at Optex. He can have the stage apart, realigned and reassembled in less than an hour. The internal bearings are held in place by two rails. If these rails are not aligned PERFECTLY the bearings will push out and you will have even more problems. If these rails are tightened too much: the bearings will burnell the races. This will cause dips in the races and the stage will not work smoothly. This turns into an expensive repair. There are some great drawings of the stage. You will need to contact Rob Orf at Tiffen (Rorf@Tiffen.com) to get a set. Robin might also have them, they were made for the service centers around the world. Good luck, James Livingston

Hello Michael, Although it sounds like they sold your name, they may not have. Typically what happens is a company looking for potential clients, in this case Digital Video magazine, will send their mailing to CineGear (or SONY, JVC, American Cinematographer, etc...). CineGear, for a fee, will do the mailing for them. This allows CineGear to retain the control over their highly focused mailing list and make $$ from each company looking for you as a target market. If Digital Video magazine wants to repeat this effort, they will have to pay CineGear again. If CineGear sold your information they loose their commodity and their ability to continue generating this revenue. Although selling contact information seems to be ocurring on the internet, rarely will any company release their mailing lists. Mailing lists are expensive to build and maintain. Most attendence forms have a paragraph on the form expliaing that the information becomes the property of the company. Sometimes you can sheck a box showing that you do not give permission to give out this data. So, CineGear may be selling off your contact information, but doing it in a controlled fashion to companies in the industry. I hope this helps. James

When I came to CP in the late 80's I was just happy to get a tech job in the entertainment business. It was only later I discovered who I actually worked with... Ed was my greatest mentor. He showed me there is a kinder way to do business and that taking care of people was what it was all about. I am often complimented on how I have taken care of this community. You have Ed to thank for instilling this passion in me. I will greatly miss our conversations and his guidance. Ed...Thank you, James Livingston Cinema Products Corporation 1988 - 2000

Rich, Here is what you are looking for... :: FREE GUEST PASS :: 1. Go to www.nabshow.com 2. Click Registration 3. Click "Exhibits Only Form" on right sidebar 4. Go through the registration process using VIP Pass info 5. Enter Code: JT24 at the end. I just completed this process and it does work. Get moving quick it is only good until April 14th. See ya'all in Vegas... James PS: This code was made available by Band Pro via their "Tradeshows" webpage.

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Hello Michael, There is not much difference between the SK & SK2. The only change between the SK & The SK2 is the location of the articulated section of the arm. The SK2 has this section closest to the body. Below is a photo of the SK2. SK2 Everything else is exactly the same. If you purchased an early model SK you need to check one item on the arm. On the articulated section there should be a steel plate at the end of the can, opposite the pulley. This plate is held in place by multiple screws. If this plate and screws are not on your arm, you need to have it installed. If this plate is not installed and one of the cables breaks, the spring will shoot out of the arm and fly across the set. Not a good thing for anyone or anything standing in its path or your reputation for that matter. I hope this helps. James

Hello Nick, The bearing for the EFP/IIIA & SK is a "Thinnex" bearing. Part # SSRAI3026ZKERA5P36L02P They cost around US$75.00 each and you will need two. James

Hello Flemming, The problem is just as explained by Mattias. The center of the post/pan bearing is not lined up with the center line axes of the gimbal yoke (Tilt & Yaw). This issue will become more pronounced with slower drop times as increased bottom weight masks the problem. Aligning for this issue is a great concern in production. Often a system would not ship if the rig did not pass this "180 degree" pan test at a four second drop time. It is amazing the issues that are learned over the years. In the early 80's operators were using rigs that did not dynamically balance and had no clue of these nuances that were affecting the equipment. Now think of some of your most favorite "classic" shots and doing them with a model I or II that didn't pan flat. Now that's talent. You kids are spoiled.!.!.! :D James

Erwin, I will put this in more business terms. What you have witnessed over the past five years is a maturation of the camera stabilization industry. Directors and producers have fully accepted the Steadicam process in their creative work, which created a market for more operators. However, the supply quickly outpaced the demand. There are more operators in the market, which created greater competition. This competition is also the cause of the rates dropping. You should feel lucky. Even at a lower level of commeroderie, this is still a stronger "brotherhood" than in any other industry. Where else would a competitor lend equipment so your business can thrive. Think about it. In what other market do you know of competitors that can go out and have a beer and sushi? You never see Douglas Draft (CEO - CocaCola) and John Cahill (CEO - Pepsi) sitting down and discussing increasing syrup costs over a tall cool one. For the LA market I am afraid it is not going to get better any time soon. Yesterday, I attended Jack Kyser's Economic Forecast, presented by the LAEDC. Basically, they said that motion picture production would continue to be a negative impact on the county's balance of industry. It is expected that more companies will continue to leave LA. The Feb. 2 issue of the LA Business Journal has an article about Raleigh Studios in Manhatten Beach pulling up shop and moving to Toronto. What does this mean? Less demand for an already over-abundant supply. I expect your competition to get even stronger in LA. So, Yes the good ole days were great. Thanks to the efforts of Dave Grove and the Guild you are working to retain this spirit. I think this is commendable. I don't think you will get it back to the way it was, there are just too many people in the Steadicam business now. Keep the guild going, it is your communal tie. You really need each other and are your best support group and why you remain unique in the business world. James

Irwin, You're almost there. The SK2 and the Provid lower post plugs are not quite the same. The alignment pins on the Provid are spread further apart. It is an easy task to get a Provid post on an SK sled: remove the pins. The electrical connections are the same. What I don't understand is why??? The picture has a Provid arm and post. What is the benefit of removing the provid lower sled to go to a cheaper monitor. Maybe it was a back-up. Anyway, I hope this helps. James