Patrick Lavalley

Ill be flying to the east coast later this month to prep and shoot a show out of NY. I am wondering what the best method of getting my kit across the country will be. Everything is pretty contained and in pelican cases, but there is quite a bit of stuff Ill want to bring. Has anyone had their kit shipped directly to a rental house? I would love to do this so I can avoid having to haul my gear from the airport. I doubt Ill try to bring my carts- I think it will be too much hassle. Any input would be appreciated.

Practically speaking, after playing around with a friends PD-E, I think it's got better range/response time. I still like my PD-42 though.

I'll also note that a combination run/stop + power cable for your MDR is really nice to have since it keeps things uncluttered. I think this is only possible with MDR3's and the new MDR4's. I think media blackout might make a similar option for the MDR2 that powers the MDR off of a single 3 pin port, but has a sort of Y split at the other end for R/S and Power.

On the last show I did, we had a simple report form with the following info tracked for every shot/take Scene Take Clip # Lens Filter Special remarks At the top, for every report, we would also note the ASA and color temp, and make not of any mid-roll changes to these settings in "remarks". Since our show used several different lenses, it was important to note the lens series being used - we had ultraprimes, optimo zooms, and a lens baby kit. When we were on a zoom, I would do my best to track the focal length and lens being used for that particular take. If it was an inconsistent range, I would often write "VAR" which stood for "various". It's best to try and be as accurate as possible, and we often would refer back to the notes when matching shots on second unit or for inserts. It can be hard at times, especially in the rain, but once you develop good habits it gets easier. Easier still if you've got a stellar script supervisor. One of the hardest parts for me was not being able to see the camera or monitors between every take, and I had a 1st that would often roll too early, and then cut, adding extra clips to the card that I had a hard time accounting for.

I went to a pelican case two seasons ago. It's been great. I find that if you're using clip-on 4x5 matte boxes and filters, you can get away with it. However, I find it too small when dealing with 6x6 filters and studio matte boxes/hard mattes/eyebrows. Also, it doesn't offer much room for expansion, say for instance if you need to remove an onboard monitor and stash it. I carried the following in my 1510/trekpack for 2 seasons of a show. Can of air 4x5 ND .3, .6, .9, 1.2, 1.5, 1.8 4x5 rotating polarizer tray 4x5 flat (1) Dionic HCX Small pelican with SxS cards Heden Motor, microforce, cable Pancro Alexa Mini EVF LMB-25 eyebrow and hard mattes Camera reports (in lid) Spare slate pen, eyepiece chamois, crescent wrench, stubby screwdriver (in lid) I had enough room leftover to be able to keep the Denecke timecode slate in the lid as well. It was great having a waterproof case that I could sit on, set the camera on, etc. I also put velcro on the outside for my tape mark board.

Check out some of the military equipment companies for good low profile padded gun belts. First Spear and HSGI are two excellent manufacturers http://www.highspeedgear.com/hsgi/slim-slotted-33SPB.html http://www.first-spear.com/product.php?productid=17888&cat=284&page=1 As for the belt pouch, I've been using a lindcraft small AC pouch for a long time. Recently, I began to use a chest-mounted pack from Hill People Gear. I work in the rain a lot, and the chest pouch is much easier to wear under or over rain gear- I usually wear it under to keep all my stuff dry. http://hillpeoplegear.com/Products/tabid/762/CategoryID/1/ProductID/5/Default.aspx

Just finished up a months-long series with an Alexa Mini as our handheld camera. We used a wooden D-Box for power distro and it worked great. Make sure you don't overload the ports, and keep a few spare fuses handy.

I started out using a Husky open top tool tote from home depot http://www.homedepot.com/p/Husky-17-in-Open-Tool-Tote-with-Rotating-Handle-GP-44118AN13/204703616 It served me well for awhile, but eventually I wanted something more rugged and weatherproof, at which point I upgraded to a Modular 51 small set bag. It allowed me to carry most of what I needed, and served me well for a long time. It's held up to a ton of abuse, and holds the basics. It appears as though Modular 51 is out of business, however similar bags can be purchased from fikenca.com Eventually, I found myself on a show that put us in the rain and mud a lot, so I opted to go full on with a Pelican 1510 case with trekpak dividers. This is my current setup and I like it, however it doesn't offer much room for expansion. It does, however, keep everything nice and dry and protected.

Using another piece of velcro or cloth tape to pull up the leftover adhesive works well too when removing the velcro- it will remove the bulk of the gooey stuff and make cleanup easier (fewer chemicals). This technique also works well for getting the velcro goo off of scissors. I use a hair dryer to head up velcro before applying. Also, it helps to round sharp corners so they don't snag and start to pull off.

Wooden Camera also has a really good looking power plate: http://woodencamera.com/D-Box-Alexa-Mini-Gold-Mount.html

I carry a Leatherman Pocket Clip (out of production) but it's mostly for the pliers, My other favorite multi tool is the leatherman wave. My experience with multitools has been that they are a compromise on most things, and therefore, I tend to carry the right tools in my set bag. I carry a stubby flat blade for tie-down screws, a double ended flat/phillips jewelers screwdriver, a 6" crescent wrench, 3mm allen driver for Alexa jobs, and usually a set of allen wrenches in metric and standard, though not always. It's a fine line between being prepared for every possible contingency and therefore being overloaded, and being prepared for the most often encountered scenarios. The more you carry, the slower and more weighed down you are, and the more toll it takes on your body. Also, different 1st AC's will want you to carry different things (if you're a 2nd) and different jobs will require more or less of you. Experience will hone your kit. It should be noted that I am talking about what I carry on my person/in my set bag. I have a more extensive kit on the camera cart and on the camera truck for bigger and more involved needs.

Thank you David! That's really interesting, particularly the power distro modules. A question for you too- are you a fan of the internal ND's?

In my experience this is particularly important with big heavy zooms like the Optimo 24-290. When we're pushing carts a long way, or over bumpy terrain I always remove the lens. I figure it can't hurt, and eliminates the chances of extra damage should a cart tip, which I have seen happen. I also have a theory that it's just more gentle on the mount and everything else. While there may be valid points against it, and certain circumstances that warrant otherwise, in my opinion it doesn't take much effort and makes you look like a pro.

Will do. Thanks for the tip!

Great suggestion, and one we've been discussing. We've actually got a talented machinist up here in Portland (http://www.pocketgrip.com) that could do the work, I'll just need to do a little brainstorming. This is one of those instances where a purpose-made item will be much nicer than a bolted together unit from various brackets. I'll be working with our steadicam operator on the design most likely. It's got to be somewhat light, as well as have very little play. The other option is to just draw index marks on the rods and physically remove the plate each time, but that prospect seems pretty cumbersome, and if it isn't put back exactly in the right place it could affect the balance of the rig.

Hey David, Yes, absolutely similar, and I know that in time just as with the Red Epic, solutions will be found to all of the various issues. I think the issue we ran into was lack of time, and lack of available accessories. Also, we found out that without the eyepiece attached, and without the Arri 3 channel handset, we had limited control over the menus. The Wi-Fi functionality through IOS devices was sketchy at best. Someone correct me if I'm wrong, but near as I could tell I only had control over ISO, shutter speed, frame rate, and internal ND's with the function buttons on the camera body. Thats certainly enough to take care of most things, but it would be nice to be able to control everything. We'll likely bring it back on at some point once the rental house gets in some cables and different bracketry. For instance, if someone designed a bracket that could swing away or somehow expose the media door and then be swung back into position, that would be a big time saver I think. I think in the end it will be a really useful camera, and it does present some unique advantages such as the built in MDR, ND's, and of course it's compact size and minimal weight. I am sure I am not alone as an AC though, in the dislike for tons of external accessories clamped, velcro'd or otherwise "stuck on" and cabled up to make something work that would otherwise be really clean and compact.

Very excited about these bags. I will be looking for a replacement for my old Modular 51 bag that is getting quite worn. I work in the rain constantly, so welded seams are a plus. I can also see a ton of applications for the AKS pouches outside of the bag. Nice work!

Hello all, A little back story: I just completed the first week of shooting on a 1 hour episodic television show. Our usual setup is 3 Alexa classics; "A" camera, "B" camera, and a "C" camera/steadicam. Our steadicam body has always been dedicated to that rig, and unless one of the other cameras breaks, we never really press it into service in any other capacity. This is nice, since it allows us to leave the rig mostly configured for the purpose of steadicam, and it can be built really quickly. About a week prior to prep, we found out that "they" wanted to use an Alexa mini as our "C" body this year, to be used on steadicam, and also to be converted for special use when required- handheld inside of cars, hood mounts, etc.... We were all a bit thrown off by this, since we've been using the other cameras for 4 previous seasons, and we know the setup very well. Production didn't give us any additional time to prep (we get 2 days to prep for 22 eight day episodes), and we left the rental house with an Alexa mini that really didn't work for our intended purpose. Some of our issues included the lack of a run/stop cable for preston, lack of camera control without the eyepiece attached, awkward position of the media access door which is blocked by the Arri rod-mounted anton bauer plate (BAP-1), and that the camera weighed too little overall for our steadicam operators liking. I think a lot of advantage comes from the use of the integrated Arri 3 channel handset/MDR, however it wasn't available at the time of prep, and I am not sure they will pay for an additional remote unit, when there are already two other Preston FI+Z's on the show. How are some of you handling the Alexa mini? It seems to me that it lacks a lot of the built-in functionality and ergonomics that are so nice with the other cameras in the line. Has anyone configured it for a studio camera or steadicam body with good success? Thanks in advance for any info.

Having the camera in these types of situations sucks, and wearing rain protection generally always sucks. Luckily, since it's stripped down you won't have to worry about having holes for an EVF or on board monitor. I suggest getting a clear shower curtain and making a rain cover out of that. Use some velcro to hold the seams together, that way you can just strip the velcro apart and get to the spots that you need to access. Of course, you'll want to make sure the seams are not oriented so that they would leak onto the camera. I would drape the curtain over the top and cut it to length, leaving the bottom open, and each end- for the lens, and access to the back of the camera. I would then use velcro to close the back of the camera, and on the lens end, use velcro to hold the curtain around the matte box. If you wanted, you could velcro the bottom too so that you completely encase the camera. Anyhow, it's not rocket science, but it's cheap and effective. Make sure you get the thickest CLEAR shower curtain that you can find. Also, keep a diaper handy to dry off any drips that might fall onto the camera when you're getting in and out of the bag. Also, pay attention to heat issues associated with having the camera in a bag, it might be a good idea to turn the fans up to help keep the camera cool- I assume sound won't be an issue since there are rain towers involved.

I have seen some people who like to build a "modular" rain cover, sized for a primes-built camera, with an addition that velcros on for a big zoom lens, such as the Optimo 24-290. Some people prefer to have a dedicated cover for each configuration.

Hopefully I'm not too off-base here, I'm not a focus puller, but from talking to focus pullers that I have worked with the cinetape is a nice spot check, and can be really helpful in some situations. Focus pullers that I work with still get measurements and marks as much as possible. From what I gather, it seems as though you can develop a sense for when the cinetape is "on target" and when you probably shouldn't trust it (should you ever "trust" it?). Edit to add: In my opinion, the cine tape is really light weight and compact, and offers a lot of advantage for such a small package. But then again, I'm a 2nd AC so take it with a grain of salt.....

I usually find a clear shower curtain and cut it to sort of make a bag for the camera with the front open for the lens, and the bottom open for the tripod/head. Adding velcro around the front side helps to stick it to the matte box. Also, check www.filmtools.com for their 3mil disposable rain covers, they are nice and cheap, and can be tossed or re-used. http://www.filmtools.com/filmtools-medium-camera-cover.html I usually don't use a dedicated rain cover, as I find the other methods work out better, and are cheaper and easier to use.

Excellent tips from Jonathan and Chris- especially concerning the pop ups. I like to use small-core 2'' black paper tape from filmtools. I think a couple rolls each of paper tape would be enough, maybe 3 or 4 rolls for the colors you'll use to mark your principle actors. I use more paper tape than cloth tape these days, so I usually only keep one roll each of cloth 1'' camera tape- usually black, white, red, blue, and a few neon colors. If you're "out in the country" you might want to make sure you have lots of stuff for marking actors on dirt, or places where you can't use tape- think sandbag t's, golf tees, nails, survey flags etc.....this also depends a little on what your 1st prefers. If you anticipate using more of this stuff than paper tape for marking, you can adjust.

There are so many things that could make a good 2nd AC. Needless to say, this is a key position in the camera department, and requires a lot of organization, focus, and patience. Some of the best 2nds that I have worked with were great at staying calm, thinking ahead, and rolling with the punches. A good 2nd does a lot to make the 1st able to focus on their job, to take away the burden of the everyday operation of the department. There's an old saying that goes something like "Slow is smooth, smooth is fast" and I think that you can take a lot from it about not getting in a rush. True, often times the tasks that must be accomplished are "time sensitive", but it's definitely better to get things right the first time than to rush, or let other people get you in a rush and mess up. I've seen people in a hurry come crashing through set stomping around only to make themselves look ridiculous, or trip and fall, or knock something over or whatever else....

I am looking to buy a ronford baker quick release for my camera cart. Any leads or recommendations would be great. I have some leads on knock-offs, but would prefer to get the real thing if I can.