Welcome to our community

Be a part of something great, join today!

Log in
  • 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 :)

Truck Mounted Gyro Stabilizer for Red?

Anyone? Anything?

Maybe we could put a clear fiberglass hood on an old VW bug (rear-engine) and put the red in the front on some springs. ;)

-shooter
 
I stopped by the Cineflex booth at NAB and asked the same question, talking with the Sales Manager (have his card around here somewhere)...he said that the Red One was too big for their housing, but that Epic might fit. Looking at the housing myself, I thought that maybe even Epic with a medium sized zoom would also be too big, but maybe a prime would work (or a smallish Zoom like the 18-50mm). Their housing is small, and built that way for a reason, and built around the Sony head with most of the camera electronics in a big box that resides in the Helicopter.

Then I went by the Gyron booth, and talked with Dan Woolf, and he said (i think I am remembering this right) that they had a Red and are working on getting it into their system. The Gyron is used (as I understand it) mostly on Helicopters, but I presume that it could be mounted on other vehicles...you might contact them (Gyron, in Pasadena, CA). Their unit is much bigger. Hope that helps.

Larry Gebhardt
 
It's a whole system with a control module to be able to point the camera, not just stabilize it. They both (Cineflex and Gyron) quoted in the neighborhood of half a million dollars for the whole deal (no camera included with the Gyron).

So...that's why they both rent for somewhere around $3000 per day (approx...don't quote me on it).

Larry Gebhardt
 
lrgebhardt said:
I stopped by the Cineflex booth at NAB and asked the same question, talking with the Sales Manager (have his card around here somewhere)...he said that the Red One was too big for their housing, but that Epic might fit. Looking at the housing myself, I thought that maybe even Epic with a medium sized zoom would also be too big, but maybe a prime would work (or a smallish Zoom like the 18-50mm). Their housing is small, and built that way for a reason, and built around the Sony head with most of the camera electronics in a big box that resides in the Helicopter.

Then I went by the Gyron booth, and talked with Dan Woolf, and he said (i think I am remembering this right) that they had a Red and are working on getting it into their system. The Gyron is used (as I understand it) mostly on Helicopters, but I presume that it could be mounted on other vehicles...you might contact them (Gyron, in Pasadena, CA). Their unit is much bigger. Hope that helps.

Larry Gebhardt
Click to expand...

Thanks Larry. I really appreciate the information. What do you think of the VW bug idea above? I'm thinking Optical Flow in Shake could smooth out the footage fairly easily.

-shooter
 
I think, like the revolution in thinking that is all about the Red camera, that we are in a whole new ballgame with action shooting...4K resolution allows us to do major post motion stabilizing on any footage that is to be delivered in HD or lower rez ...which is just about everything now and in the foreseeable future (4K exhibition excepted). Your idea of the VW with a Plexiglas hood is a good one (I would suggest that a waterproof bag and a "spin" deflector for rain, snow, etc. be used instead of the Plexiglas, if you were thinking of putting the camera inside the hood), and this could be close in function to a Gyron (at MUCH less cost)...if it is stabilized (ala Shake/Smoothcam, AE, Combustion and others) and the ability to remotely Pan/Tilt it (that's a big deal to do it smoothly...but there are solutions for less than $3000, ( but the more you spend, like everything, the better it is)). Now, for the price of a RED, and a relatively inexpensive remote pan and tilt head, you can put a camera just about anywhere and get very usable, and in many cases, exciting, images. That's a revolution in the way I have been shooting for a long while... due to the extra resolution that we now have with the RED camera.

Someone said on another thread that the "prototyping" (I paraphrase here) is going crazy. This is, in my opinion, a really huge multilevel rethinking of the entire industry...not just the camera/post/workflow issues, but down to the very basic devices that make it all work. All of a sudden, since the Red started shipping, I am seeing carbon fiber lens/mattebox rods, where for my entire career, I have been lugging around stainless steel.

It's all good...especially the energy and enthusiasm of those who are shaking up the statis quo.

Larry Gebhardt
 
chosei said:
the most well know Gyro is:
http://www.ken-lab.com/stabilizers.html

All broadcasters' hel uses.
Click to expand...

I have couple of those, but the small ones. They should be however great for Scarlet when it comes out. Red One would need at least two KS-6 (if not KS-8). I can upgrade my little twins to any of the higher models with full credit (just like Red One for Epic), but I would like to hear from anyone using it before I make the plunge...

Anyone?

Edit:

The Kenyon's are fantastic - I use the two KS-2 for stabilizing my EOS-1Ds Mark III for aerial photography - works like magic...
I did some test with HV20 (due to the weight restriction for KS-2's) combined with Glidecam's Smooth-Shooter. The steadicam system takes care of the major jerks and overal movement of the helicopter, while the gyros kill the high-frequency vibrations of the rotor & engine. I was very impressed with the results and definitely look forward to use the same setup for Scarlet...
 
PS - we used the same setup fro shooting from a moving car and it looked great too - very promising. I can't wait to get the bigger boys. The question is how much bigger (as the price rises greatly with higher models). I am thinking between the KS-6's (preferred) and KS-8's. Anyone have used this with Red One?
 
We have a Kenyon gryo in rental at Abel. Can't recall if it is a KS-6 or KS-8, pretty sure it is the 8. $100/day but it doesn't go out much so I'd be willing to give a reduser fellow a deal to take her for a spin.
 
I've used the Gyron on a van before. The resulting "dolly" shots are wonderfully smooth. Here is a link to view some of the shots:

[URL="]http://www.artbeats.com/collections/683?format_id=3&page=2[/URL]

All the shots on this page except FCL219 were shot with the van-mounted Gyron on a miserably rainy day. We mounted it on thick plywood fastened to the luggage rack. The same rig has been used for Mercedes commercials.

Dan Wolfe is definitely committed to getting it to work with the Red and I am convinced it will be the best stabelized system on the planet when it is ready (hopefully this fall). --Of course, much more spendy than the Kenyon.

Phil
www.artbeats.com
 
Peter Majtan said:
The Kenyon's are fantastic - I use the two KS-2 for stabilizing my EOS-1Ds Mark III for aerial photography - works like magic...

I did some test with HV20 (due to the weight restriction for KS-2's) combined with Glidecam's Smooth-Shooter. The steadicam system takes care of the major jerks and overal movement of the helicopter, while the gyros kill the high-frequency vibrations of the rotor & engine. I was very impressed with the results and definitely look forward to use the same setup for Scarlet...
Click to expand...

What if you mounted one of these Kenyons between the frame of a car and a small camera, would it smooth out vibrations caused by the road? I'm looking for a way to smooth out and stabilize "drivelapse" photography.

BTW, Phil, your link isn't working.
 
Tom said:
What if you mounted one of these Kenyons between the frame of a car and a small camera, would it smooth out vibrations caused by the road? I'm looking for a way to smooth out and stabilize "drivelapse" photography.




Mmm, interested in this as well...
Click to expand...
 
lrgebhardt said:
I stopped by the Cineflex booth at NAB and asked the same question, talking with the Sales Manager (have his card around here somewhere)...he said that the Red One was too big for their housing, but that Epic might fit. Looking at the housing myself, I thought that maybe even Epic with a medium sized zoom would also be too big, but maybe a prime would work (or a smallish Zoom like the 18-50mm). Their housing is small, and built that way for a reason, and built around the Sony head with most of the camera electronics in a big box that resides in the Helicopter.

Then I went by the Gyron booth, and talked with Dan Woolf, and he said (i think I am remembering this right) that they had a Red and are working on getting it into their system. The Gyron is used (as I understand it) mostly on Helicopters, but I presume that it could be mounted on other vehicles...you might contact them (Gyron, in Pasadena, CA). Their unit is much bigger. Hope that helps.

Larry Gebhardt
Click to expand...

Pictorvision has been supporting and renting the Red in our stabilized Wescam systems since last November. Keep in mind that stabilizing the system is often just half the battle. You also need to be able accurately control the steering (Pan, Tilt, Zoom), and monitor the image.

The Cineflex is an amazing system, which is why we have a few of those as well. But they are custom made for Sony camera package. I would not expect that to change any time soon.

Tom Hallman
President
Pictorvision
7701 Haskell Ave Unit B
Van Nuys, CA 91406
Thallman@pictorvision.com
Office: 818-785-9282 ext 226
Cell: 818-385-5435
http://www.pictorvision.com
.
 
Tom said:
What if you mounted one of these Kenyons between the frame of a car and a small camera, would it smooth out vibrations caused by the road? I'm looking for a way to smooth out and stabilize "drivelapse" photography.
Click to expand...

You cannot restrict the Kenyon gyro by mounting it to the vehicle -- it must be free to do it's thing. You can rig several strong bungees from the vehicle to the top of the camera and then the attach the gyro(s) to the bottom of the camera and you will get very nice footage unless you hit a bump or a pothole. I have done this several times with a Varicam and a KS6 with great success but mostly shooting 36 or 48 fps not timelapse.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top