It sounded like he was busy. Well,,,,, 1 week down... :)

Sorry for not posting the pics yet, I'll post them in the morning and give the link. I waited a good 5-6 weeks for mine. They are very busy but the wait is well worth it.

Magiq in action
 

I believe you can find some pictures of this rig being used on the site below. He's the same guy shown on the Magiq site.

www.3skullstudios.com/Past.html

Still no pics Mark? Your new wife is taking all of your time? :-)

sorry. just got back from my honeymoon....I promise the pics will come in the next day.

Thanks

Pics from the Honeymoon or ...

This might get interesting. That would certainly be a "magic" cam.

Yes, a stabilizer must be very handy for these shots! :-)

:( I just heard that my Magiqcam won't be ready for delivery next week. I am not sure what the delay is, but John said he would let me know more next week.

So the question for every owner is, aside from situps, what in the world did you do to pass the time before your rig arrived??

I know it will be worth the wait.

Well, I gotta say that muscle conditioning alone did only a little to help the learning curve I have been experiencing.
The finesse factor is very high and setup has been critical.
I still struggle with the balance of the rig as far as it changing during use.
At first I was simply over muscling the rig and that definitly led to the back fatigue I first felt.
Now I've learned to be more relaxed but, I still SUCK!
My first shoot is Friday.
Oh boy!!!

Start studying classic Steadicam sequences! It's a great way to get your mind into designing moving frames.

Here are some titles to get you started:

The Shining
Goodfellas
Point Break (Keanu walking through HQ at beginning)
Pulp Fiction

For beautiful, long marathon shots (not necessarily great films, caveat emptor!)
Bonfire of the Vanities (opening scene)
Raising Cain (walk & talk with Linda Hunt through lobby)
Carlito's Way (Grand Central chase towards end)
Outbreak (walkthrough CDC at beginning)
and currently the jaw-dropper: Russian Ark, a 90 minute continuous Steadicam shot...!

It doesn't matter that these were made with rigs that cost 50x as much as a Magiqcam; the principles are the same and there's a lot to be learned there. Even though it takes a while to get good at the physical side of operating, the mental aspect is really the fun part. Study the framing, the headroom, the transitions and the blocking of actors and architecture. It'll be worth it!

A little aside, but hopefully not too OT, but what are the most used muscles for stabilisers like the Magiqcam, Steadycam etc? Is lower back the best? Abs? I ask cause I have been thinking about investing in something like this but I have, for many years, had a a slightly less than perfect lower back. Small amount of deterioration and curvature loss. Now this is not a super major thing in everyday stuff, but I was wondering if it's something I should be very aware of before going down the stabiliser route?

Cheers
Aaron

Aaron, you pretty much pinned it. Lower back, generally focused on the same side as the arm is attached to the vest (some people fly on the right, others on the left). It's important to say that it's not inherently BAD for your back, it's just that there aren't many activities that consistently use those muscles to that degree so most people are a bit weak in that area. That said, having a pre-existing condition goes a step further, so Aaron, you may want to spend some time with a rig before making your purchase.

As far as traditional exercises that can be done without a rig that help in that area: anything to do with the abs is good as it will help relieve the burden on the back muscles as well as help your posture. Gym-equipment-wise, the back extension machine as well as the Roman chair will both specifically target the muscle groups required.

Thanks Charles. Guess I'll have to get a bit stronger before I dive into one of these things then ;)

Cheers
Aaron

When I first got my Glidecam V16 back in April of this year, I couldn't last for more than 5 minutes. One of the exercise that I have doing on a nightly basis is back stretching. My first job (1 week after I got my Gldiecam) with the Glidecam was for a local cable company taping a show from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM (with breaks in between). At the end of the day I was drenched in sweat and my back was killing me. I really felt it the next day.

My second shoot was for a fashion show back in May and it was a lot better. The back pain was still there but not to the point where I couldn't move.

My latest job was to shoot a wedding reception. The reception started at 7:30 til about midnight. I was strapped with the Glidecam the whole night and there was no noticeable back pain this time. I taped the wedding party entering the reception, the first dance (flying around the couple), the games, speeches, and the dancing ....

The key is to stretch the back and practice every night. You'll also notice that the first time, getting the horizon levelled will be a challenge.

My next gig is flying the Glidecam V16 here in Montreal in the Canada Day Parade (July 1st).

Good luck