The following notes are intended for novices that have completed a recognised Steadicam course or Workshop.

Steadicam is a difficult piece of equipment to master, a proper training course is recommended followed by weeks of training. Incorrect operation may cause injury.

The notes are written with genuine Steadicam equipment in mind, but may also be useful if you are starting out with one of the multitude of cheaper copied rigs.

A lot of the adjustment controls mentioned may be missing or more cumbersome on such rigs although the more expensive high-end stabilisers do tend to offer similar features.

 

The first rule of Steadicam… if it hurts, put it down.

The Steadicam if properly set up will safely place most if not the entire load on your hips, there should be no compression on your back.

However the weight is not balanced exactly over your centre of gravity as the camera is somewhere outside your body on your favoured operating side.

You will always find that you are displacing your weight slightly back and maybe to one side to counteract this displacement. If you hold the rig further from your body you have to lean away more to keep yourself balanced.

This effect will quickly become uncomfortable at first, as you have to develop the muscles in the small of your back a little, the feeling is very similar to windsurfing where you have to lean away from the sail.

In time you will develop the strength to comfortably deal with the movement of the Steadicam, but at first you will soon ache. That is when you should dock the rig and rest.

 

Don’t be bullied by colleagues or give in to bravado. When Operating Steadicam it is easy for a Director to forget that you are wearing the camera, plus another 20KG of kit. Steadicam rigs are not cheap to hire and there is a natural tendency for a Director to pack as many shots into the day as possible.

Only the Steadicam Operator is really qualified to decide when he must rest. Don’t be afraid to put your foot down and then put the rig down as well!

 

Be aware of your environment and those around you, even when only practising. Remove all tripping hazards and keep an eye out for people who may leave equipment in your way. Always work with a good assistant, if just practising buddy up with a colleague to keep an eye on things for you.

A simple trip working with a Steadicam can easily get nasty as the movement of your hips controls the speed and direction of the rig. If the rig ever reaches the full extent of the arm the weight displacement is quite a surprise. If it hits the end of the arm hard it will pull you into the ground faster than you can blink.

Steadicam should be operated with a straight back and comfortable stance, slouching or excessive leaning or twisting due to incorrectly set up equipment may cause injury.

 

The vest needs to be quite tight and firmly placed on the hips. Set the height of the spar so that you can comfortably lift your knees as if climbing steps, but leave a little air under the shoulder pads, as this will protect your back.

The Idea is to sit most of the rig’s weight on your hips so that the load is taken directly down only through your legs bypassing your back. The under arm straps need to be nice and tight as well, to effectively clamp the spar to your sternum. Remove the chest pad behind the spar if you find it uncomfortable.

Fit the arm and set your threads on the socket block. You will probably be comfortable with about four threads showing on the ‘back to front’ adjustment.

The ‘side to side’ adjustment is really hidden in the end of the arm that sits in the socket block. You will see two universal joints, which are adjusted using an Allen key poked in to the inner face of the socket block. Always screw the bottom adjuster all the way in, especially if someone has used the bridge upside down. Then let the top adjuster out by a couple of turns.

Make sure all of the socket block’s screws are tight and then gently load on the sled, set the arm’s adjusting screws so that the arm droops slightly below horizontal.

You should be able to stand in a comfortable upright (not hunched) posture and when released the rig should float close to your body. If it swings away from your body in any direction the socket block adjustments need to be tweaked to pull it back.

Fighting a badly set up Vest will make you ache very quickly.

If you are not working with a Genuine Steadicam or a high-end rival product, please be aware that your vest and arm may not even have the adjustments available to allow totally free control.

 

Learn to set up your rig properly, and be familiar with dynamic balance. If you cant remember all that you learned on your course or workshop, try downloading the Ultra Manual from the Tiffen website and print it out so you can thumb through it easily.

An incorrectly rigged Steadicam will never fly properly; it may appear balanced but roll uncontrollably when panned.

 

Don’t be tempted to make the rig really bottom heavy. Although it will find its horizon nice and quickly, it will also accentuate problems such as fluctuating headroom and rolling. The physical effort needed to counteract it will spoil the Steadicam effect and lead to visible footsteps or surging.

Likewise don’t make the drop time too long, as you will find that you are never quite level and will be glued to the spirit level. Most Operators will use a drop time of between 2 to 4 seconds depending on the style of camerawork.

 

A properly set up Steadicam must be slightly bottom heavy, this gives you a reference once the rig has settled. The trouble is that as you try to move forward the bottom of the sled will want to lag behind or swing away from you when you stop.

This will probably be the first problem you will encounter when seriously practising with Steadicam. Pre-empting and correcting this effect is a major part of the art of Steadicam Operation and only comes with experience.

Try making all of your starts and stops as gentle as possible at first and be aware of which way the rig will want to swing as you move. Knowing where it will swing allows you to counteract the movement before it can happen which will give you perfect headroom.

Experienced Operators are able to slam stop their rigs hopefully with no change in headroom at all.

 

The headroom problem I’ve already outlined also works sideways, in fact it happens in all directions. Moving forwards or backwards shouldn’t give you a horizon problem, just the headroom movement that you may already have found.

When you turn a corner, or crab sideways, the bottom heaviness of the sled will make it swing in the opposite direction to the movement. Again you must learn to pre-empt this rolling effect and deal with it before it happens.

Don’t be tempted to rely on the Spirit level or artificial horizon, most are affected by inertia in the same way as the sled and will only read true at a standstill or at constant speed and direction.

 

Unless your Steadicam arm’s bearings are badly worn this is always caused by the operator. Learn to relax and steer the rig with your body movements, you will then find that you need only the lightest touch on Gimbal and Arm.

Slow movement is far more difficult to obtain smoothly as a slow footstep will more easily find its way trough the Iso elastic arm. Any stiffness in your operating arm and grip will accentuate the effect.

Try holding the sled with the lightest fingertip touch only, some operators will hold the post with thumb and two fingers only. At this level the balance of the rig is critical, as any attempt to overcome a bad setup will show in the shot.

Slow operators movements can also cause the shot to surge along in spurts in time with the operator’s footsteps. Again a light touch is essential as a lot of this movement is transmitted by the arms. Walking along smoothly without jerky hip movements also helps to kill this problem at source.

Don’t! Until you really know what you are doing.

Never ever run at your full speed, the slightest stumble will pitch the rig forward and away from you. Always keep a little in reserve to avoid being dragged into the ground as you will have to speed up and run back under the rig.

When properly experienced enough for fast moves, always make yourself familiar with the location and remove any hazards. A fall in a Steadicam is never a pleasant experience and regardless of whether you or your camera hits the ground first, something is likely to get broken.