I went to a Steadicam workshop. Here is what I learned
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- Опубликовано: 3 авг 2024
- In April 2023 I went to Bavaria, Germany to immerse myself in a Steadicam workshop.
Under the guidance of esteemed operators/instructors such as Larry McConkey, Pete Cavaciuti, Alex Brambilla, Jorg Widmer, and Adam Mendry. Each instructor shared their wealth of experience and expertise, imparting invaluable knowledge that left a lasting impact on my approach to camera operating.
In this RUclips video, I'll take you through the details of the workshop, including the cost, which covered 6 nights of accommodation, delicious meals, and five intensive days of training.
Learn some of the take aways from the workshop including the beauty of individuality within the realm of Steadicam, where operators embrace different techniques and creative styles, and how this diversity fuels innovation and encourages practitioners to explore unconventional approaches to achieve outstanding results.
I'll also discuss the importance of pre-planning, framing, and marking to enhance the precision and visual impact of Steadicam shots. Along with insights into the significance of practicing without relying on monitors, in order to hone the skill of framing solely through the lens.
At the end of the video I show a Oner that I shot to show the skills that I learned during the workshop
Intro 0:00
Details of the workshop 1:00
Lesson 1, explore unconventional approaches 2:10
Lesson 2 Importance of pre-planning and marking 2:44
Lesson 3 Practicing with the monitor off 5:37
Lesson 4 Navigating Stairs in Don Juan 6:38
Lesson 5 Squating to get from low to high 7:23
Lesson 6 Panning consistently 8:03
Final thoughts of the workshop 8:51
Steadicam ONER 10:07
Outro 11:33
Website - www.james-marin.com/
Instagram - / jamesmarin3
TikTok @catdaddyjames 
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That was so awesome! Larry lived in my town years back and he used me as a mannequin to build out a Movi vest rig 😂. Such a legend!
Thats amazing! Larry is the best
Nicola ie the Italian Stallion.... Way back I went to a Steadicam workshop taught by Garrett and Ted. we were students together.... I remember your stage jump in garret's rig~~~
Thanks so much. So many things i can leanred form ur videos.
You're welcome! Thanks for watching !
Great video, James! Thanks for sharing. Sounds like a blast. I thought the exercise where you turn off the monitor during a rehearsal shot was super interesting. Definitely gonna try that next time a practice! :)
It’s a great exercise. Especially since there are times where the monitor visibility isn’t the best. Gives you confidence in those moments
Great video for those of us that were not there 👏
Glad you enjoyed it!
Thanks for sharing!!!
Your welcome!
👍👍👍👍 Awesome James!!!! 🤘🤘🤘
Thanks for watching !
So cool to see this. Thanks a lot for posting.
And a lot more on the way!
Thanks for your great summary.
Wish I’d been there!
Thanks for watching! I'm so grateful I had the chance to go!
Good to see Gerald in there.. he was with me at the Gold workshop in Italy 2022, finally a more technical video about the art of moving the lens through space! thanks for taking the time to make this video, made me very nostalgic about my workshop which taught me so much like it did for you!
Thanks for your comment! Workshops are great!
Great job!!! Awesome video
Thank you for watching !
Thanks for sharing!
No problem! It’s what I do!
Thanks for sharing your experience. Seemed like a really solid course and I loved the film at the end haha
Thanks for watching!
great vid. thanks for putting this together!
I hope you found it helpful ! Thanks for your comment !
Thanks!
Of course, thanks for watching !
Really good review. I now motivated to take a Steadicam course. Good notes you shared. Thank you.
Thanks for watching the video! Not all workshops are created equal though! Make sure they offer great instructors and a variety of gear to try. Best of luck !
great video man, loved your oner shot
Thanks for watching! I really appreciate it
Nice, looks like a normal set with the right crew.
It was an incredible group of people !
Thanks, great video. That last shot is amazing, so precise !
Thanks for watching ! And I appreciate your comment!
I had a question regarding the tip on squatting to start a shot in semi low mode. Did you guys talk about how safe that is in the long run for your knees or your back ?
@@Aongusha good question. We did talk about health and longevity, however not in the context of this specific tip. It was more along the lines of go see a foot doctor and get insoles for your shoes, make sure you do some form of yoga or Pilates for core strength/stretching. For this move in particular, I personally don’t see an issue with doing it over the course of a persons career. It’s one of those things that I think you won’t be doing on every shoot and if can properly squat with your heels touching the ground and full depth, then I don’t see it being a problem
As an engineer, I made my own stabilizer for my bike, that's also detachable for handheld. Now, I have to learn how to do both, like dolly shots, and how to hold my body when walking. I feel like a novice now, and have to search for Garret Brown steadicam courses, to see if I can adapt anything he has.
I'm always finding problems, and making revisions to my steadimount. That stair shot made me realize a feature I didn't think I had, always level, but it didn't dawn on me it could tilt down with the handle, while going up or down stairs. 🤦
Thanks for watching! Good luck on your stabilizer ! Sounds cool!
Bro !! We share the same Surname!
Ciao Pietro! Che interessante che abbiamo lo stesso cognome
Hi James,
I was at the stabilizer lounge. I would have liked it to talk to you but i didn’t recognize you i guess 😂
Next time! Everyone tells me I always look different everytime they see me so I don’t blame you 😂
Love your oner, did you had the volt mounted?
The entire workshop was done without using volt. At the end though they gave us the option to use it and I did for the Oner
You did the final Grand Prix Shot/Oner with the Volt On ?!
The entire workshop was taught without the volt and when it came to the final shot I did I turned it on
This video was so interesting! I hope one day I make it to one of these workshops. Question for you, we’re there any women in the group? It’s always been intimidating because these rigs look heavy
Great question! There was 1!
i don't know how to apply for this work shop! could you please guide me
This workshop only happens once every couple of years. It's not a regular thing. Just keep an eye out on what the people over at Betz are doing. They'll announce it on their instagram.
Do you own a stedicam already? Which one did they instruct you on?
Correct. I already own a rig and I’ve been operating for 5 years and I still learned a lot. They had several from the big names. There was sleds from Betz, GPI Pro, they had a new one from optical support. They also have lots of different arms including the pro Titan arm, and flow cine, think there was one more. And they had a variety of vests. So they showed you on several different products and never tried to push a particular one on you to buy. All in all to me it doesn’t matter what gear you use. I have my own certain preferences but for learning I was able to use a mix and do just fine
@@JamesMarin I'm looking to get into steadicam operating, but not sure which brand or arm to start with. If you had to start over, where would you make the investment?
@@grey.fox. get the best rig you can afford that will fly the size of cameras that you see your self consistently working with. If I were to do it all over again I’d still do it the same way I did it when I started. I bought an Archer 2 and a g50 arm with LX vest. I would also suggest that you can get a first gen GPI pro sled. It’s much more modular than the tiffen sleds. That way you can buy a affordable but old rig from GPI and upgrade parts as you need/can afford. As for an arm I hear the master arm is a solid choice. For a vest I would buy new and buy the best from the beginning if you are serious about this craft. GPI Pro or Walter Klassen makes the best. Everything else is very ehhhh. In my opinion. Get it fitted and buy new because it will be made for you and it will fit you perfectly. This way you don’t start out with bad habits, and discomfort or an I’ll fitting vest that will do more harm then good
@@JamesMarin thank you mate, we'll look into what you advised. After purchase should I try to get used to it or try to dive into a course ASAP?
Definetely practice as much as you possibly can. Get yourself a weighted practice camera and practice at home. Get yourself the steadicam handbook. I don't think I mention it in this video but I felt like I got a lot more out of this workshop (this was my first one) because I had experience. I was able to ask better questions because it was coming from a place of experience and was able to ask questions that went deeper than just the basics.@@grey.fox.