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Cheap camera support gear that really works - emphasis on BMPCC and DSLR sized cameras


DPStewart
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@DPStewart Hey man, great post and video. I may be speaking out of line here as I'm primarily a run-and gun DSLR shooter, but I'm curious why you didn't touch on monopods. I actually just wrote a post about this today on my blog because I find myself using my monopod about 90% of the time for my style of shooting. It's super versatile and allows me to quickly reframe shots, much quicker than a tripod. Like I said, I may have been speaking out of line because I'm not sure of your style of shooting, but I'd love to hear your thoughts.

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7 minutes ago, jcoons32 said:

@DPStewart Hey man, great post and video. I may be speaking out of line here as I'm primarily a run-and gun DSLR shooter, but I'm curious why you didn't touch on monopods. I actually just wrote a post about this today on my blog because I find myself using my monopod about 90% of the time for my style of shooting. It's super versatile and allows me to quickly reframe shots, much quicker than a tripod. Like I said, I may have been speaking out of line because I'm not sure of your style of shooting, but I'd love to hear your thoughts.

I have a stupid question. The monpod you recommend is called fluid, but it seems to have no fluid head. My question is if it's actually useful like that for video.

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13 minutes ago, araucaria said:

I have a stupid question. The monpod you recommend is called fluid, but it seems to have no fluid head. My question is if it's actually useful like that for video.

I use a monopod that I just tilt on it's rubber foot, and it's fantastic, I can only see that one with that little ball at the bottom being even smoother. (Also, fantastic blog, but we are going to disagree on one thing - Jelly in the US is Jam in the UK and there is nothing wrong with a jam sandwich!!! Audio is more important than a new lens though :) )

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20 minutes ago, DPStewart said:

The BMPCC is DESIGNED to run on an external power source of 12-18v. 
Any batteries will supply less voltage as they run down so using the 9v setting on the XT Power can cause an UNDERsupply situation that can cause internal operational problems.

I know that the BMPCC is designed to take 12-18v, but it works with lower voltage.  Except for the fact that the internal battery doesn't charge with an external power supply, I never had any problems using the 9v setting on the XTPower with the BMPCC.

 

21 minutes ago, DPStewart said:

The BMPCC has an internal DC-to-DC regulator that wants 12-18v coming into it. That regulator is going to send the correct amount of current to that various internal systems. Using the 12v setting or even the 9v setting on the XT Power is not going to cause an overheat condition in this camera. 
That 12v power supply that comes with the camera? The engineers designed the camera to run off of that.

I'd rather use an external voltage regulator than heat up the internal voltage regulator and nearby camera sensor.

 

26 minutes ago, DPStewart said:

I have run BMPCC's for over 2 straight hours of recording on both internal and external batteries (switching out the internals as fast as possible) and I have not ever noticed any housing temperature differences over all 3 of my BMPCC's.

Simple test: Keep the lens cap ON and run the BMPCC in record for one hour each using both internal and external batteries.
I saw no difference in noise.

I shot a feature using two BMPCCs, and, fearful of under-voltage and wanting to keep the internal batteries topped-off, I always used 12v for external power.  About 2/3 of the way through the show, I accidentally ran one BMPCC with the 9v setting on an XTPower, and it worked flawlessly with less heat and noise.  Wish I had had that accident earlier in the production.

 

30 minutes ago, DPStewart said:

The SONY cameras like the A7s described in that video may be an entirely different design that does indeed require a lower input voltage.

Well, it is a good idea to always run a camera at the lowest necessary voltage, for avoiding heat and for other reasons.

 

31 minutes ago, DPStewart said:

FWIW - I have a BSEE. That's a degree in Electrical Engineering. But then again I'm also a drummer in a rock band - so I might be crazy.

Coincidentally, I hold an Extra Class ham radio license, and I was a drummer in many bands for longer than I care to admit.

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42 minutes ago, jcoons32 said:

@DPStewart Hey man, great post and video. I may be speaking out of line here as I'm primarily a run-and gun DSLR shooter, but I'm curious why you didn't touch on monopods. I actually just wrote a post about this today on my blog because I find myself using my monopod about 90% of the time for my style of shooting. It's super versatile and allows me to quickly reframe shots, much quicker than a tripod. Like I said, I may have been speaking out of line because I'm not sure of your style of shooting, but I'd love to hear your thoughts.

Yeah...DOINK!
I totally use monopods for quick stabilization and I REALLY should have mentioned that. Brain fart.
I have a Manfrotto monopod with the 3 little feet on the bottom and the little ball-joint. It's great for sure, But maybe I didn't include it because it cost almost as much as an entire Davis & Sanford Tripod with the fluid head. I know the Sirui is a really great one too. But I don't actually know of any 'good' monopods that are really cheap.
I'd like to try out a MogoPod sometime as well.

A MONOPOD SHOULD BE IN YOUR KIT!!

Thanks for the reminder Sir!

20 minutes ago, tupp said:

I shot a feature using two BMPCCs, and, fearful of under-voltage and wanting to keep the internal batteries topped-off, I always used 12v for external power.  About 2/3 of the way through the show, I accidentally ran one BMPCC with the 9v setting on an XTPower, and it worked flawlessly with less heat and noise.  Wish I had had that accident earlier in the production.

Interesting. What kind of continuous shooting times are you talking about?
Like I mentioned, I've run up to about 2-hours of continuous recording and not noticed any difference, and the lens-cap test always shows you what you've got noise wise.

Coincidentally, I hold an Extra Class ham radio license, and I was a drummer in many bands for longer than I care to admit.

Oh gawd! Two drummers talking back and forth? It's a wonder anyone can understand us at all!

 

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13 minutes ago, DPStewart said:

Yeah...DOINK!
I totally use monopods for quick stabilization and I REALLY should have mentioned that. Brain fart.
I have a Manfrotto monopod with the 3 little feet on the bottom and the little ball-joint. It's great for sure, But maybe I didn't include it because it cost almost as much as an entire Davis & Sanford Tripod with the fluid head. I know the Sirui is a really great one too. But I don't actually know of any 'good' monopods that are really cheap.
I'd like to try out a MogoPod sometime as well.

A MONOPOD SHOULD BE IN YOUR KIT!!

Thanks for the reminder Sir!

 

Haha no worries man, and thanks for reading my blog - super appreciate it. Yea, I was just referring to the fluid base for tilts and pans which has really come in handy for me. It definitely was a little on the expensive side, but I figured I'd just pony up the cash instead of ripping through a few cheap ones. I'm assuming there has to be cheaper makes with the same functionality, though, but I could be wrong. Anyways, good stuff - I also love learning what people are using for support.

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2 hours ago, DPStewart said:

Interesting. What kind of continuous shooting times are you talking about?
Like I mentioned, I've run up to about 2-hours of continuous recording and not noticed any difference, and the lens-cap test always shows you what you've got noise wise.

We had a new, zillion-take take director, so we had the camera on for two to three hours in some scenes, sometimes going through two XTPower batteries in a half day.

 

When the BMPCC got warm, more continuous hot pixels appeared.

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4 hours ago, tupp said:

We had a new, zillion-take take director, so we had the camera on for two to three hours in some scenes, sometimes going through two XTPower batteries in a half day.

 

When the BMPCC got warm, more continuous hot pixels appeared.

Ha! I think I've met 'that' director!

Okay, I'm going to have to look out for the heat issue on longer continuous shoots. Thanks Tupp.

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15 hours ago, DayRaven said:

I use a monopod that I just tilt on it's rubber foot, and it's fantastic, I can only see that one with that little ball at the bottom being even smoother. (Also, fantastic blog, but we are going to disagree on one thing - Jelly in the US is Jam in the UK and there is nothing wrong with a jam sandwich!!! Audio is more important than a new lens though :) )

Haha, thanks for reading! I just have a slight addiction to peanut butter, I think that's the main issue. And I totally agree - I think upgrading audio is the first step after getting a new DSLR. They should just ship with a new mic.

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But... but... where are the links to the European items?

Just kidding ya. Awesome job. ;) Did found out that the Stanley cases are found here as DeWalt, those looked kinda nifty.

I really like Ginirigs and Kamerar for some schtuff. RatRig has some fun bits as well. Do still have that 717AH fluid head from back in the GH2 days. Still alive and kicking these days.

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On ‎27‎.‎02‎.‎2016 at 11:55 PM, DPStewart said:

A MONOPOD SHOULD BE IN YOUR KIT!!

Great, cheers! Btw I thought - as a long time stills shooter and absolute positive about monopods - it would be "unprofessional" to mention that here... ;-)
I have this one and I really recommend that foot:
https://www.augenblicke-eingefangen.de/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4563&anc=y
https://www.augenblicke-eingefangen.de/catalog/product_info.php?sub_id=3641&products_id=4563&osCsid=5bfa5a847490f42fd746361fb715a76a&anc=y#pic

It is incredibly effective in preventing any rotation and micro jiggles. Actually a must have for every monopod user, imho.

Here:
https://translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=auto&tl=en&u=https%3A%2F%2Faugenblickeeingefangen.wordpress.com%2F2015%2F12%2F23%2Fumbau-von-einbeinstativen-mit-38-fussgewinde-auf-monostat-fuss%2F

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