Nano for Green Screen Advice

[Steve Kalle]

No need to apologize. I certainly appreciate the suggestions and info. I didn't have a budget listed but I do want to keep the cost down. However, once I start doing more TVC's, I can budget a Leader monitor.

[Rafael Amador]

Originally Posted by Andrew Stone

... So when I saw 6 grand and 10 grand for those monitors I did wince (just a bit) but I quickly regained composure. Seriously....

I wish i could have one of these devices for color grading.
For making Green Screen I wouldn't spend that money.
Rafael

[Andrew Stone]

Originally Posted by Steve Kalle

PS Andrew, which Steadicam and camera/accessories are you using? I'm looking into the Flyer for EX1 + Nano, Arri Mattebox & shotgun.

I picked up a used Flyer for my EX3. I have pretty much all the jazz you will use and it will work nicely. A couple of things though. The Flyer is long in the tooth in terms of design. The bottom spar of the sled is rinky-dink. If you can wait for the next iteration I would. If you look at the Pilot you will see probably where the new design of the Flyer is headed. Having said that the arm on the flyer for it's class is the best on the market and the whole unit is very usable. Before you buy a Steadicam you should (must) take a course. There are 2 day courses offered by Peter Abraham of TIFFEN. He was a Steadicam operator for a long time and is a good teacher and would teach a fun course. There are also week long courses offered by several outfits. I took the one out near Philadelphia put together by the Steadicam Operators Association. Garrett Brown and Jerry Holway were there teaching. You will be using "film weighted" steadicams and go deeper into a lot of things than you would in the 2 day course.

Unfortunately the next jump up from the Flyer puts you into a rig that will cost 25 to 40 grand. That would be a setup from either Steadicam/TIFFEN or MK-V in the UK.

Steadicam operation can require lots of farkles that are expensive (4 to 5 grand purchases are commonplace) with the big thing being wireless gear but again take the course as it will straighten your head out on operation and what you are getting into financially, physically and aesthetically.

I am planning to either seriously modify the bottom of the Flyer or get a bigger (more expensive) rig. Probably the latter.

[Andrew Stone]

Just to finish off some of my thoughts on the monitors. There is a good medium priced monitor with scopes/waveform in the TV-logic monitors. Go to their website and check out the LVM-071W, there are a few good reports on it and the price range is in the $3000 to $4000 range. It appears this right now is "best in class" for that price point. This monitor sucks for outside use according to user reports.

[Digital Broadcasting System TVLogic!!!]

The other one I neglected to mention, and I mention this for the posterity of this thread as it is in the nosebleed end of the pricing spectrum, is made by Transvideo. It costs 8 to 9 grand. Although I have heard (somewhere) you can pick it up for less.

Transvideo - CineMontorHD HDTV precision lcd monitor

This monitor is pretty much at the top of the pile for outdoor use monitors. It has all the scopes in it along with adjustable frame lines, an electronic level for steadicam use and a whole bunch of other stuff. So if you are up in the top end of portable outdoor monitors, Transvideo's product should be on your list.

And finally...

There is a "Monitor Shootout" thread on the Steadicamforum site that is useful for those interested in outdoor & portable monitors. Charles Papert, who is a well noted DVINFO forum member, organized the "physical shootout" of something like 30 monitors and professional steadicam operators weighed in on the evaluation. They don't go into scope use but if you are going to buy a portable monitor you should be thinking about outdoor use as this is a significant portion of its functionality in real world use.

[Rafael Amador]

If I could, I wouldn't hesitate:

Broadcast Monitors

rafael