Non-level shots with Steadicam? at DVinfo.net

Sverker Hahn · April 15th, 2009, 05:17 AM

Stupid question (?) :

Is it possible to take shots with the camera pointing downwards or upwards? Like the flowers on the ground of the leaves of the trees above?

Nick Tsamandanis · April 15th, 2009, 06:47 AM

Yes, with slower drop times its easy to tilt up or down.

Olof Ekbergh · April 15th, 2009, 07:59 AM

Yes it is easy to do with slow droptime, monitoring is the tricky part.

If the shot is tilted up or down for the entire shot, adjust the monitor so you can see it.

Otherwise you may need an additional monitor held by an assistant or rigged somehow so you can see it.

You may want to do tilt up shots in low slung mode, if you use a wide angle lens to keep yourself out of the shot.

Sverker Hahn · April 16th, 2009, 10:26 AM

Seems to be a little awkward - if I want to record the canopy of the forest by walking along a path for, say, 20 minutes - isn´t it possible to have the camera on a tilted videohead, instead of tilting the whole sled?

I suppose the answer is "no" - it is just me bothering you with my ideas ... :-)

David C. Williams · April 16th, 2009, 05:32 PM

You can get a tilt head which will let you balance the post vertically for flat pans, or you can simply balance the head rearward for an effortless permanent tilt, but your pans will roll the horizon.

Get Jerry and Laurie's book. Jerry Holway, Holway Films Inc. Skyman Steadicam Operator Director of Photography Inventor The chances of you having a question that's not answered here are zero to none.

Charles Papert · April 16th, 2009, 07:25 PM

Here's a picture of an aftermarket Steadicam tilt plate:

Baer-Bel CamTec

I could have used one of these on Tuesday as I shot Green Day from the pit, two hours of tilting upwards was an annoyance. Otherwise a bit of an exotic addition. The larger Tiffen rigs have this feature built in though.

Sverker Hahn · April 17th, 2009, 12:35 AM

Thank you guys, for the input.

Seems that I can do what I wanted, even if it cost some extra ...

April 15th, 2009, 05:17 AM	#1
Sverker Hahn Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 157	Non-level shots with Steadicam? Stupid question (?) : Is it possible to take shots with the camera pointing downwards or upwards? Like the flowers on the ground of the leaves of the trees above?

April 15th, 2009, 06:47 AM	#2
Nick Tsamandanis Major Player Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Adelaide, South Australia Posts: 318	Yes, with slower drop times its easy to tilt up or down. __________________ Nick

April 16th, 2009, 05:32 PM	#5
David C. Williams Major Player Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: melb.vic.au Posts: 447	You can get a tilt head which will let you balance the post vertically for flat pans, or you can simply balance the head rearward for an effortless permanent tilt, but your pans will roll the horizon. Get Jerry and Laurie's book. Jerry Holway, Holway Films Inc. Skyman Steadicam Operator Director of Photography Inventor The chances of you having a question that's not answered here are zero to none. __________________ www.davidwilliams.com.au

April 16th, 2009, 07:25 PM	#6
Charles Papert Wrangler Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 6,810	Here's a picture of an aftermarket Steadicam tilt plate: Baer-Bel CamTec I could have used one of these on Tuesday as I shot Green Day from the pit, two hours of tilting upwards was an annoyance. Otherwise a bit of an exotic addition. The larger Tiffen rigs have this feature built in though. __________________ Charles Papert www.charlespapert.com

April 15th, 2009, 07:59 AM	#3
Olof Ekbergh Sponsor: Westside AV Join Date: Dec 2008 Location: Mount Washington Valley, NH, USA Posts: 1,365	Yes it is easy to do with slow droptime, monitoring is the tricky part. If the shot is tilted up or down for the entire shot, adjust the monitor so you can see it. Otherwise you may need an additional monitor held by an assistant or rigged somehow so you can see it. You may want to do tilt up shots in low slung mode, if you use a wide angle lens to keep yourself out of the shot.

April 16th, 2009, 10:26 AM	#4
Sverker Hahn Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 157	Seems to be a little awkward - if I want to record the canopy of the forest by walking along a path for, say, 20 minutes - isn´t it possible to have the camera on a tilted videohead, instead of tilting the whole sled? I suppose the answer is "no" - it is just me bothering you with my ideas ... :-)

April 17th, 2009, 12:35 AM	#7
Sverker Hahn Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2008 Location: Stockholm, Sweden Posts: 157	Thank you guys, for the input. Seems that I can do what I wanted, even if it cost some extra ...