DSLR rig for T2i

[Jean Rousseau]

Hello everyone,

I'm currently looking for a cheap shoulder support for the T2i,

I'm wondering if anyone is using this one from dvcity

DSLR rig 23

I like the one hand handle and would also add a DFocus follow focus to the unit.
I will also add a viewfinder to it (zacuto or ...) and this rig is adjustable forward or backward so I can put it exactly where I need it.

What do you guys think of this unit?

DSLR Kit - DSL Rig-23 Shoulder Mount with tripod plate for mini dv hdv camcorders; hv20, d

[Robert Turchick]

That looks pretty well made... and a heck of a bargain since all their prices seem to be missing a "1" in front of them! Let us know how they are!

[Michael Liebergot]

Looks pretty decent.

[Ben Ruffell]

I attempted to work with a DV City mattebox, rod base, follow focus last year. It did not work. Nothing lined up, it was the worst made, most useless attempt at a product I have ever seen. Do yourself a favor, save your money for some kit that actually works.

[Emil Gustafsson Ryderup]

What about this one? About 100 dollars.

Hands Free Shoulder Pad - Kaffebrus

[Michael Liebergot]

What about this one? About 100 dollars.

Hands Free Shoulder Pad - Kaffebrus

Save your money on that one as well.
I have many supports and tried using this one, under a different name the other day.
Since the chest support rests against your chest it shows breathing in your footage.

So while it will keep your image from being all over the place, you are better with a support which is simple like the Spiderbrace or such.

[Emil Gustafsson Ryderup]

Checked out the Spiderbrace, looks good and sort of cheap.

But how the hell are you supposed to keep focus why holding that, a cameraoperator and a docus puller watching the same tiny screen and using that rig :) Complicated when AF is out of the question...

[Robert Turchick]

all this is going to be interesting for those of us who can't spend serious $ on a rig. I am planning to adapt the rig I built for my HMC-150 for use with the T2i and a follow focus.
So far I have $160 into the rig and $100 of that was the quick release plates!

Here's the thread w/pics...

http://www.dvinfo.net/forum/shoulder...emade-rig.html

[Stan Chase]

As an alternative..this is only $50 and has a multitude of uses :

Gorillapod SLR - Zoom

[Michael Liebergot]

Well my soltion is since I already own a DVMultiRig Multirig - DVTEC, I simply picked up the DSR Extreme Tripod Rig DSLR Rigs - DVTEC.

This should enable me to take my MultiRig, which rocks BTW for practically everything, and transform my rig into one with rails for my DSLR.

Down the road I might look into RedRock, Cinevate, or others, but for the time being thought it best to try to utilize what tools I already have.

Besides I already use y MultiRig all day long for everything for my camcorders and accessories so why not my SLR. Especially since I can configure it in endless ways.

[Alex Sava]

Are all these rigs really necessary though? The Redrock one is sexy but it's around $2500 or something, isn't that immensely expensive for essentially some plastic? I mean we're all getting the T2i or even 7D for a great image for a low price, why spend all that cash on this stuff?

Can't we just buy a Steadicam Pilot? Surely it's very expensive as well but at least it's a Steadicam which works with any camera and supposedly renders "handheld" shots obsolete.

I'm just asking cause I'd fork out the money for a T2i or a 7D because they are great pieces of equipment which pretty much tell us how much technology has evolved. But when a follow focus and a mattebox cost almost as much as those two cameras combined, something surely isn't right...

[Robert Turchick]

Exactly! That's why I'm building one!
And I'd LOVE to have a Pilot but there are situations where it won't work where a shoulder mount will. And there's that price tag again!

[Matt Davis]

Originally Posted by Alex Sava

Can't we just buy a Steadicam Pilot? Surely it's very expensive as well but at least it's a Steadicam which works with any camera and supposedly renders "handheld" shots obsolete.

Steadicam can be a whole bunch of hurt on its own. The cost of the engineering is one thing; the cost of the time taken to master it is another. The cost of dealing with one on site is yet another.

Then there's the hidden cost - the time taken to have a little corner where you set up the rig. Then there's the on/off rig time (may as well have two cameras, one set up for the Steadicam),

I'm speaking from an Event Videographer point of view, sorely wanting to add Steadicam, but aware that it does NOT render hand-held shots obsolete, especially if you're getting sync sound. I mean, what happens if it's windy? What happens when you're trying to use radio mics, it's splatting too much so you need to attach a cable? What happens when you're doing vox pops with a sound recordist and the stuff needs to be on air in 15 minutes? Did you know that wireless follow-focus units can give photographic lenses a nasty warranty-limiting whack? Know how wide you'll have to go for a workable hyperfocal distance?

Yes, sure, it will work well in a tightly defined specific set of circumstances - and that will be a subset of the already tightly defined specific sets of circumstances where a HD-DSLR fits the bill.

But beyond the impressive 'ultimate lego set' scaffolding sets I've seen, do we lose the joy of such little cameras? Snatching impressive shots in surroundings that are denied to all except big-budget movies and domestic camcorders? Fitting in corners that not even an EX1 will go?

But I speak as one who is going for the minimalist RapidFire and Z-Finder that costs more than the body because the whole ensemble with Tokina 11-16 (and my Nikkor 17-55/2.8 I happen to own) does more for less than an EX3's wide angle zoom and gives so much more besides.

But I know and fully comprehend that won't compute for many of the 550D/Rebel's clientele. It will do wonderful things on a Merlin, but would recommend one budgets for both training and loads of practice.

[Alex Sava]

Matt, I am well aware of the differences between all of us here in terms of "what we use our cameras for."

Some are filmmakers, others are event videographers, so on. You make a good point, the Steadicam is a hassle, but at least when I pay 3 grand for it or whatever the Pilot costs, I know that the money is going on a revolutionary rig that with a bit of practice, makes incredible shots.

But when I look at these dSLR rigs and I see a similar price tag for a few aluminum rods and some plastic dials, it just blows my mind. I'm all for investment in equipment like glass, good audio, etc... but are these rigs really, really necessary? The just seem overpriced as hell.

I believe a lot of this stuff is overkill. I'm not denying the fact that some people really do need a lot of accessories to their cameras because they have to be fast and professional, but I also have the feeling that most people buy this stuff for the same reasons others tune their cars or mod their computers -- simply for the sake of having lots of gadgets.

I could be wrong, and I'm not having a go at either of you, but in a subforum about a cheap dSLR that can shoot video -- which is definitely aimed at newcomers and people with limited budget -- maybe we should really draw a line between what's essential, and what's just a toy.

[Michael Liebergot]

For most a cheap shoulder rig like the SpiderBace or a monopod should suffice.
But you will need support for shooting video with these DSLRs, as the camera is just too small to get consistent steady shots for prolonged periods.

But with that being said, these cameras are great for being in the field taking pictures and deciding spur of the moment to take some great looking video for s short time. Just don;t expect it to look like somethign that Francis Ford Copala shot without support.