View Full Version : Vinten Forests Sprout at Olympics


Chris Soucy
July 30th, 2012, 06:27 PM
Here's a new game for all you avid Olympic sports fans.

See if you can count how many Vinten camera supports are at the various Olympic venues.

I managed to catch a half hour of the Womens Gymnastics yesterday, courtesy of my better half.

I wasn't really taking a great deal of notice of the action, because sports really aren't my thing, so let my attention drift to what was going on in the background.

The camera panned across the floor as it followed one of the competitors back to her chair, and all of a sudden I said to myself "What the f........".

Quite clearly, in the background, was a solid 20 - 30 metre wall of tripod mounted HD cameras, and stuff me if every single one I could get a good look at was on a Vinten.

Then I thought, "Nah, sheer coincidence" but, my attention grabbed, I started studying every background I could see, and sure enough, every single support I could get a decent squiz at was, indeed, a Vinten - everywhere!

Having got hooked on this rather bizarre game, I've been analysing every frame of coverage I can, and sure enough, wherever there's a tripod mounted camera that I can get a decent look at, it's on a Vinten.

Amazing. There's got to be hundreds and hundreds of them.

Even, as far as I can make out, all the big OB rigs are sitting on Vinten too.

OK, I hear you say, how do I know they're Vinten?

Because, all the standard Vinten sticks (apart from the Vb 's) with mid level spreaders, are using the SpreadLock mid level spreader, with it's unique and unmistakable top mounted light grey lock knob, can't miss it, stands out like a sore thumb, though it helps if you have seen one up close and personal, as I have, 'cause I own one.

Now, the flip side to this game is to spot a non - Vinten rig and let us know, 'cos I haven't spied one yet.

Sachtlers shouldn't be too hard to spot, their heads are quite unmistakable.

Some of the other makes could be a bit tricky.

Now, I'm not going to say this is 100% accurate, but I'm betting, based on what I've seen so far, that just about any video images you see of the Olympics, wherever its taken by a tripod mounted camera, it's on Vinten sticks and heads.

Come on, get in the game and prove me wrong.


CS

Attached, piccies of a SpreadLock spreader, just to make it a bit easier

Nate Haustein
July 30th, 2012, 07:47 PM
I was conscious of this when watching last night, and I blame you for it. :)

Saw one Sachtler during the Mens 250km bike race, otherwise lots and lots of nice Vintens!

Chris Soucy
July 31st, 2012, 01:13 AM
Well, the plot thickens, if you will.

I have it from an impeccable source (NOT Vinten, I have friends in LOW places, I had a lot of contacts in the video sphere when I lived in London, and a good many of them are shooting at the Olympics), close to the Olympic action, that what Nate and I have observed is a non issue.

Nearly 100% of all the camera supports being used at all the Olympic locations are Vinten, end of story.

Yep, there's an occasional "other", comprising less than 1% of the estimated 3,500 camera supports in use, every single one of the rest is Vinten.

Why?

Can't say (because I simply don't know).

Vinten aren't an official sponsor, so won't say, else they get a kicking from the IOC attack dogs, but it can't be because you can get a Vinten rig by sending in 5 Cerial Box tops and $10.

Most of the foreign shooters have opted for hired Vintens, instead of paying to ship their own apparently, the rest, well, who knows.

I rest my case, most of the video you're watching with regard to the Olympics is coming courtesy of Vinten sticks and heads.

Now, that's a biggie. Knew there was a reason I was was taken by them, seems I'm not alone.

Good game though, see how YOU fare at it.

Get you eyes peeled for a set of non Vinten supports, not easy, but you do get better with practice.


CS

Mike Beckett
July 31st, 2012, 01:25 AM
Saw one Sachtler during the Mens 250km bike race, otherwise lots and lots of nice Vintens!

They must've ran out of Vintens!

Les Wilson
July 31st, 2012, 06:05 AM
It's an English company so it's what I would expect as the home team.

Chris Soucy
August 1st, 2012, 11:01 PM
Er, Les..................

Who's gonna be the support supplier when the Olympics are next staged in the USA?

Anyone?


CS

Steve Game
August 2nd, 2012, 01:36 AM
I doubt that will be before 2024. Kit may be completely different by then, - maybe the current manufacturers will not be there at all.

Meanwhile, paying visitors are not even allowed to take monopods into the Olympic Park.

Chris Soucy
August 2nd, 2012, 01:50 AM
Yep, I've heard it's pretty anal, to the point of utter stupidty.

Hey, I didn't do it, nor did Vinten, the SPONSERS have taken over the whole damn thing, and it makes your average rock concert look like a walk in the park.

Crazy, but that's what happens when you sell your soul to the Devil of BIG MONEY!
And sold, it is.

The way it's gonna be untill idiots stop buying tickets, could take a while, the world is chock ablock with them.



CS

Mike Beckett
August 2nd, 2012, 01:51 AM
Chris - Davis & Sanford appear to be American....

http://www.tiffen.com/D&S%20Newsletter2.pdf

Um...

Seriously though, I'm not so sure tripods will be very much different in 12 years' time. Vinten and Sachtler (and Miller, I think) have been around for donkeys' years, and are probably here for decades to come. Despite all the advances in electronics with cameras, good tripods are still a triumph of top-notch mechanical engineering.

Les Wilson
August 2nd, 2012, 05:09 AM
Er, Les..................
Who's gonna be the support supplier when the Olympics are next staged in the USA?


I'm certain my point didn't imply there had to be a home team supplier in every nation they are held. Rather, when there is a supplier, especially one as old and venerable as Vinten, it makes sense they are the supplier. I expect they did everything possible and then some to get the contract.

Everyone knows that for the USA games, anything and everything except Bob Costas will be outsourced to China just like the teams uniforms were this year.

Pete Bauer
August 2nd, 2012, 09:24 AM
Just a gentle reminder to all that DVi is a digital video tech forum; please steer clear of politics and other such naturally controversial subjects.

Colin McDonald
August 2nd, 2012, 12:17 PM
I watched a bit of the beach volleyball and didn't notice any tripods at all.

Odd, because I was actually wondering about support as well.

Chris Soucy
August 2nd, 2012, 05:26 PM
Er, Les..................
Who's gonna be the support supplier when the Olympics are next staged in the USA


Something was niggling after I wrote that, then it occured to me - OCONNER, of course.

Colin, hmm, support for what, exactly (do remember this is a family channel!).


CS

Nate Haustein
August 2nd, 2012, 06:09 PM
I watched a bit of the beach volleyball and didn't notice any tripods at all.

Odd, because I was actually wondering about support as well.

Perhaps you missed the 40' Jib serving as the master shot!

There are some really cool things moving about on the bottom of the swimming pools too if you look for them....

Garrett Low
August 3rd, 2012, 01:28 AM
Perhaps you missed the 40' Jib serving as the master shot!

There are some really cool things moving about on the bottom of the swimming pools too if you look for them....

One of the coolest setups is the dive cam that drops at the same pace as the divers.

Don Bloom
August 3rd, 2012, 05:39 AM
One of the coolest setups is the dive cam that drops at the same pace as the divers.

We can thank Garrett Brown for that one among others. Not just the Steadicam.

"I watched a bit of the beach volleyball and didn't notice any tripods at all."

Yeah I didn't notice any tripod when I was watching the ladies beach volleyball either. ;-0

Zach Love
August 3rd, 2012, 10:25 AM
What I remember from the background of the '96 Olympics was the dive cameras were pretty much just on a rope & pulley. Someone would pull the camera up to the dive platform & let go when the divers jumped.

Guessing it is a little more complex than that... :-)

Garrett Low
August 3rd, 2012, 10:43 AM
Yeah I didn't notice any tripod when I was watching the ladies beach volleyball either. ;-0

They had cameras out there? Every time I watch beach volleyball I think I'm just having a really good dream. :-o

David Aronson
August 3rd, 2012, 06:25 PM
What I remember from the background of the '96 Olympics was the dive cameras were pretty much just on a rope & pulley. Someone would pull the camera up to the dive platform & let go when the divers jumped.

Guessing it is a little more complex than that... :-)

No, I'm pretty sure it's the same setup as they had before. Gravity is Gravity. It might be smaller since smaller HD cameras have been invented since then, but it's still the same pulley and rope setup.

Tom Wills
August 5th, 2012, 09:19 PM
I think people may be reading a bit too much into seeing so many Vintens on the Olympics. True, I've only seen one non-Vinten head (a Cartoni), but it makes sense. I've been doing some broadcast work since 2007, and in that time, I've never pulled a head off of an Outside Broadcast truck other than a Vinten.

Usually for the heavy stuff it's paired up with Mitchell mount sticks from Matthews, but I've seen Vinten sticks too. Lightweight rigs will usually be Vinten heads on Vinten sticks.

I'd imagine Vinten is popular in Britain, but even here in the US, Vinten runs the broadcast market.

Mike Beckett
August 6th, 2012, 07:41 AM
BBC have a feature today that goes (briefly) behind the scenes, and shows the dive cam amongst others:

BBC News - Filming the Games from every angle (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19150653)

This may be unavailable to non-UK viewers.

Victor Nguyen
August 10th, 2012, 01:14 AM
can anyone tell me what camera are they using at the olympics?

Sander Vreuls
August 10th, 2012, 05:27 AM
Most of the OBV camera's I saw on TV were Grass Valley LDK-8000's.. However I also know of a company which has sent an OBV with Sony HDC-1500's there..

Mark Utley
August 12th, 2012, 11:06 PM
All the hard camera would be Vinten heads - Vector 70/700, 750, 950 or 75. There's no substitute when you're using long lenses. But for handhelds, I'm sure there's a fair bit of Sachtler. There are already rental companies selling off their post-Olympic gear - lots of Sachtler tripods for sale.

Paul R Johnson
August 13th, 2012, 03:41 AM
I think you've all missed the critical point. They're Vinten because here in the UK, Vinten are the market leader - by a long, long way. In pro video mounts, Vinten, being British (and about 40 miles from here) are what so many individuals and small and large firms use. The Broadcasters have always used Vinten - and even with the odd experiment with other brands, always default to Vinten. I have 6 different types of camera support made by Vinten from brand new to quite old, and a Libec that never comes out of the case, and a Manfrotto that gets occasional use supporting a GoPro.

In news pool situations you do see some Satchlers and the occasional Miller - but the rest will be Vinten.

We're a small country, and Vinten have real TV history here, so the huge majority of buyers wear their Vinten out and replace it with another Vinten without any thought whatsoever. You can also knock on their door and find most parts easily available (even if expensive). Everything else would be an import job. The BBC have been Vinten for ever - and it rubs off!

Other countries have Vinten as an import brand, so home grown ones will be more popular.