Portable wind blocker
 

Hi,

I am working with the EX3 and long Nikon still lenses. I realize that even the lightest breeze introduces unacceptable vibrations. I don't think a heavier tripod or camera+lens support can avoid that.
I feel the only way to get rid of these vibrations is to protect the camera+lens from the wind. I bought a big umbrella which I mount on a separate tripod and it seems to do the trick.
I wonder if anyone else uses this or a similar solution.

Cheers,

Ofer Levy Nature Photographer

Well I guess it can also keep the camera dry too? With a decent tripod and head, I don't have any problems - and I live in a really windy exposed area. I did some stuff recently where I could hardly stand up, but the images were solid

Thanks for your input Paul, what tripod and head do you use? I guess you are using relatively short lenses. I am referring to a 3000mm effective lens which I really don't see how it can be used in strong wind with no vibrations, but I would be very happy to learn.

Thanks,
Ofer

Ofer,

It looks like you have found the one big draw back with long lenes. You can get it stable but you do need good mounting plates/rails, a top range tripod HD tripod ( I see you are in AUS havea look at the top end Millers). You then need to make sure it is well balanced so that it remains postioned where ever you angle it. Then its down to plenty of practice.

Hope this helps

Regards

Mick

Thanks Mick, I have discovered Miller tripods and I am using nice CF Miller legs as welll as the very nice Miller Arrow 25 fluid head....(-:
However, as I have said, I don't think any tripod/head/balancing/practice can totally eliminate the vibrations caused by the wind when using very long lenses.

Hi Ofer,

I also use a twenty five which I got from direct from Millers here in the uk. Fortuanetly they are close to where I live and was able to do a lot of testing in their with one of their aussie directors whilst he was here in the UK . I use it with Canon XL1h. I have to agree with you It is difficult to keep steady. Another tip I forgot to mention is to keep the legs wide and the camera not to high. Another thought would be to use a portable hide for protection. Most of my filming here in the Uk is in forest conditions which does tend to act as a bit of a wind break.

I know it sounds odd but useing rails with a mount that lifts the camera 1.5cm above the tropod mount gives a better centre of gravity and more stability.

Sorry can't be of any more help

Regards

Mick

Thanks Mick, I think a portable hide is the ultimate solution for this problem. However, I currently film with the tripod legs nearly fuyyy extended so a hide wouldn't be tall enough. I think the umbrella is a reasonable solution but I need to test it some more.

Cheers,

Ofer

You can also hang a sand bag from the hook under the tripod head or even lay the sandbag over the camera. Obviously, the heavier and sturdier your tripod is the better off you'll be.

I have tested my system (Canon XLH1,Canon 100-400 zoom, Bogen 516 head, Gitzo Studex very heavy tripod) and found that the wind instability seems to be greatest at the point where the camcorder attaches to the head via the mounting plate. My "research" consisted of wiggling parts of the system. There was very little wiggle in the legs, regardless of the substrate they were on. The same with the head itself, but wiggling the camcorder gave huge movements (telephoto speaking) both horizontally and vertically and the movement seemed to be centered at the joint mentioned above.
Ofer, your idea of an umbrella on a tripod sounds intriguing, but how do you keep it from just blowing into you and the camcorder in a stiff breeze? Also as far as portability, it doesn't seem like a setup that would be too airline friendly with their new baggage restrictions and costs.
One last question. It seems (at least with my setup) that wind causes bigger vertical than horizontal movements. Does anyone else see that? It's counterintuitive.

Hi Ofer,

I have just spoken to a friend who films a lot of wildlife footage for the BBC. He uses mainly hire gear depending on the budget. His advise is similiar to what has already been said. His tripod of choice would be a Ronford Baker, heavy duty camera mounting supporting both camera and lens. This eliminates most problems vibrations. High winds are always going to be trouble its a matter of as you say is shielding. He would keep the legs wide and low to the ground and wherever film from a sheltered location. If this is not possible then its a matter of spending long enough in the field to obtain enough footage in the hope that some of it may be usable.

If it is of help during editing I have recently had to resort to a stabilisation program Prodad Maccelli (I think that is how it is spelt) This was to stabilise some tiger footage shoot from the back of an elephant.

Regards

Mick

Hi Steve,
I am using it for light winds so when attached to my spare Miller Solo CF tripod there is no problem. Regarding portability - this is not something I would take to climb the Everst but for every day use its not that bad.

Thanks again for your helpful input guys!

Hi Ofer,
I just had a look at your website. I love your photos. One that did catch my attention though was the one of your bub holding onto the leg of your tripod with your camera attached. I would strongly recommend that you look at getting some rails to mount your camera to your tripod with. This will have a huge effect on how stabil your shots will be. Since you currently have only the lens mount fixed to the tripod, you will get a lot of movement between all the components. I bought my rails from this place http://www.cinevate.com/website/index.php/products/
and have been really happy with the results i get with them, plus you can of course then use a follow focus with it, which is a huge help when you are dealing with such shallow depths of focus. There are lots of others out there, have a look at the sponsors websites, i'm sure they will stock something that will suit your needs.

Regards,

Bryce

Hi Bryce,
Thank you for your input and kind words!
I am really not trying to argue just want to share my experience and listen to what you all have to say as this is how I learn. Today was the first time I used the stock lens. No vibration even when zooming all the way and even managed to get some decent flight shots in SM. I am quite impressed with the servo AF ability of the EX3 !
One thing I have realized though - it is a totally different thing working with the stock lens as opposed to working with 3000mm effective lens.
I doubt it if anything can eliminate vibrations caused by wind or touch when working with such long lenses. I don't think any rail is needed too as when there is no wind I get perfectly steady, vibration free shots.
Bar support system has many advantages including the ability to use follow focus as you mention but from my experience it is not practical when working with very long lenses like the 400, 500 and 600.
This is just my impression.
Cheers,

Ofer

Hi Ofer,

I know you are sceptical about rails, but they do work. As you said in still conditions all is ok. It is a matter of degrees, in extremly windy conditions shake is going to be difficult to eliminate. But, you can help to delay when the shake/vibrations start by having a a more stable kit. Don't forget rails also brings the tripod mounting to a more central point giving you a better balance and in turn more stability.

Regards

Mick

Ofer,

I am a little late on this thread but I thought I would share some thoughts:

A rail is one of themost important tools you have if you use big lenses!!
I tried a cava vision carbon rod rail first, just did not do the job (wasn't ment for that anyway)
I built a rail but it was to much of a pain to use but it was a mild improvement.

I broke down and had a rail made. wish I had done that two years back!! It was not cheap but it was worth every penny!!

While the rail is important as others have said, the legs and head are paramount too.

I use a vinten vision 6 and a gitzo 1380. I am partial to the vinten as i do not have to change springs!!

I have a farely heavey set of manfrotto legs. The combination of the three has made a huge difference.

Here in the canadian prairies we have punishing wind every day it seems!! 50 k today.

I shoot with lenses up to 500mm and if you follow the prior suggestions of getting low, block the wind in some fashion and use a rail you will be elated at the improvement!!!

Here is the picture of the rail I had made.

Thanks for your advice Dale!
Your setup looks great.
I am still not using the rails but I do use my umbrella and it works for me.
I guess we all have our personal preferences which is fine.

Cheers,
Ofer Levy Nature Photographer

Dale,
Amazing how similar problems lead to similar solutions. Your rail is very much like mine, with a spotting scope mounted nearby (mine is on the left, however). I used plywood, having all the necessary tools, and no one to make a lighter aluminum one.
Like you, I shoot in pretty stiff wind. I have always used a very heavy Gitzo tripod, but am looking at a carbon fiber one. Are you using carbon fiber? If so, is your set up top heavy in the wind? Is that a Gitzo head in your photo? I know you prefer Vinten, but what do you think of the Gitzo?
By the way, are you familiar with the Mercali image stabilizing software? Not too expensive, and will set your windy footage right down.

I agree with Steve here, if you ain't get the steadyness while recording with those insane focal lenghts we got here ;-) a stabiliazation software like Mercalli will help you out in some cases! I say SOME because my experience is that not all footage will likely be good (nice to watch) after stabilization. But in cases where you get these slightly movements caused by wind or your own heart beats! Stabilization software will help you out.

Look at the sample below (stabilize-1.mov)

Note that the mercalli supports only the windows plattform (Adobe PP, After effects/Avid Liquid/Canopus Edius/Vegas/Pinnacle Studio v12)

And even when you have done all that, there is still the image degradation caused by thermal currents in the air! To eliminate that you need the, as yet unavailable, Miracalli software!

Mercalli is certainly “best of breed”, and Johan’s clip shows that it works well on footage that is already pretty stable. The results are far less good if you are forced into using some of the “rescue” presets in the middle of the drop-down list. Once the little green level meter at the right side of the preview screen starts to climb, you are in trouble.

Pro-Dad are also very good at updating their software to suit new versions of the range of NLEs for which it is suitable. One feels for the poor folk who spent far more on the2d3 SteadyMove, where development stopped at Adobe Premiere CS2. I have that one too, but I bought it at a low price when it first came out.

allan, Per,

I think a portable wind blocker is a great idea. How about a picture of how you use it??


I have virtual dub deshake. I am not very convinced in its usage yet!!

i will get the demo on the pro dad deshaker and try it out. I really liked what per did to his bear clip.

How might it work for shooting something moving like Geese or other larger birds??

I like my gitzo 1380 head. It works just fine with my system that weighs about 20 lbs. However sense I also use a smaller camera I keep it set up with the lighter spring in it and I have the Vinten vision 6 set up to take the heavy rig. The gitzo is just fine and if it is all I had I would still be happy. I also have lighter legs on it ( single aluminum legs) and if I have to pack in I will use it with the smaller camera unless I know it is big lens stuff. then I swap heads. The gitzo tripod is really good for getting down low!!! Carbon legs are so much more money I decided to carry the one pound of extra weight. I would love a real light pair of carbon sticks for back packing!!!

dale

Dale I have the same 1380 and agree it is a good rig for less than 15 lbs. Wondering if I will upgrade when going from the EX1 to EX3 with heavier Fujinon and Canon lens.

I always use the next spring up from what is recommended to get the best results.

As for the Carbon vs. Alum legs the Carbon will dampen the small vibrations a lot better then alum one of the many benefits of Carbon.

Let's not forget about the original subject from Ofer (portable wind blocker).

A small hide/blind is what I use.
The pros to this setup is that you're not visible to the wildlife you'r going to record and you are also protected (in some degree) yourself from the hars environment eg. cold wind.
The cons is that it's more time consuming to setup. You have to secure it to the ground from the wind and it's definitive less mobile if you'll change your position. And your visibility is reduced.

At first, this can look like a lot of cons, but I think using a hide is a good solution to this subject, what do you guys think?

To get good viewable footage is the main goal here. And as others has mention, there is lots of factors to archieve this. In my opinion except from trying to avoid the wind. The tripod is the second most important. Using the most heavy and reliable head you can afford is one of the main goal here! I using a 100mm head myself (Miller Arrow HD) and I'm very pleased!

Thank you for your comment Per Johan! I totally agree with you that a hide/wind blocker is a must when working with very long lenses. I use a very nice Miller CF tripod and a Miller Arrow 25 fluid head which should be more than enough for my needs but the slightest wind introduces unacceptable vibration. I do not think a bar support system/rails can help in reducing the vibrations. The only serious solution is a hide/wind blocker.
It works for me just fine and I hope to upload some footage soon.
Cheers,

Ofer Levy Nature Photographer

Ofer this might be more then you would be interested in spending but it might also spark a few ideas.
Lucky's Hunting Blinds

Thanks Paul! This looks like a fantastic solution for my needs! I really appreciate your help mate!
Cheers,

Ofer Levy Nature Photographer

Ofer,

I have an archery blind that I use when I can. It totally blocks the wind.

However, I have found here in the prairies where it blows and blows (today 50km/hr with gusts to 70) It induces the flapping noises of the movement of the cloth even though I use support ropes and keep it as tight as possible!!

I have moved my mics outside and low to the ground with wind muffs which are not enough really!!

I am intending on building some funnel shaped wind blockers to cover my outside mics. I think I will need a blimp around the mic, dead cat on it, then the wind guard. for the xl2 i use a 25 foot xlr chord and for my gl2 I use a wireless mic system.

getting the video is hard enough, getting the great audio at the same time is rreally tuff here!!

Hi Offer,

I know you have dismissed the idea of a rail but have a look at this Really Right Stuff - Kennan Ward Super-Tele Package - Kit Configuration Page

If you google Kennan Ward you will find some links to video he has recorded useing the RED camera and also a photo of the camera attached to the rail

regards

Mick