Dean Smollar

I'm looking for something used, but still in pretty good condition. Would prefer a used 3a or Pro gimbal, but looking at all options as long as it fits on a 1.5" post. Email at DRSmollar@gmail.com

Something used, but still in pretty good condition email at DRSmollar@gmail.com

I'd like to second the inclusion of the system that Will is working on.

What I mean to say is, I don't want him to wait to hear from me. I need to step back from how intense I've been about upgrading and start slow. I just wanted to know how much it would be worth without the TB-6.

I'm locked in on work for the next two weeks straight, so if it's still available then we'll talk :)

To everyone, Regarding Brian's post: I'm sorry for coming off as hostile and defensive to your advice. You guys are awesome, and I'm sorry for behaving the way I did. I really do appreciate everything you've told me, and I'm taking it all to heart as I make my decisions. I projected my insecurities about this decision onto all of you, and that was a huge mistake. Brian, I'd love to talk more about your plan. Hit me up on Facebook. Also, do y'all still do the thursday meetups?

bumping to get above the transmitter post I made

Great points Janice! Don't have a choice with the money - it's all I've got to work with. I'll take everything that everyone has said and go with it from here on my own! Scott Coleman is a great guy and a great operator. I'm also acquainted with David Shawl, Will Demeritt, Brian Freesh and a few other guys out here. Everyone has their own unique opinion, and I just wanted to gather as many opinions as I could. Like I've seen on this forum so many times, "Work smarter, not harder." You guys have been awesome! Thanks!

Still available? What about a price w/o the TB-6?

No, my current vest does not have a standard socket block. I saw an offer from Pedro for a modded 3a vest that looks pretty good, but it's gotta be included in the $20,000. The amount of money I have to spend can't change, so I need to make it work as smart as possible. I've seen a lot of posts in the marketplace, but nothing that i can make work in my budget so far. I don't need a new monitor; my Marshall is brand new and awesome. I should probably consider a backup though. Great point about the cables. I'm gonna try to see if I can save the last $5k or so of my $20k as a buffer for the "gadgetry." The first $15k will go into Sled, Arm, Vest, & Bartech. This is, of course, just the ideal.

Eric, I understand. I know that Tiffen, Pro and XCS are the best rigs. I wasn't being hostile when I made the statement, I was serious. If you really think I can find something like that for my budget, then that's what I'm going to go for. I'm willing to take my time and find the right rig, not the "right now" rig. I love being an operator too much to not take this seriously. I need to take my budget and make it work the best way I possibly can. The honesty of your responses makes me glad I asked these questions. Alec, I didn't come into this with "what I wanted to hear." I wanted to hear what Eric had to say. I was not being defensive; I was actually agreeing with him. The most important thing to me right now is to be as smart as possible with the money I have, instead of worrying about not having enough money. I'm happy that Eric is the kind of guy who's honest and straightforward, as he has been with me since I joined this forum a year ago. If I were to be defensive of anything, it would be if I felt like he was insulting Scott Coleman or any other operator that I respect based solely on their gear and not on the quality of their work. He didn't do that, so I'm not offended. I bought a Glidecam rig, it's served it's purpose, now I need to move up. If you have any leads on good gear, I'm all ears! I made a couple of posts in the Equipment Wanted section to start, and I'm keeping an eye out for everything.

I am very aware of how my glidecam works and what it is not good at, which is the main reason I'm upgrading. If I could get a used pro1, silver spring arm and vest for $8000 then I would do it in a heartbeat. I know that this town is a pro/xcs town; I came here from Boston with my rig and I'm ready to move on. Scott has been a good friend to me and I trust him, but there's a reason he just bought a gen. 3 Pro sled. If I could put together a solid Frankenstein rig for about $12-13k and get a used Bartech then I would be in heaven.

looking for a good transmitter/receiver combo for video villages. SD is preferable, as long as it's a reliable system. I'm aware of the "popular" brands like Modulus, Canatrans & Transvideo, so I'm more likely to go for one of those. Any offers can go to DRSmollar@gmail.com.

Looking for a used Bartech, Motor & any cables you're willing to throw in. All offers are welcome & wanted. Email at DRSmollar@gmail.com

Brian: I am absolutely, 100% certain about being a Steadicam Operator. I want to be able to handle any type of job that comes my way, be it digital or film. I think the reason I've been second guessing myself is because I've spent so much time combing the archives; the people on this forum really know a lot more about the gear than I do. You've seen the rig I fly now, so you know why I want to upgrade, but I need to make sure I'm doing it right. Eric: I already live in LA :P. I've flown Tiffen rigs, and I got to try on Will Demeritt's Pro rig once (sometimes I really hate him for teasing me like that). I've already signed up for Cinegear, and I'm also waiting to see if the Stabilizer Gear Expo is happening this year (I've never been before). If you know people who have all those things and are willing to sell them for prices I can afford, I'm all ears. I'll be posting ads in the wanted section of the classifieds as well. The transmitter would be for video village; I've actually already got monitors ( Marshall HD-SDI/Composite). It's not something I've been able to successfully do with the P.O.S. $40 RF transmitters that I bought at Radio Shack, so I never even offered it. Am I wrong in assuming it's a necessary component? I never considered a lot of the things you mentioned. Thank you. Janice: I'm absolutely terrified of waiting that long to make the upgrades, but I do understand why it makes sense, and I know you're right. I just feel like I'm in a hurry to get this done so that I'm as prepared as I can be ASAP. I don't want to lose work during said 6 months because I didn't have something. I don't get enough work doing anything else to be able to afford it. I had a job recently where, when I was hired, I made it very clear to them what gear I had/didn't have. I showed up on set, the DP said, "Oh, you don't have a wireless follow focus?," he disappeared for a minute and came back saying, "looks like we're gonna go without you today. You can go home." it was very frustrating, and I don't want it to happen again. (No, I didn't get paid; I was waiting for a deal memo when it happened. It was a last minute job) I also don't know how to judge what the "best deal" on a particular piece of gear would be. I haven't been around that long, and while I know how much all the current generations of equipment cost, I don't know too much about the pricing of previous iterations. For example, I saw your post in the market place for the Gold Spring Arm, and even though I'm familiar with the arm and I'm pretty sure that's an amazing deal, I don't have enough knowledge to know how much I'd really be saving, or if I'm really getting the best deal. Also, it's a quarter of my budget. Buying used scares the crap out of me. I'm looking forward to the day I can give back something to this community for the help it's given me, so drinks and dinners are the least I could do.

Hey y'all! The time has come for me to upgrade to a more serious setup. I've survived off of mostly RED and DSLR work for the last year with my Glidecam X-22 v-lock w/no accessories, but it's become clear to me that it's time to go deeper in. I've got a $20,000 budget, and I thought that I knew exactly what I was going to do with it, but now I'm seriously doubting myself. The items that are on my original list are - (from Jim Bartell, brand new) 1 Bartech Focus Device Handset 1 Bartech Digital Receiver 1 7112A Digital Right Angle motor cable 1 3035 A/B P-Tap Power Cable Heden M26ve Motor package (just got a great quote from Magnus) Titan Tx/Rx transmitter set Transvideo AL-15 Power Supply (2) IDX E-HL9 LiIon batteries Redbyte Decimator (1 or 2) and for the finale, I'm getting a great deal from Scott Coleman on his 1.75" X-45 Sled. The package he's selling me includes the following: X-45 Sled Stock cables docking bracket 2 cheese plate 1 Correira Bracket (2) Sled to Bartech Power (2) Sled to 12v 2.1 (for the Decimator) (2) Sled to XLR4 (for my monitor and ENG cameras) (2) Sled to "Pana" style 2 pin lemo (for the Titan) (3) Sled to RED1 6pin Power (custom made just for RED, which has been the majority of my work lately) According to Scott, I'm pretty much outfitted to handle any 12v camera with this setup. However, since he has Anton Bauer and I own a bunch of IDX Endura HL9s, I'm gonna have to get the sled refitted for V-lock. I've already talked to Terry West about it, and he gave me a good estimate. The final tally of all this gear comes out to about $16,000, leaving me $4000 left over, which I'm considering using for a cart, a weight cage from Janice, new cases, and any other odds & ends that I haven't thought of yet. My plan is to continue using my X-22 arm and vest with the X-45 sled. I'm also going to get my gear insured (Thanks Brian Freesh for the advice!). Here's my dilemmas: Am I screwing myself by sticking with the X-22 arm? Part of me thinks that I'll be limited by it's 40 lb. total capacity (I can usually push about 28 lbs. of camera), which will screw me on future potential gigs. I know I can make REDs work, but only by stripping them down (the most I've done is body, pro prime & cradle w/brick). However, with what's left of my budget, there's no way I could afford a better arm (not to mention that I'd need a new vest too). Should I scrap my V-Locks and buy some Anton Bauers instead of getting the rig rewired? Is the Transvideo Titan the right choice in transmitter? I've done a lot of research on the forum but I can't seem to get a definitive answer. Am I wasting money by buying everything new? I know I've gotten plenty of recommendations from other ops that I should go used, but I don't know how I feel about it. Right now I only get digital gigs, and lately it's been mostly RED, but what about 24v cameras? Will I have to turn them down? Most importantly, am I being an overthinking idiot? Any and all advice/suggestions are appreciated :) Dean Attached: Me 2 months ago with the RED on my X-22

Hey Jens, I've sent multiple messages to Magnus about a price quote for the motors, and never heard back from him. Is there a better way to get in touch with the guys at Heden, or are they just really busy? BTW: contact HEDEN directly for their prices.....

Finally buying my BDR and Heden motor next week! So psyched up for it.

If you could close the age gap by about two years, then either myself or David Shawl (both of us recent Emerson grads) could have met him and worked with him at least a little.

I'm in too!

I did that too, and when it took me to a page where it wanted me to pay for things I just quit the process. A few days later I got my badge in the mail. :P

I haven't ever shared my work here before, but this video just came out today and I'm really proud of it. Honestly, this is some of my better stunt work since moving to LA. We shot this on the 5d with a set of Nikon AI Primes (16, 25, 35, 50, 85), and a Bartech with an M1 Motor. They originally brought me in to do maybe 2 or 3 shots, but they just kept adding more and more after they saw what I was doing. I ended up going 15 hours (and getting paid for it), and a little over 3 minutes of this 7 1/2 minute video is my work. I have a basic breakdown below, but if anyone has questions I'll answer in more detail. The actual song starts at 1:46, and even though there are a few miscellaneous shots I did in that opening, the real action starts at 2:26. 2:26 - 2:32 - I spent a good half hour of the shoot doing 360's around the lead talent (Malakai) while having to weave in and out of these dangling lights they hung from the ceiling. they ended up using it throughout the whole video. 2:32 - 3:06 - Low mode work ( tracking Malakai as he gets pulled back, skateboard w/toolbox rolls in, pushing in and tilting up off the floor to skateboard toolbox, closeup of Malakai w/ stuntmen in the background, I did all of the low mode work either at a 16mm, 25mm or 85 mm. It was rough with the 5d at 85mm but it was worth it. 3:23 - 3:30 - Frantick, one of the breakdancers, and I had developed an unusual chemistry between camera & talent, and there are a lot of shots of him because of it. We just clicked, like we knew where each other wanted to go. 4:19 - 4:38 - one of the more complicated shots I did. Low mode, missionary walking backwards, switch to profile immediately & run to next spot for the tire stunt. The very first take of this shot, one of the stuntmen went too early and jumped right into my back, slamming into me. Luckily I didn't go down. 4:44 - 5:14 - More miscellaneous shots of the breakdancers & 360's. Whenever a shot would go into the chorus, Malakai would step off and I would start floating around the dancers. I didn't think they'd use so much of the footage. 5:14 - 5:34 - time to showcase the dancers & stuntmen. I didn't have a lot of room to move with this shot because of all the trampolines & crash pads all over the floor, so the second half of the move is a creep compared to the beginning. 5:34 - 5:48 - I fell doing this shot. Hard. The platform I was on was not very sturdy, so when I did eventually go down, I rolled the rig so that I landed on my back. I got back up and went straight into the next take, which I believe is the one they used. It looks like they zoomed in during post on this shot, so you can see a few wobbles from me trying to keep my balance. 5:48 - 6:20 - The kids breakdancing on top of the cars. We had multiple cameras running for this because it was late and the kids had to go home, so we couldn't do too many takes. 6:47 - 7:09 - A montage of the dancers doing individual routines mixed with more of my 360 work w/Malakai. The individual routines were completely freestyled We had absolutely no plan when we went into it. They cleared out the entire room except for me and the dancers, and we started riffing together. My favorite moment they used is right before the fade out with Frantick where he goes down to his knees and it looks like the camera is pushing him to the floor. Like I said earlier, we just clicked. some of this stuff is going in my reel :)

Thank goodness for this thread. I'm checking REI's around Los Angeles now for some Stabilicers for a job this Tuesday.

I tried new sachtler system, it has single thread on the post, nice idea. Re the arm, i have to say it looks better in a photo than in reality. I was considering purchasing, but after a demo tryout, i don't think it's worth the money, especially carbon fiber version. Expected alot ,but was disappointed. But the rig seemed solid. The arm is just a IIIA with minor tweaks (their words, not mine).