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Video Camera Stand |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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Posted: 04/22/2015 at 4:56pm |
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OK, here's version 1 of my camera stand idea that I was discussing with Pushblocker. I used a concrete filled plastic 2.5lb dumbbell weight as the base. A 1/2" PVC pipe coupler fits very tightly in the center hole when encouraged with a mallet. Height is accomplished with two 2 foot sections of 1/2" PVC pipe pressed into the base and connected with another coupler. I epoxied a 1/4" bolt (in a thread that is standard for tripod mounts) to a washer and then epoxied that to one of the 2ft PVC sections. For long term use, I'd probably look for a more mechanically positive way to attach the bolt to the PVC. And finally, I attached my SLIK ballhead to the bolt and that's pretty much it.
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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42andbackpains
Silver Member Joined: 10/05/2014 Location: NYC Status: Offline Points: 623 |
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Very nice Hurry up and patent it before the trolls do....lol
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Mind is willing, but the back goes out too often :P
OSP Ultimate II 88 grams FH Dianchi D w/ Secret Sauce BH Butterfly T05 Red USATT rating keeps going down |
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jrscatman
Premier Member Joined: 10/19/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4585 |
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Chances there are probably 10 patents at the USPTO already. If not there are probably that many open patents that can add this as a claim and steal the idea! Nice version 1 BTW: How much do you estimate the cost was including labor?
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Butterfly MPS
FH: Donic Acuda S1 BH: Palio CK531A OX |
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Pondus
Gold Member Joined: 04/07/2012 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 1933 |
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Very nice, Jay. When can I buy one?
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schen
Gold Member Joined: 03/26/2013 Location: San Diego, CA Status: Offline Points: 1244 |
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Interesting approach, but two questions:
How rigid do you find the pvc stand to be? In my experience with DIY, PVC tends to flex when the length is relatively long - with a heavier camera do you find that it sways at all? Although if this is not a problem, I like the idea of an infinitely extendable camera stand for all intents and purposes and might try it myself for a more overhead type of angle. Secondly is the weight of the base... I feel that constructing a wider base out of PVC would actually be more stable as well as lighter? Literally carrying around a the dead weight of a dumbbell doesn't seem too thrilling as far as portability goes.
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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The SLIK ball head is about $20 and that's the major cost. Two PVC pipes for less than $2. Couplers were less than $1. Bolt, washer and epoxy maybe $1 total. The weight was part of a set that I don't use since I prefer metal plates. So I don't know how to factor that. I do know you can buy metal plates used rather cheaply.
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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I'll put my GH1 on it tonight and give you an account. The whole idea is to have a compact base to give more flexibility in where the camera and stand can be placed without causing problems. This weight is just 2.5 lbs. They make monopods with stands. That's probably the better overall solution for most people. I wasn't aware of that yesterday when I first started down this path. Also, I knew I already had the ball head laying around. |
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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I put my GH1 on the stand and it was plenty strong enough to support that camera. That said, this kind of stand is not going to stay upright if someone knocks into it. You need to place a stand like this in a low traffic spot. The idea is that its small footprint makes doing that much easier. |
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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jrscatman
Premier Member Joined: 10/19/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4585 |
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There are also various monopod stands: here are a few
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Butterfly MPS
FH: Donic Acuda S1 BH: Palio CK531A OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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Yes. Somebody else pointed that out to me, and I may look into one. But the problems I see are that these stands don't add much mass to and since the base is a triangle, they will tip more easily at the angles in between where the feet of the stands are planted. But given the price, it would certainly be worth giving it a try.
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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jrscatman
Premier Member Joined: 10/19/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4585 |
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I agree with schen - having to carry additional weight is the biggest flaw in the current design. Would it be possible to anchor the "wtuber monopod" to players' equipment bag or the barrier posts? Many players now days carry rolling bags with telescoping handles. If it's possible to anchor it to something we are already lugging around - that would be great. |
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Butterfly MPS
FH: Donic Acuda S1 BH: Palio CK531A OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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With a rolling bag, I don't see an additional 2.5 - 5lbs as a meaningful weight addition. Some kind of clamp that would attach it to barrier might be workable, but I don't think it would be very stable. The idea is to keep the footprint small. So the player's bag doesn't seem like a good solution to me. |
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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jrscatman
Premier Member Joined: 10/19/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4585 |
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Would some softdrink bottle holders provide enough stability. Everyone has plenty of drinks. 3 - 1L bottles on the base might hold it in place. People can always refill it - if they drink the contents.
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Butterfly MPS
FH: Donic Acuda S1 BH: Palio CK531A OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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I believe the idea is to look for a good compromise between base width and weight. Bottles would typically not be wide enough. Also, you need to find something to fill them with to weigh them down. Of course, anybody else should feel free to experiment for themselves. Using small weight seems simple, compact, and fairly effective to me.
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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acid
Super Member Joined: 04/10/2013 Location: USA Status: Offline Points: 420 |
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very creative !!
but i think we really need to find the right HD high speed camera. The normal camera may not record the FAST flying ball. i mean you can't see the ball that clearly !
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if Life is short, play Ping Pong to make it longer :P
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aroonkl
Silver Member Joined: 07/08/2011 Status: Offline Points: 748 |
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1 Gallon water bottle. Fill water at destination ~ up to 8 lbs weight.
5 Gallon is even more stable but little bulky.
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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How do you attach the pole firmly? Also, you have now traded weight for bulk and have lost some convenience because you now need to take time to fill the bottle with water. |
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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aroonkl
Silver Member Joined: 07/08/2011 Status: Offline Points: 748 |
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Epoxy partial filled to hold pvc connector (Female thread) at bottom of tank. Little more bulky, yes. Lightly for sure. Can not win both. |
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jrscatman
Premier Member Joined: 10/19/2008 Status: Offline Points: 4585 |
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If you can securely attaching to this it would work.
It would be ok, if you bring lots of drinks to the matches. If not you'll have to bring empty bottles to the matches. Ideal solution would be monopod with stand (as was suggested earlier). If it can be placed away from foot traffic - otherwise it might get tipped over. I would think it's ok for action cameras like GoPro - but wouldn't put a video camera on it. (Someone will knock it over) |
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Butterfly MPS
FH: Donic Acuda S1 BH: Palio CK531A OX |
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aroonkl
Silver Member Joined: 07/08/2011 Status: Offline Points: 748 |
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Another way.
L-shape Legs. If you want to use pvc. 2 x 1" 3'-4'long (fill the end with concrete or something to counter the weight of camera.) 1 x 1" elbow 1 x Reducing Tee 1"-1/2" your original pole design. Best @ corner, it will disappear. Place @ barrier, one leg sticking out. If you attach or place along barrier leg, perfect. They will be very portable as you could carry xtra 2 poles along with original pole. More safety with some mod as thread fitting for legs. You don't want pvc to pop out and camera land on floor. You could try all 1/2" concrete filled if they are stable enough.
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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A one gallon jug is lots bulkier. Anyway, here's the update on my little project. When I first made version one I mounted a GH1 camera as a test and it seemed OK. But on Saturday, I mounted a GH4 and the stand started to show some flaws. The GH4 is not only heavier, but the tripod threads are more off-center. The upshot was that with the GH4 the stand bowed sideways enough that I felt it was not stable enough. Time for version 2. I went to Play It Again Sports and found better weights to use as a base. These are 2 1/2 lb weights, so they half the weight of the 5lb weight I was using. They are also thinner and wider. The extra width adds stability. Used weights cost 60 cents/ lb, so I paid $3 to get two of them. I replaced the bottom 1/2" PVC section with 3/4" PVC. That meant I needed to epoxy a 3/4" fitting into the weight's center hole since the hole. The bottom 3/4" pipe section is simpley pressed into that fitting. The top pipe section remained 1/2". I used threaded fittings to create a more positive connection between the two sections. This new version is both more rigid (thicker bottom pole) and more stable (wider base) and seems more than adequate for supporting a GH4. I even put a larger lens on the GH4 and the stand did not bow or bend noticablely with the additional off-center weight. This will be, I believe, the final configuration that I intend to use this weekend. Except that I'll paint the pipe sections black. I will also build a second, duplicate stand using the other weight. |
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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I agree that a monopod with a mini-tripod stand would probably be fine for a small video "action camera." The problem I see with that and the L leg PVC option mentioned is that they rely almost entirely on geometry for stability. But with the narrow base you don't get much geometric advantage. That's why tripods spread their legs out at wider angles. The main idea I'm working with is to compensate for the narrower base by using additional weight. If I were to use a monopod with stand, I'd probably also use a small sandbag like we use in video production to stabilize lights and C-stands. |
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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wturber
Premier Member Joined: 10/28/2008 Location: United States Status: Offline Points: 3899 |
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Camera stand in action with a GH1 mounted. Note the small footprint that is no deeper than the footprint of the tall barriers. It would be bad news for the camera if a player crashed into the barrier though. So the stand still needs to be placed with care - probably more toward the corners of a playing area.
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Jay Turberville
www.jayandwanda.com Hardbat: Nittaku Resist w/ Dr. Evil or Friendship 802-40 OX |
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