The 717AH is back and with a slight price drop. [Thanks Larry]. This is a solid and inexpensive mount for the top of your sliders or track dollies that help to reduce vibration during your movements. It's also helpful to be able to change pan and tilt angles. You'll find this head on many DIY projects including Rod's DIY Ladder dolly. You can find the discounted 717AH following the link (click here).
Fluid Drag Tripod Head 717AH
Vimeo member Jonathan Nicol throws up a review on the Fancier FC-02H video fluid head. I guess this is supposed to be a step above the typical 717 heads. There's some samples at the end of his video review, and the samples do look smooth indeed. I couldn't locate this particular model on eBay, but it looks like the FC-02H head could be mounted on different tripods and coming up with different model numbers.
There's two different version over on Amazon, and from the image appears to be the FC-02H head (75mm Bowl Mount). Although these heads may provide smooth movements, keep in mind that bowl mounts are not the ones that make it easy for you to remove and use on Sliders. These are best used as just straight up fluid head sticks.
Fancierstudio FC-270 Professional Pro Tripod
A more expensive version also exists, it appears to be the same head, but possibly a different Tripod.
Fancier FC370 Video DSLR Tripod Fluid Head
With the new Konova slider on the market the 717AH fluid head has become a popular accessory to complete the set. Recently there seems to be a small price drop in the WF717A Tripod + Fluid Head via Amazon. Unlike the bowl mount Fluid head, the one on the WF717A (this one) can be removed and used on your Konova slider, SpiderTrax Skate dolly, or other projects and you'll still have a very lightweight aluminum tripod + bag. Should be a standard 3/8" threaded mount.
First few hours with the new budget camera slider, and trying to figure out the best way to to use it. Here's what I came up with. First thing you need to know, is that the slider requires a tripod head of some sort. If you've been following my Spider Trax dolly project, I went through quite a few different inexpensive heads before I settled with the 717AH. To prevent vibrations you need a good beefy mount between the camera and the slider. The 717AH was very heavy duty, but still the cheapest thing I could find that still served as an actual video Fluid Head. If you don't have a good solid head, check out the 717AH for this type of project
Next up, grab yourself a good pair of sticks. I have a pair of Manfrotto Carbon Fiber's but I wouldn't trust it with a slider like this. You can go with lighter sticks, but make sure you have two of them (one each side). If you're like me and want to stick with one Tripod, here's something that's very solid, and cheap. This FT9901 has the same beefy legs as my WF717's
For this slider, part of it's marketing allure is the fact that you can mount it vertically at it's furthest end points. I did try this, but I found that it was much more stable and easier to just tilt the Tripod Head attached under the slider. Another huge reason why I suggest you go with a good solid tripod and tilt head as the foundation for your new slider. Vertical slides mimic a Crane shot, and here's a compact way of getting that rarely seen vertical camera movement.
If you attached the quick release plate in the other direction, then you can even mount this thing sideways (if you had to). They say two heads are better than one, and for getting your slider level and positioning it in different ways, I say that's true. Inexpensive, heavy metal legs, and a ball head mount for quick leveling make this Tripod a great inexpensive foundation for your new slider. And when it's not used for the slider, it's still a great inexpensive Tripod to have around.
[Update] There is a new version of the Konova slider available including a Crank Pulley and Motorized Upgrade. Article found here: http://cheesycam.com/konova-motorized-upgrade-kit-now-available/
Konova video Camera Rolling Bearing DSLR Slider
When I posted the article about Fancier's new product line of DSLR support rigs and related accessories, it grabbed quite a bit of attention. Supposedly these rigs were also shown in Photokina earlier this year, so they are really pushing these products. In pictures it looks like it's got all the right stuff. They've come up with several modular pieces in their designs from entry level to heavily accessorized full shoulder rigs. The Fancier Rod Rig systems looks to meet industry standard measurements with 15mm rods and proper spacing to accept various other accessories.
This rig is designed with two main modular parts. First part is the DSLR cage type frame that can hold a few accessories and a follow focus. The cage can be released from the shoulder support for you to get hand-held shots and then quickly get the entire cage mounted back again. On this rig is Fancier's own friction follow focus system and Matte box. The follow focus has a smooth marking disc area, a very nice knurled black anodized knob that can support a whip. The follow focus is actually made quite nice, but the mounting and adjustment bracket is a terrible design. The matte box comes with large metal french flags and a standard sized plastic filter holder. The body of the Matte box is made of some type of molded plastic which is strong and light weight. There is very little adjustments to the matte box which makes it difficult to match up a combination of cameras or lenses for a decent fit.
The DSLR cage (thing) has a solid base plate, but the follow focus is raised to where it hits the bottom of the lens. Even my cameras with the battery pack on were too big to fit into this cage. There is also no vertical adjustments for the follow focus - only horizontal. Without the vertical adjustments there was no way I could mount any of my cameras with any combination of lenses to their system. This is how the rig was shipped, so it's possible 'they' even messed up on putting it together. Looking at the follow focus plate, it's still possible to flip it upside down and move the horizontal adjustment under the lens giving me a few millimeters of clearance, but the threaded knob would still dig into my lens. Not to mention they weak two screw mounts they use for the bracket wouldn't hold up well either. Basically worthless, but don't worry this rig isn't mine. I didn't pay for this rig, but sure am glad I got an early peek at it, and to share some of this information with all you guys. Perhaps saving many of you the time and money.
The rear shoulder pad for the rig was very comfortable and balanced the rig well with the counter weights. Once the rig was on my shoulder, I head quite a bit of squeaking and thought my clamps were loose. It turns out the shoulder pad was really just shifting around, and it's a flaw in their design. Too bad, because I really liked the shoulder pad and counter weight mount. It's much more comfortable that other rigs i've been playing with.
There it is folks. I really hope this information is helpful to anyone reading this. I'm quite pressed for time this week, and almost passed up the chance to review this one entirely. I didn't see any more information about this rig elsewhere, and wanted to get something online before anyone starts throwing money around on these rigs. This might be the first review anyone's posted about the Fancier DSLR rigs, and i'm really sorry to find so many things that just don't work. I still think they make decent budget tripods, LOL. If you have any questions, feel free to drop them in the comments.
After posting up information that the overseas photography equipment company Fancier is getting into the DSLR rig and DSLR support game, everyone was searching for news on pricing. These rigs by the way were shown at Photokina, so they aren't trying to come in as some sneaky blatant knock-off. I'm sure they had a bit of 'inspiration' from other DSLR rig makers, but this lineup is all theirs.
A few reliable comments have come in with some pricing that were received from Fancier themselves. Although it looks good for what you get, the fact that you can get it cheaper in the USA is really going to slow their pace. Here's the prices that are leaking now, and i'm not too optimistic about it hitting the US market. Hopefully these expected prices will change after this post.
First up is the basic DSLR cage labeled as the FTV-100D. This unit is estimated to com in at $505.94 dollars. Outside of the Follow Focus, you can find pretty much the exact same DSLR cage over at IndiSystems for $129 - top handle and all. Hey, you can even find a popular decent DIY for under $30 bucks.
Next up is your basic DSLR shoulder support with gearless follow focus, labeled the FTV-110A and coming in at expected $491.65. Just in the last few months there have been several US companies offering a base shoulder rig for under $300 dollars.
Third on the list is the FTV-110B, which pretty much looks like a bigger version of their FTV-110A (minus follow focus). This rig is expected to come in at $571.02. Wow, that's a pretty penny considering you can already get several nice basic support rigs for half the price. There's definitely room for more companies, but if you're late in the game, you'll have to bring something more original (or cheaper) to grab some attention.
Fourth configuration is labeled as the FTV-200D coming in at a price of $1,553.15. This adds a matte box, their micro follow focus, and top handle to the base rig. Coming in at a price similar to a Redrock EyeSpy Deluxe bundle which I really love shooting with, at this price, it's going to be hard to penetrate the US market. Sorry Fancier, I really like your (other) products, but if this is really the prices you're heading for in DSLR stabilizers, you have a tough road ahead. Any comments on these 'possible' prices?
You can find more information about their rigs here: https://www.chinafancier.com/enShoulder-Bracket.html
