Terence Morris
June 21st, 2010, 10:41 AM
Hi guys,
I'm new to this group. Since I got my Canon Vixia HF S100 last year I've played around with a few ideas to keep the little guy stable. Not "jogging with Rocky" stable, but at least some improvement for everyday use.
The contraption in the photo has gone through several evolutions, but this now is the settled on solution. The 5/8" aluminum rod used on the vertical and side-arm pieces is hardware store bought, cost $20 for 3ft and cuts easily with a hacksaw. The other bits are throw-offs from various hobbies. The angle clamp that attaches the side-arm is from a broken mic stand (those cheapo Chinese ones that cost ~$25). It can easily be slid up and down and variously angled according to preference and comfort. The chunky rubber hand-grip is a for a BMX bike ($10 a pair). The camera attachment piece on the top is actually a dual flash bracket for still photography that I paid $20 for and never used. It has a slidable standard camera thumb screw on one side, on the other is a flash shoe to which I attached a 5/8" dia. mic adaptor (that's the Rode M3 in case you are interested).
I find the angle backet, which is heavyish steel, gives enough extra mass to help reduce micro-movements as well as lowering the centre of gravity, producing a slight gimbal effect.
The system is very comfortable in prolonged use for my documentary stuff and I have much improved stability when holding shots, slow walking and panning etc. Another benefit for me is for street interviews; the slight displacement of the lens to the right means my subject isn't staring along the camera axis, but a little off axis, giving a less POV look and more a two man (cameraman + interviewer) set-up look.
Terence
I'm new to this group. Since I got my Canon Vixia HF S100 last year I've played around with a few ideas to keep the little guy stable. Not "jogging with Rocky" stable, but at least some improvement for everyday use.
The contraption in the photo has gone through several evolutions, but this now is the settled on solution. The 5/8" aluminum rod used on the vertical and side-arm pieces is hardware store bought, cost $20 for 3ft and cuts easily with a hacksaw. The other bits are throw-offs from various hobbies. The angle clamp that attaches the side-arm is from a broken mic stand (those cheapo Chinese ones that cost ~$25). It can easily be slid up and down and variously angled according to preference and comfort. The chunky rubber hand-grip is a for a BMX bike ($10 a pair). The camera attachment piece on the top is actually a dual flash bracket for still photography that I paid $20 for and never used. It has a slidable standard camera thumb screw on one side, on the other is a flash shoe to which I attached a 5/8" dia. mic adaptor (that's the Rode M3 in case you are interested).
I find the angle backet, which is heavyish steel, gives enough extra mass to help reduce micro-movements as well as lowering the centre of gravity, producing a slight gimbal effect.
The system is very comfortable in prolonged use for my documentary stuff and I have much improved stability when holding shots, slow walking and panning etc. Another benefit for me is for street interviews; the slight displacement of the lens to the right means my subject isn't staring along the camera axis, but a little off axis, giving a less POV look and more a two man (cameraman + interviewer) set-up look.
Terence