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final word on basic grip practices?


Josh Bass

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So, I thought I had all this stuff straight.

 

I'd always heard when setting up a c stand, you put the weight over the longest leg (example, 300w fresnel attached to c stand arm, that arm goes over the long leg), and then you bag the long leg if a bag is deemed necessary. Recently I heard the bag was no good if not touching the ground, and it'd be better to put it one of the lower "back" legs if doing so allowed the bag to touch the ground. I always thought the bag SHOULDN'T be touching the ground, because if it's resting on the ground, it's not really putting weight on the leg at all, it's just there.

 

What's right?

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I would say it depends on the bags, there are some that folds well over a C-stand and can't get accidentally pushed off it. There are other ones that really don't fold at all and then sort of just "balances" on the leg, in that case I would think it is better for it to be touching the ground a bit so I doesn't get kicked so it swings out of position. But ideally, I have the long/tall leg weighted down and in the opposite direction to what the force is/are, gravity, wind, etc...

Edited by Karl Eklund
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you are correct josh. the big leg goes under the weight. As for bagging I prefer and was taught to bag the big leg so as the bag was not touching the ground, But I have run across people who were taught different.

 

some people Bag the medium leg away from the weight so it COUNTERS the weight, after all you are just lowering the center of gravity. the Grip book has a drawing with the leg opposing the weight. I even prefer to leave a cstand unbagged on stage unless the flag is well cantilevered over the leg. It all follows the KEY and the KEY is always right. Do it his way. Some people always wear tool belts, some people never wear more than a gerber.

 

as long as it is safe it is ok.

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Thanks. The kind of shoots I grip on, there is no key. Tiny 2 or 3 man crew shoots is what I mean. I've just heard different things from different people. Just find it fascinating that there is not only different advice out there, but contradictory advice as well.

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For bagging c-stands with bags that don't have a seam dividing the bag into two sections, turn the bag on it's side so that the seam that runs the perimeter of the bag is in contact with the leg. You'll find the bag folds onto the leg much easier this way. Sorry if that didn't make too much sense, hard to describe clearly.

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So, I thought I had all this stuff straight.

 

I'd always heard when setting up a c stand, you put the weight over the longest leg (example, 300w fresnel attached to c stand arm, that arm goes over the long leg), and then you bag the long leg if a bag is deemed necessary. Recently I heard the bag was no good if not touching the ground, and it'd be better to put it one of the lower "back" legs if doing so allowed the bag to touch the ground. I always thought the bag SHOULDN'T be touching the ground, because if it's resting on the ground, it's not really putting weight on the leg at all, it's just there.

 

What's right?

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  • 4 weeks later...
  • 8 months later...

Help me out, grips. Also the gobo arms need to go over the top of the tightening handle so the weight will automatically tighten the gobo in a clockwise direction. Does that make sense? A grip can explain that better than I.

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If you're hanging a heavy light out or a light with a softbox, I often hang a small bag on the other side as a counter weight. This brings the center of gravity back over the center of the stand and it makes it infinitely more stable. I keep a couple boa bags on hand at all times just for this.

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There really isn't a cookie cutter method to bagging a C-stand. I'm not a big fan of absolutes, for example "ALWAYS bag the tall leg." There are times when you can't or don't need to. If I had to come up with an absolute for you or a final word(s); "ALWAYS think about what you are doing." Don't look to the internet to find ways to be on auto-pilot at work. Pay attention to what you are doing with the sandbag and what you want to accomplish. If you do not have the common sense to keep a stand from tipping over, perhaps you should consider a job in front of the camera instead.

 

Don't be afraid to put more than one bag on a stand...

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  • 3 months later...
  • 3 weeks later...
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There really isn't a cookie cutter method to bagging a C-stand. I'm not a big fan of absolutes, for example "ALWAYS bag the tall leg." There are times when you can't or don't need to. If I had to come up with an absolute for you or a final word(s); "ALWAYS think about what you are doing." Don't look to the internet to find ways to be on auto-pilot at work. Pay attention to what you are doing with the sandbag and what you want to accomplish. If you do not have the common sense to keep a stand from tipping over, perhaps you should consider a job in front of the camera instead.

 

Don't be afraid to put more than one bag on a stand...

When I gripped a lot I had lot of grips and gaffers always say the tall big leg rule, but others tended to throw bags on depending on the load. A bag touching the ground, to me, will eventually have its mass used as a counter weight if the load on the arm is heavy enough. Grips who worked like that tended to toss more bags on a stand which tended to look sloppy and unkempt, but it worked.

 

Using common sense is the best advice.

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