Field Camera Jib/Crane Suggestions

[M Hsu]

I'll add my vote for the seven jib. It's tough, sets up fast and it does the job. We use the sevenjib on doug's dolly and it works quite well for fast paced music videos. I will say though, that the 7jib logo sticker ripped off after we gaffed some cables to it, so if the logo is important to you, you should look for a company that uses tougher stickers. For that matter, my red logo fell off the front of my camera when it came out of the box. I must have bad luck with adhesives.

doug is great to work with btw.

 

[Jeff Zueger]

Nothing but praise for the 7 jib. i have had one for about 8 years and it has paid for itself over nad over. Very easy to set up and use. Doug knows his stuff.

 

[Stephen Pruitt]

That 7jib certainly does sound like a nice piece of kit. I have to say, owning a Kessler Crane (in 5.5', 8', and 12' lengths), it works great with the RED. The 5.5' and the 8' can hold plenty of weight (in the 8' configuration using the optional cable, it will hold 35 pounds. . . more than enough for my RED and my O'Connor fluid head). At 12', it is only usable for the camera only mounted to the end of the jib (those rising "drive off" shots). But it sure doesn't set up in 90 seconds.

Stephen

 

[Ben Garvey]

But, is there a cable system on the Seven Jib, where you can control the head movements from the base of the jib?

 

[Gregory Lopez]

You can get a longer jib than the 7 jib, for sure, but then you need a remote head, because you can't use the full length of the jib because you can't reach it. So I made the 7 to be as big as possible but with the average man still being able to reach the fluid head under the camera. I also made the 7 to set up in about 90 seconds, and fold for airline travel. Pretty sure it's the fastest jib to set up, still, after 10 years.

No one ever told me that one jib was "smoother" than any other. They're all smooth, in my opinion. It does take a while for the bearings on a new 7 to work themselves in, I'll admit, but then there's no sticktion left. I've sold dozens of 7s through Abel over the years, too, and still do.

If you want to use a remote head with the 7, or most any other jib, I recommend heads made by Camera Turret. They work well, are very tough (I've really beat up my PT24), are light, and cost about half of what they are really worth. But as with other remote heads, you should know that they are going to take much more time and effort to set up than just using the fluid head that you already have: control cables, video cables, monitor on a stand, power cables, the control box with joystick, battery power supply, all have to be set up. Once you do, though, you can do shots that you can't do with just your fluid head under you camera. But it's a trade off, for sure. As Evin says, at a certain point you just call the guy with the Jimmy or Techno and let him do it, while you get other shots. (I have sold 7s to a bunch of guys with Jimmies because they say that the Jimmy is too big for a lot of situations. Also, Steadicam guys have bought a lot of 7s because they sometimes get to a shoot and the director asks them to do a shot that's actually a small crane move, not a Steadicam move, and rather than disapoint them, they just set up the 7 and get the shot).

I have a Camera Turret jib and remote rig. While not an instant setup, the jib is extremely stable and the head is smooth and reliable.

 

[Tim Whitcomb]

have to say, owning a Kessler Crane (in 5.5', 8', and 12' lengths), it works great with the RED. The 5.5' and the 8' can hold plenty of weight (in the 8' configuration using the optional cable, it will hold 35 pounds. . . more than enough for my RED and my O'Connor fluid head). At 12', it is only usable for the camera only mounted to the end of the jib (those rising "drive off" shots). But it sure doesn't set up in 90 seconds.

Stephen

I have a Kessler Crane as well as the KPOD System and the RED was fine accessorized at 12FT Steve.

The Hercules Head holds 150lbs! And two of us could hang from the KPOD system tripod.

I can put the 12FT together in less than 5 minutes. The 4' 8' are SUPER EASY and take about 3 minutes.

It is smooth and when balanced, I can fly the red around with ONE FINGER.

I LOVE the Kessler Crane for the money and Eric Kessler is a good guy, who is always working to improve the system.

PLUS the KPOD and HErcules head double as an excellent Tripod for the RED
and way less than OCONNOR.

 

[Frank Weeks]

There are two systems I really like. The first is the Porta-Jib. They have a few models, but I'm still fond of the original standard model (I used to own one of the very first units built). The basic unit is the same size as the Seven Jib, but far smoother in operation. It is also expandable, with an extension that gives it about 9 feet of reach. And there's a remote head option for it built by another company - Stanton Visual Systems (makers of the Jimmy Jib, which is also great but probably too much machine for anyone who doesn't plan to make a career out of it).

The other rig I like is the Intel-A-Jib from Industry Advanced. You can buy it in stages like the Porta-Jib but this is a very clean, simple system that can expand to a size slightly greater than the Porta-Jib solution. It is extremely simple to set up but I believe is the slightly more expensive solution.

It so happens that Abel sells both of these products, but that has nothing to do with my recommendations. I think these are both terrific devices, especially for the price(s).

Mitch, Do you sell the Stanton remote control heads? Not for the Porta-Jib but for the original Stanton Jimmy Jib. I bought one from Jim Stanton at NAB in Atlanta (god am I old?). I'm finaly in the market.