David George Ellis

Hey Marc, You can go to any office supply chain, i.e. Staples or Office Max to find about them. I have a PT-1750. Light, portable and I still have labels on my cases that have lasted well over a year without gnarling. THey also have a model 1950 that offers up to 5 lines of printing for addresses and such. www.brother.com David

Hey Dave, I you're looking for machined weights in L.A., try Modern Studio Equipment. I had them make a weight to compensate and match the look of pre-existing gear. Looks really tight. They are located at: 7428 Bellaire Avenue North Hollywood, CA 91605 P 818-764-8574 Let them know you're looking to have compensation weights made and I believe they'll bring you to Cino (see-no). Good luck ONE, David

Hey Matt, Everyone covered most of this, so just an expansion of what they wrote. Yes, talk to the DP regarding all the shots he or she has planned for you. This will open up any forum for communication to make your transition to film easier. Chances are she or he'll have an AC that should be or will be familiar working w/ Steadicam. Definitely get 100% video. If they bicker, let them know that YOU need it to see. As far as the mags are concerned, be sure to request Steadi mags. They utilize a throat that allows the mag to be positioned vertically so you don't have to trim in b/t takes. That helps a lot unless they are using short rolls of film. Still helps, though. If they bicker, remember YOU need them. Another overlooked point is to ask for Lo-Mode Brackets, where applicable. Depending on what they do in post, flipping the image may get sticky when they make the final cut back to film. If they bicker, you know what to say. Actually, tell them THEY need it. The Editor will thank you. Maybe not, but he won't curse you, either. If you can, try to get either the Arri 235 or Moviecam SL. Both are lightweight 35mm and won't hurt so much on you first time. Once you get the rig, try to be there for the camera prep. This gives you bonus "field service" time so you're not looking too silly on set trying to configure where to place camera on top stage and fiding a home for focus motors, balancing, etc. Plus it gives you a check system to make sure Production got what you needed. As far as insurance, find out what the cost of the rig you're using will be if everything were to be destroyed. Depending on the setup, it could range upwards of $60-120K, USD. When Production signs off on your gear, make sure they list: You are the additional insured You are the Loss Payee, and You will be compensated at a REPLACEMENT COST, not DEPRECIATED VALUE for any loss or damage One last thing. Say no to a BL4 if possible. I've never flown one, but I've never been caned in Singapore, either. I just heard they both suck to endure. Stay calm, and you'll be alright. And remember, this is film. So much a sexier look and feel compared to video. If you're nervous to work with it, that's a good thing to a fault. Don't let that get to your head. It's a chance to become more versatile. If you know you're not ready, say you're already booked for something else. For me, I always try to get a show to shoot film over video, not the other way around. It almost makes me chubby when I know I'll be working with film. Good luck and happy shooting. David

The guy who screams is Jim Cramer. His show is called "Mad Money". I've actually been wondering about how that show was shot. Very fluid and constantly on the move. I came across "Mad Money" about a month ago and was intrigued. I figured Steadicam is mostly used in the studio, but the camera's stamina seemed Olympian. Cramer's coverage between breaks is more often than not a oner and then cut to commercial. I normally don't watch CNBC because it tells the story of trading smart money 8 weeks too late for us outside the insider circle, but Cramer's show is the only one that even covers speculative and value play stocks. Being a contrarian, I like his show b/c he helps me understand the fundamentals so I can make sense of the technical analysis. And it's shot very dynamically. The only news show that isn't just f'ing talking heads Then again, Cramer's Charitable Trust owns a good percentage of the stocks mentioned on his show. Not necessarily a bad thing, but I can see his leveraging potential. I conceeded to the fact that it was shot using either a Jib, Steadicam or combination of the two. Thank you Mitch and Peter, for clearing up that air of wonder. Now I can concentrate on what that maniac is yelling "Booyah!" about all the time. My hat's off to you, lovely and talented Keith Greenwood of New Jersey. Thank you for fulfilling two of my daily needs. Coverage of the market, and shooting it in a manner to match Jim Cramer's off-the-wall energy.

Hey Ralph, I had the same problem trying to find those bubbles. I ended up "borrowing" my uncle's three bubble level you would use for putting up shelves or sex swings and such. Pop out the bubbles and there you go. Seems to do the trick. And you can find them at Home Depot easily. They're right next to the sex swing ceiling hooks. May have moved since then, so don't quote me. Good luck David

I would ask none other than vest guru, Peter Abraham. Look him up and he should be able to help you with anything vest-related. Good luck David

Hey Job, There are two I can refer you to: Camera Essentials http://www.cameraessentials.com Jerry Hill http://www.steadimoves.com I ripped these from Erwin's site: http://www.landaucamera.com Thanks Erwin I'm sad to know Tim had to shut down RockSteadi. He sold some really great stuff. I'm even more sad to know Production has "misplaced" my ditty bag full of my rain gear. So I may be in the market as well. Good luck. David

Hey Guys, Thanks for the response. We ended up using the support rods for the matte box and I went off my dovetail rods for the motor. But then again, we were so loaded up with filters cuz we were shooting tungsten film at an 8 to 22 stop, that it may have simulated the encumberance of a clip on. It looks like a combination of all your statements. Josh, You are correct in your assumption that we didn't go to the closest focus. And even if we did, I believe we had enough depth of field to go a little long to keep that sharp, going forward. Mitch, Yeah, I tried the foucus ring manually and it seemed to go through fine. That's what was confusing me. Everything felt solid with no play or flex, it's just at that 9" to 10" travel that made things go bump. Ben, I had no idea there was a screw to keep the lense in check like that. I doubt the AC knew either. Kids!! Sometimes they surprise you. Sometimes not. Looks like I gotta read my AC handbook in more haste. Thank y'all again fellas. I feel better now b/c on set it became really uncool, but we just did the damn thing and hoped the hyper covered all distances necessary. At least I now have a contingency for the next time. ONE, David

I was on a job with an Aaton XTR PROD and Zeiss lenses. Everytime at a specific point on the 16mm (9" to 10"), the gear would grind off the focus ring and create that "Crap, I hate that sound," sound. Thinking the problem was caused by the torque of the motor, I tried to remedy the situation by running the motor off of two dovetail support rods bridged by a dogbone, as the matte-box rods coming off of the camera body will spin loose from continual engagement. Same result as the motor buzzed right off at 9". Consequently, we took measurements, set a hyper-focal and shot. Things like that really question your resolve, but you can never tell the quality of an olive until it's pressed, and we all made the day. Wow, what an Oprah moment. I'm pretty sure this has happened once in everyone's career. Maybe not. Was there something I may have missed in making a vain attempt to calibrate? I was told by the AC that the lenses breathe and were tight, but could that be the only prognosis as to why the motor would jump off at the same point in the travel of the lens? Thanks for any advice, David

Jason, If it doesn't cost you ANYTHING... Actors do it. But if you are spending money on that, then you are a Producer. I once asked this question and got the same answer. Unless you plan to do something more ambitious with the show, i.e. festivals, etc., keep working and stay on top of those who owe you footage. Let them know the importance of you getting it. It's your livelyhood, so hustle and get that 'ish. Take the money you'd spend making the short and buy DV tapes and hand them to the people you're waiting on. They'll know you're serious. Going forward, use the "bosom approach". Inform Production that you will want a clone of your footage at the supervised transfer and you'd be willing to pay for it, if necessary. Usually, they will make one for you, free of charge, but will appreciate the gesture. I can already hear the sounds of suckling Line Producers knowing they can get the milk without having to buy the mammary. IMO, if you don't have logos or stars in your arsenal, Producers, DPs and Directors will want to see "real" shots. What else can you do? At least it gives them an idea of what you are capable of since it was what the previous Directors and DPs asked you to do. Your Producer/Director friend should be asking you to help him. Don't worry, it'll come back someday. Remember, you are doing the favor, not the other way around. If you don't have an agent, don't worry about stars or logos. Worry about that footage and making good shots. If you produce this short, it better be very f'ing varied. If you have the same characters floating in your reel, it will seem like the only thing you've done, or you just don't get work. I was advised of this b/c I used the master and punch-ins of the same shot, and once it was pointed out to me, I realized it looked like I was trying to get over on whoever was watching it. This was coming from two DPs I respect very highly. B/4 I put my reel online, I was in your position for nearly a year because I was waiting for shite. And some of it was gah-bage. The stuff I did have, I plopped onto a Mini DV tape and handed it to prospective clients. I was starving, brah. DWIT (Do Whatever It Takes). Take what you got and make a two to three minute compilation. As stuff comes in, you can then edit and tweak your reel to your liking. But once you get it together, keep on top of those who still owe you. Don't slack though, cuz they will, too. Good luck and and send us a link to it when you're done. David P.S. If you do decide to produce a short, put Asians in it. They're so exotic. And besides, people like to taste pistachio rather than the same old vanilla.

Dummy-check the AC to make sure the ground glass is spinning before each take. Sometimes he or she will turn it off in order to preserve battery life. But then he or she won't remember to turn it back on with all that goes down on set. It'll make you look good by not wasting the take and it'll help the AC save face. Good luck!! David

Afton, You should list, in a word, "Everything." Everything that you bring to set, from cases to screws to all in between, list. Cuz just like you mentioned, if someone walks off with a case of something, you don't want to go out-of-pocket for anything you already came out-of-pocket for. I left out only expendables like velcro, sprays and tape. The best thing you can do while listing everything, with and without serial #s, is to list it by the case you are insuring and all the gear in that case. That way you don't have to scramble your brain trying to remember what was lost individually. I'll send you an example of what I have done. David

We could go into color perception, response curves, the 22 degree halo, other atmospheric optics and chromaticity, etc. ad nauseum. Even the green flash at sunset, Fresnel diffraction, or anything dealing with optics, but I feel that would be more of a Cinematography Forum item. It would be like calculating C.G. based upon the weight of camera, batteries, monitor and their accessories, as well as desired gimbal placement on that website. But I'm just some guy who likes light and optics who hopes dear Robert can find a solution to his monitor dilemma. Maybe I'll invade the CForum to wax poetic for a bit. ONE

I haven't used the T-9, Bombadier nor the CorrisionX sprays, but if you use anything like ACF-50, it becomes an addictive necessity in your kit. A show I worked on had those lightning gag shutters, but they were making too much noise for sound from all the gack and dead moths. A few sprays and five minutes later, I became a hero to G/E and Sound from this stuff. I mean these guys would eat hot rocks for me after that day. It's the $18 "Hero in a can". The 1st AC brought his buddy's Arri Geared Head and it was acting a little bukkake. I introduced this stuff to him and he had a blast. Almost had to slap it away form him. Great bonding moment. From there, free pass to practice and then shoot with it. That crickety Medeco lock that I used to have to slam shut? No more thanks to ACF-50. I've even used it on the throttle assembly in my Mustang and I have no stickiness when I feather the clutch, let along when I punch it. I wonder if it makes pancakes taste better...

Eric, You're right and thank you. The "amplified" blue cones are located outside of the fovea, closest to the rods, and they help gather light for our night vision, sensitive motion detection, and peripheral viewing. While visual acuity is better with the cones in the fovea, the rods are better motion sensors. Since the rods predominate in the peripheral vision, and are more light sensitive, you see dimmer objects in your peripheral vision. If you notice a dim star in your peripheral vision, it may disappear when you look at it directly since you are moving the image onto the cone-packed fovea area, which is not as light sensitive. But, your day-adapted cones adapt much more quickly to changing light levels than your night-adapted rods, despite their lack of light sensitivity. As you read this, your eyes move continually to keep the light from the object of interest (like, these words), falling on the fovea centralis where the bulk of the cones reside. And, so you can read the next line as well. BTW: 555 nm is actually yellow-green (too busy watching my Yanks to correct at the moment). This is the cross-efficacy of both the photopic peak and scotopic curve (not the other way as I mentioned b/4, again b/c of my Yanks), so Thomas, you were correct to mention that. But green peaks more in scotopic, or night vision. And since yellow is not a primary color of light, it would take a mixture of red and green to achieve. That's just not monochomatic enough for my tastes. No, I prefer simple green. Easier on the wallets of the manufacturer, which in turn is easier on our wallets. Sorry if I bored you guys. David P.S. Did a search. PPRuNe stands for Professional Pilots Rumor Network www.pprune.org P.P.S. How's that monitor coming, Robert? ONE

Robert, Best answer for you from me would be to go to a dealer or rental house that offers these products and do a side-by-side comparison of the two. If they allow you to see it with a high intensity beam on them and in low light, cool. You may be willing to live with what one thing does and the other doesn't. Think about the majority of your shooting environments and decide which ammenities you would rather be with than without. Good luck and let us know what you went with and why. David P.S. For the other "topic" in this thread: The retina contains two types of photoreceptors, rods and cones concentrating in an area called the macula. In the center of that region is the "fovea centralis", a 0.3 mm diameter rod-free area with very thin, densely packed cones. Cones can be divided into "red" (64%), "green" (32%), and "blue" (2%) based on measured response curves. The green and red cones are concentrated in the fovea centralis. The "blue" cones have the highest sensitivity and are mostly found outside the fovea. The "blue" cones are unique among the cones in that our final visual perception is comparable to that of red and green, suggesting that there is a selective "blue amplifier" in the visual processing in the brain. However, since the "blue" cones are outside of the fovea, the refractive index for blue light is different enough from red and green that when they are in focus, the blue is slightly out of focus (chromatic aberration). More than one thousand times as sensitive as cones, the rods can reportedly be triggered by individual photons under optimal conditions. Optimal "dark-adapted" vision is obtained only after a considerable period of darkness, because the rod adaption process is much slower than that of the cones. The light response of the rods peaks sharply in the blue; they respond very little to red light. This leads to a strange phenomena: Ships have red instrument lights b/c your rods do not respond to red light. Therefore, the pilot can gain full dark-adapted vision with the rods with which to watch for obstacles outside. It would be undesirable to examine anything with white light even for a moment, because the attainment of optimum night-vision may take up to a half-hour. Red lights do not spoil it. In bright light, the color-sensitive cones are predominant and we see a brilliant red rose with subdued green leaves. Which explains why your Little Red Corvette gets the laser first. But at twilight, the cones begin to shut down, and most of our vision comes from the rods. The rods pick up the green from the leaves much more strongly than the red from the petals, so the green leaves become brighter than the red petals. This response of the eye as a function of frequency is called the Luminous Efficacy of the eye. The value for the scotopic (dark-adapted vision) peak meets the efficacy of the photopic (light-adapted vision) value at 555 nm, or, green in the visible spectrum. Which to my knowledge, is why green is the favored color used in our CRTs. Red, too dark. Blue, too blurry. Either that, or it's just cheaper to make green than blue or red. Can't explain what Pprume is, though. I'll leave that for the experts...

Did you say, "Road trip?" Hell Yeah!!! I think I can make it. It all depends on a job that's been pushed back a few times. It'll be good to get out of the city for a bit and see some fresh faces. And some not so fresh faces. I'll contact you off forum. Drinks and wings, Rythym and Booze, go Yanks perhaps? Just checked the SOA website, Alec and it's gonna be next week. So unless you've got something, no excuses this time for either of us. David P.S. Happy belated Anniversary. Sorry I missed you at Cineshot. Been running around with Spaniards past two weeks... So much fun. Too many Spanish omlettes...

Didn't think to say it, but it is a luxury your body can afford... I, too subscribe to the Klassen vest. Even still, after an uber-strenuous day, I feel beat. Like out of the norm type of uber-strenuous of day. Could be due to the fact that I've got a husky build. But nowhere nearly as beat as I would feel from using my old rear-mounted. I would go for yoga to be as flexible and in tune with my body as much as possible. I also read in last year's archive and do consider taking a core martial art like Tai-Chi, Pakuban (sp?) or once mentioned but little known, Tsing-Yi. Concentrate on the slow motions in order to execute feathered movements. Do whatever it takes to soothe your body and prepare it to be worshipped by a masseuse... Or masseur if that's your pleasure. Shake that money-maker, son.

Matt, How does the rig feel when you do "regular" shots? If you don't experience much discomfort after a normal day of operating, it could be normal depending on the extent of your improvisation... I had a show where they asked me to "just go with it" and Dutch my shots at anytime. I gave them all I had. Letting go and misusing the force can become a strain. Even more painful if you put the rig out there and abandon good habits. While the results may prove to be very dynamic, constantly running and stopping will "F" you up. And to add to it, if you're short on time and do a couple or more full passes w/ little rest, you're done, DUN!!! You may have also used muscles you've rarely pushed in the past for Steadicam and/or the pain could be from favoring a particular side while you were operating. Someone smarter than me will be able to go deeper into the physics here. I know I was hurting at the end of that day and a few after. That's why we are considered heroes of our industry. We can accomplish tasks in operating deemed impossible. Even if it kills us like so many heroes before us. Usually, I like to go to the massage parlour for a deep tissue session and have Asian women walk on my back after a day like that. Even if it is a placebo resolution. I just like it when Asian women touch me. Or any woman for that matter... Good luck, stretch and heal. David

I know that AC Doug Hart keeps bandanas that were soaked in Sea Breeze, an astringent, wrapped around his neck while on set. Not sure if it's the same thing you saw, but it does have a very cooling effect and neither the stuff was chilled, nor the bandanas. I thought of bringing it to set, but I still haven't figured how much to charge on the rental, cuz once the lambs see you with it, they've gotta have it. And they'll pay almost anything to get it.

Alec, As you know, I'm not too proud to admit when I'm wrong. So there goes my Wednesday dissertation. Your final summation is the only right answer. Maybe I should take my own advice by researching things a bit more. But I still love My Master Arm. At least I know I'm right about that. Back to the bottom, David

Hey Afton, First, congratulations on taking the workshop. Well worth it. I would say IMHO, that the #1 advantage XCS PRO MKV and others have over Tiffen is that to some extent of the law, are partially if not fully modular to be compatible instead of compete with one another. I would be analogous and say it's similar to buying a component vs. a rack stereo system. You may like Sony's tuner, but hate their CD player. So you buy an Onkyo. This isn't to say Tiffen makes a bad anything, but if you prefer a manufacturer's something over a Tiffen something, it can be a task to Frankenstein them. Not impossible, but possibly a pyrrhic victory. Sure you can take that Sony rack system apart and cram an Onkyo into it, but what's the cost to modify vs. getting comparable units that you can mix and match? I personally can't say who makes a better overall product. But for my level, I preferred to buy used parts I could eventually swap, upgrade or sell whole when I'm rich enough to buy an entirely new system. Which at that point I will probably mix and match as well. Right now my rig consists of components made from PRO XCS and Tiffen. I know I just said it could be difficult to use Tiffen with others, but luckily the mod that had to be made was fairly easily for it was mechanical rather than internally electrical. With that being said, Tiffen makes great stuff right out the box. You'll see at the workshop. Everything works with one another and I haven't really heard many gripes on this forum about Tiffen prods. But then again, you'll see the same story about the other companies here. If you feel like researching and taking the time to build a "personal" rig out of parts you find that fit or can be made to fit, you may end up with just as good of a rig, and maybe for less. I know I've left out other things but I don't want to bogart this thread. This is my #1 advantage. Good luck and stand straight. You'll remember this and understand it later. ONE, David P.S. PRO's arm advantage is that you can switch canisters to fly heavy or light camera setups in mere moments vs. Tiffen's MS where you would have to "de-tune" the spring by loosening all the screws on the arm covers, secure the pulley cords so they don't twist, use an 8" long 3/16" Allen Key to turn the spring back a certain length, repeat on the other bone, test, then try again if it doesn't work to your exact liking till you get it. You do that to go light, then go back to the original setting to fly heavy. I spent the time at home fuc... er, testing around to find my lightest "de-tuned" arm/sled combination, and I will only have to figure that once since I know how far down the rabbit hole I went to get to get it. Now the Master's advantage over PRO is the fact that when you are on set and need to make those fine adjustments to get the sled's seating height perfect, you can do it on the fly with the no tools adjustment knobs located at the end of each arm segment, whereas with the PRO you have to get into the rig, see if it sits where you want it to. If it doesn't, either: (1) Dock the rig get the Allen Key and make the adjustments or, (2) Get the Allen Key wherever it is, have someone hold the rig up for you and make the adjustments or vise versa if you feel really boss (honestly, I'm not sure if you can even do this, but it couldn't hurt, right?) Step back into the rig and test it out. Repeat till it is to your liking. I think aside from that, I can't really say who can hold more weight. I've heard PRO arms can, but I flew a 535B with nuts to spare using my Tiffen arm & PRO sled. I've had the opportunity to use the MS, PRO and Rig Engineering as well and overall, I liked the feel of the Master most. I think it comes down to the individual's feeling when using each. Once again, more research, more informed. **Caveat: The thing about Tiffen is the legacy of their arm. I happen to have a bionic arm whereas some were stigmatized with poor performance.** OK, took too much space and I'm sorry guys. I'm lonely. Got tired looking at porn. Need a date. Will go and read more on this King Pyrrhus fella. More than likely will look at more porn. ;) ONE Once Again, David

I'm considering a life in politics after Steadicam, so I'm practicing my diplomacy since this site needs more of the "Bosom approach" than the "Stick my finger in my ass and put it up your nose approach". But thank you, Job David

Hey Leigh, I hung in there for about 4 minutes. You have definitely improved from last time I viewed. If you feel comfortable, try to get together with a group of other storymakers where you can feel the challenge of making someone else's vision come true. Or if you can make a story, write one and shoot it. Abstract vs technical, two worlds collide in one brain, I love it. Anyway, your basic (and propietary) skill of walking and keeping horizon has gotten better and I wish you the best. You've taken a lot of heat from us earlier and had the balls to keep going. For that, I salute you. Take care and good luck. ONE, David

BEJOTA!!! Happy Birthday fool! What a place to be spending it in the BAH. Hope you're having an awesome time. If all could work out, I might check y'all in August. Be easy My Nugga. I'll have ODB's latest, "A Son Unique" for you if you can't find it in Califas (dropping this summer). ONE!!!!! Blackness