Sydney Seeber

You kidding? A grade A bad-ass uses human arms instead of seatbelts. You go to Wikipedia, type in bad-ass, that's probably at least the second entry or something.

In all seriousness, my gauge is the McDonald's menu. I have been EVERYwhere on the planet and am pretty sure so has McDonald's. Specifically I use their menu item #1 which for a very long time has been the Big Mac meal. What's fun is checking the menu in Kuwait and everything is 1.something, until you find out a Kuwaiti Dinar is worth nearly $4. This, after you withdrew 250 Dinar from the ATM for incidentals.

These really do look fantastic on paper - In other words that one flyer that constitutes their entire web site going on several months now - But what's the estimated cost?

that is the exact (optional) stock lens that comes with the camera. Edit: whoops, my bad. I own one, Just tried it... It does extend. sorry bro If you want all of that in a lens you're going to have to wait. Sony's making one that will be lanc controllable. It's probably going to cost in the range of $4,000 and be of the same quality that you find on Sony's other low end pro cameras like the EX3 with internal servos and whatnot. I have a couple of their shitty lenses like the one I mentioned but they're simply not up to quality standards of the prosumer realm, and Sony knows it, hence the new stuff on the horizon. The existing lenses were really designed for consumer cameras and Sony's been boxing those lenses with higher end stuff until their better products come online. Dedicated video lenses for full frame sensors at prosumer prices is something I follow VERY closely due to major issues with iris vs. still aperture and their use with video.

To be honest there's a whole crop of cameras in the $6-8000 range that work on the Pilot that aren't DSLRs. Sony, Canon, Panasonic, etc. all have various models within that price (And Pilot weight) range, all (Well most) of those cameras produce a fantastic 1080p image. Personally I'm not a fan of the Pilot - I think it's simply too lightweight overall - but I was able to help a production co. shoot their entire show with some prosumer cameras, much of which was shot on a Pilot. That was after they initially bought the Merlin/vest/arm combo and I convinced them to use the Pilot sled instead. The Merlin is fantastic, but has a very specific use.

Difficult maybe, but you have no choice. With the help of my gigantic smartphone, I came up with $75/day rental for a Pilot. That's only part of the problem. An ENG/EFP camera operator who brings nothing to the job (Including skill) will get a Los Angeles rate more than twice what Alan here posted. I do EFP work here and there, I know what they really need from me. Someone who owns a Steadicam rig should be more skilled in basic operating than the average camera operator. Rental on a full sized rig (Not even including wireless ANYthing) puts him in the hole financially by several hundred after his day rate, so I am of the opinion that discussion of this is valid. Don't sell yourself short there Alan. Rates like that put you into the Top Ramen category. If the "Producer" doesn't want to pay you anything they are either a terrible producer or a filthy leach. Stay the fuck away from both. They will not help you get better jobs.

sorry don't have a rig I'd want to rent, but I do have a question. I happened to click on your SOA link... That's 250 what now?

Another ProRes only recorder... goddamnit.

Seems to me there isn't enough inertia/weight in the discs. I guess I'd have to see it, if he's using it and likes it there must be something to it. Semi-off/on topic, but gyros are about to get mind-numbingly cheap. I was given a setup to play around with and the whole thing is super light weight. I can't post any imagery, but it's got me a little worried to be honest. It's not related to Steadicam, but I think it could be adapted. When I say gyro, I'm talking electronic that reacts to movement, not the spinning disc stabilization kind. It's not a new concept, but there's massive weight and price reductions in this. It's right around the corner. Steadicam's still got a role to play as it eliminates vertical motion and the whip-pan is a bonus as well, but...

finally got mine. There's that issue, plus the fact that it only works with a couple of cameras I've tried it on so far. So if you're looking to buy one, make sure the firmware supports it. The lower end the camera the more of an issue it will be I think. The cameras that have a specific dedicated HDSDI port have not been an issue as the signal sent through that port is more standardized. The HDMI port however...

the problem with that is since still lenses aren't designed to work like video lenses, it's a bit of a crap shoot as to whether or not that will work. There's problems like lens creep (Lens will not stay in focus) which is compounded by also zooming the lens during a shot. Also, still lenses are generally unreliable with holding focus throughout the entire range of a zoom, even when creep isn't a factor. Since the servo mechanisms are internal, there's not much you can do about it.

Sony and Panasonic have got several servo controlled lenses in the works for their large sensor (4/3, 35mm) mid range dedicated video cameras, but they're internal servo control, so that means LANC type control, which doesn't help you with Canon DSLRs. Those controls are pretty shitty anyway. The Panasonic cheap zoom lenses don't hold their focus any better throughout its range than a still lens does, which is really none whatsoever... Sony's new midrange ENG-like lenses are probably pretty decent, since the prices start at around 7 grand I'm told. But for your Canon, I'm willing to bet that the BUZ idea is best. Thing is, your choices for lenses are pretty slim for a Canon mount zoom cinema lens... As in one lens that I know of, made by Zeiss. It's like 30 grand. I heard Angenieux was making one as well, but if they are, I doubt that will be a bargain. The PL mount adapter for Canon cameras is like 3 grand if you don't want your camera body modified.

Are you using still lenses? A DSLR in video mode remotely shooting sports would be insanely difficult I would think, assuming you're using those type of lenses. Zoom I would think is the easiest solution... Most if not all existing motor controllers that work with external FIZ will work with zoom as well with any/most of the Zacuto etc. lens accessories. That's depending on the lens used, and of course the much more limited zoom range on a lens designed for such a large sensor. I would think the major issue is iris/aperture control, unless you're using cinema lenses.

I have one on preorder, I was told it would be 2-3 weeks before it ships to me. Of course they said something similar 2-3 weeks ago

I use gyros quite a bit, mostly not attached to a Steadicam. All I can say is that by adding a second Kenyon-type gyro at the correct angle you get added stability at the cost of panning speed as it becomes harder to manipulate. I am not a gyro expert, that's just my user-based experience.

I took too long to write my post. So... That.

A BNC connector can be several things. It can be a composite (Single cable analog) signal or it's serial (digital) as in SDI. The digital signal can be SD and/or HD. Is there a label on your connector? It can also be a component signal, but component refers to the fact that the signal (Analog) is split up into miltiple ports. Since this requires three separate BNC connectors lined up side by side, that's the only one ruled out based on what you've written. As I said, hopefully your monitor's input is labeled one of those.

None that I (Currently) own, I doubt any manufacturer makes such a monitor anymore, but I've run into quite a few older ones. I had a Marshall (Piece of shit) LCD monitor thjat only accepted SD SDI, that one crapped out on me around 2008 or so. A jib guy I know uses a color Sony CRT field monitor and the digital SD is the best image I could get from the HDSLR to his setup. On a side note, I am currently on my 3rd Blackmagic box in 4 years... If anyone knows of a semi-waterproof converter box that can handle high heat and massive, oppressive humidity, that would be rad

my mistake, I thought it did the same thing my little Blackmagic box does. The HDSLR standard definition(NTSC/PAL)output is terrible no matter what company (Canon, Nikon, etc) makes them so I use the box to convert to both to both HD and SD. It still isn't 100% and I suspect the manufacturer intentionally downgrades the signal. Even converting from HDMI to SD SDI will give me a much clear, brighter and sharper image than the standard NTSC signal from the in-camera converter.

heck yeah a lot of prosumer cameras have some form of SDI built in, but I haven't seen one for less than about 3 grand, hopefully the next generation of HDSLRs will come with uncompressed HDMI output. A lot of people use the Decimator with these HDSLR cameras.

the signal from the 7D needs to be converted first, either from analog or HDMI. You need a converter in the middle somewhere if you want SDI input.

I asked the manufacturer some questions, and he had this to say... "We are Preston compatible in cabling as well as motors." (MDR2 he said).

Then if I were you I'd wait and save. Anything less will probably piss you off. On a side note... Although it may seem perfect for your needs, I'd stay away from Viewfactor's HDSLR controller. It's sort of wireless, but it is essentially hacking your camera, at the very least eliminating any and all warranties. I don't care what anybody says, that can't end well... It's essentially using internal motors and gears in a way they were never meant to be used.

This response is exactly what I expected. Keeping with tradition is important.

The Alexa can record 12 bit ProRes 4444 to the SxS card. I will take that over a 4:2:2 10 bit file (I call everything a codec like some people call video "Filming", but for this purpose I won't anymore) from the Blackmagic. Again, I pose the question... What does a camera operator need with such a large file? I can understand it if you're looking for another piece of gear to rent to a production or you're playing a bigger role than just the operator, but I'm going to be honest... On my little film shorts and such, I don't want some guy I barely know taking high quality footage away from my set unless there's a very good reason to do so. As far as real paychecks are concerned I may not work for James Cameron Et al. so I don't know how they feel about that. I suppose that brings up another subject entirely and one I don't really have the expertise in to make any related assumptions. But my original point still is that I think this thing is a poor choice for a playback deck. SSDs are much more expensive and larger than Compactflash. The post requirements are significantly higher as well, and a camera operator has absolutely no need for uncompressed video when it's simply for a reel. I mean, uncompressed is great when you need a file to withstand multiple loss-less generational passes within a post production facility, but if you're just dropping in some clips into a Final Cut timeline, you will never see any real difference between any of these files, codec, "Uncompressed" or not. There's a reason the codecs are termed "Visually lossless".