I just shot a gig with my sony vx2000 and glidecam 2000 and while I liked a lot of the shots, most of them seemed to "get away from me". Is this normal? Perhaps I was trying to do too much with the glidecam. I was doing some walking with it as well as circling people.

With the side view finder open and the weights slightly to the right is seems to have good side to side balance. The front to back balance seems a little off. It is sometimes hard to keep it stable for more that a few seconds. Will this improve with more practice or do I need some weight or any other tips?

Maybe I should try not to do so many "large" movements with it...thoughts?

Brian,
It's "normal" for a novice user. It takes a great deal of practice and discipline to use an inertial stabilizer properly and effectively. (It also takes a bit of arm strength when using the GC 2000.) This is not an instantly acquired skill.

First practice balancing the camera correctly, then practice controlling its movement. Search for some guidance in this section of DVInfo, particularly in some posts by Charles Papert.

Just hire Charles P. to shoot it for you!!!

:) RB

Brian, Ken is right on the money with his reply. I came from a grip background which may put me in front of the eightball but still took loads of practice. I use a pD-150 and with weights and all, it weighs a ton. I was shooting a friends wedding and was gliding in and around people with the greatest of smooth motion. It brought me back to my gripping days and looking back at the footage.....totally awesome. Mind you, after using the glidecam for about 1.5hours my arm was tired. But l like to call a spade a spade and tell you it is hard to get use too but just keep practicing as persistence will pay off on the screen. regards Michael

Echoing... it takes practice, practice, practice.

I have a brief clip from last summer in this clip. The drumline at 7 seconds, the parts with the band in street clothes at 14 seconds, and the kids knock each other down at 20 seconds.

http://www.versatilemediasolutions.com/Files/Advertbest.wmv

This is after another year of usage about 3 weeks ago. The passing shots at 17 and 24 seconds. The bean stirring inbetween may have been too.

http://www.versatilemediasolutions.com/Files/georgia.wmv

I have been using it for about two years and I still have my moments and have to reshoot.

Make sure you get your drop time into that 2-3 second range. You have the best control there. Also, I like to balance mine with the handle about 45 degrees to the right (my strong hand) as I tend to fall into that stance with the camera in front of me with my left hanf fingers lightly on the post just under the bearing.