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utility-folding-cart

I once had an idea about hard mounting a Bike seat in a wagon to tow a Steadicam camera operator around using a bike (slow speed of course), but I never could find the right platform to pull it off. Today Jerry shares a find on some Marine Grade aluminum folding carts that could be used for a variety of things besides just hauling gear.

The heavy duty folding Aluminum cart's large 20" airless, foam-filled rubber tires are designed for easy maneuverability and stability on rough or thorny terrain as well as on steep grades, and will never go flat. The cart is designed with a capacity of 5.75 cu ft moving up to 330 lbs. If you want a fully enclosed unit, there is an optional gate. If you plan to tow the cart with a bike, there's also a trailer hitch available. This might be my solution. [Thanks Jerry]

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find-price-button Folding Marine Grade Aluminum Utility Cart


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So you want to move your flash off camera? Sure you can use inexpensive wireless triggers, but the biggest drawback to moving a flash off camera, is losing ETTL communication and High Speed Sync. Unless of course you're shelling out some serious cash for a wireless remote system like Radio Poppers to supports this. YouTube member Matthewrichey created a video showing you how to take basic Cat5 cables and connectors to modify those short off camera flash cables giving them variable length.

Although he took the time to make a video showing you what the end result could look like, this is not his original idea. You'll find people were doing this several years ago, and there's some instructional step by step info over at DIYPhotography.net (here).

Some event Photographers run with a Flash on top of a Monopod, so they can bring it up high or move it around before snapping a picture. To keep communication between the camera so you can adjust flash compensation, this technique would require several feet of cable. If you're not the DIY type, you could just check out some of the existing 33ft (10 meter) long cords available for not much more than $30 bucks, saving you from buying an expensive set of Radio Poppers (and not having to worry about batteries for the triggers).

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find-price-button Pixel Super Long 33ft 10 Meter E-TTL Off-Camera Flash Sync Cord for Canon

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Sony-NEX-7-Camera

The Sony NEX5n has proved to be a decent little camera especially in low light situations. I tried out the NEX5n briefly but the changing very basic settings through the software menu was a bit annoying. I prefer to shoot with cameras that have quick dials and buttons to change ISO, Aperture, and shutter. So I thought i'd wait out for the NEX-7. I was really interested in getting my hands on a Sony NEX-7, but the problems with production had first delayed, and now limited the amount of units to ever hit retail stores. So far it seems the only way to grab one is through the Marked Up eBay Auctions (here).

Anyone shooting with this camera yet? I've only seen photo and video samples which look really good, and like the Micro Four Thirds cameras, the fact that you can adapt your Nikon or Canon lenses is always a plus. There are some expensive solutions to controlling aperture on Canon's electronic EF lenses, or simple adapters like the Fotodiox with it's own built in Aperture iris. Something i'm looking in to if I can get my hands on an NEX-7.

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find-price-button Fotodiox Pro Lens Mount Adapter with Built-in Aperture iris

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Very small production run of a quick release adapter compatible with the 717 Video Fluid Heads (seen here). We decided to make a few for ourselves, and there will be a few more available for sale at https://PhotographyandCinema.com later tonight. More info will come as soon as I get back from lunch...

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[Update] Just a note, that this is 'NOT' an 'Official' Fancier sponsored product. Those guys never provided a QR solution, so it was about time we made a few available. This is a custom QR adapter made from P&C and there's a limited inventory. This 'DOES NOT' include a quick release plate. This is only the adapter base itself. This base adapter will allow you to quickly mount your camera from your WF717 Fluid Head to a DSLR Cage, Crane, Slider, Shoulder Rig, Steadicam, etc.

It has a very flush base that will work perfectly on a Glidecam or Flycam and you can tighten the knob without interference. It also 'mounts' and 'dismounts' from the top instead of sliding into the base. This makes it easier to mount shoulder rigs that have hanging handles, or low mounted counterweights that often make sliding the QR plate difficult.

PhotographyandCinema.com will list this item tonight with Free Shipping for USA buyers. For USA & International, you can purchase through eBay (click here).

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find-price-button Custom Fancier 717 WF717AH Fluid Head Quick Release Adapter (base only)

If you need a plate for this QR Adapter base, you can find some following the link (click here)
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find-price-button 717 WF717 WF717AH Base Plate

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The good folks over at EVSOnline gives you a peek at Cineroid's L2C-3K LED Video light. Instead of providing two different LEDs which normally cuts your output in half, they decided to provide options for swapping out ALL of the LEDs. Of course this means you can't dial in mixed temperatures. It definitely looks like a good light, but if you want the variable temp options, be ready to throw down over $500 bucks. Three different packages, available via B&H (click here).

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find-price-button Cineroid L2C-3K DayLight / Tungsten On-Camera LED Video Light

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gruv-gear-carts

A 4 wheel wagon is nice for moving gear, but when conquering a small set of stairs, a two wheel hand truck is better. These carts look pretty cool for hauling gear transforming from a basic Hand Truck, to V Dolly, to 4 Wheel Cart. The V-Cart version holds up to 500lbs, and the Solo Lite rated at 250 lbs. The Gruv Gear carts roll on flat free tires. I think i'm fond of the Orange/Black color scheme because it's similar to the SF Giants. Not priced for the average hobbyist, as the Solo Lite starts at $179 and the larger V-Cart at $249. Find them below.

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find-price-button Gruv Gear Transforming Equipment Carts V-Cart Solo Lite

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steady-dragon-stabilizer

There's a million different little stabilizers on the market, but about a month ago (maybe a bit longer), the Steady Dragon brand upgraded the Gimbal to a universal joint. This type of gimbal provides the maximum amount of range compared to the little Ball-and-Socket type like found in the Hague MMC. The Steady Dragon seems to have all the right parts with front and rear counterweights, side to side weights, and adjustment of the camera forward and back.

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With the optional camera plate, you can also add side to side from the top stage. A Tripod mount is also available so you can dock your camera. There's ways to create your own stabilizer with U-Joint from a Traxxas RC, but If you're not the DIY type, this little stabilizer looks like a good start for small cameras and under a hundred bucks. The Steady Dragon states it's rated to balance cameras just around 3 lbs and you can find some demo videos following the link (click here).

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find-price-button Steady Dragon Video Camera Stabilizer Streadicam

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The Skyler MiniCam has been a work in progress floating around the Internet for a very long time, but this is the first time i've seen it available on eBay. A clever little stabilizer which stands on it's own like a tripod, looks to have great build quality, and very simple fine tuning knobs. A 1/4-20 thread under the stabilizer allows you to mount it on a Monopod so that you can don't need to dismount your camera.

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Unfortunately the asking price of over $620 dollars is a big umm..'heck no' for me. It's too bad they couldn't get the Skyler under the $200 dollar price tag, I think it could be a hit. I guess if you want to compare the price to an $800 dollar Steadicam Merlin, it's not looking so bad, but there's so many more stabilizer options now for under $300 dollars. If you're still curious, there's some additional demo videos of the Skyler MiniCam stabilizer in use over at the auction page (click here).

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find-price-button Skyler Mini DSLR Video Camera Stabilizer Steadicam