I recently purchased a GL2 and have rounded out my accessories with a Libec M20 tripod, Varizoom Pro-L, dual battery charger/adapter, B+W UV filter and VLi-10 light for some fill light indoors. Hand held operation for 5-10 minutes is not too bad and the GL-2 is not too heavy, but long hand held shoots get tired quickly, not to mention the instability of my arm as it tires. So The last accessory I need for now (as I am already well over budget) is a decent shoulder brace for the GL2. Something that sits noce on the shoulder and has an abdomen support to hel my old tired arm. I relaize you get what you pay for, but I would like to keep the cost reasonable. Any suggestions? Pretty much every option I bought I did so becasue of recommendation from the great expierience on this forum.
Thanks in advance!

Frankly, in my opinion the clear choice for shoulder brace with drop-down ab support is the VariZoom VZ-LSP. See http://www.varizoom.com/pages/lsp.htm

Beware of a cheap imitation of this brace, the Mighty Wondercam. The VariZoom model is a Peter Lisand design, it's the one that came first; the Wondercam is a knock-off version. Hope this helps,

Chris,

Some how I thought you were going to recommend the Varizoom brace. My Pro-L came today. Very nice, but I probably have to send mine back, one of the focus buttons seems liek i have to really lean into it to get the switch to make, oh well. But it sure is built like a a tank! Thanks!

I wouldn't call the Mighty Wondercam a cheap imitation. It's about 60% of the price of the varizoom and I saw very little difference.I thought they were both overpriced.

There are only so many ways a shoulder brace can be contructed and there are bound to be similarities.

I agree that they are all very over priced. I saw a web site (can't remember where) that had mechanical deign drawings to builf your own. I have a firend that works with metals and welds, I may ask him to take a stab at building one.

It's video production.
EVERYTHING is overpriced! :)

I've got a Mighty Wondercam. I only like it because I got it cheap off Ebay. If I had paid full price for it I would be dissapointed in the finish of it I think.
It does a decent job, but I have a hard time getting it to fit my shoulder properly and comfortably.
For the money involved I'd either look into building your own, or getting a higher end model, depending on your situation.

So I am finally getting to use my GL2. Went out shooting some video this weekend at a State Park with a lake. Took some shot os boats on the lake, panning with their motion and zooming in as they move, one thing I noticed is the 20X zoom on the GL2 is GREAT, but even with image stabilzation ON at the longest zooms (optical only) it is very hard to few hold the camera steday enough to keep objects steady enough to not make peole motion sick when viewing the video. So can someone expand on the differences, proc and cons of monopods vs a shoudler brace? I realize for shots where the camera will be in motion the shoulder brace is the obvious choice, but what about more stationary shots where camera is in one relative place with some tilts and pans? As always, thanks in advance!

<<<-- Originally posted by Dylan Couper : It's video production.
EVERYTHING is overpriced! :)

I've got a Mighty Wondercam. I only like it because I got it cheap off Ebay. If I had paid full price for it I would be dissapointed in the finish of it I think.
It does a decent job, but I have a hard time getting it to fit my shoulder properly and comfortably.
For the money involved I'd either look into building your own, or getting a higher end model, depending on your situation. -->>>


I tried both the varizoom and Wondercam and found the same think. For that money it should have a well padded and better fitting shoulder piece.

This design looks a little more robust. I tried to find one to have a look vbut no luck.
http://www.habbycam.com/

http://www.videoinnovators.com/text.html

In my experience, a drop-down ab support, which takes all the weight off your wrists and puts it down at your belt, is what really makes a brace worth having. If a brace doesn't have the ab support, how is it going to be any better for you than just hand-holding the camera. If anything, it would create more strain... it's just that much more weight, and it's all on your fore arms and wrists. If you can tuck your elbows in close to your torso and help brace the support that way, all the better but this becomes uncomfortable pretty quick when you're working.

Taking about long shoots here, of course.

Not endorsing mediapro any longer?

The VariZoom MediaPro is an exception due to the way it works. When MediaPro is properly configured with the appropriate amount of counterweight behind your shoulder, there is very little if any downward pressure from the camera head forward. Thus, no need for a drop-down ab support. I've shot comfortably on all-day shoots with the MediaPro (and yes, I still endorse it), but didn't consider it for this conversation as pricing has obviously been made an issue here and it is somewhat expensive. Hope this helps,

It's not a shoulder brace, this is way better imo.
http://www.marztech.com

Then again, I am the co inventor.

Jacques

Thanks, very interesting and worth a look. Is this something you use? Do you prefer it over a shoulder brace?

Yes, I do.

The MARzPAK is a light weight back pack (6lbs) made of the best
materials. So it is very comfortable to wear. The camera's
weight is evenly distributed, with most of the weight on
the thick foam hip belt. A shoulder brace puts all the weight
on one shoulder. That doesn't help when you got to go all day long.

Shoulder braces situate the camera at shoulder level. That means
_one_ angle . . . ugh. Okay, you can bend your
knees to change the level, but you cannot hold bent knees very long
without wobbling. The MARzPAK allow you to shoot in any position that
your arms can reach. So from above your head to below your waist.

The marzpak supports the camera and some of your arm's weight too as you hang on. Your arms act as stabilizing weight (though Marztech now has a screw in under slung stabilizing weight for even better results).
YOU have to support the brace and the camera with NO help.

Although marztech's disclaimer says to "always keep one hand on your
camera," in reality, the camera is "safetied", so you can let go of it
and do things like clean the lens, knock the skeeters off your face,
blow your nose, etc. without having to set your whole rig on the ground.

You can shoot over cliffs and out moving car windows without fear of dropping the camera. With the optional battery pack, you can hold
all your batteries and supplies. The MARzPAK is simply a much more
versatile rig than anything else out there, including the Tortle Rig or
EZ Rig II, which cost 3X and 5X the money.

It is the best _hand held support system_ by far if you ask me,
but I do NOT recommend it for walking and running shots.
Yes, you can get good results with some time and practice, but
it isn't a steadicam, dollie on track or a magic wand. For perfectly smooth moving shots like those that need to be repeated exactly again and again, you need the real deal imo.

And, remember, I am the co inventor of The MARzPAK, so . . .
there's that.

Jacques,

Thanks again. It does look like it has a ton of advantages over a shoulder brace. Anyone else here used one to give an opinion?

Wearing one of those you'd never have to ask anyone to smile again. I'm not saying they don't work well, just that you'd have to endure a lot of comments.

I find it very strange that some people are far more worried about how someone else 'may' think they look, as opposed to how their video looks.

Here's what I have found. About a year ago, I
was the on-stage camera guy for the band Tantric.
Tantric was the opening act for Kid Rock on that tour. You know, Kid Rock, America's badass? The
guy who goes out with Pamela Lee Anderson?
I don't think they would have hired a dork to do their shoot.

Anyway, the arena was packed full of 8000 screaming
fans. As I went through the main floor wearing my MARzPAK and XL1 rig, the seas of people
parted for me. Comments I heard were, "Wow, cool steadicam rig." "Hey, check it out!" No one was laughing, but even if they did, it wouldn't bother me in the slightest. If I make a person laugh, that's cool I brightened their day. The faces I saw were in awe.

Just the fact that I had a rig like the MARzPAK
let everyone know I was a pro and there doing a job. Had I an XL1 alone? Nothing special there.

In any case, the shoot was for Maverick Records
(Maddonna's label). I was on stage with the band
in front of a sea of adoring fans. It was
the best experience I had since my band opened for The Clash. I know I looked cool, and my video was
stunning.

Best way to make $$$ I know of.

I wasn't slamming the product just telling it like I see it.

When I show up with my gear I realize I look like super dork but who cares. We have to maintain a sense of humour or at least try, it sure helps.

It's like a cameramans vest, it gets looks and comments.