FREEFLY Systems Freefly MIMIC

[Bartman]

I'd guess they've already had their press event in Vegas because information is starting to pop up here and there with more detail regarding Freefly's new products.

Here is a video demonstrating the MIMIC, a gimble that is controlled via a unique remote control device

 

[Bartman]

there is also this brief reference at the freefly website

http://freeflysystems.com/new-products#/mimic

 

[Carapau]

There be some nice poo there!

Can't wait to see how much.

 

[Gary Seven]

There be some nice poo there!

Can't wait to see how much.

Is "poo" code for something? Or are you just saying that it's some serious s**t? LOL!

 

[MombasaFlash]

It's very, very clever but I don't quite get the point. After expending all that energy on stabilising a camera and maintaining the horizontal that our eyes crave, instead of the leaning-all-over-the-place wobble that it used to be with any camera not bolted onto a platform of some sort, we now have some scruffy jock in control of the camera, not the cameraman, using incredibly expensive kit to reproduce a wobbly-leaning-all-over-the-place camera.

Their promo film with the camera chasing people running through the woods is just all weird. And the scruffy jock with the remote control is saying how wonderful it is because now you can lean the camera into the turns ... huh? The film looks bloody terrible.

 

[tstrike]

I could see it being useful if your movi was on a jib or crane. I guess you could put it on a tripod mounted fluid head with a monitor for pan and tilt. I remember back in the nineties an Italian company came out with something like that for Hotheads, helped out the DP's who weren't fluid in wheels.

I'm pretty sure scruffy jock thinks it's wonderful because he's not the one lugging around the rig.

 

[MadMonkey]

I'm about to rig up a headtracker with a monitor and handles to see if I can replicate it. My camera guy is interested, and at $500 it's not a huge risk, but I figured I'd let him try the concept before making a decision.

I like the idea.

 

[Bartman]

i think the principle is that the camera control is being given a more intuitive interface so that the camera person can use more natural inputs to get the desired shot, scruffy beard or no beard

 

[Stacky]

It's very, very clever but I don't quite get the point. After expending all that energy on stabilising a camera and maintaining the horizontal that our eyes crave, instead of the leaning-all-over-the-place wobble that it used to be with any camera not bolted onto a platform of some sort, we now have some scruffy jock in control of the camera, not the cameraman, using incredibly expensive kit to reproduce a wobbly-leaning-all-over-the-place camera.

Their promo film with the camera chasing people running through the woods is just all weird. And the scruffy jock with the remote control is saying how wonderful it is because now you can lean the camera into the turns ... huh? The film looks bloody terrible.

Well the opening scenes of this video have me understanding how this could be useful. Love this footage.

 

[sk8brd]

wow some of you guys are pretty harsh..

mombasa...you realize the guy was Chase Jarvis right in the promo- ( scruffy jock dude- as you guys say) i'm sure it was just a quick test with a guy with a huge name to get the word out (hype) for NAB ....the guy has a huge following..Jarvis is an extremely successful commercial photo/dp and does other things like owns Creative Live..creme of the crop as they say making millions a year (not joking here) from making images and getting flown all around the world by the biggest companies...pretty much the gold std of what "making it in the creative industry" looks like.

Jarvis hired tabb for projects years ago as there friends and from the same area........ Here is one where Jarvis had tabb fly a prototype nikon d7000 on a single rotor (2010) before freefly was even the freefly we know today. times have changed...

 

[crayfellow]

Really neat product, but it bums me out that nobody has mentioned this was actually invented by another Seattle-based firm Beeworks, makers of extremely well-designed equipment manufactured in the USA. They are much smaller and made a public announcement early on as part of a Kickstarter campaign, which unfortunately exposed the idea early enough for others to copy.

 

[Jjjkkklll]

Really neat product, but it bums me out that nobody has mentioned this was actually invented by another Seattle-based firm Beeworks, makers of extremely well-designed equipment manufactured in the USA. They are much smaller and made a public announcement early on as part of a Kickstarter campaign, which unfortunately exposed the idea early enough for others to copy.

Doesn't really matter I guess, but figured I'd mention that several hobbyists came up with the concept mimic is based on well before anyone ever heard of "Beeworks".

Several European guys did it more than a year ago at least. I don't have the links handy but this is nothing new at all.

Once again however, freefly executed it better than anyone and that's why they dominate the market.