Since I’ve been in a few classes touching on the topic of affordable/user-friendly equipment for video-making laymen, I like to look out for equipment that fits that bill. So again, here’s another kickstarter for some equipment.
The ROV Camera Slider starts at $229 for the extra-compact “every day length” version with an 8-inch travel length. Backers can upgrade to a ROV Pro version (which can hold a camera weighing up to 5 pounds), and also a travelers length version of either model, which doubles the travel length. The kickstarter lasts until the 21st of November, but they’ve already tripled their goal.
The ROV seems to have been created with phones in mind, but the $300 Pro Model works with lighterweight DSLRs as well. Rhino also has a free in-phone editor that works well with time-lapse footage. The ability to get really cool time-lapse on a phone is pretty cool to me (currently their app is only available on iOS, but Android is supposedly coming up next – I assume before the release of the actual product in April, since Rhino has a pretty good track record with releases).
That said, I was thinking that $229-$300 as a base price is a little steeper than some people are willing to go and perhaps more than is needed anyway, so I found some slightly less cool but cheaper slider options as alternatives.
$157, This has no motor but seems to have seen good results if you’re more into manual anyway. So, a little basic but decent reported quality.
$94, The size makes for some easily transported, and also has a remote control, though is best used for smaller-scale projects.
