Jib with remote heads for 35mm cameras

[Kundal Saab]

Hi guys,

I dont know any brands/companies that make jibs so here I am, asking you guys.

I need to buy a jib to handle 35mm cameras (ARRI 3, 435, etc). Something with a remote head so I can pan/tilt it around. Would this be a complete package or does the jib come seprately from the remote head? Please recommend some good ones.

Anywhere where I can buy a used one?

Please help, there's only so much one can "google".

Thanks,
Kundaal.

[Charles Papert]

The head will generally be a separate item from the arm itself, except in the case of the Triangle from Jimmy Jib (jimmyjib.com). That's something you should look into as being probably the most cost-effective for the payloads you are describing.

If you think you will be needing more beef to the head (i.e. you might be working with sound cameras and/or long zooms as well down the road), your most inexpensive bet will be an older generation Power Pod or Hot Head. They were industry standard 10 or 15 years ago and will do the job and can be bought relatively inexpensively now (maybe $20K vs $60K and up for a modern digital head). There are any number of cranes and jibs out there, a lot depends again on the intended payload and flexibility in build length.

For this type of setup I'd recommend you post this question in boards that cater more to the film industry rather than DV boards.

[Gabriel Yeager]

I don't know much... But I do know that These people use a Scorpio III Head. I'm not sure if it will work on a jib or not. But I thought it was worth mentioning just incase.

Best of luck!
~Gabriel~

[Jaron Berman]

http://www.cineused.com/

[Charles Papert]

The Scorpio is a great gyro-stabilized head. I've used that along with the Gyron Stab-C and the Lev head (as well as the Libra which I don't like as much). They all work on cranes and jibs as needed.

Thing is that these are all top-of-the-line 3 axis stabilized heads and I couldn't even begin to put a price on them, they are well over $1000 a day to rent.

A simple 2-axis analog head is probably more along the lines of what we are talking about here.

[Kundal Saab]

thanks guys...

so far the jimmyjib way seems the most doable for me, everything else is horribly expensive. But they also take around 6 months to deliever!! i'll write to them and see what they say...

Charles, whats a 3-axis stablized head? or a 2-axis one for that matter?

has anybody heard of panther cranes/jibs?

yes, this probably belongs in a film industry forum more than here, but i have a lot of faith in DVI, i've had more problems solved here than anywhere else :-)

[Charles Papert]

Pan and tilt are the standard two axes. Adding the roll capability (horizon) is a 3-axis head. This capability will add to the weight and expense of the head, but often it is a removeable option (meaning you can configure the head with or without it as needed). The roll axis can come in handy when tilted straight down, because the pan and roll effectively swap in function in this instance. A little hard to describe.

A standard head will remotely move the camera as desired via the controller. A stabilized head will additionally remove vibration and unwanted movement via gyros, servo motors etc. It's ideal for vehicle mounting for this reason. A typical example of this would be the news helicopter cameras that are housed in the white bubble under the bird; we've all seen the super-telephoto images of car chases and police activity made possible by these heads. You can really see the effect if its been raining and the drops of water are visible on the plexi panel that covers the lens--the drops seem to be vibrating and moving around!

Panther is a German company that makes dollies and jibs that are popular in Europe, less so in the States.

I suggest you also look at egripment.com, they are another European company that make heads and arms.