Anton/Bauer Showcased ElipZ at IBC

Anton/Bauer,
a brand of The Vitec Group, gave professional handheld camera operators
attending IBC 2008 an up-close-and-personal look at its signature ElipZ family
of battery, light and grip products. Strategically designed to enhance
the runtime, performance and ergonomics of handheld DV and HDV cameras, the
ElipZ system is a set of tools delivering a variety of benefits, including
all-day camera battery power, versatile on-camera lighting and effective, flexible
camera support.
The ElipZ
system, which includes the ElipZ 10k battery, the ElightZ on-camera light and
the EgripZ camera support, was developed in response to customer demand for
more professional-quality solutions for the smaller, handheld cameras.
According
to Michael Accardi, president of Anton/Bauer, “We created the ElipZ system to
offer additional options to handheld camera pros. Anton/Bauer values its
customers and listens to their concerns and needs. With the ElipZ, we’ve
responded with a product that offers a higher level of quality and
performance.”
The ElipZ
10k battery delivers all-day operating times for a typical 10-watt handheld
camera, freeing the operator from being cabled to a beltpack or adapter. Its unique patented under-the-camera mounting design allows one face of the
lightweight ElipZ battery to quickly attach to the camera through a shoe-type
mount similar to quick-change tripod adapters. When coupling Anton/Bauer’s
5.4-ounce versatile ElightZ with the ElipZ 10k battery, there is no need for a
separate battery, pouch pack or cables to hinder camera handling.
The other
face of the battery has a universal 1/4-20 mounting thread, creating an easy
standard interface with monopods and tripods. The ElipZ 10k battery forms
a stable and strong camera platform, lowering the center-of-gravity of the
camera while handheld. It delivers as much as nine hours of runtime to
the most popular handheld camera models, including the Sony HVR-Z1U, Canon GL2
and Panasonic’s AJ-DVX-100 and AG-HVX-200.
Complementing
the new ELIPZ 10k battery is Anton/Bauer’s ElightZ, the first six-volt
on-camera light specifically designed to work with a handheld camera battery
without power converters, adapters or cumbersome belt packs. The ElightZ,
based on Anton/Bauer’s Gold Mount concept of sharing battery power with the
camera, provides this same ability. The ElightZ weighs only six ounces
and draws just 10-watts (both five and 15-watt bulbs are available) with
outputs that more than 75-foot candles at five feet. Its unique folding
design features a two-stage arm that can be adjusted to a wide array of
positions to adjust light angles and avoid lens shadowing.
The third
piece of the ElipZ system is Anton/Bauer’s EgripZ camera support, a comfortable,
flexible grip that offers virtually limitless operating positions to assist the
camera operator in stabilizing the camera without adding unnecessary weight or
constraint. New full-featured handheld cameras are sometimes handheld in
name only, weighing up to six pounds. EgripZ attaches easily to any camera,
weighing only 12 ounces, providing the freedom to make creative camera
movements without the impediment of added size, weight or tethering of the
camera to the operator’s body. A 1/4-20 mounting screw below enables the EgripZ
to be mounted to a tripod, monopod or other camera support for quick and easy
stationary support when needed.