ProAm USA Orion Jr DVC50 Compact DSLR Video Camera Jib Crane Tilt, 4 ft

The crane seems to very steady and secure of course does take some getting use to the only bad points are that I was not very happy with the build quality. I will leave a video example soon for what I have been able to come with.

The ProAm DVC50 Jib seemed perfect for myself, an amateur filmmaker. I have been making films for the past five years and have been resorting to a fig rig for all of my stable shots. However, I just wasn’t getting the smooth, cinematic feel that I wanted. After searching the web for cheep jibs and not finding anything rated above three stars, I finally stumbled upon this Jib. I ordered the ProAm DVC50 two days ago, and with amazon prime shipping, I received it today. I immediately took it out of the bag and set it up with the stand which I had bought with it. The jib itself requires about 7.5 pounds of counterweight to balance out without a camera, however, when I added my camera, the counterbalance weight increased to ten pounds. The first thing I noticed when trying out the jib was it’s amazingly smooth flow. With the proper balance, the jib performed without a hitch right out of the box. The rig was quiet, efficient, and relatively light yet sturdy. The only flaw that I could detect was that the bolt used for securing the counter weights (dumbbell weights) was a little small. However, the tightening bolt that came with the rig was able to tighten enough so as to secure the weights in place without rattling. After I set the rig up, I went outside and took some practice video and was delighted by the ease of use and performance of the jib. The footage, even for a first time jib user was phenomenal, I could not have asked for better.
I WOULD RECOMMEND BUYING THIS JIB FROM AMAZON, IT IS CHEEPER AND THE SHIPPING IS ALOT FASTER!!!

I do a lot of youtube videos in my small studio. Just look up Thomas Grillo and theremin to check out some of my musical works. I recently started working with jib cranes, and even built a diy jib which I even shot some test footage with. However, it was clear that I needed to upgrade to properly manufactured, and tested jib cranes, and have recently added not one, but two cranes to my studio. Both are a ProAm DVC250, and a DVC50.

I hope to have a video featuring these in a couple of weeks as of this review.

That said, I found this little DVC50 to be much more cool than I thought it would be. The DVC250 is 8 feet long without it’s 4 foot extender, but still too big to safely use in my main studio, but the DVC50 fits perfectly in the studio, or small room, and lets me swing it all over the room without hitting anything. It’s boom is only 4 feet from counterbalance, to camera end.

I highly recommend that you use a good fluid tripod pan / tilt head on the camera end. I added a counterbalance under my old camera pan / tilt head to keep the camera from flopping over when I’m using the pan head in tilt mode. I use the little jib in total manual fashion, as it’s so short that you really don’t need to put motorized pan / tilt devices on it.

I also highly recommend that you don’t risk your gear with a conventional tripod as jib cranes can get heavier than most tripods’ rated loading. I just simply ordered the jib crane stand which is rated for up to 100 pounds, and is much more affordable than a tripod rated at 30 pounds I saw. Both the crane and stand were ordered through BC Media, and since they knew I had ordered the stand at the same time as the jib, they went ahead and included the stand head mount, so there was no fuss in setting up the jib.

I also recommend getting the jib monitor, because even though you’re right there, near the camera end, you’ll still have situations where the jib’s structure will block your view of the camera’s viewfinder. That’s when it helps to have a monitor on the jib where you’ve always got a good view of what the camera seas. It also wouldn’t hurt to have a lanc on the handl of your pan head, or on the jib.

You might want to contact the manufacturer, and ask about having them put a tilt handle on your jib like what’s on the bigger cranes. I’ve already contacted them, and they advised that it can be done, but that I’d have to send my crane to them to be modified.
I’m sure It could be done by just ordering the tilt handle, and adding it your self some how. Having the tilt handle would allow you to do some cool dutch angle effects, as well as tilting. However, if you find the right pan and tilt head, you could do the dutch angle thing that way, but it would be a bit trickier.

Oh, just one more thing. The jib comes with three sets of holes drilled into the boom and stabilizer bar between the stand and the camera end, which are there to allow the operator to adjust the position of the boom. This lets you adjust for balance, and or set the jib for customizable operations.

UPDATE: After visiting ProAm’s site, I noticed they’ve released the DVC60, which features a centered camera mount. I contacted them about buying just the camera mount which is made for the DVC60 so I could replace the side-slung mount. They not only offered to sell me the mount,but also told me about the extension plate that extends well out ahead of the mount. I ordered two sets for both my jibs. I just finished doing the retrofit, and the jibs now work a lot better. 🙂