Jess Haas SOC

Was there any problem with the original socket block and bridge plate? If not(and maybe even if there is) I might be interested in buying them from you. How much do you want? Actually, once you are finished with all of your modifications how much will it be to buy the entire original vest from you? Doesn't look like you are keeping much of it :-) Have you thought about making and selling these vests? Or even a vest kit of some sort. Looks like you are rather close to being able to make one from scratch. ~Jess

What are you charging for them these days? ~Jess

I just wanted to point out that this is very much a personal thing and that one should try on the vests before hand if they get a chance. I know of a number of people that found the ultra 2 vest more comfortable than the archer vest so they upgraded to that. Personally I find the vest that comes with the archer much more comfortable than the ultra 2 vest. There is also the compact vest which may fit people with smaller frames better. ~Jess

The last time I shot in Mexico(it wasn't Mexico city though) I noticed that the equipment insurance for the Mexico part of the shoot was actually cheaper than the US part despite being from the same company. I doubt that would be the case if equipment theft was really as big of an issue there as a lot of people think. As far as personal security goes you will feel a lot safer if you don't watch news in the US. ~Jess

A few years back I was using the ACL very extensively and the particular camera that I was using I would not hesitate to take on the road. It never had any problems with 400foot mags probably because it was a newer model with a suitable motor and I never had any problems with the mirror. I don't think the owner even had any 200ft mags. I never flew it on a steadicam but it seems like it would be a suitable camera. All that being said a well maintained XTR or SR would of course be far superior. I would hesitate to take a CP-16 since in my experience even well maintained ones tend to have problems. I used one on a shoot once and when it went down we scrounged up an XTR. Despite using the same lenses there was a noticeable difference in quality of the footage mainly due to superior registration. ~Jess

From the 16mm cameras you listed I would go with the Eclair ACL if it is in good enough shape to be reliable for the project you describe. As far as rigs go you may be able to get by with a Steadicam Flyer or something in that class but I would personally prefer a bigger rig as it allows a bit more flexibility. You are also going to need some sort of remote follow focus. As far as getting proficient in time I would say that by the end of the shoot you would either be very proficient or have given up on the idea of doing it all steadicam. You will be new enough that the quality of operating would change drastically throughout the shoot. Taking a workshop ASAP would of course be mandatory if you are going to try to do it. I think your best and actually least expensive option is going to be to find a newish steadicam operator with their own gear who has some experience but it still willing to do the shoot for just the experience and some sort of equipment rental. I am actually going to send you a pm about that option right now. ~Jess

If you are still looking I have a few used ones but I am out of town working on a film through the end of the month. Let me know. ~Jess

I have a couple of transmitter/receiver combos that look to be the same things these guys are selling. They can be had for even less money on ebay direct from Hong Kong. They work but there are a good amount of dropouts even when standing still. They are not anywhere near the quality of the more expensive units, but if they are all you can afford then they do work. I don't think that most of them have been certified by FCC or the EU equivalent and I know for a fact that some of them use frequencies allocated for other things such as airplanes. They are most likely not legal to use anywhere but in Asia if even there. ~Jess

I love my archos 404. The travel adapter is required but it is small so it is not a problem. Once you figure out the way the controls work recording and playback is very easy and doesn't require a lot of navigation. It takes 5v power in but so far I have just been using the built in battery which lasts a surprisingly long time. I found a small USB car power adapter for $5 at wallmart that I am going to use the electronics from to make a power cable. Some things I have read led me to believe that not regulating the current could charge the battery a bit too quickly so I am going to use the current limited adapter instead of just the voltage regulator chip. For $5 I think its worth not having to put that all together myself. The new generation 5 ones should also work fine with their travel adapter but I haven't gotten my hands on one so I couldn't tell you if it was better or worse than the generation 4. If you can still find them you should be able to find a 404 dirt cheap. Mine was $150 a while back. Of course the travel adapter was another $50. ~Jess

Just use your actioncam. I don't want to be the only guy on here flying an actioncam rig :-) ~Jess

Thanks for the input. I know a VAC one really isn't all that expensive, but I honestly don't feel like it is something I need 99.9% of the time so while I am considering buying a $20 item I don't really feel like spending $120 on it at the moment. Assuming there isn't much in the way of a functional difference between the two it seems the main drawback is that the cheap one uses RCAs while the more expensive one has BNCs. If I really feel a need I may pull out my soldering iron and change that, and if I feel really crazy I might repackage the whole thing adding lemos or something for input and monitor output in order to streamline the package. Hopefully the 12v input on the thing can handle my 14.4v batteries. So far I have found that most things designed for car use don't have a problem with them. ~Jess

Anyone tried any of the cheapo DAs being marketed to people doing car av installs? Here is an example: http://www.buy.com/prod/pyle-plv2-video-si...1/90129568.html I don't feel like spending much because most of the time I really don't think it is necessary, but I did a shoot the other day where the video tap image was rather dark to begin with and I was thinking a DA could be a good idea. The question is will something like this result in a better or worse image than I get without it? Currently I have my monitor, archos and video transmitter all terminating. ~Jess

Sounds like you have things sorted out but I just want to give you one more little idea to think about. One nice but seldom used feature of many 35 adapters is the ability to vary the depth of field independent of exposure. One way that this can be done is by using a wider lens on the adapter but zooming in on the video camera in order to change the effective frame size to something like that of 16mm or whatever you chose. This can allow you to get a little more depth of field when you need it. Just remember, TEST TEST TEST! If you are shooting interiors you will probably want the follow focus even with a 16mm depth of field, but I have gotten away with shooting day exteriors on 16 without one on numerous occasions by keeping the lenses wide and having depth of field charts on hand. ~Jess

Looks nice. When it comes to mounting velcro is your friend. I also try to put mine on top of the camera in order to get the antenna as high as possible. This makes keeping a line of sight link a little easier which is very important with microwave systems. I find that with my microwave link I get a good number of dropouts, I believe that the best way to combat this would be a diversity receiver. Directional antennas could also be very helpful. ~Jess

Teeth is good little dark comedy that is definitely worth seeing. I worked one day on it doing rigging electric. When I opened the cooler on the truck there were 3 severed penises inside :-) ~Jess

mouser.com also carries lemos. Not sure if they have that particular one though. ~Jess

I just picked up a 7dbi antenna for my computer for cheap and it got me thinking about this option. Thanks to wifi it should be possible to find some good 2.4ghz antennas for relatively cheap. They might not be tuned exactly right but they should be close enough. There is also a 2.4ghz diversity receiver being marketed towards RC plane and helicopter pilots that might be a good option: http://www.blackwidowav.com/Diversity24new1.html ~Jess

I really doubt you will have any problem getting enough people for a workshop in NYC. Talk to Peter Abraham. He is the guy who teaches the workshops and he actually lives in new york. ~Jess

DVDs are only 720x480 so you aren't losing a whole lot resolution wise. The compression isn't too bad either, but you will have to recompress it, possibly even twice which could result in some additional compression artifacts. It is definitely not ideal, and I haven't run it through the whole workflow to get to DVD, but I have been pleasantly surprised by the quality of the video recorded on my little archos. ~Jess

What kind of rig did you get? A little more info on the workshop from http://www.thesteadicamworkshops.com: February 2,3,4. Boulder, CO. Hosted by Boulder Digital Arts. This is a large Steadicam rig workshop. For map & directions visit: http://www.thomashowardimaging.com/map.htm Three days of intensive instruction on the Archer and Clipper systems. The third day is given over to more complex shots and vehicle mount work. Tuition for this workshop is $ 750.00 per student, pre-paid to reserve your spot. When sending in the Registration Form, indicate Boulder 3-day Workshop. This workshop will be instructed by Peter Abraham with one course assistant. ~Jess

I am sure there will be plenty of time for buying drinks. :-) ~Jess

The travel adapter adds a jack for 5v in to power it. I plan on building a power adapter to power it from the sled but so far I have just been running from the battery with no problems. It actually lasts quite a while. The harddrive on mine makes zero noise and hasn't given me any problems. I like the harddrive because I like having a lot of space at once instead of having to switch SD cards. How did you manage a 160gb 605 new for that price? I got the archos to use for playback, but it wasn't until I actually got it that it hit me that I now own a badass little portable music and video player. It rocks while traveling and I have been using it to play music at home and in my car. ~Jess

It depends on what exactly you want. I personally went with the 404 because it is small and can be had inexpensively. The generation 4 and 5 ones require the travel adapter while the older models didn't. This isn't a problem just another $50 piece to figure into your calculations. ~Jess

Thigh holster? You should have had a gun mounted on the steadicam! The camera is just there for aiming.... ;-) Sorry I missed it. I will have to try to scrounge up a copy of the episode. ~Jess

I am going to be in Boulder the beginning of February for a 3 day steadicam workshop if you feel like buying someone a drink ;-) Or I could buy you one. ~Jess