In-Sync Publications

tion, there's two different degrees of leg spread and three sections of tripod leg. Most monopods are not free-standing, posing the awkward situation of needing somewhere safe to lean it or lay it down. Hand-held stabilizer mode: The neatest thing about this mode is that the Steddiepod can simply be picked up from free-standing use, and away you go - smooth moving images while you follow the action. If your arm muscles need a rest, simply put the rig down on a level surface. Most handheld stabilizers on the market need some form of docking device. Steddiepod doesn't. Low mode: doggy/kitty cam: Simply turn the whole deal upside down, adjust the camera's LCD panel to suit, and you have the doggy/kitty/monkey-cam mode. Just make sure that the post isn't so long that you can hit the camera on the ground, and watch out for rocks and kerbstones! And monkeys - as I recall from Nepal they grab whatever they can. Point and shoot mode: Pressing two of the three tripod legs against one's groin as stabilizers turns the Steddiepod into a stable camera platform. Days before I road tested the Steddipod, I was Steadicam operator on 3-camera shoot; all the camera operators wore headsets, and the director was switching from camera to camera for the live broadcast. The event was on a stage, and I was alternating between following the action, which a Steadicam is designed for, and holding as stable a shot as possible, often with some degree of zoom applied, which is definitely not so easy. The Steddiepod, braced against the body, easily makes for a stable shot, and if the zoom controller is suitably placed on the shaft (rather than the pan handle) the operator can zoom as well. And the Steddiepod tolerates zooming better than most stabilizers. Boom mode: That's as easy as extending the support sections while bracing the camera against the body as previously described. If shooting with the boom horizontal, it's suggested not to use a camera weighing over 4 pounds. This mode also enables shooting around a corner of a building, for example, when the operator could otherwise be a target. Body brace mode: Same as the point and shoot, but with the added stability of pressing the end of the pan bar against the right shoulder, for even more stability. This thoughtful adaptation of the monopod design is the closest thing to a 'locked' camera position without a tripod. Body camera mount - Ego-cam mode: Turn the camera around to face you, tilt the LCD screen to frame yourself, and you can be the reporter in your own shot. Using the zoom controller, you can exclude the Steddiepod, so viewers won't see how the shot is achieved. This is a lot easier on the arm muscles than trying to hold a camera at arm's length, believe me. I've tried that, and it's not comfortable. Ego-cam with a Steddiepod is really easy; with the waist belt, it's even possible to shoot hands free. Keeping both hands on the Steddiepod post, with two of the tripod legs resting against your groin, zoom in for a tight shot of your head. Elevating the camera from near ground level to above eyelevel, you'll remain in the frame while the camera rises, just like a professional remote arm shot – but without needing to adjust the tilt on the head, which is quite amazing the first time you try it! I see lots of uses for the Steddiepod in one-person crew documentaries. Summing up, I'd strongly recommend the Steddiepod to anyone with an HD-SLR, or a relatively lightweight camera package; that it won't fly weighty, over-the-shoulder cameras is fine by me. I'm in favor of the trend to lighter – but high-performing – cameras. I've seen nothing even close to the Steddiepod for versatility. BarberTech also offer a tripod that uses the same head, thus eliminating the need to change tripod plates when going from tripod to Steddiepod and back. Likening his product to a Swiss Army knife, Eddie tells us he's so confident that the Steddiepod is "absolutely, positively without a doubt the world's most versatile hand held camera stabilizer/support ever" that he's offering the Steddiepod Challenge: if you can find a more versatile hand held camera stabilizer/support - up to twice the price - he'll buy it for you! See (BarberTVP.com) for details. Now that's a man who has confidence in his product! I recently visited Eddie at his facility just north of Burbank, off I-5, where he has over 5,000 square feet of studio space available for rent by the hour or day. You may also be able to hire Eddie; he's a masterful remote boom operator (he should be, he invented it!) and cinematographer, as well as, of course, a peerless Steddiepod operator. Check out 'SteadyPod testimonial with Ron Video' on YouTube. Ron's an A-list Steadicam operator with 878 credits (that was up to 2 years ago) and definitely knows his stuff when it comes to camera stabilizers. His enthusiasm for the Steddiepod is very clear. You may see Steddiepod spelt as Steadypod, or Steadipod: same thing. While Eddie was sitting behind his desk, I saw that he had Drake, his pet California gopher snake, wrapped around one wrist and hand, and in the other hand, he held a retractable tape measure. "Robert, come help me measure this thing," says Eddie. I'm like "how do you propose straightening it out?" "Not the snake," says Eddie, "the Steddiepod." Coming around his desk, I saw he was measuring a second version, out soon, with a 5" shorter post, and wanted to order soft carrying cases for it. Definitely easier to measure than Drake would have been! www.barbertvp.com/products-steddiepod.html (14)

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