2004Operating forum
Regular versus goofy operating stance choice and historical development in Steadicam operation
22 years old. Gear and prices may have changed since.
What the thread found
- The original Steadicam design in the 1970s used single-handed operation with the dominant hand on the grip, supporting only one contact point with the rig while the other hand provided balance.
- Two-handed operation technique developed around 1980 as a refinement for smoother, more controlled movements rather than the faster stunt-focused original approach.
- In two-handed operation, it is advantageous to place the weaker hand on the gimbal for finer touch control and the stronger hand on the support arm for power and stability.
- When shooting video in goofy stance, the operator can more easily monitor the viewfinder and control panel readings like iris, timecode, audio levels, and battery status.
- Some operators develop ambidextrous skills or switch operating sides depending on the physical constraints of specific shooting scenarios, such as hard-mounted rigs on moving platforms.
- The choice between regular and goofy operation can be influenced by bodily dominance patterns, similar to how baseball players use their glove hand opposite their throwing hand.
Depends on
- The original single-handed operation context differs from modern two-handed techniques, making historical comparisons not directly applicable to current practice.
- Individual ergonomic factors like ambidexterity, dyslexia, or specific rig designs may override general handed-dominance rules.
- Borrowed equipment with pre-configured setups may limit operator choice due to the difficulty of re-adjusting rigs to different operating styles.