The Video:
The Post
The moving camera is powerful voice in cinematic storytelling –
One of my all time favorite pieces of gear to achieve motion is something that I have owned for many years – it’s like an old production friend and has never let me down – It’s the PortaJib made by Los Mandy in Los Angeles, California. I don’t want to get overly technical here because you can check out all the specifications and other products on their website at www.portajib.com
Without question there is a WOW factor on set when people see my portajib, fully riged in all it’s glory. There is defiantly something to be said for first impressions… but From a frequent flyer standpoint let me just cover some of the practical features that I have really come to appreciate and respect about my PortaJib.
1) When shooting I swap lenses a lot so the last thing I want is to remove a lens or battery or any front weight , really, and then have to fight to hold the jib arm in place.. The Boom Lock and the Pan lock on the PortaJib work great to prevent lift and drift while I prep the camera for the next shot. I think the boom lock is rated for about a 20 lbs imbalance so be smart -- unless you want to turn your jib into a catapult -- have a little respect for physics.
2) Another feature that makes operating my PortaJib so fantastic is the vector bar on the back. I have shot with many inexpensive consumer Jibs and the most common problem is starting and stopping a camera move because it bounces on both sides of the move. When setting up my PortaJib I just get it balanced then move and adjust some of the counter weight to the vector bar and my camera moves are smooth at the start and solid at the finish.
3) I recently added a Cartoni Smart head to my porta jib… I’ll fully cover the Cartoni Smart head in another review but I just have to say what a great piece of accessory gear this is. Its basically a high end underslung head that allows for perfect balance and smooth operation while flying under the front arm of my PotaJib. Shooting this way allows for so much more ease and creativity. Being able to manually operate from the front of a jib and not be restricted the arm allows me to fully integrate myself with the camera and the actors. And unlike a steady cam type apparatus the Smathead on a PortaJib can take complicated lateral movements and easily add impressive elevation.
4) Also wanting to maximize elevation I use a riser between the tripod and portajib to compensate for the underslung smart head. Okay more about that later.
5) Sometimes I like to mount the PotaJib on a dolly platform and set up intricate combo moves. I don’t currently own a dolly system but I have been renting and testing a few. There some really decent systems out there but being a big fan of Los Mandy gear already I am leaning toward their ridable spider dolly and flex track system. I got to use this with my portajib recently on a music video and was very happy with how well it all integrated and just worked.
6) The first time I set up My PortaJib I have to admit I was a little intimidated. This thing is not a toy it is a professional piece of cnema gear designed and machined with precession. After setting it up a couple of times and realizing how simple it really is I was able to cut loose and really have fun with it – so I guess in the long run – its become kind of the ultimate production toy for me. I love this thing.
