Flycam Vista-I User manual

Flycam Vista-I Stabilizing Arm & Vest
(VSTA-I-AV )
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Instruction Manual

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 2
Subject Page
Foreword 3
Introducon 4
Assembling 7-13
Warranty 14
At Flycam, our goal is to ensure 100% Customer Sasfacon in all that we do.
We back our sales with a 1 year warranty from the date of purchase and work hard
to resolve any problems in the unlikely event one should arise.
With our commitment to connuous improvement and your Feedback, building on
our reputaon of providing aordable, quality products is
PRIORITY #1.
Table of Contents

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 3
Dear Client,
On behalf of all the people that work so hard to provide you with the most
up-to-date, exible and cost-ecient producon gear, we would like to welcome
you into the Flycam family.
By purchasing your Vista-I Stabilizing Arm & Vest, you have just joined a host of
designers, engineers, machinists, assembly, customer service and oce sta that
take great pride in all that they do. Our mantra of connuous improvement has
been the guiding principle of how we conduct our business since day one.
Once you have the opportunity to experience your new Flycam Vista-I Stabilizing
Arm & Vest, we hope you will agree that we cra quality products at a compeve
price. Products designed to meet and exceed the standards of today’s real
producon world.
Standards set by our valued clients and standards we strive to maintain.
With Best Wishes,
Flycam Team
Welcome To Proaim!

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 4
INTRODUCTION
Flycam unveils its new powerful combinaon of Vista-I Stabilizing Arm & Vest
support to achieve superne smooth moves in acon. The dynamic design of
seconal Vista Arm allows even beginners to learn its operaon with ease. The
Flycam Vista-I Arm & Vest makes extended shoong nearly
eortless, providing complete comfort and funconality for extended
producons and long connuous shots. The arm has a manually adjustable tension
steel spring which maintains the posion of the stabilizaon system depending on
the combined weight of camera and handheld stabilizer.
YOUR NEW VISTA-I STABILIZATION SYSTEM COMES IN TWO STORAGE CONTAINERS
 Flycam Vista Arm
 FLYCAM C5
 VISTA DV Vest
What’s In The Box
Please inspect the contents of your shipped package to ensure you have received
all that is pictured and listed below You will receive this package in 7 boxes. .

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 5
COMPONENT FEATURES
VISTA DV VEST
Our Vista DV Vest is comfort designed to t and easily distribute the weight of the FLYCAM
Vista, camera and accessories across the shoulders, back and hips of the operator. With its six
point suspension system, two snap locks on the shoulder pads, two 26 inch waist belts and an-
other two at the center of the vest all Velcro secured, this lightweight and comfortable Support
Vest can be custom adjusted to t a wide range of body types. For safety, quick release snap
locks and buckles allow the vest to be removed quickly.
FLYCAM VISTA ARM
Our innovave lightweight single arm design has a manually adjustable steel tension spring
that maintains stabilizer posion in relaonship to the total load carried. Easy to operate,
exceponally smooth and quiet, it can carry cameras weighing up to 12 pounds. The single
arculang arm can be operated from either the right or le side.
Spring tension allows the operator to set the desired amount of elascity in the spring for
personal preference High, Medium or Low. The knob control located in the mid secon of the
arm is used to ‘dial in’ tension adjustments as required.

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 6
FLYCAM C5
The HAND HELD FLYCAM C5 with new design of weight disc and gim-
bal. The C5 FLYCAM is a lightweight stabilizer. It can be used without
any body support system as well. The Quick release plate of the FLYC-
AM C5 is High quality quick release universal system for camera.
THE HEAD
Side To Side
Adjustment
Knob
Fore And Aer
Adjustment Knob
Camera Mounng Plate
locking Knob
Side To Side
Adjustment
Knob
THE POST
The FLYCAM C5 has a built in telescopic post used to help balance
the camera and accessories. Loosen the control knob to adjust the
height as you aempt to balance and then re-ghten for safety. You
may have to do this a few mes to ‘get it right.’
THE GIMBAL CONTROL UNIT
Our Gimbal control unit has been completely re-designed with high
load bearings. The body, yoke and handle are precision engineered
to perfectly match for total control.

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 7
CENTERING THE GIMBAL CONTROL UNIT
 Place the control unit on the docking stud (as you would for normal balancing), give
yourself a four second drop me (2 or more seconds), and aim the camera along a line
through the two bearings in the yoke.
 Balance side to side and fore-a as precisely as you can to get the post vercal. We
recommend you use a bubble level on the stage. Tweak the fore-a balance as precisely as
you can, then do not touch the stage adjustments for the rest of the procedure.
 If the sled does not hang perfectly level, move the whole sled “uphill” with the yoke
bearings.
 Adjust the yoke bearings equally i.e. loosen one and ghten the other the same amount
and do it in small increments.
 If it gets worse, you chose the wrong one to loosen! If is gets beer, keep going unl it is
perfect. Do not rebalance fore and a at this stage.
THE BASE PLATFORM
The base plaorm moves fore and a as well as side-to-side al-
lowing you to quickly adjust the horizontal balance of your cam-
era and accessories. Vercal adjustment starts with adding coun-
ter weights as needed. When proper balance has been achieved,
your camera and accessories almost oat providing uid like
movement and control.
ATTACHING THE CAMERA
 Aach the FLYCAM Head to the central post.
 Secure using the provided L’ key.
 Insert the C5 post into the base plaorm and ghten with
the ‘L’ key.

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 8
 Remove the top plate from the base plate by loosening the
blue knob, aach your camera to the plate and ghten it.
 Insert the camera plate into the base plate.
 At the base of your FLYCAM where the base plaorm con-
nects is a lever control that allows you to lengthen or short-
en the stalk to help achieve proper balance. Loosen to ad-
just the stalk up and down and make sure to re-ghten to
secure.
BALANCING OF FLYCAM C5 HEAD

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 9
BALANCING YOUR FLYCAM C5 STABILIZER
When your FLYCAM C5 is assembled and properly set up, test the horizontal balance of the
system. The objecve in obtaining correct horizontal balance is to allow the Camera to re-
main level during operaon. In other words, if the FLYCAM C5 is horizontally balanced cor-
rectly, then the Camera will remain leveled, and the Central Post will remain vercal unless
you intenonally re-posion the FLYCAM C5 for an o axis shot. When proper horizontal bal-
anced is achieved, it will always return to a level pan, lt, or roll pressure on the Central Post.
When tesng for correct horizontal balance pick up your FLYCAM from a at and level sur-
face (e.g. table) and let the FLYCAM hang freely as you hold it. If the FLYCAM is balanced cor-
rectly on its horizontal axis, it will be leveled up right, with the Central Post in a perfect ver-
cal posion.
Aer mounng the camera onto the FLYCAM C5, add the balancing weights to match the
weight of the camera as shown above.
Before beginning the balancing process check the following:
 Camera is securely aached to head plate.
 Lens cap has been removed and secured.
 Bracket mounts have been ghtened properly.
 Weights are added successfully.
 All the screws are ghtened securely.
 Monitor mount and Baery mount are aached properly.
 All the wires are secured properly.
 The Gimbaled Control Unit should beneath the top of its post.
 Posion the monitor for preferred ‘eye line’ while factoring
overall system balance
Warning If you do not have enough weight on the Base Plaorm the enre FLYCAM will ip upside
down. Be prepared to catch it if this happens. You will need to add more weight to the base plate
and retest unl the FLYCAM remains right side up. The best way of adjusng the horizontal bal-
ance is to move the center of gravity of the Camera.
This can be accomplished by re-bolng the Camera to a dierent area of the Head Plate and Mid
Plate, either front to back or side to side with the Camera unit.

FLYCAM VISTA– I STABILIZATION SYSTEM 10
BALANCING THE VERTICAL AXIS
The sled should be ed up to the docking adapter of your stand or similar so that you can start
the fore & a balancing adjustments by centering the camcorder over the central post. To do
this,
 Look at the FLYCAM C5 from the side. If the camcorder lens is pped up or down, move
the camcorder forward or backwards unl the center of balance is situated over the central
post.
 Then, look at the FLYCAM C5 from the front. If the post is not vercal, adjust the boom
plate unl the center post is vercal.
 You can also adjust the weight cups closer to & further away from the sled as per the re-
quirement ll the post is straight up and down.
 The stability of the FLYCAM C5 depends on it being slightly boom heavy. If it is top heavy,
it will lt more. If boom heavy, it will be sluggish and hard to aim
Slightly boom heavy, it will be both stable and easier to control.
CHECK THE VERTICAL BALANCE BY USING THIS DROP TIME TEST:
A DROP TIME OF 2 - 2.5 SECONDS IS PREFERRED.
Note: Recheck the balance by looking at the sled. If necessary, use the side screws and the
boom plate screws to make required adjustments.
CUSTOM FITTING YOUR DV VEST
 Having put your vest on, insert the hooks of the 26’’ long
straps into the appropriate aluminum buckle.
 Tighten both straps with Velcro for a comfortable t and lock
both with the aluminum buckles.
 Make sure that everything is ght and posion yourself behind the stand.
 Grasp the center post near the base and move the center post from vercal to horizontal.
 Hold it there. Be sure that it will not hit the stand when you drop the center post and put
your free hand to catch the center post when it drops.
 Count how many seconds it will take to fall to vercal. Try using a stopwatch.
 If the drop me is less than 2 seconds, it is too boom heavy. You need to move the
boom mass closer to the post.
 If the drop me is more than two seconds, it is top heavy.