John, my kudos also, great job. You're well on your way!

Since you have the basics down so well, I'm going to throw some advanced stuff at ya. I'm guessing from the you are about 8"-12" taller than your girlfriend. Maintaining consistent headroom on folks that are shorter or taller when the distance to them is in constant variance can be tricky. Your best weapon is using the boom capacity of the arm to make small adjustments in headroom, rather than tilting. With a single section arm like on the V-8, you don't have as much range as a dual section arm but there is still a solid foot of adjustment possible.

In your footage, when you are backing out of the bedroom one can see the headroom increasing steadily as the distance increases between you. The first inclination to deal with this is to tilt down, but as you have probably noticed, the tilt axis is the most challenging to control. This is due to the expanded vertical nature of the rig; you are moving a lot of mass during a tilt vs a pan, for instance. Booming up or down will allow you to make those subtle adjustments in headroom much easier, since booming is an independent function from pan/tilt/roll. Check this out sometime by booming up and down quickly without your other hand on the rig, and notice that that pan/tilt/roll is virtually unaffected. Compare that to a fast tilt, where it is much harder to stop the rig without it "swimming around" (infecting the other axes, resulting in a sloppy hold). You can see a little of that at the very end of your clip, where you tilted down as your girlfriend sat on the sofa. So, play around with having someone stand at the end of the hallway, and you walk up to them and back away from them; watch the headroom closely to keep it consistent and notice how the boom can really help out with that.

Guys, thanks for all the kudos :-)

Charles, great advice, thanks a million, I'll see if I can put it into practice for my next attempt :-)

I must say it's really great to have a guy like yourself on this board, being able to put up a clip and get feedback like this so quickly from an expert operator really is amazing.

Stay tuned....... :-)

John.

John,

The footage you posted looks good. I hope I can pull off something half as smooth with my first attempt.

I just got mine...and I'm in the process of putting it together and balancing it. I see what you mean about the manual--a few photos in it would make quite a bit of difference. Glidecam, I realize that the "How to use a Glidecam" video is another moneymaker for you, but I really think that there should be an assembly and balancing video included...if not as a video then online.

Wish me luck.

John,

Mind if I ask you what type of camera you've setup your Glidecam for and how many plates you wound up using below the camera mount?

I used three, the recommended setup for an XL1...but it seems very top-heavy.

John, i'd say three plates is a little a much...especially if you're using a quick release on the head? not sure if you are...in this case one or none.

Thanks, Casey...I'll try that out.

I've been wondering about something you said earlier...

<<Drill a hole in the back of the center post about an inch or so underneath the head...and another directly out the bottom of the sled base, right in the center of the post where it connects to the base plate. File the holes a little bit so they are nice and smooth and run an RG59 video cable in there (without any connectors)...>>

What if, instead of drilling the hole in the back of the center post, you drill the hole exactly opposite the bottom plate...in other words, straight down through the base of the "bottom half" of the top plate so that the cable drops straight through the post from top to bottom, then the excess cable can be snaked under top half of the sliding top plate to connect to the camera. That way, there's no cable anywhere in the post region. How do you think that would operate...and would that void the warranty?

Tex,

"Chisai (small) washer" is what you should ask for. Skoshi does mean little but it isn't used in this context. The actual Japanese word for washer is "zagane", but it isn't used anymore.

Hi John, I didn't realise you'd have yours so soon or I'd have hurried up doing a little training video, if you still feel that you could do with some video tips I can knock one up, just let me know. Anyway I'm using the V8 with a Sony VX2000 which is quite a bit lighter than the XL1 so I've got 5 weight plates with a quick release plate on top. I started out with all the plates on top and like yourself found it was just a bit too top heavy, so I only had to remove one to make it balance out.

Good luck with getting setup, and If I can use my whole weeks worth of experience to help you out then let me know :-) BTW how does it balance when you spin 180, does it need a washer?

Looking forward to seeing some footage :-)

John.

john, i would not recommend trying to snake the cable through the sliding components of the head...i actually looked at doing that once and decided (don't remember the exact reason) that it wasn't a viable solution...easiest and safest method is to drill into the back of the post just under the head.

Hey John S.

I will be purchasing the v-8 for use with my DVX100 in a few weeks so Id DEFINITELY appreciate a training video. :) Thanx!

-Emery

OK no probs Emery, I'll knock one up :-)

John.

John,

Finally got mine balanced last night. It took quite awhile to get it just right. I'm not sure what you mean by using the washer on the gimble. Mine seems to be pretty well balanced...or maybe I'm just unbalanced, therefore it seems balanced.

The only problem I came across was attaching the quick release plate to the top of the camera mount on the sled. I used two bolts and tightened it down securely, then realized that the tightening knob was pressed so tightly against the top of the camera mount (since it's flush against it) that I couldn't turn it either way. So, I worked around this by putting a washer on each bolt between the quick release plate bottom and the camera mount top. This created a small gap that allows the quick release knob to be turned a half turn. It still doesn't tighten down as tight as I'd like it to, so I'll be using one of the side bolt holes on the QR to create another knob.

Now I'm starting to move around with it and trying to get the feel of it. It's damn difficult to keep it perfectly steady!! (Charles, you have my undying appreciation now)

I'll start the real tests this coming weekend.

I know something I would like to see. If you run (not at full speed but a little bit faster then walking) but the trick is, run like you didn't have the glidecam. I would love to see how the video turns out.. Just to have a guide to how much the pratice actually does when it comes to gliding a camera.

/Andreas

Hi John, I'll post a picture of the washer mod, but it would be pretty obvious if you needed it. When the sled is balanced on the balancing pin, spin it round 180 degrees, if it doesn't stay level then you would need the washer, if it's OK then there's nothing to worry about :-)

John.

Charles,

Is there any special technique required for going up and down stairs?

John.

Well, uh...not falling??!

Seriously, just be careful more than anything. Going any direction on stairs there's always a possibility of tripping, and even a short fall can be dangerous while wearing all this hardware.

That said, a long drop time or presetting the tilt can be useful. To elaborate:

When performing a shot that is exclusively following someone down stairs for instance, crank the camera forward on the top platform so that the rig naturally angles forward. This way you don't have to exert any force to hold it in that position.

If that same shot were to continue onto level ground, it would be awkward to continue operating in this fashion. Thus, it is usually preferred to lengthen the drop time i.e. make the rig less bottom-heavy. Now it requires less force to hold the rig at an angle for the stairs, and the same force to straighten it back up again at the bottom. The disadvantage is that the rig becomes more sensitive and a lighter touch is needed.

As far as the physical aspect of walking backwards or not when preceding an actor up or down stairs, this becomes a personal issue. I know many operators who are able to climb stairs backwards. I find it extremely difficult myself. The alternative is to work in Don Juan, which is where you spin the rig 180 degrees around so that it is pointing behind you, so you can walk forwards/shoot back. Disadvantage here is that your sightline to the monitor is a little funky and you can't see the actors as easily, but it's the best way to go in a high-speed situation.

If you have a copy of "American History X", you can watch the toughest stairs shot I have had to do to date (and hopefully for all time!) in the first scene, where Edward Norton runs down the stairs in his house, gun in hand. It required going in and out of Don Juan during the shot, plus a few stops and starts, with a particularly heavy camera and a lot of takes. Not pretty. One particularly amazing stairs shot comes in "Contact" when the little girl (Jodie Foster's character in a flashback) runs up to the bathroom--some great CGI in that shot that overshadows the flat-out preceding run by the operator.

Another thing about stairs: very often it can be quite unflattering to shoot someone on stairs because of the angle. As much fun as it can be in theory ("look! I can move the camera down stairs and it doesn't bounce"), the viewer is usually unaware of the coolness of it and it may be just as effective to watch the subject enter the stairwell from one end, then cut to the other end as they emerge.

lol, Good advice Charles, not falling, thats where I'm going wrong :-) I was going to add that to the standard steadicam positions aswell and call it the "Ass first" :-)

Seriously, thanks for the tips, I've not seen American History X, my friend has it so I'll borrow it and check out the move you were referring to. I don't know if I'll have much call for going up and down stairs but at least I've got some info on it If I need to. :-)

Thanks.

John.

John,

Did you get the L4-Pro monitor from Glidecam along with your V-8? I'm not really clear on the hookup. I found some BNC-to-RCA adaptors for the monitor. Anyone know how exactly do I go from a two-video-input setup on the monitor to a one-video-input on my XL-1?

the L-4 is a two input monitor...pick one =) use the lil switch to select which input is shown...one bnc - rca will do ya

Doh! The little switch! It's always a little switch, isn't it?

You can't imagine how much time I've spent trying to figure out how to split a video signal from the XL1 to two BNC inputs. (sigh)

Thanks, Casey!

John don't worry mate, we won't tell anyone ;)

to tell ya the truth i've never used the second input...but its there if ya need it i guess.

Hi John,

I actually got the L5-pro monitor with mine because the L4 wasn't available in PAL, so wouldn't have been able to help, it's a good thing Casey was here :-)

How are you getting on with it anyway?

John.

Yeah...I'd never dealt with a BNC connection before...that kind of threw my world out of sync for awhile. But things are back to normal now. Thanks again, Casey.

John, things are going pretty good. I think I've got a pretty good balance...now I'm just working on technique. I'm noticing I have a proclivity to the left. So, I'm off tomorrow to find a bubble level to put on top of the monitor. If I get any good footage between now and this weekend, I'll post it (no promises).

How about you? Tried any stairs yet?

Hi John, I'm getting on pretty good, It's amazing how much easier the body mounted system is to use over the handheld so I'm really just trying to get as much practice in as I can, I Tried a couple of stair shots, just perfecting the "Ass first" technique :-) I nearly did it a couple of times aswell :-)

Looking forward to checking out some of your footage

John.

John L:

A bubble level is a great choice. I would recommend getting two, and mounting one under the camera mounting platform to the rear so that you can true the one on the monitor to allow for angular discrepancies there.

Be aware that it takes a while to learn to interpret the feedback from a spirit level. It is affected by acceleration, so you can't trust it during turns or lateral moves except when the speed is constant. In other words, if you are sliding sideways and come to a stop, the bubble will "keep going" and eventual level out, even if the camera itself is level the whole time. Most of us use levels (in the higher end rigs they are built in and have an electronic display on the monitor) but there are some high profile operators out there who don't use them at all.

If you have successfully balanced the rig and still find your shots are leaning to one side, you are probably applying too much force with the operating hand. While in the middle of a straightaway, trying releasing your touch to a barely perceptible level; if the camera straightens up, you know it is your input that is causing it to pitch over.

Well, you hit the nail on the head first swing, Charles. I guess I'm concentrating on so many things, I didn't realize that I was applying so much force with the operating hand. I start out with a light touch, but by the end I'm hanging on with both hands like a man dangling over the side of a bridge.

Ah...practice, practice, practice.

Thanks for the tip about getting a second bubble level. I'll do that right away.

John S....so you've actually done an "ass first" stairway shot! The closest I've gotten to that was a "face first" elevator shot...really easy. ;) Actually, as I was leaving my apartment to go down to practice outside my building, I was going down the elevator fully-rigged when it stopped on another floor so someone could get on. When the door opened, this Japanese woman actually stepped back startled...and passed on taking my elevator. I guess these things look a bit intimidating.

Yeah, I'm sure we must look a bit strange to our neighbours, I was running around our underground car park last night and bumped into one of my neighbours, he was like "What the hell is that thing for" Oh well I thought everyone knew what a steadicam was :-) Needless to say he was very impressed when I explained it's purpose.

John.

John L:

Something that I used to do to mentally help with the "deathgrip" syndrome is whenever I caught myself white-knuckling the rig, I would squeeze tighter with the hand that is on the gimbal handle (this may be your left or right hand, don't know which side of the body you work off), which would cause me to loosen my grip on the post. Sort of a little Jedi mind trick I'd play on myself, but it worked.

The other thing that will help keep the grip lighter in both hands is making sure that you are not "muscling" the arm to keep it in position, which has to do with the angle that the rig hangs off your body. In a perfect world, you should be able to let go of the rig with both hands and it should just sit in front of you. If it has a tendency to fall away from the body or to one side, you need to compensate by leaning your body (hips, really) in the opposing direction. I don't think the V8 has an adjustment to compensate for the angle of the arm which would assist in this, so it's up to you to find the appropriate body position. By doing this, you will discover that it takes significantly less force to maintain the position of the arm (gimbal handle hand), and that will help keep the other grip lighter as well.

GlideCam Modification
 

Going back a few posts, Casey didn't recommend snaking the wires up and through the post- we modified our V-20, running a pair of small cables through the center post, but we used cable that was coiled (for video and power) and had an elastic property-you can adjust the length of the post without having to worry about how much (or how little!) cable you have left, and we also have the Vista Post and Low Mode mounts and have no problem with them. We also used rubber grommets so we didn't have to worry about the cables being worn down by the aluminum. I've found that any wires that CAN get caught on something usually do, so anytime you can eliminate them, do it.

I think someone else posted about which GC to get- I don't work for them, but if you are expecting to move up to a V16 or 20 from an 8, just go ahead and get the 16 or 20 (if you can afford it!!!!), even if you have the smaller camera now- the tension in the arm can be adjusted for the weight of a smaller camera. The vest is different between the 8 and 16, but not between the 16 and 20,and if memory serves me correctly, the sled is about the same.

Good to read your posts, Charles. Really helps out.

Glad to hear it Scott...

I did a TV movie in Charlotte about 6 years ago. Nice people down there. I guess there used to be a lot more of that sort of thing until all that type of production went to Canada.

good point scott, our gold rigs have the center cabling coiled in such a manner. keep in mind though that the center post on the v-8 has a much smaller inside diameter than the 16 or 20...so if going the coil route make sure the coil will fit comfortably inside the smaller of the post sections...in this case the base portion of the sled.

Well, I've barely had time to practice with it...too busy...and turns out I'm shooting a film with it this weekend. Aaargh. Pray for me.

Best of luck John, let us know how it goes :-)

John.

Hey John,

How did your shoot go with the V8 at the weekend?

John.

hey so what happened with that training video... I put off getting my v-8 but I feel my purchase is just arounfd the corner now. :)

-Emery

:-) Sorry Emery, it's been a busy couple of weeks, my day job really gets in the way of this video stuff :-) I'll try and get one done for you, but don't worry it's not too hard to get everything setup if you get you're V8 before I get myself in order.

John.

oh no problem, I just thought it would be nice to have one to look at. Take ur time... just thought Id let you know theres still people out there that would appreciate it. Thanx!

-Emery

John,

That shoot I'd mentioned above was canceled at the last minute...so aside from some dabbling with it, I hadn't put my V-8 to a real test until today (took me long enough, eh?).

I was shooting in a crowded market, filming a hitman/target chase scene...weaving in and out of people and traffic...god I love this V-8! It really was great to work with. I've got a long ways to go before I'll learn to keep it ultra steady like the pros, but it was a huge improvement over normal handheld shooting.

My monitor went out for some reason while filming...I still see that it has turned on, but the video feed wasn't showing. At first, it was...then it just stopped. Strange...but I don't think it's anything too major to repair. Consequently, I had to guesstimate the shots...then rewind and check each one to make sure I guesstimated correctly before moving on to the next shot. Still, they came out okay.

One thing--I already had a lot of respect for Charles and other pros who work with rigs like these hour after hour...but after today's six hour shoot...they have my PROFOUND respect! I don't think I'll be able to stand up straight for a week...my back is throbbing right now. I can't imagine lugging around a huge rig for a major film all day long, day after day. Charles, you must have a back like Arnold Schwarzenegger.

About the only part of me that could POSSIBLY be mistaken for a Ah-nuld may just be those elusive lower back muscles--well, not really! But I will admit that 17 years of "humping the beast" has left me with some good armour back there.

Yup, John, it sure can be a bear. There are various tricks and rest positions etc., but one of the main things is to remember to dock it when you're not shooting. Even before fatigue sets in, the clock is ticking!

Looking forward to seeing some of your footage, will you post it?

Charles,

I'm doing post now for the June 1 release...I'll post something here to let you know when it's up. Watch it at your own risk, though. It's chock full of operator errors...overswing, floating horizon, and one that I couldn't seem to overcome...the leaning that comes with momentum when starting off quickly. It was a lot of fun...but it was a lot more difficult than I thought it was going to be.

I'll take your advice about docking whenever possible. I pretty much carried it the whole time we were shooting and just tried to shift the weight from one side to the other while at rest.