David Grauberger Posted November 7, 2011 Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 Howdy all, I'm new to steadicam and excited to learn. I just picked up my Pilot with Anton Bauer mount. I've got the Dionic 90's in the mail as well as: Switronix XP-DSLR-C Power Tap -and- Canon DR-E6 DC Coupler Can someone (in complete 7-year-old terms) walk me through the best way to configure? I understand that the top of the Pilot has a power jack (I'm assuming 14.4 volts). Would it be better to: Top of Pilot power jack (14.4 volts) >>> adapt to switronix power tap >>> into Canon DR-E6 >>> into canon 7D this would have a mess of cables on the top of the steadicam, but might be the best option because your just using the power jack provided by Steadicam..... -or- AB battery bottom of sled >>> directly plug in Switronix Power Tap >>> run this cable up the shaft >>> connect at top with DR-E6 >>> into 7D any imput would be appreciated. I plan on using the SD monitor supplied by Steadicam, but just want to know my best options for powering the 7D from my Dionic 90 battery. Also keep in mind when someone says "us the switronix and the DRE6, I'm not sure how they mean to configure it. Hence, "tell it to me like I'm 7... " Pics of other peoples setups would be AWESOME!! :) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Mark Schlicher Posted November 7, 2011 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 7, 2011 Honestly just run the camera off of its internal batteries. Buy a couple of spares, use a Manfrotto quick release plate screwed into your dovetail to pull it off of the sled when it's battery change time (the batteries last a good long time, you could go a whole day and maybe not have to change batteries...or maybe once). Mark the quick release plate with a pencil or china marker so you can line it back up when you put it back on. This eliminates the whole "tangle of cords" issue. Plus a sled-to-P-tap cable is easily $70 or more. Also, you want to avoid running a cable outside the post if you possibly can. My 2 cents... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Joe Lawry Posted November 8, 2011 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 8, 2011 Agreed, internal batteries. I dont bother powering any cameras off my sled unless they are a full sized broadcast style camera. With all the little cameras out now days (DSLRs, AF100, F3) I always just run them off their own camera batteries, the more weight above the gimbal the better. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andy Nicholls Posted November 9, 2011 Report Share Posted November 9, 2011 Likewise I would tend to use the camera batteries rather than power the camera from the rig. Often the client supplies the camera and has plenty of batteries to hand. The extra weight of the battery is usually good too. The Manfrotto quick release plate works well but watch out for a couple of things that may catch you out. It is easy to mount the camera so that the battery slot is blocked, meaning you have to take the camera off the rig to change the batteries. I have managed to get these setup so that you can just access the slot and change the batteries while still on the rig, although that may have been mounted on a rail system. The Manfrotto plate has a lever to lock it into place, the movement of this is restricted by a DSLR camera body and not everyone realises that by pulling the lever out sideways you can spin it slightly on the ratchet, allowing you extra movement to tighten or losen the plate. I am pretty sure the 7D only has an HDMI output, which won't drive the standard Pilot monitor without using a convertor like a Decimator. This has caught me out before and I had to use the 7D monitor for the shot, which is not good. Luckily that shoot was a mix of 5D and 7D, most was shot on the 5D which does provide a composite video out. Hope that helps, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Wolfgang Troescher Posted November 9, 2011 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 9, 2011 Likewise I would tend to use the camera batteries rather than power the camera from the rig. Often the client supplies the camera and has plenty of batteries to hand. The extra weight of the battery is usually good too. The Manfrotto quick release plate works well but watch out for a couple of things that may catch you out. It is easy to mount the camera so that the battery slot is blocked, meaning you have to take the camera off the rig to change the batteries. I have managed to get these setup so that you can just access the slot and change the batteries while still on the rig, although that may have been mounted on a rail system. The Manfrotto plate has a lever to lock it into place, the movement of this is restricted by a DSLR camera body and not everyone realises that by pulling the lever out sideways you can spin it slightly on the ratchet, allowing you extra movement to tighten or losen the plate. I am pretty sure the 7D only has an HDMI output, which won't drive the standard Pilot monitor without using a convertor like a Decimator. This has caught me out before and I had to use the 7D monitor for the shot, which is not good. Luckily that shoot was a mix of 5D and 7D, most was shot on the 5D which does provide a composite video out. Hope that helps, 7D comes with a cable (AVC-DC400ST). You can use it with an Cinch->BNC adapter. Wolfgang Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Erik Brul Posted November 9, 2011 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 9, 2011 I am pretty sure the 7D only has an HDMI output, which won't drive the standard Pilot monitor without using a convertor like a Decimator. This has caught me out before and I had to use the 7D monitor for the shot, which is not good. Luckily that shoot was a mix of 5D and 7D, most was shot on the 5D which does provide a composite video out. Hope that helps, Nope, the 7D has a composite output as well.. it's a A/V cable with some typical canon connector to 3 RCA's on the other side, red, white and yellow for video ;) The 5D has a 'normal' mini jackphone plug to these same 3 RCA's.. Take a look at this nice pdf: http://wolfvid.com/datasheets/FAQ_CANON_7D_VideoAssist_Notes.pdf Cheers, Erik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Grauberger Posted November 9, 2011 Author Report Share Posted November 9, 2011 Wow I didn't expect everyone to agree to use 7D batteries! Is this what everyone does? I use a Chrosziel baseplate that actually gives me enough clearance to be able to change 7D batteries while keeping the camera on the sled. I just figured I should be moving towards using my Anton Bauer mount to power everything instead. Guess I better return the cables I bought. That'll be close to $200 back... Anyone else want to weigh in on using the AB mount to power the 7D. Has anyone else found it to be a better arrangement? Thanks for the info all! David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Mark Schlicher Posted November 10, 2011 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 10, 2011 With a Pilot (or any rig) you only "need" to power from the sled when the camera is approaching the payload weight limit (or your own preference), or if powering the camera from onboard batteries is inconvenient for other reasons. Any rig tends to fly better toward the high end of its weight capacity. So, rule of thumb: if you are trying to add weight to the topstage, use onboard batteries, all else being equal. Likewise, if you're already heavy up top, or simply for convenience in only having one battery to tend to, then by all means power from the sled. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Gregory Dillard Posted November 24, 2011 Premium Members Report Share Posted November 24, 2011 One thing you could do is to add the battery grip to the 7D. I have the battery grip on my 5D/7D and there is no need to remove it tO replace the batteries as the compartment is right below Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madhava Krishna Meduri Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 I am trying to follow this discussion as my problem is similar and I am totally new to the Steadicam Pilot AA. I found some senior suggesting to use the Quick release plate. But I am confused, do you have an exact model number to search and buy from Amazon? With the current small screw (Not sure what it is called otherwise) that I use with a tripod setup, the camera (7D) still is not tightly fixed as the screw is still leaving space between the plate and the body. Appreciate if someone can clarify further. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Premium Members Wolfgang Troescher Posted July 3, 2014 Premium Members Report Share Posted July 3, 2014 http://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B00009XV3M/ref=mp_s_a_1_2?qid=1404389953&sr=8-2&pi=SX200_QL40 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elliot Gabor Posted July 3, 2014 Report Share Posted July 3, 2014 The thread size is a 1/4" inch. Sounds like your current tripod plate's screw might be too long/deep. This has happened to me with some other gear (trying to thread an audio recorder to a tripod plate), however, it shouldn't happen with a DSLR, it must be your plate. I recommend the long manfrotto plates since it will give you more room to find the center balance of your camera and will help get you rig balanced quicker. http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000JLK5Q4/ref=oh_details_o01_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elliot Gabor Posted July 3, 2014 Report Share Posted July 3, 2014 For some reason it's not letting me update my last post. I wanted to say that its more accurately a 1/4"-20 thread size Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madhava Krishna Meduri Posted July 6, 2014 Report Share Posted July 6, 2014 Thanks a lot for all your time and effective guidance. I can't appreciate enough! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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