Smooth Shooter or DV Sportster users evaluations? at DVinfo.net

James Farley · June 27th, 2005, 03:23 PM

I'm interested in seeing some user evaluations of the Glidecam Smooth Shooter and Varizoom DV Sportster. How do they compare with each other?

Randy Harris · June 27th, 2005, 08:19 PM

I have had a sportster for about 3 weeks. I am new to the vest and arm systems so I can't give any comparisons But, this is what I have found.

If you keep the camera in front of you its okay. The straps are narrow and are very uncomfortable. When you move the camera to either side the breast plate will tilt and the glidecam handle will not be perpindicular to the ground, making it hard to handle. The handle will turn to the outside. To solve this I made a padded vest simular to the smoothshooter. Now no shifting, easy to handle. Otherwise now everything is okay.

On the good side, the spring is quiet. I am using glidecam 2000 and GL1 and they seem to float.

Henry Cho · June 27th, 2005, 10:35 PM

i haven't used either... yet. some thoughts for prospective buyers:

i ordered a glidecam smooth shooter last week and have been put on a waiting list -- apparently glidecam can't make them fast enough. the sales rep from an authorized reseller told me he sells them as fast as he gets them, and that no one has them in stock right now. estimated ship date for mine is mid to end of july. in any case, i've heard second hand some very positive experiences with the smooth shooter setup.

i looked at the dv sportster as well when i was shopping around. the primary reason i went with the glidecam is i know the arm can take the weight of my xl1/glidecam 4000 setup. the varizoom rep i corresponded with said the xl1 was right at the upper limit of what the sportster arm could take, which didn't make me feel comfortable.

i'll post comments once i'm up and running with the smooth shooter.

Leigh Wanstead · June 28th, 2005, 12:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Henry Cho

i'll post comments once i'm up and running with the smooth shooter.

I can't resist to say, "Post your video using your stablizer".

I know that it all depends on experience. But you might be genius. ;-)

Regards
Leigh

Josh Caldwell · June 28th, 2005, 09:39 AM

I got my smooth shooter last week and it's amazing. I was also new to the vest arm setup, but it's amazing. Hopefully I can post some video later today, but I had it on for about an hour and never felt like I was carrying any extra weight. I haven't used the other product, but I would whole heartedly reccomend the smooth shooter.

Leigh Wanstead · June 28th, 2005, 03:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Josh Caldwell

I got my smooth shooter last week and it's amazing. I was also new to the vest arm setup, but it's amazing. Hopefully I can post some video later today, but I had it on for about an hour and never felt like I was carrying any extra weight. I haven't used the other product, but I would whole heartedly reccomend the smooth shooter.

Hi Josh,

I look forward to your video.

Regards
Leigh

Josh Caldwell · June 28th, 2005, 05:15 PM

Here's some glidecam smooth shooter footage from a music video we shot this past weekend. It's only parts of the glidecam stuff. However, the music right now is uncut, so, there is some offensive language in there. Just want to warn you.

http://www.savefile.com/files/5371239

Enjoy.

Josh

Tom Wills · June 28th, 2005, 07:34 PM

Looks quite nice. May I ask how much experience do you have with Steadicams/Glidecams? I'm looking into getting one of these for my homebuilt rig, and I would like to be able to have a reference for that footage.

Josh Caldwell · June 28th, 2005, 07:57 PM

I've been using the Glidecam 2000 for four years with my GL1. But last year I upgraded to the XL2 and just recently purchased the Smooth Shooter. When this video was shot, I had abut three days worth of experience on it, though I used the V-8 last year on a shoot.

With enough practice and time-tested calibration, I could get things to be much smoother, but that's what it looks like out of the box.

Henry Cho · June 29th, 2005, 09:29 AM

nice josh. did you use your xl2 on a glidecam 4000? i'm curious about how the glidecam handles the weight of the xl2, and the combined weight on the smooth shooter.

in any case, i appreciate you sharing your vid with us.

Josh Caldwell · June 29th, 2005, 11:16 PM

The smooth shooter can handle up to 18 pounds, and I've tested that weight and it works fine. With the XL2, all the weight disks, and the 4000 it comes to less than that. So, the weight is fine. Like I said, I've had it on for an hour and never really felt the weight. With glidecam products, the heavier the better.

Eugene Kim · July 2nd, 2005, 11:18 AM

Are you sure about that? I was told that the Smooth Shooter with 4000 is only designed for cameras up to 10lbs. by the people who conduct Smooth Shooter clinics.

Joe Collins · July 2nd, 2005, 11:39 AM

Here's a cut and paste from the Glidecam website:

"Our proprietary spring Inter-X-Change™ system makes the installation and removal of the springs quick and easy. The Support Arm can be setup and used in either a One-Spring Mode, or a Two-Spring Mode. In the One-Spring Mode, the Support Arm can hold a total combined camera and hand-held stabilizer weight of 9 pounds. In the Two-Spring Mode, the Support Arm can hold a total combined camera and hand-held stabilizer weight of 18 pounds."

Henry Cho · July 2nd, 2005, 03:49 PM

i think josh was referring to the combined weight of the glidecam with counterweights AND his camera. the glidecam itself can handle cameras up to 10 lbs.

Josh Caldwell · July 2nd, 2005, 05:29 PM

That's correct. The Smooth Shooter can handle weight up to 18 pounds, but the Glidecam 4000 alone is made for up to 10 lbs.

June 27th, 2005, 03:23 PM	#1
James Farley New Boot Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: N.Y,N.Y. Posts: 20	Smooth Shooter or DV Sportster users evaluations? I'm interested in seeing some user evaluations of the Glidecam Smooth Shooter and Varizoom DV Sportster. How do they compare with each other?

June 27th, 2005, 08:19 PM	#2
Randy Harris New Boot Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: Lithonia, Ga Posts: 11	Smoothshooter or DV Sportster I have had a sportster for about 3 weeks. I am new to the vest and arm systems so I can't give any comparisons But, this is what I have found. If you keep the camera in front of you its okay. The straps are narrow and are very uncomfortable. When you move the camera to either side the breast plate will tilt and the glidecam handle will not be perpindicular to the ground, making it hard to handle. The handle will turn to the outside. To solve this I made a padded vest simular to the smoothshooter. Now no shifting, easy to handle. Otherwise now everything is okay. On the good side, the spring is quiet. I am using glidecam 2000 and GL1 and they seem to float.

June 28th, 2005, 05:15 PM	#7
Josh Caldwell Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 183	Footage Here's some glidecam smooth shooter footage from a music video we shot this past weekend. It's only parts of the glidecam stuff. However, the music right now is uncut, so, there is some offensive language in there. Just want to warn you. http://www.savefile.com/files/5371239 Enjoy. Josh

June 29th, 2005, 09:29 AM	#10
Henry Cho Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 516	nice josh. did you use your xl2 on a glidecam 4000? i'm curious about how the glidecam handles the weight of the xl2, and the combined weight on the smooth shooter. in any case, i appreciate you sharing your vid with us. Last edited by Henry Cho; June 29th, 2005 at 10:02 AM.

June 27th, 2005, 10:35 PM	#3
Henry Cho Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 516	i haven't used either... yet. some thoughts for prospective buyers: i ordered a glidecam smooth shooter last week and have been put on a waiting list -- apparently glidecam can't make them fast enough. the sales rep from an authorized reseller told me he sells them as fast as he gets them, and that no one has them in stock right now. estimated ship date for mine is mid to end of july. in any case, i've heard second hand some very positive experiences with the smooth shooter setup. i looked at the dv sportster as well when i was shopping around. the primary reason i went with the glidecam is i know the arm can take the weight of my xl1/glidecam 4000 setup. the varizoom rep i corresponded with said the xl1 was right at the upper limit of what the sportster arm could take, which didn't make me feel comfortable. i'll post comments once i'm up and running with the smooth shooter.

June 28th, 2005, 09:39 AM	#5
Josh Caldwell Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 183	I got my smooth shooter last week and it's amazing. I was also new to the vest arm setup, but it's amazing. Hopefully I can post some video later today, but I had it on for about an hour and never felt like I was carrying any extra weight. I haven't used the other product, but I would whole heartedly reccomend the smooth shooter.

June 28th, 2005, 07:34 PM	#8
Tom Wills Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Location: Philadelphia, PA Posts: 326	Looks quite nice. May I ask how much experience do you have with Steadicams/Glidecams? I'm looking into getting one of these for my homebuilt rig, and I would like to be able to have a reference for that footage.

June 28th, 2005, 07:57 PM	#9
Josh Caldwell Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 183	I've been using the Glidecam 2000 for four years with my GL1. But last year I upgraded to the XL2 and just recently purchased the Smooth Shooter. When this video was shot, I had abut three days worth of experience on it, though I used the V-8 last year on a shoot. With enough practice and time-tested calibration, I could get things to be much smoother, but that's what it looks like out of the box.

June 29th, 2005, 11:16 PM	#11
Josh Caldwell Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 183	The smooth shooter can handle up to 18 pounds, and I've tested that weight and it works fine. With the XL2, all the weight disks, and the 4000 it comes to less than that. So, the weight is fine. Like I said, I've had it on for an hour and never really felt the weight. With glidecam products, the heavier the better.

July 2nd, 2005, 11:18 AM	#12
Eugene Kim Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 166	Are you sure about that? I was told that the Smooth Shooter with 4000 is only designed for cameras up to 10lbs. by the people who conduct Smooth Shooter clinics.

July 2nd, 2005, 11:39 AM	#13
Joe Collins Regular Crew Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Athens, Ga USA Posts: 33	Here's a cut and paste from the Glidecam website: "Our proprietary spring Inter-X-Change™ system makes the installation and removal of the springs quick and easy. The Support Arm can be setup and used in either a One-Spring Mode, or a Two-Spring Mode. In the One-Spring Mode, the Support Arm can hold a total combined camera and hand-held stabilizer weight of 9 pounds. In the Two-Spring Mode, the Support Arm can hold a total combined camera and hand-held stabilizer weight of 18 pounds."

July 2nd, 2005, 03:49 PM	#14
Henry Cho Major Player Join Date: May 2005 Location: NYC Posts: 516	i think josh was referring to the combined weight of the glidecam with counterweights AND his camera. the glidecam itself can handle cameras up to 10 lbs.

July 2nd, 2005, 05:29 PM	#15
Josh Caldwell Regular Crew Join Date: Oct 2004 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 183	That's correct. The Smooth Shooter can handle weight up to 18 pounds, but the Glidecam 4000 alone is made for up to 10 lbs.