Steadicam Pilot - QuickStart Guide
Contents
1. O The Tiffen Company 90 Oser Avenue Hauppauge New York 11788 631 273 2500 800 645 2522 www tiffen com TifFEen Tiffen Steadicam Operations Glendale CA e 818 843 4600 1 800 593 3331 www steadicam com Pilot QuickStart Guide manual version 5 14 2010 J Holway L Hayball The Tiffen Company Helping Create the Copyright The Tiffen Company 2010 All rights reserved World s Greatest Images Steadicam reserves the right to change specifications without prior notice 0510 p n LIT 804000 ting plat The Pilot Sled ee oa Camera mounting plate ore anq a stage adjustment knob l m Se FA Pilot Sled A E OSA side to side adjustment knob docking ring TE gimbal gt E CarbonLite expandable Pr ail po handle Make sure to tighten all four screws on the camera mounting plate when you attach your camera monitor Pilot Backpack q P E With integrated MERLIN storage pocket i Pa clamp monitor clamp bottom post adjustment JA clamp battery mount V Lock Stage connectors Included accessories threads for attaching weights T handle allen wrench 2 1mm DC power cable RCA video cable BNC Rear RCA Front 2 1mm DC power jack center to RCA adaptor camera mounting video input pin positive Supplies voltage directly screw and anti rotation pin from batteries 11 17V for lithium 9 batteries 12 5V for rechargeable2. strap gt weight adjustment A knob i release pin arm keeper hh J chest gt chest straps lt pad Upper arm section with buckles AE o weight adjustment knob chest straps lt _ _ f double action hinge socket block back pad lt E spring socket waist pad __ y waist belts socket block height with buckles adjustment and spar length adjustment t 1 r i h F i The arm rides in the backpack in two To assemble the arm align the two sections and insert the pin pieces Socket adjustments The hip pads fit around your hip bones not above them If the vest is too short lengthen the spar by loosening the four tee handle screws on the socket block and slide the spar to fit As shown in the left photo set the upper side to side adjustment to two to three turns out and the bottom screw all the way in Putting on the vest The vest should be tight and not slip on your body The front spar should be vertical Making it float This is how you want to look wearing the Steadicam Pilot natural and If the rig won t float next to you you must adjust your posture and or adjust the angle of the arm The vest should be long enough to engage your hip bones but not so long that you Vest amp Arm can t lift your leg without disturbing the vest relaxed with your hips turned slightly towards the sled Note that the sled If the
3. iner lower increases lens tia increases in pan height even more iner tia than all weights up Longer posts Gimbal much further Shown with all from camera tilt and weights low and no roll inertia increased weights dramatically Here are some examples of how to use the posts and the weights A 5 2 pound camera on the Pilot With the Pilot and a heavy camera all combinations of weights and post extension will work Now with a 1 1 pound camera on the Pilot No weights All weights up gimbal closer No weights post extend to camera ed gain lens height and Weights up with post more inertia in tilt and roll extended more inertia but no increase in pan With a very light camera you may need to add weights just to properly load up the arm the arm needs at least 2 Ibs of camera and or get the gimbal reasonably close to the camera in the shortest mode The gimbal is really too low above left without the weights attached to the stage With weights above right the gimbal is in a better position for operating With a light camera and a short post however the weights can t be added to the lower spar without getting the gimbal too low 14 The 5 8 4 3 16 9 monitor accepts both PAL and NTSC signals and it has two video inputs The monitor operates on a nominal 12V The menu screens cycle with the menu button and there are controls for brightness contrast color tint horizo
4. rig is falling away from you To use 7 is not at your side but more at a 45 tighten the upper Tee head screw the vest a angle to your hips If the rig wants to come too close open the Attach the right chest belt with female loosen the upper screw left shoulder buckle across the chest plate and con buckle put nect it to the left chest belt with the male If the rig falls to your right screw on the vest buckle Then tighten up the belts by oe the top side to side adjustment and re adjusting the belt s length Mape in If it falls left turn the top side connect R a to side adjustment to show more the buckle threads Be careful to maintain a good and consistent posture while making these adjustments or you will be fine tuning all day With everything adjusted properly and with a natural stance the rig should float next to you A gentle touch with your left hand just below the gimbal guides the camera while the night hand booms and places the whole sled in place Connect the left and right waist belts together and adjust the belts to the desirable length for a comfortable fit Be sure the left belt lies within the belt guide which is attached to the left side of the waist pad Use the optional extension belt if required Setting the arm s lift You must be carrying the sled to adjust the arm lift Adjust the lift with the arm angled slightly up the knob will turn easil
5. with the sled horizontal Slide the main post until everything is in balance then move the gimbal towards the camera about one half inch and tighten the clamp Let go of the sled and let it rotate through vertical It should take about three seconds Raise the gimbal to decrease the drop time lower it to make the drop time longer Grossly adjust the fore aft balance by moving the lower spar as shown in the three photos below Fine tune the fore aft and side to side balance with the knobs on the stage This is how a typical set up should look with the gimbal fairly close to the camera Note We typically trim or alter this fine balance to help us aim the camera Adjusting the side to side balance for instance to hold headroom Dynamic Balance Dynamic balance is a term we use for a sled that stays level main post vertical as it is panned 1 e it pans flat You have several possible adjustments including moving the spar as shown left adding weights and sliding the monitor or battery independently to achieve dynamic balance Download and read The Dynamic Balance Primer on www steadicam com for more information on this complex subject What s great is the Pilot has many options to help you achieve dynamic balance The Pilot Vest The Pilot Arm left shoulder strap Vest amp Arm right with buckles _ arm post shoulder Forearm section
6. AA s and 15V for alkaline AA s Balance Attaching the camera First find your camera s center of gravity Try balancing it on something round like a pencil both fore and aft and side to side Then attach the center of the camera mounting plate 1 4 to 1 2 forward of the camera s fore and aft c g and centered over your camera s side to side c g Secure the camera to the mounting plate with the screws provided Use either two screws or one screw and an anti rotation pin Place the camera onto the sled 4 j FA Tighten the four knobs securely The camera is now positioned so its center of gravity is slightly behind the centerline of the main posts See the blue tape in the photo below This is ideal for achieving good dynamic balance The docking bracket and balancing stud The sled hangs by the docking ring on the forked portion of the docking bracket To balance the sled spin the docking bracket towards you and slip the gimbal handle over the stud Be sure the stand is secure and won t tip over use sandbags for safety We need to balance the sled in all three axes top to bottom side to side and fore and aft In general we want the sled to hang upright and not be very bottom heavy Note SteadiStand p n 601 7910 is available as an optional accessory Static Balance First adjust your bottom heaviness by moving the gimbal on the post Only loosen the gimbal
7. FFR 000045 ENDURA CHARGER PORTABLE SINGLE CHANNEL FFR 000046 ENDURA E7 S LI ION BATTERY 71WH V MOUNT BATTERY PACK Voltage at the top stage DC power plug can be reduced in AA battery pack type PILOTS using Alkaline AA batteries by installing two optional DUMMY AA battery cells p n 804 7305 in place of Alkaline battery cells This will allow 12V only accessories to be operated from the DC power plug Accessories amp Part Numbers
8. ntal and flip image good for low mode operating menu down up power Typical monitor controls shown 12 Low mode You can work in what s called low mode with the Pilot and get the lens much lower than in normal or high mode and even lower with the extended post In these pictures the optional F bracket P N 078 7393 01 is being used With the post extended you don t need the F bracket for low mode operating but the lens will be higher With the types of cameras usually used with the Pilot there s no easy or strong way to mount them from the top We usually leave the camera mounted as it is in high mode so the camera is upside down If you leave the monitor in the same position the image will be right side up as you shoot but the image must be reversed in editing With the 5 8 monitor it s possible to place it above the spar and reverse the image for shooting not shown If you need to keep the recorded image right side up yov ll need to design a lightweight cage to hold your camera Make the cage so you can still add accessories open the camera s viewfinder access all controls change batteries and change tapes or cards Don t bend over to get the lens lower Maintain good form as shown in the photos With the camera right side up in low mode you must rotate the Pilot s monitor above the spar as shown in the photo ST ZNIOM ite TEE GW E m
9. y Adjusting the arm You ve adjusted the balance of the sled and put on your vest now you need to adjust the arm to carry the load Insert the arm into the socket block fully as shown Each arm section should settle to a slightly upward angle as shown in the photos Set the top screw and just barely tighten the bottom screw Stand naturally and boom all the way up and down Both arm sections should track together Do not bend over or lean back as you boom up and down The two screws work in tandem To make Adjust the forearm the section nearest further adjustments you must loosen the sled first then the upper arm one in order to tighten the other Don t section overtighten these screws Adjust these screws again after you pick up the Steadicam Use the two Tee headed screws to set the in and out angle of the arm Start with the upper screw almost all the way in if you look like Michael above If you have a big belly start with the upper screw further out ST ANDDICAM ee Adding weight and increasing length ee FO E Use the telescoping post and the weight kit to increase inertia improve stability Weig ht Kit amp and or to move the gimbal relative to the camera Telescoping Post DS oti a First with a 5 2 pound camera on the Pilot No weights less inertia All weights up Gimbal All weights low Gimbal Gimbal lower lens higher closer to camera
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