Julian Frost |
April 20th, 2008 01:05 AM |
Quote:
Originally Posted by R. L. Appling
(Post 863763)
Julian - I have a 4000 on a smooth shooter rig. My camera is a HVX200. I am interested in your opinion about getting that static balance that is so elusive. Now I have been told that the heavier the rig is with the camera attached the more inertia that I have working for me in maintaining the COG and static balance. I try to keep it light for obvious reasons. What is your experience in that regard?
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Well, I'm brand new to all of this... my Glidecam having arrived only yesterday, so I'm probably not the best person to ask. That said, my rig is pretty heavy as it is, and my back is complaining mightily! I have a total of 6 weights on the base plate. When I originally set it up, I had only 4, but found the rig was too light and moved off vertical too easily.
Quote:
As far as the shifting of weight, all I can say is I remove EVERYTHING off of the camera that is not needed, I put everything that remains in exactly the same position that it would be in when I needed it. I use a quick release slide plate and a white grease pencil to mark where I place the unit when it is balanced.
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I have nothing attached to the camera at all. I've marked the LCD position by cutting marks into the camera's plastic LCD mount. If I align the marks, it's always in the same position! I have a quick release mount on the Head Plate too, and once I achieved static balance, I used a sharp knife and scratched into the paint at the front and rear ends of the QR plate. So far, I haven't removed the camera from the Glidecam 4000 Pro since getting it... though my internal speaker on the XH-A1 just quit, so it'll have to go down the road to Canon Irvine for repair. I'm sure when it comes back, I'll have to go through the entire re-balancing act again after they shift wires around inside!
Quote:
Now it is possible for the unit to "settle in" but if everything is tight and remains unmoved I cant see how it would chance COG on you.
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I was wondering about "settling in" myself. We'll see what happens over the next few weeks or so.
I've just watched a Steadycam setup video on Youtube ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ns9gk...ature=related), and boy, he balanced the entire thing in about 15 seconds! The thumb screws which move the head plate forward/back and left/right REALLY make life easy... unlike the Gidecam's "pull the plate with your fingers and hope you move it enough/not too much" experience. It would be really nice to be able to modify the Head Plate so it has the same adjustment dials as the Steadycam.
By the way, take a look at my other post, tell me if you think I'm barking up the wrong tree!
http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/showthread.php?t=119788
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