I’d spoken online with James of DSLR Devices on a couple of occasions regarding me doing a review for his micro crane. But it wasn’t until I bumped into him whilst attending BVE that we did anything about it.  James is a great guy, a true entrepreneur.

With a kind donation of one of his cranes, I set about putting it through it’s paces to see what I thought of it.

Disclaimer: I haven’t used the crane as much as I would have liked prior to release of this review. Only time we tell how well the product holds up under further use, so until then I reserve the right to change my opinion. The below video and notes are a result of using the crane on a couple of shoots.

I won’t go into huge detail in text, as all I currently have to say on the device is in the video!

In summary: I really like it. It’s small compact form factor is brilliant, and this is what it’s all about, you can set it up and down in minutes, and take it literally anywhere (it’s coming to portugal with me end of the month, in standard sized baggage check in). It provides impressive results in this size and weight category.

Pros: Small and compact, affordable, small and compact, well engineered, small and compact.

Cons: Low weight bearing (pretty much maxes out with my 5D, lens and 701 head). If not operated carefully, you can inherit shaky footage.

Above pictured next to my Konova slider.

One addition I’d like to add that I didn’t include in the video, is a comment on the brake unit. This is connected using the two supplied bolts and wing nuts. When tightened up it does it great job, holds the full weight of my 5D, lens and 701 effortlessly. What I wasn’t such a fan of was when it was not in use.
Due to the length of the bolts, it was difficult to find a position where the brake wasn’t retaining any tension, but wasn’t so lose that it was in danger of falling off completely. A simple solution would be to have slightly longer bolts, meaning you could put the brake in a safe ‘off’ position without risking the nuts falling off.

Towards the end of the summer 2011 I went out with the boys on a few occasions to various skateparks around the Bristol area. They were more social occasions than video shoots, but I managed to string together a pretty lengthy edit of what went down!

The footage was shot over 4 sessions, at Filton, Hereford, Emerson’s Green and Midsomer Norton Skateparks. The very first bit of footage of Nick was shot by Sam Williams (co-Exotope Rituals writer) and myself  at the very start of the summer. At the time it was planned to be one of many shoots we’d do, to piece together a nice cinematic skate edit to depict the summer skate season. But I never got round to doing anything more! I thought I’d let the footage go, rather than wait until next year when it could potentially get outdated. Who knows I may use it again!

The time-lapsed pieces in the intro were shot using my Delkin car suction mount. They were originally just test pieces used to see how well it held up with my 7D and heavier lenses, but I needed an intro and these fitted the bill. Here is a picture of the setup when I used in San Diego with my lens skirt (ignore the TomTom!):

Kit wise I used my 7D and jag 35 cage. This setup it great for skateboarding, I can bolt on my SmallHD monitor on top, and Sennheiser mic coming off the side. This adds a nice weight to the rig, resulting in a reduction of micro shakes you always encounter when shooting handheld on DSLRs. You can also tripod this rig in seconds which is really handy. A further thing I found useful on one of the shoots was using my counter weight on a bottom set of rails to balance things out. It adds more weight, looks funny and takes some getting used to, but ensures perfect balance in your hand.

Lens wise. There was a few used over the 4 sessions. Most of my own kit: Opteka fish, Tokina 11-16mm, Zeiss 50mm, Canon 70-200mm, and I also used a Canon 16-35mm f/2.8 mkII on one occasion which I had hired for a corporate shoot. The lens is really nice, very sharp and the focal length is perfect for skateboarding. Two things I was a little disappointed in; Although the lens is constant aperture, there is a definite shift in exposure when you zoom, not a massive deal for photos but vey noticeable when shooting video. It’s probably the worst lens I’ve seen for this. I also don’t like the size of the front element, it requires 82mm filters?! No thanks. Aside from this, it’s such a solid lens, which is why I’ve just bought one for my 5D, although I went for the mark 1 as the 77mm filter thread is much more appealing!

This was actually the last footage I shot on my 7D, it was a shame to sell it. if I could have afforded to keep it alongside my 5D I would have!

And where there’s a last there’s a first, this edit shows the first footage I’ve shot of FSTL rider Tom Steele. Expect a lot more! In fact, expect something real soon..

Enjoy.

I’ve been itching to get this video out since completion early November. After a few set backs it’s finally public! Rui Furtado approached me mid-October with a rough concept for a music video, and this is what I produced.

One thing I’ve found with making small budget music videos; the schedules and budget are incredibly tight and it’s always hard to focus on what I like doing best, shooting video. So for this one, I made sure I had a second shooter. This gave me more breathing space on set, flexibility in the edit, a second pair of hands, a chance to really get some interesting cutaways spliced in (one of the key things I wanted to capture with this piece) without comprising time spent on the talent. I called on my good friends James Haddock and Guy Gotto for second cam over the 3 days, and they both did a superb job.

It was also a great excuse to hire a 5D mark II. I’ve used them on and off a fair bit, but this was the first project where I got to use one for 3 days straight, right next to the 7D. I really, really fell in love. So much so that I’ve since sold my 7D and EF-S lenses and bought a 5D mark II and 24-105mm L lens. Needles to say I absolutely adore the setup! More on gear later..

Both Cheyenne (the actress) and Rui were fantastic to work with. Rui is a great guy, he has a clear vision and knows exactly what he wants. It was really easy toget on with him, and made the whole process very smooth.

The video was shot in Bristol and Cardiff/Penarth. I was really excited to visit the one spot in Penarth. I’d heard of the existence of an abandoned council estate nearly a year ago, but never gotten round to visiting. A bit of location scouting the morning before had me really excited, it was amazing!

Credit has got to go out to my good friend Kirstie Jones. She helped out for the 3 days, being a third pair of hands, taking shoot pictures and soaking up the procedures. Thanks very much Kirstie!

Equipment wise, as mentioned I hired a Canon 5D mark ii and 24-105mm L as A-Cam. And my 7D as B-Cam. Additional Lenses were all my own; Zeiss 50mm f/1.7, Sigma 30mm f/1.4, Samyang 85mm f/1.4, Tokina 11-16mm f/2.8, Canon 70-200mm IS f/2.8 II.
I used my Jag35 Shoulder Rig throughout most of it, with a straight rod setup and my Small HD DP6 monitor (there was maybe one Hague Motion Cam shot in there also). B-Cam was operating off my Manfrotto monopod and 701 head. We also used my LCD Fader ND, and I purchased a Cokin .8 ND to go with my Cokin P holder for B-Cam.

Lighting wise, exteriors were mostly natural and a reflector board. For the club scenes I hired a set of 3X 150W Dedos, and a Kinflo. All were blue gelled. For the night exterior I use my 160 LED panel, bounced off a reflector board for backlighting subjects.

I found the Image Stabilisation on the 24-105mm absolutely essential on this shoot. Where there wasn’t budget for a track and dolly, and the most exterior surfaces too rough for any kind of DIY wheel setup, I shot 90% of this walking round with my shoulder rig, 5D and IS on the 24-105. I dabbled with CS5.5s Warp Stabiliser, but the CMOS distortion on DSLRs is simply too much at times, and post stabilising just makes it worst.

There’s no way I could’ve shot this style without a lens with Image Stabilisation. And that’s why I chose it with my own 5D mark II. Although the 24-70mm has a faster aperture, it holds little value when compared to the IS of the 24-105, accompanied by a fast prime.
The reach of the 24-105mm L is superb also, such a useful focal range. That’s something that was never available on cropped sensors, a really good standard lens for video. Both the Tamron (17-50 VC) and Sigma (18-55 OS) examples have poor focus rings for video, and Canon’s 17-55mm isn’t much better.

Anyway in summary it was a great shoot, and how the weather held up so well for the whole weekend was a miracle! Hope you enjoy the video.

One of my best friends Will at Shiner Distribution called my up in need of some promo material for their new scooter company Blazer Pro. So we set out on a sunny October day (unheard of) in Bristol for a photo and video shoot. We took Blazer Pro and Crucial BMX rider Curtis Vandries for the ride (pun intended).

It’s always tricky shoot both video and photo simultaneously. Whilst the 7D is great at shooting both, It’s equipment and information overload if you want to shoot both aspects properly. As a result, the photo side took a bit of a backseat, and I was only able to get a few decent shots in the short time span.

Will brought along his GoPro, which I was really keen to get some B-Roll from. We had various mounts which we used to get shots from the chest, bars and stunt pegs. I brought along my Hague DSLR motion cam also which I haven’t used with any of my projects yet. It lent itself well to the stuff I got of Curtis on the fun box at the end.

I’ve realised writing these last three blogs that I really really need to take shoots pics! Next time, I promise!

If you haven’t heard of Photograffiti, I suggest you check them out. Richard is a master when it comes to unique dramatic photography. And I love that he incorporates his original style with his wedding work. His portfolio speaks for itself, and I was really excited to get on board with him for this.

We shot the promo at one of his wedding gigs, in the welsh valleys. It was fairly hectic shooting around him as he works as he moves so fast! A steady arm would have been prime for this shoot. But my Hague DSLR motion cam hadn’t come in time, so I was left frantically running around attempting to get as much movement in frame with my slider as I could. My monopod was a bit of a life saver here also.

Enjoy