Incar video with the BHD3 Ballhead
Recently I was hired to do shoot behind the scenes video footage for a NOS Energy Drink commercial. The commercial was based around the driving skill of 2009 Formula Drift Champion Chris Forsberg. For those not familiar with drifting, it is a judged motorsport that calls for drivers to control a high horsepower car while it slides sideways at high speed through a marked course. It is similar to rally racing, but is done on a closed course and judged on execution and style rather than who finishes the course fastest.
BHD3 in use
I wanted to get some incar footage to show what its like sitting next to the driver and spice up the BTS footage. I used a Canon 5D Mk II with a 16-35 2.8L lens mounted to an Induro BHD3 ballhead. While this ballhead is a bit overkill for this camera setup, it is ideal due the violent driving style of drifting. A large amount of torque is generated from to the mass of the camera as the car quickly changes direction from left to right. I have used other ballheads and they would consistently slip over the course of a run. The BHD3 is the only ballhead I have used so far that has not loosened up after a lap or two with the 5D MK II.
Still from Incar Video
About halfway through the day of the shoot, the director of the commercial asked to see some of the footage. He was impressed with the shots and asked if they could use some of the footage in the commercial. After a bit of negotiating, I handed over the memory cards and here is the final commercial which incorporated my footage at :10 :13 and :24
A few weeks later I was called to create a preseason teaser video for Hyundai and Rhys Millen Racing- another drift team. They wanted to show the changes they made to the Genesis Coupe for the 2010 season. They were testing at El Toro Airfield in Irvine, CA and I knew that the runway surface was a bit more rough than the track where we filmed the NOS Shoot. In past shoots I have noticed vibration from the incar camera here at El Toro.
RMR / Red Bull / Hyundai Genesis Coupe
After a bit of research, I have found that the vibration was not coming from the ballhead, but from the flexing of the camera body itself at the tripod socket. My solution is to have the BHD3 supporting the camera from the bottom and a magic arm with hot shoe mount to support it from the top. While the BHD3 does the heavy lifting, the magic arm provides another point of stabilization. Here is a photo of the setup:
BHD3 Incar
BHD3 Incar
Here is the final video created using the BHD3 ballhead as the main support for my 5D Mk II. At the :20 mark you can actually see the ballhead in the window as the car drives by.
I used the ballhead recently at the Pikes Peak HIll Climb to support a locked off camera as I was following the car with another camera. The ballhead was solid enough to hold an HVX attached to a Manfrotto super clamp off of guard rails, stop signs etc. Here is an iPhone snap of it in action:
BHD3 Ballhead at the Pikes Peak Hillclimb
BHD3 Ballhead at the Pikes Peak Hillclimb
I cannot say enough good things about this Induro BHD3 Ballhead, very versatile head that is capable of holding a significant amount of weight.
On an Induro side note- thank GOD I had the CT-313 tripod with me at Pikes. We had to hike all over the mountain at an altitude between 10,000 and 14,110ft elevation over a series of 4 days. The CT-313 was so light yet so rigid I was actually able to cover a lot of ground without sacrificing a sturdy base for my camera. Since I was shooting video, I had a video head on the sticks…
CT-313 Tripod at the Pikes Peak Hillclimb
Thank you Induro, your products ROCK! 