Mounting Camera in car at DVinfo.net

Kevin Saitta · October 24th, 2007, 08:58 PM

I am on a tight budget and was looking for a good way to mount a video camera in the car to get some footage while driving.

Thank you again,

Kevin

Daniel Ross · October 24th, 2007, 09:13 PM

I like using the $14 steadycam seen here-- http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/steadycam/ --with a few modifications. Depending on the shot, using a single pipe (no T, just one vertical piece) around 6-8" can be quite effective, with a small weight.
Note that the steadycam will be STEADY, meaning no jitters, but may still sway some; that's entirely the fault/job of the camera operator.

Having the steadycam is nice because of the separation from the car itself; the steadycam's counterbalance system absorbs a lot of the motion, as do your elbows, then shoulders, and body/car seat, then it's finally attached to the car itself.

If you do want to attach directly to the car, which can give some very jittery results, depending on the car, the speed, the terrain, etc., I'd recommend something like the Cleat, here:
http://www.filmtools.com/cleatsuccamm.html
I've used it with success for filming background plates, though a lot of that was unusable due to jitter. Some post processing may be needed as well to really make it work.

Kevin Saitta · October 24th, 2007, 09:27 PM

Thank you for the links, Greatly appreciated. Gives me some ideas for sure!

Kevin

Daniel Ross · October 24th, 2007, 09:40 PM

No problem.
By the way, I forgot to mention the reason for just using a single pipe for the steadycam in the car-- maneuverability. Having the full setup in a car, at least a smaller car, can just get in the way. A single pipe becomes a convenient one-hand-held unit.

Kevin Saitta · October 24th, 2007, 10:11 PM

Yeah, I drive a stick, so I need to figure out how to do it, but I am definitely going to build one of these steady cams, they are awesome! Actually maybe I will just outright buy one from the guy to support him. What an excellent idea.

Daniel Ross · October 24th, 2007, 10:24 PM

Well, you'll want someone holding a camera, then.
I drive a stick, too. Seems a bit extreme to try to shoot yourself, regardless.
Perhaps the suction cup mount, if you must be alone in the car.

Paul Jefferies · October 25th, 2007, 04:01 AM

You could try one of these:
http://www.b-hague.co.uk/Mounting%20Brackets.htm

Robert J. Wolff · October 25th, 2007, 04:56 AM

I use an old tripod for a still camera, and 3 or 4 shock cords. I mount the tripod in the front passenger seat well. After adjusting the proper height for the cam, I lock the tripod down with the shock cords to the bottom of the seat, and, to whatever is handy under the dash. It works like a charm. Mounting the cam the same way in the back seat, offers you an over the shoulder shot. The tighter the cords are, the better: the amount of vibration and shake is almost zero. I have placed small rubber "feet" that are used for furniture legs, under the tripod legs for additional absorbing of vibration and shake on back roads.

I have some beautiful Adirondack autumn fall foliage shots that were taken this way.

Boyd Ostroff · October 25th, 2007, 07:59 AM

Hi Kevin. We actually have a sub-forum dedicated to this topic here: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/forumdisplay.php?f=124. You might want to browse through older posts for some more ideas. I've moved your thread there while leaving a temporary re-direct in the original forum.

Ralph Roberts · November 1st, 2007, 06:03 AM

I've shot over 40 hours of trip video from the car for my weekly TV show "Rapid Ralph Runs the Roads." After much experimentation, I've found the PERFECT car mount, a TRIPOD! My Bogen/Manfrotto tripod with 503HDV head mounts solidly in front of the back seats (and people can even still ride back there). It bonds nicely with the car's harmonics and offers all the security and other advantages of having your cam on a tripod (I use a Sony V1U). For an example in action, watch the first five minutes of

http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...42494325&hl=en

It's from another show I do. ... and see the attached pics of my setup.

--Ralph

Ralph Roberts · November 1st, 2007, 06:07 AM

the pics from the previous message in jpeg format.

and the intro to "Rapid Ralph Runs the Roads" which shows the mount in action:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=ktjORIYlIJU

Paul Mailath · November 10th, 2007, 05:26 AM

I just bought one of these - it's pretty good for the money. No trouble hanging the HV20 off it but I'm careful with with XH-A1

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Glue-pod-stea...QQcmdZViewItem

Ian G. Thompson · November 10th, 2007, 11:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Paul Mailath

I just bought one of these - it's pretty good for the money. No trouble hanging the HV20 off it but I'm careful with with XH-A1

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Glue-pod-stea...QQcmdZViewItem

Paul...how does the HV20 video look while using one of these?

Kevin Saitta · November 11th, 2007, 06:33 AM

Thanks for all the info.

Kev

Paul Mailath · November 13th, 2007, 05:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Ian G. Thompson

Paul...how does the HV20 video look while using one of these?

give me a week and I'll chuck some footage up - I haven't got the camera at the moment

October 24th, 2007, 08:58 PM	#1
Kevin Saitta Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Snoqualmie, WA Posts: 57	Mounting Camera in car I am on a tight budget and was looking for a good way to mount a video camera in the car to get some footage while driving. Thank you again, Kevin

October 25th, 2007, 04:56 AM	#8
Robert J. Wolff Major Player Join Date: Sep 2001 Location: Adirondacks of New York Posts: 210	I use an old tripod for a still camera, and 3 or 4 shock cords. I mount the tripod in the front passenger seat well. After adjusting the proper height for the cam, I lock the tripod down with the shock cords to the bottom of the seat, and, to whatever is handy under the dash. It works like a charm. Mounting the cam the same way in the back seat, offers you an over the shoulder shot. The tighter the cords are, the better: the amount of vibration and shake is almost zero. I have placed small rubber "feet" that are used for furniture legs, under the tripod legs for additional absorbing of vibration and shake on back roads. I have some beautiful Adirondack autumn fall foliage shots that were taken this way. __________________ Himself Last edited by Robert J. Wolff; October 25th, 2007 at 05:04 AM. Reason: Clarity

November 1st, 2007, 06:03 AM	#10
Ralph Roberts Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Alexander, NC Posts: 188	I've shot over 40 hours of trip video from the car for my weekly TV show "Rapid Ralph Runs the Roads." After much experimentation, I've found the PERFECT car mount, a TRIPOD! My Bogen/Manfrotto tripod with 503HDV head mounts solidly in front of the back seats (and people can even still ride back there). It bonds nicely with the car's harmonics and offers all the security and other advantages of having your cam on a tripod (I use a Sony V1U). For an example in action, watch the first five minutes of http://video.google.com/videoplay?do...42494325&hl=en It's from another show I do. ... and see the attached pics of my setup. --Ralph Attached Thumbnails __________________ --Ralph Roberts, CEO 1VIDeo / aBOOKS / Creativity, Inc.

November 1st, 2007, 06:07 AM	#11
Ralph Roberts Regular Crew Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Alexander, NC Posts: 188	the pics from the previous message in jpeg format. and the intro to "Rapid Ralph Runs the Roads" which shows the mount in action: http://youtube.com/watch?v=ktjORIYlIJU Attached Thumbnails __________________ --Ralph Roberts, CEO 1VIDeo / aBOOKS / Creativity, Inc.

November 10th, 2007, 05:26 AM	#12
Paul Mailath Trustee Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Central Coast - NSW, Australia Posts: 1,606	I just bought one of these - it's pretty good for the money. No trouble hanging the HV20 off it but I'm careful with with XH-A1 http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Glue-pod-stea...QQcmdZViewItem __________________ Cheers - Paul M. www.perbenyik.com

October 24th, 2007, 09:13 PM	#2
Daniel Ross Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Marin & Davis, CA, USA Posts: 418	I like using the $14 steadycam seen here-- http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~johnny/steadycam/ --with a few modifications. Depending on the shot, using a single pipe (no T, just one vertical piece) around 6-8" can be quite effective, with a small weight. Note that the steadycam will be STEADY, meaning no jitters, but may still sway some; that's entirely the fault/job of the camera operator. Having the steadycam is nice because of the separation from the car itself; the steadycam's counterbalance system absorbs a lot of the motion, as do your elbows, then shoulders, and body/car seat, then it's finally attached to the car itself. If you do want to attach directly to the car, which can give some very jittery results, depending on the car, the speed, the terrain, etc., I'd recommend something like the Cleat, here: http://www.filmtools.com/cleatsuccamm.html I've used it with success for filming background plates, though a lot of that was unusable due to jitter. Some post processing may be needed as well to really make it work.

October 24th, 2007, 09:27 PM	#3
Kevin Saitta Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Snoqualmie, WA Posts: 57	Thank you for the links, Greatly appreciated. Gives me some ideas for sure! Kevin

October 24th, 2007, 09:40 PM	#4
Daniel Ross Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Marin & Davis, CA, USA Posts: 418	No problem. By the way, I forgot to mention the reason for just using a single pipe for the steadycam in the car-- maneuverability. Having the full setup in a car, at least a smaller car, can just get in the way. A single pipe becomes a convenient one-hand-held unit.

October 24th, 2007, 10:11 PM	#5
Kevin Saitta Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Snoqualmie, WA Posts: 57	Yeah, I drive a stick, so I need to figure out how to do it, but I am definitely going to build one of these steady cams, they are awesome! Actually maybe I will just outright buy one from the guy to support him. What an excellent idea.

October 24th, 2007, 10:24 PM	#6
Daniel Ross Major Player Join Date: Jul 2007 Location: Marin & Davis, CA, USA Posts: 418	Well, you'll want someone holding a camera, then. I drive a stick, too. Seems a bit extreme to try to shoot yourself, regardless. Perhaps the suction cup mount, if you must be alone in the car.

October 25th, 2007, 04:01 AM	#7
Paul Jefferies Major Player Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: Croydon, England Posts: 277	You could try one of these: http://www.b-hague.co.uk/Mounting%20Brackets.htm

October 25th, 2007, 07:59 AM	#9
Boyd Ostroff Wrangler Join Date: Dec 2002 Location: Mays Landing, NJ Posts: 11,798	Hi Kevin. We actually have a sub-forum dedicated to this topic here: http://www.dvinfo.net/conf/forumdisplay.php?f=124. You might want to browse through older posts for some more ideas. I've moved your thread there while leaving a temporary re-direct in the original forum.

November 11th, 2007, 06:33 AM	#14
Kevin Saitta Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Snoqualmie, WA Posts: 57	Thanks for all the info. Kev