magiqcam steady rig

[vikeira]

I just bought a magiqcam rig from animagique. I have a Panasonic AGDVX100A camera which weighs in about 4 pds. I don't yet have the monitor or it's battery, so I'm using it as is. I'm trying to counter the weight balance but I stil can't get that super steady shot I want. Any ideas? How about the monitor or the battery, what should I get?

[Eric Fletcher S.O.C.]

I just bought a magiqcam rig from animagique. I have a Panasonic AGDVX100A camera which weighs in about 4 pds. I don't yet have the monitor or it's battery, so I'm using it as is. I'm trying to counter the weight balance but I stil can't get that super steady shot I want. Any ideas? How about the monitor or the battery, what should I get?

 

 

You might want to ask this question over at the Steadiforums.com People over there will have more experience with a rig like this. This Forum is geared towards the "Big Rigs"

[Jason Williams]

Thanks for the recommendation Eric, indeed everyone is welcome at the Steadiforum, regardless of brand, experience or ego!

 

Jason

[Erwin Landau]

And they have cool games...

 

 

 

Erwin"Asteroid addict"Landau

[Bryan Fowler]

hi Vikeria,

 

I had not heard of this rig before your post, but I had a look at it after a quick google search.

 

Just guessing that you want to keep your cost down to the minimal.

 

I would look at the Starlite video from transvideo. It's small and probably affordable. I'm not sure of the price. Marianne would be able to help you with that. I just saw the monitor recently, nice and crisp, one version even has a digital level which is helpful.

 

If that doesn't work, Tiffen can sell you a monitor from a Flyer. It looks great in direct sun, it's lightweight, and 6in I think.

 

Mounting them to the rig is a whole other story. You'd have to figure that out, or talk to someone who has modified a rig like yours.

 

As for the battery, maybe try the Trimpac by Anton Bauer. You'll have to get a plate to go on your rig, and somehow wire it up. It's kinda wide, and might get in the way, but I think it's the cheapest AB battery at the moment. You'll need a charger to go with it.

 

All three of those companies will give you products that possibly will last probably longer than the rig...depending on how you treat them.

 

I would contact the company you bought the rig from, and see what they suggest. I'm sure they know what other people have done, and might even have a solution themselves.

 

Bryan

[Rod Weber]

I just bought a magiqcam rig from animagique. I have a Panasonic AGDVX100A camera which weighs in about 4 pds. I don't yet have the monitor or it's battery, so I'm using it as is. I'm trying to counter the weight balance but I stil can't get that super steady shot I want. Any ideas? How about the monitor or the battery, what should I get?

 

Vikeira,

 

I had a Magiqcam 3p. Excellent little rig for the price. What I found that worked really well was a Xenarc 700V 7-in LCD monitor. They only run about $250 and though it is not HD (HDs run over $1,250), it has higher resolution than most sub-HD LCD monitors out there. They're marketed for Automobile LCD systems which is a much bigger market than camera monitors, hence the MUCH cheaper price.

 

It requires a 12V DC battery and here's my recommendation for that: Power Runner model PR-2300 (or 2310). It's a nice kit, and ultra versatile. You can use it for a lot more than just this. It runs under $100 if you look around. I bought 2 of them... one as a back-up, but I found it smart to put both batteries on the rig as the extra weight stabilizes the rig even more. I used velcro on both the monitor & the batteries to secure to the rig.

 

It's pretty stable this way, and honestly, I get as good of results as with my Flyer. Though the Flyer is definitely cooler to look at and play with, the Magiqcam is a really solid rig for its price.

 

Rod Weber

http://www.gracklefilm.com