We're currently on location shooting, and we're having a problem with wobbling whenever we're running the shaking mechanism in the adapter, and it's ruining our footage.

The problem comes and goes, but more often than not, it's present. We've made sure everything on the camera, the adapter, and lens is tight, but it hasn't fixed the issue.

It was suggested on the HV20 forum that we use string/rubber bands to more securely affix the lens adapter to the rail support system, but testing to see if this would solve the problem (we tried minimizing the resonance with our hands), produced no results.

We're hoping someone here on the forum can suggest a remedy for this that we haven't yet considered.

Thanks.

Post edited by: ForkingPaths, at: 2008/05/23 13:24

I have the same issue. When I first started using the Letus a few weeks ago all was good. The AA batteries I was using were old and after a couple outings they went dead. When I put new batteries in the vibration increased significantly and the wobble was apparent.

In TV mode on my HV20 I get a wobble effect at shutter speeds of 48, which sucks if shutting in 24P, and anything above 60. When set to 60, 24 or 12 when in 24P it goes away.

I am thinking of rigging a tiny manual Rheostat I have for an old CPU fan between one of the batteries and the terminal in the Letus battery compartment to see if I can vary the vibration and thus eliminate the wobble at certain shutter speeds.

Unfortunately I am away from home until Late Monday to test this theory out.

Thoughts anyone?

It would be nice to see some examples of your wobbly footage. Sorry I can't be of any help.

edit:

Just a thought: You guys do have the image stabilizer on the camera turned off right? ...that could produce some strange image issues otherwise.

Post edited by: Rouqe, at: 2008/05/24 08:42

I've tried it both On and Off. Thats not it.

Well I have a work around for the "wobble" issue when vibrate is on but it isn't pretty and if your not careful in your choice it may get a bit smelly.

I strapped a 2.5lb ankle weight, brand new and never used, around the body of the Letus Adapter and no more wobble. The lead weights absorb the vibrations and and the wobble goes away.

Hope this helps.

Hi,

I have also had the wobble problem occuring recently, and its quite evident, especially at shutter speeds other than 1/60s. Attaching example video clip.

Are there still no better solutions than an ankle strap with weights?

Hi Sonic,

Where is that video footage that you have attached to your last post? I'd like to see it. Or do you have a link to it so I can see it somewhere on a website?

I have got the same problem with wobbling footage. Most of the time it's there and I don't know what to do with it. Double checked that image stabilizer is OFF. I use Canon HV30. I am trying to use a piece of old bicycle tire tube (thin rubber that is flexible) and place a small piece of it between the Letus rod support bracket and the main body of Letus 35mini adapter. I am also making sure that all the screws are tight. After doing all of this I will take the rig outside and try to shoot some sample footage. We'll see if the rubber between the support bracket and adapter will help.

Last time I was doing some shooting in downtown (before rubber tube material was installed) I have noticed that the wobble was occurring most of the time when the camcorder was parallel to the ground or pointing upwards, but surprisingly the wobble was significantly diminished when the camera was pointing down. I don't know how to read this sign but something definitely is not right when it comes to this wobble problem.

I have checked numerous samples of Letus 35mini in action (www.vimeo.com) and I could not find even one example of the footage that would wobble. Is there any chance that somebody from Letus manufacturing team would take notice of this problem and respond to our concerns? I think that would be a very proper cultivation of a good relationship with their clients who by purchasing the Letus 35mini belived in their product. Well, Letus Direct, we need your help. You have given us 1 year warranty for this product. If there is a product design problem then maybe there is a way to fix it. Looking forward to your response.

Paul

OK Boys, got an answer to this wobble problem. Hopefully it work out for you. It does for me.

I have contacted the tech support at Adapter Place and they have given me few suggestions which turned out to eliminate the wobble problem with my Letus 35mini and my Canon HV30.

1. Don't set up the shutter speed faster then 1/60. If you can shoot at 1/48 that's the best but my HV30 doesn't have the setup for this (1/48) shutter speed so I use 1/60 and it works.

2. Your SLR lens attached to the front of the adapter should never exceed the aperture reading pass f:5.6. You can go wider (f:4.0, f:1.2, etc.) but never narrower (f:8.0, f:11.0, etc).

3. Make sure your image stabilizer in you camera is turned OFF.

4. The focus should be set to Manual (not Auto Focus).

5. Don't point the camera at the very bright light source (Sun, etc.).

Try it and see if this will work for you. So far I have done a test inside of my house with well illuminated living room. The wobble is gone. Tomorrow I will go outside and do some shooting test with the above mentioned ideas in mind. Wish me luck!

And good luck to all of you.

After my last post I have read all the messages here and realized that the wobble problem might indeed still exist at 1/48 and slower, so forgive me if I was too optimistic with my discoveries. Apparently I have missed something. Anyway, I'll try to shoot some footage outside tomorrow and we will see what kind of results that will bring.

Post edited by: pbajon, at: 2008/07/21 21:45

Hi all. I have submitted a ticket about this issue. Hopefully we'll get some answers...

Hello. Here is a link to a quite recent forum post on the same issue I have had with the mini35 since beginning:

http://www.letusdirect.com/letus35-mini/1970-reon-location-shoot-wobble-problem.html#1970

Often it has been 'concluded' that the wobble occurs when shooting with a too high shutter, but I find it a major problem when shooting at slower speeds too. The only way I can literally cushion the wobble is by gripping the pan handle on my miller ds20. This leads to problems when shooting locked off shots as holding the pan handle leads to slight movement of the frame, hence replacing the wobble with an operator caused 'wobble'.

Could the problem be the vibrating motor on the mini35 is too strong for the weight/size of the mini35 casing, hence regardless of the support rails/decent tripod, it'll still wobble the image?

Or is it that the support rails are not optimized for the mini35, and instead for the Extreme (larger adapters)?

Be great to get some manufacturer input on this issue.
Regards, Charles.

Hi guys,

The mystery is solved (at least for me). This afternoon I went outside and was doing shooting test. Shutter speed 1/60, aperture f:5.6, image stabilizer OFF. The wobble was gone. Everything was steady and sideways movement on the LCD of HV30 did not existed. I especially was concentrating on shooting some trees for in the past this kind of shooting was showing the evident wobble characteristics. No wobble this time.

As an experiment I have decided to change the shutter speed to 1/100 (same f:5.6 aperture) and there it was - the wobble on the LCD of HV30. At that time I knew that I cannot cross the border of 1/60. After realizing that I have kept the aperture at f:5.6 and lowered the shutter speed to 1/30. The result = no wobble. I even went further in that direction and tried 1/15 and then 1/8 shutter speed. No wobble. Got back to 1/60 and tried to change the aperture of my SLR lens (Canon FD 50mm f:1.8) to f:8.0 and then f:11. No wobble. So I have realized that the wobble phenomena occurs mainly when the shutter speed goes beyond 1/60. If the shutter speed was faster then that, no matter what have done with aperture, the wobble was present.

Hope this helps

Well I have tried everything to solve this issue. The only thing that solves it for me is my trusty 2.5lb lead ankle weight. I think with a larger camera you have enough weight to compensate for the vibrating adapter. The HV20/30 is so small and light that it is affected by the vibrations. The lead weight absorbs the vibration and gives me a stable image..

OK guys, I understand that some of you might still have a wobble problem. To tell you the truth I simply don't know what's going on. In my case the wobble is gone as long as I do not go above 1/100 shutter speed. Anyway, I am posting here the link to my first HD video footage I have done with Letus 35mini and my Canon HV30 ( http://www.vimeo.com/1417084 ). I have filmed this with 1/60 shutter speed and f:5.6 aperture on my Canon FD 50mm f:1.8 SLR lens. Please let me know if you see any wobble in this footage. Maybe I am blind, but I can't see any of the wobble there.

Thanks for your help,

Paul