Tommie Rekstad of Pink Elephant in Sweden took these photos of his Polecam at the World Cup Downhill Skiing from Åre, Norway. Just another demonstration of the extremes that Polecam can work in.
Polecam will be launching new products, including Polecam 7th Heaven, on their own booth C7642, shared with Camera Corps, who will themselves be launching their new Q-Ball HD Remote Camera System.
The Convention Centre
Las Vegas, Nevada USA
Exhibition 20th April to 23rd April 2009
See Polecam at NAB2009, booth C7642, Las Vegas Convention Center, April 20-23
Making a temporary break from their informal no-fuss go-anywhere routine, the Polecam team will be demonstrating the world's longest-reach easy-transit camera rig in long sleeves at the 2009 NAB Convention.
"The sleeves are for the Polecam, not for the staff," explains company founder and Managing Director Steffan Hewitt. "We will be launching a brand new series of five Poledom sheaths which give producers control over the rig's visibility. Most camera operators prefer the low visibility of a black Polecam rig. Like many Polecam innovations, this is in response to feedback from existing and potential users. We were recently asked by a producer from a church television channel if we could supply a white version. The most cost-efficient way to do that is with a pull-on-sleeve which gives operators the freedom to revert to the black unsheathed style when the rig is required to blend in with a relatively low-light environment. A total of five versions will be available: Arctic White, Desert Camouflage, Fluorescent Orange, Jungle Camouflage and Urban Camouflage. Fluo Orange was an afterthought but has obvious healthy-and-safety advantages if used in a hard-hat location or an airfield.
Manufactured from high-strength rip-stop nylon, Poledoms are designed for use both on the standard five section Polecam, with a 6 metre lateral/vertical reach, and the new seven-element Seventh Heaven Polecam which has an unprecedented 8 metre reach. Polecam itself is unique in requiring no stabiliser stanchions, rigging or cabling on the exterior of the boom; all cables can be routed inside the carbon fibre tubes. This means Poledom sleeves can be fitted and removed quickly yet retain the full dynamic manouvreability of the unsleeved Polecam, unlike any other crane on the market today.
Polecam was established in 1998 by extreme sports cameraman/director Steffan Hewitt. While directing a series of windsurfing kit commercials in Hawaii, he needed to obtain close wide-angle front sequences of a windsurfer in action, shot from a tracking boat or jet ski. Steffan improvised a rig comprising a miniature camera on a carbon-fibre windsurfing mast. Returning to Britain, he developed a lightweight go-anywhere rig with a remote joystick-controlling a high-precision pan and tilt head. Polecam is now supplied in HD and SD versions with a range of additional options including underwater and 3D pan/tilt heads. Polecam Ltd is active globally from its base near Bedford, England.
In December 2008 I had the pleasure of taking my Polecam to the Masai Mara for (I believe) the very first time. Using camera cranes to shoot wildlife has always been limiting, but the portability of Polecam has made crane shots very possible .
What started out as a 3-week hire enquiry ended up as a full-blown 2-week shoot, staying in 2 campsites on the banks of the River Mara.
I was using the Toshiba HD camera, shooting 1080i and recording to a Sony HDCAM deck. The 4mm lens was used for most of the shoot but there were moments when using a longer lens proved most useful.
Making its worldwide exhibition debut at the 2009 NAB Convention in Las Vegas, Polecam's new 7th Heaven jib spans up to 26 feet from its pivot, the longest reach of any ultra-mobile HD/SD camera support system currently available.
"A standard Polecam comes with five connectable elements which combine to achieve a span of up to 20 feet from its pivot," booms Polecam founder Steffan Hewitt. "With 7th Heaven, we can now offer it bigger, stiffer and longer. 7th Heaven uses a new method of pole fabrication to achieve higher rigidity, allowing the seven elements to provide the 26 ft span. A highly innovative combination of laminated and spun carbon-fiber, unique in our industry, maintains strength and rigidity without sacrificing the portability and discreet on-screen profile that have made Polecam so successful over the past decade. The fibers used are 15% stiffer than in our previous booms and there is approximately 24% more fiber per square foot, maintaining rigidity over the entire length. The 26 ft reach makes a dramatic difference to vertical as well as horizontal camera angle, both on location and in the increasing number of studio productions being made with Polecam jibs."
