dslr stabilizer

• 21 Comments

•

Sony Battery Tray Rig DSLR VideoCatClaw Sony DSLR Rig Battery Power Adapter Canon
find-price-button Sony NPF-970 Battery Power Supply 5V, 7V, 12V

Thanks to a tweet from m0fe, he points out this alternative Sony Battery tray for powering up your DSLR rig with Sony NPF style batteries [Thanks m0fe]. They have a V-Mount power supply similar to this, but even cheap V-mount batteries are just out of most budgets. This tray accepts two Sony NPF970 Batteries (seen here) (but you can also use little NPF-550s) to power up fairly standard DSLR rig accessories.

The pack offers an output of 5V (for Zoom H4n), a 7V output (for powering Canon cameras), and a 12V output (for powering LCD monitors), and then clamps to a standard set of 15mm rails. The kit comes with all the necessary cables and even comes with a Canon LP-E6 dummy battery to start shooting. If you're an event shooter that needs to be fed constant power, this is one of the most affordable off the shelf solutions to power up your rig. Check it out via eBay (Click Here).

Sony NPF970 Battery Tray 15mm DSLR Rig15mm Sony Power Battery Tray
find-price-button Sony NPF-970 Battery Power Supply 5V, 7V, 12V

• 25 Comments

•

A few people have asked to see how I would go about balancing the Kamerar Video Camera Stabilizer. I have one here today, so I decided to run through the different parts of this stabilize and how to offset the counterweight to level your horizon.

First mount your camera, and then place the Gimbal under the center balance of your camera. Add counterweights to keep your camera upright. If you need to make the lower counterweight heavier, instead of adding more weights, you can slide it lower or mount it on the lower thread. If you have too much weight at the bottom, slide the counterweight upwards or mount it higher. If your camera is leaning to one side, you can swing the counterweight arm in the opposite direction.

There are far better and more advanced stabilizers on the market - this we know. Although the Kamerar doesn't have any of the fine tuning knobs as other more expensive stabilizers, it is possible to get it balanced. As with any stabilizer, including high end ones, it will take several weeks or even months to learn how to balance and how to move around. Don't get frustrated too quickly and just practice practice practice. You can find the Kamerar stabilizer following the link via eBay (click here).

Video Camera Stabilizer Kamerar
find-price-button Kamerar U-Joint Video Camera Steady Cam Stabilizer

• 9 Comments

•

Here's an inexpensive and lightweight way to add movement with your camera at different heights. YouTube member ImagineNowEntertnmnt used furniture sliders from his local Bed Bath & Beyond (as seen here) and placed it under each tripod leg [Thanks Justin]. The furniture sliders can glide along carpet, linoleum, ceramic tile, and cement, etc. With a mini tripod, I can see this being a handy tip for Wedding Videographers who need to travel light, but have access to lots of smooth surfaces to add slow camera movements.

There's a bit of shake in some examples which could possibly be corrected with a bit more weight hung on the tripod, or some post image stabilization, but in most cases it works quite well to add interesting camera movements to your footage. Pretty common stuff you can find at your local Bed Bath & Beyond, local hardware store, or even find available via Amazon (click here)

Screen Shot 2012-06-05 at 6.42.05 AM
find-price-button Reusable Furniture Slider Kits

• 7 Comments

•

Varizoom StingrayShape Rig
Varizoom Stingray with Support Rod / Belt and Shape Telescoping Support Arm

There's only a handful of companies that offer DSLR Video Rigs with a Support Rod that helps carry the front heavy load of a Video Rig. Instead of having to add heavier counterweights to the rear of the rig, the rod and belt combination transfers the weight to the hips. You can see how the Waist Support Rod is used in the beginning of the video (below) on the DVTec Rig.

It's not something you want to walk around with, but it will help to stabilizer slow moving or static shots. Internally the rod is spring loaded to reduce harsh bumps, and the top of the rod has a spring to allow a bit of tilt and roll. Varizoom, DVTec, and even Shape offer these waist support kits, but at a premium price. If this is something you've been looking into, there's a company selling a similar kit on eBay now to help you save your back, but it will still run you about $68 bucks (click here).

DSLR Rig Support Rod BeltDSLR Rig Rod Belt Support
DSLR Rod Support
find-price-button DSLR Video Rig Waist Support Kit Rod Belt

• 20 Comments

•

Here's a look at a prototype motorized trailer sent to me today and it's attached to a PNC Pico Dolly. Still a prototype, it's supposed be universal and have some mounting options to attach to several different dollies or maybe even sliders? The idea is to have a motorized push cart to have consistent movement all of the motors, batteries, wiring, and switches all self contained into one little unit.

contained-dolly-truck

There's a few 1/4x20 threads to mount other accessories on the little push car too. From the image it looks like it's around 4" wide. I have no additional information about availability or pricing at this time. What do you guys think about something like this? For more about the Pico Dolly, you can find that information at the following page: https://www.photographyandcinema.com
Pico-Table-Dolly
Pico Dolly from PhotographyandCinema.com

• 14 Comments

•

Here's a helpful video showing some balancing techniques with the Opteka SteadyVid Pro camera stabilizer from YouTube member videotestground. Looks like he's able to get it dialed in pretty good. Just want to remind people that these stabilizers won't make you a perfect operator overnight. That comes from knowing what to look for when balancing, and months of practice practice practice. [Thanks Vedran].

You can find the Opteka SteadyVid Pro via Amazon (click here).
Opteka SteadyVid Pro
find-price-button Opteka SteadyVid PRO Video Stabilizer- via Amazon

And for International shipping, it can also eBay (click here)
Opteka SteadyVid Pro
find-price-button Opteka SteadyVid PRO Video Stabilizer- via eBay

• 6 Comments

•

Red Scarlet

At NAB2012 this year, I saw a few manufacturers making designs for the RED Scarlet. I guess this camera ended up being fairly popular for it's price point. In an interesting new twist, Gini Rigs has decided to make a custom video cage bracket for the RED Scarlet. I'm not a RED user myself, but maybe some of you can tell wether it looks like an original design or inspired by another? Products include a complete cage, or Top and Bottom plate sold separately. Find it at the ebay store (click here).

Red Scarlet Gini Rig CageGini Rigs Red Scarlet Video Cage
find-price-button Gini Rigs RED Scarlet Cage Top Plate Bottom Plate

• 8 Comments

•

Quick post in reference to the Palo Alto adapters. The latest batch has been added to inventory and is available again. If you're a bit clueless as to what this is, you can find out more information about the Palo Alto adapters through the following articles:
http://cheesycam.com/pc-palo-alto-adapter-available/
http://cheesycam.com/more-fun-with-palo-alto-adapter/

IMG_3476IMG_3483IMG_3503
find-price-button Palo Alto Paint Pole Adapter from PhotographyandCinema.com