Monthly Archives: December 2010

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Samyang, Rokinon, Bower, or Vivitar. It's believed they are all the same lens, with a slightly modified exterior and sold under various brands. Who knows what these lenses are being sold as, but then again you might not even care. Rumor mill has it that these lenses are being made out of Korea providing images that can be sharp as Nikon. Of course there's no auto focus features, so with zero electronics on this Manual Focus prime lens it's sold cheaper and can be made to be tack sharp.

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find-price-button Vivitar 85mm F/1.4 Manual Focus Lens

The 85mm F/1.4 is an excellent lens for low light situations, and at the focal length to provide you with that crazy DOF portrait look. The lens may only have been introduced a few years ago, but the Internet is littered with tests/reviews/samples. From Flickr, Vimeo, YouTube, web blogs, and camera forums it's been tried and tested to be a solid performer. With manual only features it might also be an easier lens to pull focus with for full time Video shooters.

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find-price-button Vivitar 85mm F/1.4 Manual Focus Lens

For Nikon shooters considering the Budget 85mm, the Samyang and Bower name is designed with an exterior of the traditional Black w/ Gold Highlights. For Canon shooters, the Vivitar branded lenses are designed in all black with a knock-off Canon-like Red Ring accent. For those who aren't quite into the exterior aesthetics, over at Amazon the 'Rokinon' name will drop the price down another $100 dollars. Not bad for the money considering several reviews tested it to be as sharp as Nikon, and another great option for shooters looking for a lens that works well in low light situations. Anyone out there rockin' one? Leave some comments....

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find-price-button Rokinon 85mm F1.4 Aspherical Lens for Canon (Black)

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cinevate (1 of 4)

Cinevate has been one of those companies constantly surprising everyone with new innovation around DSLR accessories. Their line of Linear Rails a.k.a. 'Camera Sliders', 'Pegasus Carbon table Dolly', and 'Cyclops View Finder', are just a few of those examples.

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Building a DSLR rig traditionally starts with a foundation of rods, but the guys over at Cinevate.com are working on something a bit different. Opening up to the more budget conscious audience, a new concept is based around a specially designed "base plate(slash)quick release(slash)cheese plate". Stabilizer handles, articulating arms, positionable clamps, and more will directly attach to this 'basequickcheese' plate using threaded mounts acting as a foundation for a custom fit rig.

cinevate (3 of 4)

Not sure what it's all going to be labeled as, but for further expansion the base plate combines with rails to support items like a follow focus system or matte box. Threaded rotating ball clamps and multi-length clamp rods can be mixed and matched for different purposes.

cinevate (2 of 4)

Lots of new stuff in the pipeline and more will be posted about these things soon. Not sure if any of this is available, or if these ideas will make it out to the storefront, but you might be able to grab some info over at Cinevate.com.

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Please ask all questions to the seller should you consider this auction. I do not have any more information other than what's listed in the details of the auction. Posted today on eBay - a complete Genus Camera Shoulder Rig with handles, shoulder pad, counter weight, LCD View Finder, and Follow Focus system. Everything you need for a solid shoulder rig and then some. It's all Genus products so it's worth a bit more change than cheaper gear, but might be something to consider for those of you who are familiar with Genus. I looked over all the products and added things up, and the complete kit on eBay has been listed today for about 50% off total retail price.

Here's the direct links to the B&H Photo Video catalog to the products combined together in this single auction (I believe these are the ‘exact’ same products, please contact the seller for any questions).
Genus Camera Shoulder Mount System
Genus GENUS LOUPE LCD VIEWFINDER
Genus Superior Follow Focus System for DSLR Cameras

Auction found here:

genus-dslr-kitgenus-superior-follow-focusgenus-view-finder
find-price-button Genus DSLR Rig, Counter weights, Handles, Shoulder Pad, View Finder, with Follow Focus

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The $24.00 dollar shoulder support with Rod mounts are getting a few questions as well as the recent Quick Release adapter posted on this blog. Here's a look at how i'm using these recently purchased items with my gear.

First a quick look at the cheap Quick Release adapter. It's not a standard QR adapter with a 1/4x20 thread already tapped in. Instead I run a beveled screw through the top of the adapter and place a bolt underneath. To keep the quick release adapter from shifting around I also used thin double sided tape between the adapter and the stage of the flycam nano. To prevent the nut from coming loose, I also have a washer + lock washer.

Flycam QR (1)Flycam QR (2)
Flycam QR (3)Flycam QR (4)

Second common question i've been getting is how to mount rods to the cheap $24 dollar shoulder support. To get the basic foundation setup, you'll need an adapter plate. This type of plate is commonly used under a rod rig so that it can be placed on top of a Tripod of Fluid head. When purchasing a basic set of rods or any rig, find out if one will be provided. If not you can buy one separately here: https://express35.com/tripod-mount/1054/

Gini-Rods (2)Gini-Rods (4)

After mounting the adapter plate to the shoulder support, I can then position any set of handles, build up an offset stage, have support for a follow focus, matte box, etc. You can also find a basic set of rails with DSLR base plate, and Tripod plate here: https://express35.com/rail-system/295/

Gini-Rods (5)Gini-Rods (1)
Gini Rig on $24 Shoulder Support w/ Varavon ViewFinder

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opteka-shoulder-video-stabilizer

I've seen a few cheap DSLR related items spin off into some success. Here's another new stabilizer on the market that I think is going to have a good future. It's coming in at $99 bucks available on Amazon and $99 on eBay with Free Shipping. Although the price is going to help make it popular, it helps to be designed fairly similar to another rig that goes for more than $250 dollars. Designed with aluminum and stainless steel, it can adjust your camera forward/back, left/right for an offset, up/down, and also can be modified for left or right shoulder shooting. A good 1" thick foam shoulder pad with metal shoulder support, i'm thinking it would be a great platform for drilling in accessory mounts. The handle can also be removed for going uber-simple.

single-handle

The description claims a 'hands free' solution, but i'm curious if it really has that ability. If it does, then it's going to give the cheap plastic $24.00 dollar shoulder support a good run for the money. I should have my hands on one soon to be used with my new Sony A55. Looks like it will be an excellent light weight camera stabilizer for other cameras like the Panasonic GH1/GH2, Canon T2i, or Nikon D3100, but it does claim to be able to support up to 20lbs of weight.

opteka-shoulder-stabilizer
find-price-button $99 Video Shoulder Stabilizer Support

Also available via eBay + Free Shipping

find-price-button $99 dollar shoulder support video stabilizer

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canon-60d-kit

For those rockin' the Canon 60D, Canon has recently released a new firmware upgrade. It's designed to fix a few rare cases when working with flash and specific lenses. Personally i'm going to hold off on this since it's not something that immediately affects what I use the 60D for. There's also been a few cases where a firmware upgrade to fix one thing, ends up bringing about small new problems. If you're still in for the upgrade here's the link: https://web.canon.jp/imaging/eosd/firm-e/eos60d/firmware.html

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tokina-16-28mm
find-price-button Tokina AT-X 16-28mm F2.8 Pro FX Lens for Canon and Nikon

I've been extremely happy with my new Tokina 11-16mm F/2.8 lens for both video and photography use, but it doesn't work across all my cameras. Sure it mounts to the Canon 5D Mark II, but it's pretty much unusable on a full frame camera until you zoom all the way out. If you're looking for a lens that would give you a wider option on a full frame you might already be thinking about Canon's 16-35mm F/2.8. This would work on both Full Frame and cropped cameras, but you'll also be looking at an "L" lens price tag.

Tokina's giving us a new option with their recently released 16-28mm F/2.8 lens. This new 16-28mm F/2.8 lens from Tokina was specifically designed to be compatible with all cameras (including Full Frame). This new lens also features the company's newly developed AF system that features a quieter Silent Drive-Module (SD-M) autofocus motor and promises more precise focusing. The company also designed it to be a weather-sealed lens with a fixed lens hood. Still an expensive lens, but at about $700 cheaper than Canon's 16-35mm it adds in another option for budget shooters looking for an extra wide fast lens for both video and photography. BTW, they've also made it available for both Canon and Nikon, no news for Sony (yet).

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Question comes in from a Vimeo member asking which would be the better buy? So it's a Rode NTG-2 vs. Azden SGM-1X poll. Would you go for the Rode NTG-2 or the Azden SGM-1X Shotgun Microphone? Both appear to have very similar physical dimensions with size and XLR inputs. Both DSLR shotgun microphones can be self powered with a single battery but can also accept optional Phantom power. The Rode can be powered with a single AA for an estimated 1000 hours and the Azden can be powered with a single AAA for approx. 800 hours. The Rode NTG-2 does not come with any type of mount, while the Azden 'does' come with it's own integrated shock mount. Both are highly rated with 4.5 stars over at B&H Photo Video. Seems like the Azden has more to offer, but the Rode NTG-2 has more than twice the amount of reviews which appears to be the more popular of the two out in the field. The Rode is also more expensive, but does it yield better (noticeable) sound quality? I'm not familiar with both, so I decided to throw up this poll for those with more experienced between the two. Got another suggestion for a similar shotgun mic? Throw down in the comments...

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find-price-button Rode NTG-2 Battery or Phantom Powered Condenser Shotgun Microphone

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find-price-button Azden SGM-1X - Super-Cardioid Shotgun Condenser Microphone

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radio-popper-px

Just so that it's clear, you don't need a set of RadioPoppers to enter the RadioPopper Contest. You don't even need to shoot a video outside of your bedroom. All it takes is a simple 30 second video of you talking about your favorite photography lighting tip. Here's a bit from the contest website:

Contest Instructions
Submit a maximum 30 second video showcasing or explaining your best photography tip. The tip does NOT have to involve a RadioPopper system, it just needs to be photography related in general (lighting, post-production, promotion, composition, etc.) The video production quality is not as important as the originality of your tip and presentation.

Today is the last day and you've got until midnight to enter the RadioPopper contest. You can also check out some of the other entry videos already posted found here: http://cheesycam.com/radio-popper-photography-contest/