Problem: Long Rail, Long Bellows... Is There a Solution to Use One Tripod

[Qeb]

Greetings,

If one were to use a Toyo 810G with around 1 meter bellows extension, is there a way to use just one tripod?

I've been told one should use two tripods but I found this photo recently and I've also been wondering
if there is commercially made component that will allow one to use one tripod...




Could one weld together thick round tubing into a very wide upside down triangle and the vertice that's is larger than 90 degrees
have a component welded so it can attach to a tripod. Then the smaller than 90 degree vertices would have a way to attach
to the rail clamps/mounts?

I guess two tripods is easiest in finding parts but for operation of the camera rig I would love to use my heavy and big Majestic tripod
(Though if I have to use two tripods there is another Majestic for sale not too far from me home).

Thanks for reading this.
Have a great weekend.
Be well

Best Regards,
Kevin H.

[Dan Fromm]

Well, the 8x10 in y'r photo is a Cambo and the tripod mounting block is Cambo's C378 monorail connector/double tripod mount. I'm not sure -- my ignorance is showing -- that there's anything like the C378 in the Toyo system.

Have you considered using something like a Manfrotto Magic Arm (or two) to tie your Toyo's rail to a tripod leg (or two)?

[Drew Wiley]

You use more than one rail clamp attached to a long uniting bar below. I happen to use Sinar monorails, and have their own dedicated accessory bar to do this. But I make my own out of 1x3 maple stock. The second secret is to bolt the bar itself securely down to a tripod PLATFORM top, not any flimsy intermediary. I fasten right down to the top platform of my Ries wooden tripod, itself maple. Very secure.

[Hugo Zhang]

Yes you can try to use one tripod AND a light weight CF monopod to support the front.

[r.e.]

I would consider using two slider stands, or a slider stand plus a tripod, to do this.

I have a Matthews slider stand like this one: https://www.filmtools.com/matthews-s...der-stand.html

It weighs 6.4kg (14lb) and has a 94cm (37") footprint. If you want more weight, just add sandbags to the legs.

The female receiver at the top of the stand is a Junior receiver, which is 1 1/8" in diameter. Easy to attach a steel plate with a male Junior pin on the bottom. Plates like this are available off the shelf.

Working height is 61cm-117cm (24"-46"). The stands can be mounted on a platform, such as apple boxes, for more height. There are other "Junior Stands" that will give one more working height than these, if desired.

I note from another post that you're in Toronto. I would think that all of the film production rental houses, and maybe a pro photo operation like Vistek, have these stands for rent.

If you aren't familiar with slider stands, that have many uses, but get their name as a support for camera sliders. This is a brief Matthews promo video:

[r.e.]

This Matthews video shows a cinematographer setting up a cinema camera and dolly on two of the company's slider stands:

[r.e.]

Yes you can try to use one tripod AND a light weight CF monopod to support the front.

The attached photo shows Gitzo's most robust monopod mounted on a very sturdy Really Right Stuff ground tripod. I use this setup for some purposes, such as to support a binaural microphone as in the photo. Even with the tripod legs extended (they aren't in the photo), I don't think that it's as solid a support as I would want for the situation that @QEB is talking about.

[Hugo Zhang]

The attached photo shows Gitzo's most robust monopod mounted on a very sturdy Really Right Stuff ground tripod. I use this setup for some purposes, such as to support a binaural microphone as in the photo. Even with the tripod legs extended (they aren't in the photo), I don't think that it's as solid a support as I would want for the situation that @QEB is talking about.

Attachment 220457

I was talking about my real life experience using a 16x20 camera with a 750mm lens with a Sinar auto shutter. The tripod is Ries A with its 250A head. With wide angle and normal lenses with little or no wind, no front tripod/monopod support is needed. But when the camera bellows is fully stretched, some support under the front standard is a must. A carbon fiber monopod is very light and can keep the front still. Yes it has been done.

[r.e.]

I was talking about my real life experience using a 16x20 camera with a 750mm lens with a Sinar auto shutter. The tripod is Ries A with its 250A head. With wide angle and normal lenses with little or no wind, no front tripod/monopod support is needed. But when the camera bellows is fully stretched, some support under the front standard is a must. A carbon fiber monopod is very light and can keep the front still. Yes it has been done.

Cool. I use a Fujinon 600mm C with an Arca-Swiss 8x10 monorail, as well as a Ries tripod with J 250 head, so I have a little real life experience myself

Based on Kevin's first post, he appears to want a very sturdy platform and I assume that he has his reasons. Not surprising, given that he's talking about 1,000mm of bellows. Maybe he's over-engineering, but I don't know anything about his project or the conditions under which he'll be shooting, so have no reason to believe that. One thing I do know is that rock solid is never a bad idea.

[Mark Darragh]

Further to Dan's suggestion

Robert Polidori using an Arca-Swiss 11x14 and two Magic Arms or similar in attached to the tripod.