Glidecam - You were right, I was wrong, now what?
 

OK, so I decided to try the Glidecam with my VX2K. Got it yesterday, put it together and got a close balance on it and realized there is no way I am going to be able to hold that weight with my arm. Not enough muskles for sure, no matter how much spinach I eat.

So, now what? I can return the Glidecam but still would like to have something besides my arm to support the VX2K. I will be using this mostly for vacation videos, this year we're going back to Kenya for the migration. Most of the video will be from inside or on top of the Land Rover although there will be some walking. I took the camera to South Africa last year and although the video was great the movement/vibration of the camera is still noticeable. There probably won't be enough room to set up a tripod although a monopod might work (my hubbie stole mine for his 35mm camera last trip).

Any input would be appreciated.

On a different subject, has anyone bought the Hosatech XVM-101 cable lately? I would be using this to run between my K6/ME66 and camera but haven't had any luck finding it. B&H is out of stock and I called the 3 local music stores that are Hosatech distributors, they didn't have it either. They had the 105, a 5 foot version, but that will be way too long.

Thanks for everyones posts, I have been lurking out here for a few months and learn something new every day.

The 1 ft cable is really too short. Buy the 5 ft and cut it to 16 - 18". If you can't solder, someone at your local music store will do it for a few bucks. I think the 5 ft was about $1 more than the 1 ft.

Thanks Bryan. My husband was suggesting something similar if we couldn't find the cable soon. I've got this fancy new mic and I don't even know what it sounds like.

Hi neighbor! I have seen a stedi cam that might do the trick for you, but I forget who made it. It involves a harness like vest and a sort of boom/cable suspension device that hangs over your shoulder. It actually looked like the best method to me.

Varizoom also has something called the flow pod. It is a combo monopod and steadi cam. Although, Charles Papert said the one he tried was oly so-so.

Hello Jacki,
Have you tried using the arm brace for your Glidecam 2000/4000? It doesn't make the device effortless but it does move the load off of your wrist and up to the larger muscle groups in your bicep and shoulder. It's far more comfortable for longer periods.

You can try using Glidecam's "Body Pod" for the 2000/4000 but, frankly, I think it's worthless.

If a handheld stabilizer is just too much strain to use, your only alternative is a harness-based unit (at least for hand-held work). But you're looking at several thousand dollars of expense.

You could always just get a shoulder brace for your VX2K. It's not stabilization but it might be all that you need.

Yeah, I second Keith's suggestion of that thing, i'm pretty sure it's called a marzpak, but I forget how much it goes for though. It looks really goofy, and you probably wouldn't catch me with that thing anyday (because i'm too cool for that, :D JK) but it seems to work.

http://www.marztech.com/

ken...in this situation i agree, the body pod is only good if you need to park the stabilizer when not in use or to do very slow moves...anything more than this translates the operators movements into the camera. so for tracking shots with a 2000/4000 the arm brace is the only way to go.

The question becomes how much difference will the arm brace make. Let's not think "Young,muscular, professional dvcam operator" lets think "Short, middle aged woman who doesn't go to the gym as much as she should". Do you think the arm brace will work for me?

Alex, I have to agree, the Marztech is extremely goofy looking. Not sure if I would wear that either. I looked at the Varizoom web site, the Flow Pod looked like an expensive monopole. I an can tell that I would probably just use it as a monopole anyway.

Thanks for all your feedback.

Jacki,
(Still chortling at your self-description.) In my experience, the GC 2000/4000 is best used for short, planned shots. Not for shooting continuous, random footage as you might normally find on a vacation. Even with the arm brace I doubt that the GC 2000/4000 will be a practical solution for your needs. Using it from inside a car, even a Land Rover, might be a challenge since you need to have clear arm space.

As Casey notes, the Body Pod is fine for parking the GC while not in use. And you could conceivably shoot relatively stationary shots from it. But chasing wildlife across the plains of Africa...naw.

Your most practical solution for better shots while on the move may well be to just practice, practice, practice.

How about a balding, chubby, arthritic old fart with bad knees and CHF. I have a VX2K (3 lb) with a Optex.65 Wide Angle (12oz), ME66 mic.

I had spent the week in Vancouver and visited cavision. Bottom line is I arrived home with another 2 lbs of gear.

As luck would have it my brand spanking new "Gomer gear" was waiting. (My wife is a patient and understanding woman).

Bottom line is , in just a few hours of playing around I've found the MarzPak to be an amazing piece of gear. Goofy be damned! When my wife and daughter stop peeing themselves from laughing so hard they too will have to admit how really cool this rig is.

You can shoot with almost no stress on your arms or shoulder. I was able to hold a fully loaded camera and pan smoothly.

You can shoiot your video and carry your stuff in comfort. the marzpak is an extremely versitile packboard as well.

The quality and build of this device is amazing. It's really rare to see this kind of quality for this price.

Call the 800 number and talk to Christi. As well as being a wildlife videographer she sews and assembles these critters. Smart lady, she's exremely helpful and a really concientious business person. I'm a tough sell and I'm happy.

I bought the fanny pack assembly and plan on adding another equipment bag. I could even carry my tripod on the back of this thing if'n i so desired.

Jacki, it may be worth noting for your purposes that the Marzpak is best thought of as a way to transfer the weight of a handheld camera onto your body, allowing one to shoot handheld with much less fatigue. It is not, strictly speaking, a stabilizer. If the problems you are experiencing with your photography are caused by muscle fatigue (shaking hands etc), this may help considerably; but in the situation you described that involves driving in a Land Rover (not the cushiest suspension!) don't expect it to eliminate the bumps in a Steadicam fashion.

There's not nuch that'll take the bumps out of shooting from a land rover unless of course we're talking big bucks. The marzpak beats the snot out of a shoulder brace and is something that helps you shoot steadily for hours (on your feet) without cramping or getting the shakes.

The bungy when tensioned will smooth motion somewhat. I just thought that Jacki, like me didn't want to arm wrestle a camera with weights on it.

The other thing to note about the Marzpak is that it is technically a workout device far superior to anything Nordic-trak (tm) ever made.

After a 3 hour long session of frantically mastering the Marzpak I found myself exhausted and fell asleep on the couch to rest... Marzpak still mounted.

Well, as I slept my girlfriend unhooked my cam and in it's place she mounted a freshly unwrapped Ding-Dong (tm)... the gist of the story is that I lost 15lbs running around the neighborhood trying to "catch" it.

I'm sorry guys. Please don't kick me out of this board... but I also have to admit that I sometimes wear my Marzpak to the dance club with a disco ball mounted... I've got a Bescor video light superclamped to the Marzpak arm and it aims perfectly at the disco ball so that brilliant sparks of light spin across my every move... and the moves of the fine lady I'm dancing with.

The only bummer is that it's hard for me to get off the bus because every passenger is dancing in front of me all the way to the doors.

Matt
In this line your going to look like a knob 90% of the time anyway so why worry. . Have you ever tried the device???

I'm 58, with severe arthritis and congestive heart failure, this item helps, so be funny if that floats your boat. My wife has already stained the carpet so go for it.

It certainly is well contructed and does'nt resemble some of the home brew devices some people admit to using in public.

Seriously Bryan... I think it's a good device. I made a steady-stick using a monopod with weights on the bottom and it has an "overly-padded" grip... I shot a training tape for a local club and everybody kept making the same joke, "He brought his own dumbells..." I laughed with 'em 'cause I know my unusual methods produce good results.

The Marzpak is in that same category and truly, even if you show up with a true professional steady-rig (in the $20K PLUS range) people will have commentary.

I was just trying to have a little good natured fun... I guess I shouldn't read these posts while kicking back a couple Bud Lights.

I can see myself getting a Marzpak as soon as I can get a little better camera... earlier this year my dvx100 purchase was curtailed by an unexpected $4500 expense... for my little trv900 my steady-pod works pretty darn good, but with anything heavier I'll need help. Also I expect that with something of the Marzpak/Good Camera combo you should be able to get video that causes goosebumps... and for me that's what it's all about.

That said you can probably tell from my posts that I always have a good blooper real on the end of my own copy of anything I make. Even in a serious project I do a fair bit of joking around... I hope not to offend... only to entertain... pee-soaked pants are my trophy.

My daughter is coming to visit tomorrow and the wife has already briefed her on the "dork" rig. Seriously the construction and design is far from cheezi. I like well built stuff and this is well built. I was absolutely amazed. I thought for $400, it would be ok but what a surprise.

Matt
No offence taken, in fact i just mounted a rotating beacon and a bicycle horn on mine.

With respect to Jacki's original query, however, do you think that the Marzpak is a practical alternative for use inside a car? Having seen one of these devices, I can't imagine how it could be used in such close quarters (or anything beyond a simple shoulder brace, for that matter).

I responded to the part about the difficulty holding up the various paraphinalia, without giving the seated portion much thought. Standing or on top of the rover it would certainly be better than a shoulder brace. I don't think a shoulder brace is the answer either(for shooting seated in a car). Shooting seated, I think a mini rover with the arms pulled tight into the chest would be the best (without selling the farm). A brace would exagerate the rolling and pitching of the vehicle. I had a difficult time controlling my camera in a jeep in the Arizona desert. I had to grip the camera as described and roll with the movement.

Matt, you're a riot !

I was in Ft Lauderdale a week or so ago, shooting a pilot for MTV. There was a guy there with a mini Sony consumer cam on a steadi cam jr. That was pretty funny in it's self, considering the other 5 cams were XL1's, my GL1, and a DV cam.

What really took the cake, was watching this guy swish this thing around, swing it forward, swing it back, and he was even spinning the cam like a top! If I wasn't locked down, you would see my footage shake from the laughter!

Ken- Maybe she has a convertible? Sunroof? :)

This certainly got a lot more attention than I expected. You guys are great.

Yes, I think from your posts that using the Marzpak as an assist in carrying the camera fully loaded for a full day instead of using the GC as a stabilizer for perfect movie type shots is what I am looking for. The Land Rover has a roof hatch and really most of the footage is when the Rover is stopped and not moving.

Bryan and Matt, did you ever take the Marzpak with you on an airplane and was there any difficulty either breaking it down to pack in a suitcase and/or carry on the plane?

I'm going to give Christi a call for some more details on the Marzpak and, if nothing else, it will help keep the humor level up with the other couple who is going on safari with us. I don't know what the lions, wildebeasts and zebras are going to think, but I am sure they have seen funnier things pop out of those strange looking animals with wheels that hang around all the time.

Jacki- You could always hang vines from it, and disguise yourself as a bush. You wouldn't want to scare the wee beasties off...

It will easily knock down to 14" wide x 27" high x 5" deep and weighs around 7 lb. this coud fit into a soft sports bag or an equipment bag, even the bottom of a large suitcase.

Matt doesn't have one, he just likes to razz the old man.

It's extremely well built and should survive world travel very easily. Christi tells me she's given it a real torture test, including throwing it from a moving vehicle.

Keith, when you said wee beasties I thought maybe you were from the OTHER Melbourne. If you can image, my husband the engineer wanted to mount the microphone on a little remote operated car so we could drive it closer to the lions while they were eating to really capture the sounds of them munching and crunching. Great idea until they decide to munch and crunch the mic. Of coure, if they swallowed it whole we might get some other interesting noises until the thing finally quit working.

Now I am really disappointed. My next question was to Matt to ask if he would give me the specs on the disco ball he mounted to the top of his Marzpak. I can see it now, the ball twirling, the Land Rover radio playing "Circle of Life" and all the lions and elephants and giraffes and zebras and wildebeasts and impalas dancing around the jeep and singing.

I plan on ordering the Marzpak in the next couple of days, I'll let you all know how it works out.

Sorry to dissapoint Jacki, but I am from THIS Melbourne, not THAT Melbourne :)

However, you might be onto something with the remot control car... You could get one of those big 4x4 trucks, mount a small cam to it, and send it out to say hi to the lions. Extreme close ups!

Extreme close-ups is true. Now, I know for a fact that my Tilley hat is guaranteed forever. And someone elses Tilley even traveled through an elephants digestive tract, although by mistake I am assured, but I am not sure my Sony has that same warranty.

Jacki, when you tell the Tilley elephant story, I think you are required by law to mention that it ate the hat--SEVERAL TIMES. Quite the hoary Tilly chestnut, that anecdote. My Tilley is currently keeping the absurdly relentless New Orleans summer sun off my noggin while I toil here on a feature. No elephants in sight however.

Keith, I shot a segment for an MTV doc a good ten years ago with my JR and a Hi-8 camera (I think it was one of the first "The 80's--Where are they now" shows). It was during a great spate of time when Hi-8 had a "coolness" attached to it, definitely a short-lived fad compared to DV. Still, I managed to pay off both the camera and the JR in a few gigs.

Jacki, good luck with the Marzpack and the safari!

Jacki...

If the car's not moving whe you shoot, you might try out a sandbag to see how it works.

Have it sit on the sill of the window, then sit the camera upon it. Perhaps a custom-made one might work, something that can be quickly set up on the edge of the door's window.

The sandbag should be stuffed with something relatively lightweight like polyethelene beads or dried beans.

Just have to make sure no one else is fidgeting in the vehicle if you're using a long focal length.

Dean Sensui
Base Two Productions