Noah Yuan-Vogel |
March 17th, 2010 12:12 PM |
I use the Cavision Cavision Shoulder Pad System Package with Dual Handgrips system which is now $195 at BH. Seems sturdy enough for me especially with a 7D and i especially like the grips and the price, only annoyances are the rods are fiberglass and scratch easily and the camera plate isnt easily adjusted without an allen key.
Then I got a new matte box on ebay from an indian seller that from what i can tell is exactly the same unit that indifocus sells but is only $99 compared to $349. surprisingly good matte box for the price, my only problem with it is that the connection from the plastic matte box to the metal rod mount is a little flimsy and i may add some reinforcement myself. The matte box is almost exactly this one http://thecinecity.com/tcc/product.p...0&bestseller=Y but without the rod system and with extra adjustable top and bottom flags built in inside of the unit which i really like since the french flag isnt great. if you want something like that, you might want to email them, they'll usually give you a discount if you talk to someone over email and they might sell the matte box by itself for cheap. when i ordered mine the one i got was constantly listed on an ebay store but they dont seem to be anymore.
I have a DXA-5D under my 7D and I think with this setup you would want a quick release system or mixer under your camera as a riser since most accessories dont work with a 7D as it sits very low to the rods without something underneath it. More than anything the DXA-5D is awefully flimsy especially with a bigger lens. I also have a <$300 cinecity indian follow focus which is ok for the price except that cavision has a basic follow focus that looks more worthwhile now.
Overall its a shoulder support/mattebox system I'd recommend for $300 considering ive used worse systems for twice the price, every system seems to have its issues unless you have $4000 to spend on arri gear (even then im sure there will be minor issues). I've had zacuto and redrock equipment break in my hands without misuse...
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