Tech Column

The Gadget Roundup

MoVI M10 Photos: Courtesy of Freefly

The MoVI M10, a handheld three-axis, digitally-stabilized camera gimbal from Freefly.

While NAB 2014 is still a few months away, it’s worth looking back at some of the new products that debuted at the show this past year since you may be shopping for yourself this holiday season. While tech geeks tend to fixate on pixels and lenses, there’s a lot more technology out there to improve capture whether you’re running a full-sized camera like an ARRI or RED, a mini like a BlackMagic, or even a DSLR. More interestingly, a lot of the products announced don’t actually ship until the end of the year, so a quick recap is even timelier.

With the rollout of the Sony F5/55 the industry was quick to jump on getting accessories to market. ARRI PCA kits have a combination of options around an LWS base plate; shoulder pad; accessory top plate; handle and Sony viewfinder adapter. Movcam also launched rigs for the Sony F5/55 with a cool baseplate/shoulder pad set-up.

Adding a little Canadian know-how, Matthews Studio Equipment’s “Lazy Suzy” slider was designed by gaffer/operator Alex

Amyot of Montreal and scored a Digital Video Magazine “Black Diamond Award” at the show. The $2,800 gadget is an articulated double-swivel platform which will position the camera anywhere within a 25” diameter circle without having to reposition the dolly, tripod, or car mount rig. MSE says “the camera can be secured firmly for travelling shots, process trailers, or lock-off shots with a series of strategically placed tapped holes and will support camera packages up to 70lbs (30kg).” MSE also offers a remote control pan-tilt head called the Makalu. The twist is that it’s controlled via a multi-axis jog box with a joystick hooked wirelessly to a MacBook, iPad or iPhone running the eSpinO software.

M atthews Studio E quipment Credit: Courtesy of

MoVI M10

Also announced, but only shipping as of last summer, is the MoVI M10, a handheld three-axis, digitally-stabilized camera gimbal from Freefly. What’s unique about it is the size and weight – it’s superbly compact – and the digital technology baked in. Aside from the brushless direct drive motors, which create almost no sound to interfere with audio capture, it uses Bluetooth to allow on-the-fly adjustment to settings, and it is firmware driven, meaning updates can be instantaneous. It also has GPS-driven guidance which is useful when shooting aerials from choppers or when it’s mounted on a car. Ironically, the system will allow you to “dial in” some shake to give the capture that authentic feeling of movement when Matthews Studio Equipment’s “Lazy Suzy” slider. desired. It’s running at about $15,000, but there’s also the M5 with fewer features at half the price. Meanwhile, the versatility and quality of the DSLR continues to improve and so too does the number of acces

sories for them. Zacuto’s Marauder is a folding rig that can be deployed in seconds and mates up to the included Gorilla Plate V2 for quick release. It’s designed for what Zacuto calls “run n’ gun” shooting and has a shoulder brace for added stability and support. It’s also configured to give options in using the on-board viewfinder or an add-on like the Z-Finder Pro 2.5x. Zacuto, which makes similar recoil rigs for the C300 and RED, also has a compilation kit for DSLRs which sees a Recoil System mated to an electronic viewfinder (EVF) Dogbone, a Z-Drive follow focus with the Tornado grip control, which also acts as a second handle and gives more stability to limit wobble while shifting focus during capture. Zacuto says because the rig sits back on the shoulder it will work with long lenses without getting overly unbalanced and, pushed forward, will work with 18 mm glass too.

Finally, let there be light. The Lowel GL-T Power LED turned a few heads if only because of its form factor. It looks like a cross between an 18V drill and a handyman work light, but it pushes a lot of lumens with 398-foot candles at 5ft (full spot) or 73 foot candles at 5ft (full flood). What it is, says Lowel, is a handheld spot which will put the focus of light just where you want it. It was developed for wedding photography but is being used increasingly in video because it is a what-you-see-is-what-you-get lighting tool. Lowel says its output is comparable to a 100W tungsten halogen lamp focused at the same beam angle, and it all packs onto an 8:1 focal range. It’ll also accept an 82 mm daylight correction filter and is dimmable.

VANCOUVER CALGARY VANCOUVER CALGARY 604-527-7262 403-246-7267 604-527-7262 403-246-7267 TORONTO TORONTO 416-444-7000 416-444-7000 Ian Harvey is a veteran Toronto-based journalist who writes for a variety of publications and covers the technology sector. He welcomes feedback and eagerly solicits subject matter ideas at ian@pitbullmedia.ca. HALIFAX 902-404-3630 HALIFAX 902-404-3630