How Do You Decide When To Use The Wheels vs a Fluid Head?
For most situations I prefer the wheels, I know that when something is moving in my hands, the frame is changing. It is a tendency for me to over operate when on a fluid head. Furthermore, when scanning the frame for "bad things" I find my hands will wrongly drift to where I am looking and screw up headroom or even pan into the "bad things" to be avoided. Of course when on a slider, the fluid head is the most common choice.
For a less experienced operator, I highly recommend the geared head when faced with a novice dolly grip. Fast and abrupt starts and stops, and early or late eye socket shattering booms can be tamed. Inertia is a killer for the fluid head, and cranking all the fluid is not enough with a zoom and a sweaty palmed green dolly operator. Using the tilt break is a must and requires some practice to help reduce the effects.
On the wheels, being able to immediately access the "Oh $#!t" pan is a needed skill. When the object or human either moves too quickly or suddenly and you have chosen gear 1, simply throwing the pan wheel in the direction desired and grasping the tilt wheel also forcefully in the desired direction will allow the pan wheel to spin freely. As the words of spite and vinegar silently escape you, you must then apply even pressure with the fatty part of the lower thumb to gracefully end the "Oh $#!t" pan without catching a pinky on the knob... yes, practice this.
If an additional camera needs to saddle up close on the pan side of me, I will lose the wheels and go to a fluid head to allow panning as the wheel will hit any number of cables, transmitters, MDR's, matte boxes, sliders, etc.. Remember that the camera moves when panning and tilting a geared head. You cannot pull up a chair, stare at a stationary monitor and operate the wheels like on a remote head. You may have to bend over, add the necessary sideboards, front boards, off sets, etc.. to get your body in position (yes it is a physical profession). A combination of monitor use and eyepiece use will usually do the trick and even two monitors for those 180 degree tracking boom ups... "Can I get the fluid head", No!, do yourself a favor and get comfortable in every situation with the wheels. There is just something about the precision, solidity, art, history, and coolness of a geared on a dolly under a camera in the hands of an operator. Embrace the challenge, enjoy the rewards, practice when possible and in practicing, be uncomfortable. Walk around 360 with your eye in the eyepiece, stay 45 degrees to both pan and tilt so that you can spin your wrists around the wheels. Start your pans with your body for smoothness then roll in your fingers. You will find that the choice is clear as you progress through your career, the geared head is the best of operating when you are at your best.
I’ve been finding myself using the fluid head more for a variety of reasons. A big part of it is the landscape of TV where I mostly work. Moving fast, few rehearsals, adjusting and polishing the shot on the fly. More dynamic high and low angles. Unpredictable shot changes from directors and actors. All these factors force me to be more spontaneous and versatile. Allowing one hand to be free to gesture to the dolly grip or control a slider or zoom gun or lens barrel. Ever more tricky shots that require extreme, awkward angles and dolly maneuvering. I find the fluid head is more suitable for this kind of filming. Most shots I would do on a gear head I can just as easily do on a fluid with a few exceptions. Big, fast dolly push ins with sudden stops are much better on a gear head. Also long lens tracking shots tend to be smoother. All that being said, I’ve been utilizing more remote heads for moderate dolly and dance floor work the last few years. Ronins, Mosys and Arri SRH heads for example are great on a dolly, especially for tricky compound shots. Of course those are all controlled by a set of wheels. So it’s a skill set that is still very much essential. Just always evolving.
Deciding when to use the wheels versus a fluid head is a personal decision. It can be dictated by the shot, but it can also be based on how comfortable and confident you are with one or the other. Often a particular shot will tell you which one to use. When I was getting started, I learned on the wheels and I am most comfortable on the wheels with my eye on the eyepiece. I often begin by visualizing the shot and imagining my hands on the wheels and where my body needs to be to keep my hands on the wheels. But ultimately, whenever possible, it should be your choice to use what you feel will give you the best opportunity to get the shot.
Simply put, wheels make you look cool. You always wnat to look cool, so learn how to use them and use them as much as possible. Fat push ins, long lens, precision, use the wheels. Standard stuff, use the wheels. Crazy action with whip pans, on a slider, use the fluid head, but when you do, try and wear a cool hat or a jaunty shirt so you still seem cool.
I work typically as a B camera operator, so there isn’t always a second gear head on the truck due to budget constraints. As such, I have become used to using a fluid head for most of what I do. When a gear head is essential for me, is doing fast dolly moves, with aggressive starts and stops. Doing these types of moves with a fluid head can lead to bobbles at either end of the move on the tilt axis, as the dolly gets up to speed, and then again as it comes to a quick stop, unless you lock the tilt on the head and dial up the head’s tension.
If I have access to a gear head for the run of a show, it will be my primary head unless there is a shot that requires a fluid head. I’ll choose a fluid head for a shot if there is a whip pan that is too fast for the wheels, or something similar. I also prefer a fluid head with a lot of tension over a gear head for really long lens shots with a 3-1 (or similar).
My choice of which head to use is a feeling thing and not really definable – it’s always based on what I think will make my life easier after watching the blocking, and learning my assignment for the shot.
