Some film making questions

[another random person]

I've recently been asked, very nicely, to do some unpaid video work by a "company" in exchange for brand exposure, I accepted since I don't really have much work in my video portfolio and this provided an opportunity for me to get my work out into a high traffic website. But based on the video they had in mind I require a form of stabilisation for my camera. My camera is an 80D with a Sigma 18-35mm lens as per my trusted setup, so my question is, what steadicam style stabiliser is cheap and relatively easy to learn to use. 

If I were to go for a standard Steadicam (as in ebay cheapo one), how many months or weeks of practice would it take on average to reach an acceptable skill level with it?

The people want a flowing kind of shot, like a long showcase take. 

A tiny bit like this but no aerial or complex shots, just smooth continuous take, in and out of buildings and similar. 

 

Oh and I'm taking a holiday later on in the year to New Zealand for skiing. How much less battery will I get from my camera battery pack up a mountain at around 2-5 degrees celcius? And any acclimation tips for lenses and cameras which run minimal risk of damage?

 

Many thanks in advance

 

 

 

 

[Radium_Angel]

10 minutes ago, another random person said:

Many thanks in advance

Have you read the website "Clients From Hell"?

Never, never ever, do anything for free, especially something as complex as video work.

You are in for a world of pain and you can't eat "exposure" or pay bills with "exposure"

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/exposure

 

And if you do it for "the exposure" (read: fucking free) for client X, then client Y, Z A B and Q will also expect it for free because they see you are easily led and bullied into doing expensive shit for nothing.

 

Don't do it

 

[another random person]

6 minutes ago, Radium_Angel said:

Have you read the website "Clients From Hell"?

Never, never ever, do anything for free, especially something as complex as video work.

You are in for a world of pain and you can't eat "exposure" or pay bills with "exposure"

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/exposure

 

And if you do it for "the exposure" (read: fucking free) for client X, then client Y, Z A B and Q will also expect it for free because they see you are easily led and bullied into doing expensive shit for nothing.

 

Don't do it

 

Okay so maybe a bit more context, would be needed and yes I know all about this do it for free thing but I currently am a student so I have very little to no experience, and plus what I meant by "company" was that I was doing it for a friend for one of their projects. I pay bills with a normal job and am starting to shift the balance into photography and kind of am looking into cinematography as a form of unpaid escape from the high pressure. 

[LaFemmeEnVert]

6 hours ago, another random person said:

I've recently been asked, very nicely, to do some unpaid video work by a "company" in exchange for brand exposure, I accepted since I don't really have much work in my video portfolio and this provided an opportunity for me to get my work out into a high traffic website. But based on the video they had in mind I require a form of stabilisation for my camera. My camera is an 80D with a Sigma 18-35mm lens as per my trusted setup, so my question is, what steadicam style stabiliser is cheap and relatively easy to learn to use. 

If I were to go for a standard Steadicam (as in ebay cheapo one), how many months or weeks of practice would it take on average to reach an acceptable skill level with it?

The people want a flowing kind of shot, like a long showcase take. 

A tiny bit like this but no aerial or complex shots, just smooth continuous take, in and out of buildings and similar. 

 

Oh and I'm taking a holiday later on in the year to New Zealand for skiing. How much less battery will I get from my camera battery pack up a mountain at around 2-5 degrees celcius? And any acclimation tips for lenses and cameras which run minimal risk of damage?

 

Many thanks in advance

 

 

 

 

do you want mechanical or electronic stabilisation? how much spending have you? what do you need to film? how do you want to control lens focus/zoom if camera is on stabiliser?

 

camera battery on mountain skiing you dont see big difference. dont leave batteries or camera in snow.

[another random person]

13 hours ago, LaFemmeEnVert said:

do you want mechanical or electronic stabilisation? how much spending have you? what do you need to film? how do you want to control lens focus/zoom if camera is on stabiliser?

 

camera battery on mountain skiing you dont see big difference. dont leave batteries or camera in snow.

Either one would work, just as long as it's multi-axis stabilisation. 

I can spend up to around $300 dollars max but I would prefer to keep it under $150.

I have to film a form of showcase film like this:

I trust the Canon autofocus system so I will have that set to auto and since my lens is completely internal it shouldn't affect the stabilisation. Camera settings I can just adjust on the camera so I have no need of any extra control systems. 

Okay thanks, I was just considering getting extra batteries for if the coldness was found to impact battery endurance. 

 

 

 

[xQubeZx]

Thought about renting a DJI ronin or something like that instead of buying a gimbal of your own? 300 is quite low for a gimbal at the moment sadly and if you are only going to use it a few times maybe renting one may be a smarter option as you can get a high end model. 

[another random person]

38 minutes ago, xQubeZx said:

Thought about renting a DJI ronin or something like that instead of buying a gimbal of your own? 300 is quite low for a gimbal at the moment sadly and if you are only going to use it a few times maybe renting one may be a smarter option as you can get a high end model. 

That's an idea I never considered although I am concerned about the balancing learning curve especially since I can't afford many days of hire.

[LaFemmeEnVert]

28 minutes ago, another random person said:

That's an idea I never considered although I am concerned about the balancing learning curve especially since I can't afford many days of hire.

you need few days to learn how to prepare gimbal or steadicam for balancing camera and to operate. tell your client you are a beginner with using thisand not expect high quality. $300 can be enough to rent for maybe 1 week if the rental price in your area is good. some electronic gimbals that can be cheap to rent and support your camera + lens

• DJI ronin S
• DJI ronin M
• Moza Air
• Tilta gravity G2x

 

Mechanical stabiliser

• Glidecam hd pro or xr pro models or other glidecam systems
• Steadicam aero or other steadicam systems

 

do not buy any system that is $150 or 300. if you must buy a system safve money to buy a good system and try using mecahnical and electronic system before you decide which system to get. rashly buying 1 system without trying other can be a mistake. try first.

 

if you later decide investing in your own stabiliser system is necessary, also save money to buy other accessories:

• support vest to help hold up the weight
• external monitor because most time the camera viewfinder or lcd screen is not in good position where you can see. external monitor mounted in easier to see position with larger screen will be very useful
• a system to easily control some functions of the camera like wireless remote or cable remote to start/stop recording
• a system to help control focus or zoom or iris if you want to control all 3. either multiple manual follow focus wheels or electronic follow focus motor system
• look at different types of batteries, battery plates, mounting accessories, rails to mount and power all the systems you use like rails to hold follow focus systems, power distribution system to power camera, monitor, other electronics

[LaFemmeEnVert]

and whatever you do rent or buy you will need many hours of practice to be good using the stabiliser.

 

[another random person]

16 hours ago, LaFemmeEnVert said:

you need few days to learn how to prepare gimbal or steadicam for balancing camera and to operate. tell your client you are a beginner with using thisand not expect high quality. $300 can be enough to rent for maybe 1 week if the rental price in your area is good. some electronic gimbals that can be cheap to rent and support your camera + lens

• DJI ronin S
• DJI ronin M
• Moza Air
• Tilta gravity G2x

 

Mechanical stabiliser

• Glidecam hd pro or xr pro models or other glidecam systems
• Steadicam aero or other steadicam systems

 

do not buy any system that is $150 or 300. if you must buy a system safve money to buy a good system and try using mecahnical and electronic system before you decide which system to get. rashly buying 1 system without trying other can be a mistake. try first.

 

if you later decide investing in your own stabiliser system is necessary, also save money to buy other accessories:

• support vest to help hold up the weight
• external monitor because most time the camera viewfinder or lcd screen is not in good position where you can see. external monitor mounted in easier to see position with larger screen will be very useful
• a system to easily control some functions of the camera like wireless remote or cable remote to start/stop recording
• a system to help control focus or zoom or iris if you want to control all 3. either multiple manual follow focus wheels or electronic follow focus motor system
• look at different types of batteries, battery plates, mounting accessories, rails to mount and power all the systems you use like rails to hold follow focus systems, power distribution system to power camera, monitor, other electronics

Yes, I watched several videos detailing use and it seems to be a learn over time thing but the motorised gimbal seems significantly easier for a short notice application as I have used a Glidecam system before and it took me several tries over hours to be able to get it to a non-nauseating stage. I've had friends use the Ronin systems before and they have had only positive comments so most likely I would look into only the DJI Ronin systems and less so the other brands as no one around me has used them before and I would just like to be sure. 

 

Would the Ronin S be worth the extra money to hire as for me a one week hire is $380 for the M and $220 for the S. There will be a lot of running around in my planned shots as well as lots of up and down stairs and hills and elevation. I'm aiming for a fast paced stable shoot and the cost of the stabiliser will be covered by the client (friend). 

 

Oh and in terms of Gimbals can things like Vari-ND filters be adjusted on the fly manually without throwing off stabilisation. (I do this regularly and I've done this before on a Steadicam system). I'm only concerned about this since I'm afraid applying torque on the lens barrel to twist the filter might affect the motors. 

[LaFemmeEnVert]

5 hours ago, another random person said:

Yes, I watched several videos detailing use and it seems to be a learn over time thing but the motorised gimbal seems significantly easier for a short notice application as I have used a Glidecam system before and it took me several tries over hours to be able to get it to a non-nauseating stage. I've had friends use the Ronin systems before and they have had only positive comments so most likely I would look into only the DJI Ronin systems and less so the other brands as no one around me has used them before and I would just like to be sure. 

 

Would the Ronin S be worth the extra money to hire as for me a one week hire is $380 for the M and $220 for the S. There will be a lot of running around in my planned shots as well as lots of up and down stairs and hills and elevation. I'm aiming for a fast paced stable shoot and the cost of the stabiliser will be covered by the client (friend). 

 

Oh and in terms of Gimbals can things like Vari-ND filters be adjusted on the fly manually without throwing off stabilisation. (I do this regularly and I've done this before on a Steadicam system). I'm only concerned about this since I'm afraid applying torque on the lens barrel to twist the filter might affect the motors. 

if you will run around much with the stabilisation system you rent the model you feel comfortable carrying. do rental unit come with support vest and arm? if it is only gimbal when you run there will be up and down movement of your body that gimbal cannot compensate.

adjusting lens and filters you do with your fingers while filming? becareful because you can add image shake into the video. you should practice. maybe at rental store ask if they can demo the setup of gimbal and camera for you and you try the different movements and exposure adjustments.

[whoisjaya]

14 hours ago, another random person said:

[...]

Oh and in terms of Gimbals can things like Vari-ND filters be adjusted on the fly manually without throwing off stabilisation. (I do this regularly and I've done this before on a Steadicam system). I'm only concerned about this since I'm afraid applying torque on the lens barrel to twist the filter might affect the motors. 

To be honest, I don't really think you're going to be able to touch your camera whilst rolling without shaking it. If you want to do it when *not rolling* though, I don't really see a problem, as long as the variable ND filter doesn't change the weight distribution...  

[another random person]

16 hours ago, LaFemmeEnVert said:

if you will run around much with the stabilisation system you rent the model you feel comfortable carrying. do rental unit come with support vest and arm? if it is only gimbal when you run there will be up and down movement of your body that gimbal cannot compensate.

adjusting lens and filters you do with your fingers while filming? becareful because you can add image shake into the video. you should practice. maybe at rental store ask if they can demo the setup of gimbal and camera for you and you try the different movements and exposure adjustments.

I would feel comfortable with either regardless and I feel the production is more important than my comfort. No, unfortunately, although my payload isn't truly overly heavy. 

That's a good idea, although the rental store is on the other side of the country since camera equipment for hire in Australia is spread far and wide and not as readily available as in the States or Europe.

 

7 hours ago, Jonas_2909 said:

To be honest, I don't really think you're going to be able to touch your camera whilst rolling without shaking it. If you want to do it when *not rolling* though, I don't really see a problem, as long as the variable ND filter doesn't change the weight distribution...  

Oh yes I understand that there will be shake but I often just use motion to hide the shake so like as I adjust I'll fly past a close object too in a way, mask the shake or wobble. 

 

 

[LaFemmeEnVert]

On 8/6/2018 at 8:14 AM, another random person said:

I would feel comfortable with either regardless and I feel the production is more important than my comfort. No, unfortunately, although my payload isn't truly overly heavy. 

i mean comfortable when you chase your talent holding the stabilisation system. my experience is heavier payload can be more stable.  light payload moves around too much but this I am talking about using mechanical steadicam system. with electronic system the motor works on keeping camera movement smooth so lighter can be better

 

sorry for long delay in reply, was filming an advertisement for Huawei.  which system di dyou use in the end and how was the shoot?