Alec Jarnagin SOC

The tall profile of the camera does have one advantage - a higher center of gravity. With arms like the PRO and the G-series that take much less weight, we are often limited by our sleds. My sled was designed for much heavier cameras and while I have the ability to swap to lighter monitors and batteries, the center post length was intended for heavier set-ups. The tall profile might just send our gimbals back up to normalville without adding much/any weight.

"Progear is only a company with 2 people!!!!" Hope I'm not giving away trade secrets, but the last time I checked GPI (the real PRO) had only 3 (at times 4) people. XCS and Bartech have a whopping total of one each (granted, a lot of stuff is outsourced). Walter Klassen carries a few more on staff, but only a few of them work on Steadicam harnesses (mostly Kornel). Most of the equipment we use is made by very small companies. The ones that succeed not only make great products, but they back it up!

Afton, Contact Peter Abraham (email me off-list if you need his info). He owned an Elite for a long time and I seem to recall him dealing with this problem. Granted, he probably changed the post, but he has already gone down this road and he happens to have a great relationship with Tiffen (and he is a Flyer dealer too).

I have seen this system and the thing looks brand new!

Mark, Do a search here under "gyros." Much has been written. Here is a link to a post from Larry McConkey, where he talks about gyro placement. http://www.steadicamforum.com/forums/index...4763entry4763

Anthony, That would be the infamous Janice Arthur, who is one of the greats. A wonderful person, a patient teacher, and... well you get the idea. In case others are interested in her workshop, her web site is: http://www.janicearthur.com/pages/1/index.htm

I stopped by the workshop too (thanks everybody!) and tried the G-70. Very impressive; it is what everyone is saying. I think my favorite feature is the ability to adjust the iso-elasticity, which I see being very useful on vehicle mount and running shots (add a little resistance to the arm so it is not so floppy in these situations). Very well done, GB, JH, and Tiffen. Cheers,

Is the 4000 really going to happen? I'd heard that the 3000 was discontinued and that there was no plan for a 4000. Whatever. If the 4000 is still a box of snarled cables that leaks RF everywhere and can cook an egg, I'm out. Besides, I can't imagine a new version would come out without a huge price increase. All of these things bring me back to the Canatrans. No mess wiring. Firmware driven so upgradable as things change. Auto-off to save power, variable wattage, and best of all variable gain so you don't have to screw up the tap's iris on your monitor for video-village. I'm on the cusp of ordering one, so unless someone can provide me with concrete info on the 4000 that is meaningful..... On this note, Eric has a good point about customer service.

Dave, If you need Analog for the various reasons discussed here, I suggest you check out the Canatrans (http://www.lentequip.com/products/canatrans.html). Also, do a search here on it and you'll find a lot written (both good and bad).

John, When you have done this, let me know about your 3a stage as a friend of mine is looking for a side-to-side set-up for his aerial rig (obviously, your stage needs to have no play, but he does not need the bells and whistles the D-boxes provide). Thanks,

Thomas, Would a four frame delay be acceptable? Not sure; maybe. I still have doubts though, but I'd sure give it a shot if one showed up on set. It may be a live and learn situation. Anyway, Thomas, I'm very envious of your job. I so wanted to go over-there and work with Milton because he really is one of the "good ones." Alas, it was not in the budget, etc to go, but I think the world of Milton, so please tell him I said hello and I hope you guys are having a blast. I look forward to seeing the footage. Cheers,

"How do other operators feel about a 1/2 second delay? often things are possibly cued by the AD off the monitor, do you think people will be able to get their head round these things?" Thomas, For me, this is an absolute deal breaker. I didn't want to barge in and rain on this manufacture's parade, but I would much rather a stable analog picture because these days everyone on set has watchmen and are looking at the shot. The frame delay would kill the feedback from the sound mixer to his boom op (as far as being in the shot), etc. Most importantly though, a lot of directors want to watch from a watchman right up by the action. I realize that you could re-transmit the signal to an analog system and this might work in many situations, but I just don't see a director liking having his watchman delayed from the real action as he glances between them. Now what about cues for talent or iris pulls by the DP? I strongly feel that any frame delay is a deal-breaker, but I will certainly watch this technology.

Brad, Long time, no see. Hope all is well. No, sorry, it was a privately owned camera by a DP. Nice package; he had an after market handle with tapped 3/8-16 holes, etc. Very slick set-up. Thomas, I've used the Miranda you mentioned, but I find it very helpful to have an SDI converter onboard so you can rehearse with a single (lightweight) BNC cable. The great advantage of this new Miranda back is that it is smaller and lighter than the Sony SDI box, but/and includes a down-converter. It also generates frames-lines, etc for ALL monitors on set to see (both via the SDI outputs as well as the NTSC ones). Just did a web search. Here is the info form Miranda's site: http://www.miranda.com/product.php?i=226&l=1 Also, a video that explains their line of products: http://www.miranda.com/demos/dvc/index01.html Brad, Panavision NY did not have any little Morandas when I did that job - just the icon or whatever box you see wedged between my dovetail plate and the camera (in the soldier curve). What a pain.

Imran, Wasn't trying to imply anything in my post other than HD can suck. I was just curious as to how you could get an HD camera on such a light weight arm. I'm afraid, I've never heard/seen of a 750. I'm glad you are getting more work and able to upgrade the arm. I just had to post those pictures because I chuckle every-time I see them and think to myself, "this is progress?" Of interest, the last HD job I did with a Sony F900, they had a new (at least to me) Miranda back to the camera that acted as both an SDI converter and a down-converter. Size and weight was considerably better than the SDI converter of old (pictured above) and again, built in down-converter. Frame delay was on par or better than other Miranda models. Also on this show, they ran a separate DAT and just had one small wireless receiver on the camera carrying the mixed signal. This combined with primes made for a much better set-up. I went from this greatly improved set-up to an Arricam LT though and barely touched the adjustments on my arm (I think I actually backed off the bones a turn or two - and I was flying my heavy/antiquated Sony mini-DV deck). The LT set-up was still a tad lighter (with Zeiss S. Speeds - obviously this make a big difference).

Lucky you.....

Imran, I'll second Chip's advice and raise it by on web link (in case you don't have Rig Engineering's info): http://www.steadyrig.com/ A red spring arm is not worth that much in and of itself, so the upgrade really puts value back into it as well. Oh, I noticed you mentioned HD as well. Not sure what HD set-ups you've been flying, but most of the ones I've had on my rig are at least as heavy as 35mm work!

Hi Erwin and Emery, how are you guys? Last week, I got to hang out with Emery at the New York Cine Equipment show for two days, as his booth was next to Arri's booth where I was demoing the 235. Day one, I walked over and said (with a smile) something akin to "so let me see this new transmitter that is too big, too heavy, and too expensive that everyone is raving about." Well, what can I say? I was very impressed. I won't go over the features again as that has been done in another thread by those who own units. I will say that Emery is a very nice fellow who knows his stuff, and I can tell that he is the sort of fellow that I want to do business with. Moreover, I saw the insides of his wonderful transmitter - no wires! Yes, inside you'll find nothing but state-of-the-art circuit boards intelligently laid out all covered with a big fat shield to minimize RF leakage all over the place. Very nicely done, indeed. Now, lets get back to answering Peter's questions the best we can (but if it is not too late to return your unit for a refund - I think you said it was new - then I would consider doing this and buying a Canatrans). Cheers,

Jenn, The Flyer would be your best choice, but I'll play devil's advocate for a moment. Do your students know anything about composition and the other elements of basic photography? Can they handle a tripod properly? I'm not being flippant; I did a day long training seminar with two Steadicams awhile back to quickly discover the students really didn't know the basics. Not being mean, but if you can't frame a decent picture or execute a decent pan on sticks, how can they really be expected to do it with a rig on? Obviously, your students would disagree with me, but.... If you do opt for the Flyer, I strongly recommend you purchase it from Peter Abraham, an authorized Flyer deal on the East Coast of the US. He could deliver the unit to you along with bringing his own, then hold a workshop for you and your students with the two rigs. He is an inspiration to be around and a gem of a fellow. And no, I don't get anything out of this; I just know his heart is in the right place and he is a great teacher that will share many stories along with his skills from having spent years in the field. http://www.on-campus-steadicam-workshops.com/index.shtml Good luck.

David, RE workshop: Next week it is. RE blowing off the trade show to hang out with a Spanish woman. You're apologizing? You've got to be kidding. Friday night, Rhythm & Booze (our local watering hole), Red Sox Vs Yankees for first place, and beer - no brainer; talk to you soon Thanks for the anniversary wishes.

Mikko, You beat me to it;very funny. Does the workshop end this Friday? I'd love to make the trip, but it would have to be on Friday as I'm working until then. Dave Ellis, you're always up for a road trip; what do you say? Cheers,

Try Derrick Whiethouse: http://www.whitehouseav.com/zoom.htm

Manuel, Please check the archives (years past too). Much has been written. Cheers,

Yes, beers afterwards would be good. Tues is better for me because I have to wait around and get my gear out on wed night (ugh... convention centers....). Then I'm stuck with a car full of gear in NYC. Yuk. See ya there...

Peter, I own both a diversity unit and a Hermes. Most of the time, I find I end up using the Hermes because it is more idiot proof (as far as people changing the channel by accident, etc). The Hermes works great so I don't think that is your problem. Try different channels as well as antennae cut to the frequencies you use the most often. Yes, a directional antenna should help on the receiver as well, but I'm often surprised at how well the one that comes with the Hermes works.

Job, Much the same for me as well, but the trick is the fit, not the number of times you've tried it. It may take you a little time to get used to it from an operating stand point, but in terms of fit, you'll know when it is right. Mostly, that is. After you do long days in it, you will find yourself tweaking the fit (pads & air bladder) a bit more as you learn to fine tune it. But, the major pains should go away the moment you get one that is fit to you. This is why I really do recommend a trip to the shop. It is not only a major purchase, it is your health.