David Esp Video Technical Blog

In brief, the best candidate for me seems  to be Kessler’s Philip Bloom Signature Series variant of their Pocket Dolly (actually a slider).  In addition to hand-cranking (with damper) it has the possibility of adding on motorised control, including for timelapse.  On the other hand there is also the Stealth varant, which benefits (in my opinion) from black colour (as opposed to crimson/pink for the Bloom variant) but lacks the crank handle.  I have no experience, hence no idea how useful a crank handle is.  Like the Bloom variant, it can be motorized.

Issues / Requirements (not in order):

• Length
  • Doesn’t have to be all that long, sometimes only 2 feet (about 0.3 metre) is sufficient.
• Support
  • Will it mount to a standard tripod?
  • Need it be supported at each end?
• Strength
  • Is it stable (or does it bend/flex/bow)
  • Can it take the weight of a Sony EX3?
    • Weight:
      • http://pro.sony.com/bbsccms/assets/files/micro/xdcamex/brochures/XDCAM_EX_Family_Brochure_Final_4-08.pdf
        • 7.5 lbs = around 3.6 kg (with lens, SxS card, battery and lens hood, i.e. typical minimum configuration.
    • Ideally would like some margin hence say 10lbs = just under 5 kg
• Smoothness
• Drive (Possibly):
  • Manual crank
    • Possibly with damping or inertia (most likely a flywheel)
  • Motor
• Noise
• Size (can be carried on a plane?)
• Weight (can be carried on long walks?)

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