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  • Hey all, just changed over the backend after 15 years I figured time to give it a bit of an update, its probably gonna be a bit weird for most of you and i am sure there is a few bugs to work out but it should kinda work the same as before... hopefully :)

Follow Focus for Scarlet (400$)

My thoughts.
all those lightweight follow focus (one side wheel) will be in your ear or nose when you balance the camera right on your shoulder. Or it will interfiear with the side handle or with your mattbox... They are not built for those cameras they are basically a compliment to a studio follow focus or such and/ or they are made for slr rigs where you have the camera far in front of you.... So do not do the same mistake as I did and go and buy one of those. Try it out with an epic or scarlet balanced on your shoulder and you will realize they do not work. Then you try a Oconnor CFF-1 and you understand the difference. IF anything try to find something like the o connor but for less money.
 
Bjorn, I was worried about this too. But doesn't a flippable gear help the follow focus wheel to be farther from your face? Also, I was thinking that focus whips would help the crowded space.

Not sure exactly what makes the oconnor cff1 different
 
Patrick Grossien said:
I'll still mention the Redrock blue, because Phil Holland just bought it and said something about 300% improvement. He loathed his old Redrock too but still bought the new one.
(It's also a bit more expensive than the 400$ you mentioned.)

http://store.redrockmicro.com/Catalog/microFollowFocusBlue/blueishere
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The show I'm shooting has been a great test for the two RR FF's we bought for the show - one double sided the other single sided. Here's my take: The best feature of the RR is its amazing lack of play. Virtually none. Also, the dampening is quite decent as well. The resistance however is a bit heavy, especially if your used to FF4's, OC and Chrosziel. The other feature I like is top mounting, so no need to remove the MB to get it on. Now for the other news: If only the gear could quickly flip to the otherside (like Chrosziel) this would be a viable pro lightweight FF. As it is, to flip to the other side involves an operation of removing four small screws, flipping the gear box and then re-attaching. This process is just not practical or tolerable (from production's standpoint) on a fast schedule. So you may think the double sided would solve that. Not quite. Because the focus wheels don't remove, taking off the double sided FF involves removing your MB - another hassle. Being able to reconfigure on the fly for me is paramount. The RR while good in the backlash department has been a continual frustration in the ease of use area. In terms of build quality some things are good and not so great. The wheel, bridge and gear box seem well made and precise, but on both of our FF's we've had to send them back because the adjustment of the backlash over time became loose and then eventually just failed. I must remind you, our show is a heavy use show, 30-40 set ups per day over six months. It may work better under less intense use.

For 400.00 or there abouts I'd seriously consider an FF that has a gear that can quickly flip to the other side without tools. Take a look at Genus. Well made and made of metal. The gear flip is fast and simple. Also Shoot 35 is an option, though I find the grad of metal they use questionable. Again, it comes down to use. For heavy use like my show, I'd go the OC, Arri or Chrosziel route. For a more prosumer approach then perhaps a good sub 400.00 exists. I'd definitely like to hear more from the Trustmt users. It seems almost too good to be true.
 
For fun I contributed to this Kickstarter campaign and await my Fifty Dollar Follow Focus. We'll see. :smiley:
 
I am also waiting for a new Edelkrone FF - I ordered the old model a while ago and they surprised me by saying they were about to introduce a completely new and better design in March. I await the announcement and the arrival of my new one; I will post on R/U when it happens.
 
Andy White said:
It's not in the Op's price range - but is in the sub $1K bracket.

http://www.letusdirect.com/cart/follow-focus.html

Part of the new Letus range - I'd assume driven by a lot of the Hurlburt rigs they're doing.

I like the fact it slips onto rods and is also (seemingly) very versatile in setup... but I have not used it myself.
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I like the design of it too - flippable gear box for my ZFs, flippable gear for short lenses etc.

Does anyone have real world experience with it that they can share?
 
JairoIglesias said:
Hi guys!!

I am looking for a cheap follow focus which works the best posible with his price...400$.
Anyone have any idea?

Please, don't speak me about Redrock follow focus, the worst purchase I have ever done.
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I own both the mk1 and 2 shoot 35 units and so does my local rental house who have bought a dozen of them simply because they well built and just do the job great. They are a small company that don't really advertise and rely on word of mouth. Last time I spoke to them they were unable to keep up with demand. This company is a little gem. Get one if you can.
http://www.shoot35.com/
 
Have the TRUSMT. Built lie a tank. No lash. Hard stops. No issues with the arm, assume this must have been with earlier models?

Excellent product, very happy with it.
 
Jonas Klittmark said:
I like the design of it too - flippable gear box for my ZFs, flippable gear for short lenses etc.

Does anyone have real world experience with it that they can share?
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Ahh, forget the Letus. It has a 1:2 transmission which has to be an abomination in combination with still lenses.
 
Gini Follow Focus not reliable!!! Mine broke in half.....

Gini Follow Focus not reliable!!! Mine broke in half.....

I wouldn't advice anyone getting the Gini Follow Focus. Mine broke in half during a very important shoot. I had to improvise something and almost ruined my day. I bought it only a few months ago and even though is very well built in my opinion it's not reliable on a professional film set. I tried to contact the ebay seller with no answer what so ever. They always answer if you want to buy stuff. I played with a red rock micro a few years ago and I though it was ok, not great. Looking at the new blue model I see a couple of things that I like 1- Lifetime warranty 2 - adjustable backlash. The gini came with a huge backlash. I tried to fix it but it's no way you can open that thing! I guess its ok if you want a follow focus for learning.
 

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Hi,Vieira.

I used Gini's FF few months now. I just worry about something happen like you...
Mine has not backlash,and I can not imagine how to broken it , because it looks so solid...
And I realized that your FF looks very different from mine's.

Please take a look their web site
http://www.gini1.com/follow-focus-1-en.html

Maybe According from CINEMA5D they remodel their FF , I guess .
http://www.cinema5d.com/viewtopic.php?f=17&t=33562

Anyway、 sorry about your unfortunate　occasion,and thank you for sharing info.

I will think about back-up for it..
 
@ B R

The Gini focus your pic shows is an early model, they've since changed the design to the "I Focus" which uses there own gearbox & not the plastic "hugo" gearbox. This is a solid FF whilst not Arri quality, it is one of the better FF out there for the price. The only problem is it's size when using smaller vintage lenses.
 
Hey Ken, I checked out the new model and yes it seems a lot more solid so you should be fine. I used a few Follow Focus units in the pass and this is the first time something like this happens. Because I'm a moderate/heavy shooter (lots of set ups a day) my gear suffers a bit of abuse. Perhaps the Follow Focus got a hit or something. Its possible but I don't remember.

I guess what really annoyed me and put me off gini stuff was the lack of replies and support! Because they never answered my questions after the incident I felt a -- "so it broke! get over it"" vibe from them. I'd be absolutely cool with a reply like "Sorry about that but we can't give you a refund or provide any help". I dunno, maybe I'm asking to much for a product that cost around 200 bucks (the whole shoulder rig was around 600 so I'm guessing 200dols for the ff alone.

But good luck luck with your unit! ;)
 
Hey Mike actually you gave me a great idea! I'll try to get hold of one of those "Hugo" gear boxes and maybe with a bit of soldering I can still save this FF :) cheers!

UPDATE

I bought a Huco L gear box from the Huco distributor here in New Zealand for 40 NZdls (31US)... I'll get it monday ;) Thanks for the idea!
 
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B R Vieira said:
Hey Ken, I checked out the new model and yes it seems a lot more solid so you should be fine. I used a few Follow Focus units in the pass and this is the first time something like this happens. Because I'm a moderate/heavy shooter (lots of set ups a day) my gear suffers a bit of abuse. Perhaps the Follow Focus got a hit or something. Its possible but I don't remember.

I guess what really annoyed me and put me off gini stuff was the lack of replies and support! Because they never answered my questions after the incident I felt a -- "so it broke! get over it"" vibe from them. I'd be absolutely cool with a reply like "Sorry about that but we can't give you a refund or provide any help". I dunno, maybe I'm asking to much for a product that cost around 200 bucks (the whole shoulder rig was around 600 so I'm guessing 200dols for the ff alone.

But good luck luck with your unit! ;)
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Well from what I understand the difficulty in communication is going to be a thing of the past, much of it has to do with language barrier and the guy who owns the company kind of does it all and is involved with every aspect of the company.

Sorry to hear about the issues with the old model and lack of support.
 
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