Arriflex 2C shoulder mags

Uli Meyer · January 15, 2023

Has anyone here used this shoulder mag with their Arriflex 2C? Is it making hand-held operation lighter/easier/more steady? I've been thinking about constructing a shoulder rig for the 2C but this may be a good solution. Many thanks! (image found on ebay).

David Sekanina · January 15, 2023

It reminds me of these low profile mags made for this underwater housing:

https://www.cinematheque.fr/fr/catalogues/appareils/collection/camera-sous-marine-film-35-mmap-18-3238.html

Uli Meyer · January 15, 2023

1 hour ago, David Sekanina said:

It reminds me of these low profile mags made for this underwater housing:

https://www.cinematheque.fr/fr/catalogues/appareils/collection/camera-sous-marine-film-35-mmap-18-3238.html

I've not seen this before. Interesting. Thank you for the link.

Eric Eader · January 16, 2023

Uli,

I have silently admired your "home movies" and appreciate that you still use film.

As you know, with the Arri's viewfinder at the rear of the camera it means that it hangs/is supported in space out in front of you.

And, the motor juts out below.

That is a big problem, the one you're trying to solve, and, short of the kind of rig Haskell Wexler developed for his Eclair there isn't much to recommend. (There have been evolutions of that, since his rig).

Back in the day I filmed news with an Auricon Pro600, with Som-Berthiou Zoom Lens, amplifier and battery. We used a rig called a Leo Pod which consisted of a wide plastic band around the waist fastened with a car/airline seatbelt. An arm bolted to the shoulder plastic and extended out to another arm that lowered, but would not extend upward for above the head shots. It was not a good solution. But it may form a starting point for fertile imagination. That Auricon was put to pasture with the coming of the CP-16. (But it was the quietest camera I ever used including Panaflex).

There were also other rigs (I've forgotten names), that were two arms, one resting on the shoulder and the other centered in the gut that held the camera out in space, but because of the 2C motor that may position the eyepiece too high.

Without using Steadicam, to hold any of the cameras that are not resting on the shoulder, one needs to learn a funny way of walking keeping the hips and shoulders from causing any obnoxious camera movement. Rising and lowering and standing still are not easy but can be learned. Breathing and filming and keeping the camera motionless is something else one must keep in mind. These are skills that appear to be lost except at the highest level of camera operating.

Those shoulder rigs made today featuring double handles out in front mean a lone operator cannot zoom or follow focus; someone else has to do it for him/her.

I'm fairly certain that you as "a home movie" person will not have a 1st AC. That would be two family members always missing from the shots, LOL.

As a professional, I'm sure you have seen most, if not all, of the rigs used to support and move cameras and know just how complicated and marvelous they really are.

You've got a real problem to solve, and I hope you do. There may be some money in it for you!!

If this is for personal projects, much like a pro musician, spend more time practicing with your camera. With all of your other obligations this is easier said than done, but nothing extra added to complicate things.

Respectfully,

Eric

David Sekanina · January 16, 2023

A short video about Watershot Inc's underwater housing for the ARRI III:

Uli Meyer · January 16, 2023

5 hours ago, Eric Eader said:

There were also other rigs (I've forgotten names), that were two arms, one resting on the shoulder and the other centered in the gut that held the camera out in space, but because of the 2C motor that may position the eyepiece too high.

Hi Eric, thank you for your thoughts! I've been shooting earlier "home movies' with my Arriflex 235 and Arricam and used a bike trailer to transport tripods and cases. But this is getting way too unwieldy and I am looking for a way to continue filming on 35mm without having to lug lots of gear around.

I recently found this 'Fleximount' contraption but the seller didn't have all the parts. It looks very complicated, springs and ropes attached to the belt on the back.

With my Arriflex SB I've been using a commercial shoulder rig and by mounting the battery at the back, it balances the weight nicely. You loose a few frames when switching the camera on and off but that's okay. I try and shoot at higher f-stops ( 4 - 8 ) to keep the focus in a zone. Difficult indoors where guessing focus at below f2 is often hit and miss.

My recently converted Arriflex 2C 2perf is heavier, of course. but it is still possible to take it on the bus and for walks. Handheld shooting is tricky, there is always a certain amount of shaking, no matter how much one tries. That's why I've been thinking about a lightweight rig but the 2C's ergonomics make this a difficult task. Those Panavision shoulder mags (image from ebay) come with shoulder brackets but I have no idea if it makes shooting easier.

Edited January 16, 2023 by Uli Meyer

Mark Dunn · January 16, 2023

I'm probably wrong about this, but it looks to me as if those mags fit tightly behind the camera body and with the straight viewfinder you may be too far back for comfort. I wonder if they were intended for use with an elbow-type finder. You're probably not going to be sending them back to the US if unsuitable.

Edited January 16, 2023 by Mark Dunn

Uli Meyer · January 16, 2023

8 minutes ago, Mark Dunn said:

I wonder if they were intended for use with an elbow-type finder.

You're probably right. I do have an elbow type viewfinder for the 16 SB but haven't tried to fit it to the 2C. The import charges are £200 alone and I wouldn't want to find out that they are unsuitable. I still hope to find somebody who has used them.