The Sachtler FSB 6 between Penguins, Snow and Eternal Ice

The mainland is a white desert of snow, surrounded by a clashing cold ocean, and scarcely populated. Only the animals and few plants are accustomed to the difficult living conditions. This is the Antarctic. DP Alessandro Beltrame from Italy left his warm southern European homeland for two documentaries for The Antarctica Project, a cooperative project of the Italian government and the private broadcaster Mediaset. With scientists of the national research centers CNR, ENEA, and PNRA as well as the FSB 6/2 D tripod system by Sachtler, part of Vitec Videocom, a Vitec Group company, he spent a month at the South Pole with merciless temperatures dropping to -50 C (58 F), a real test for the crew and the equipment.

Even without Fur and Feathers: Light-Footed in Snow and Ice

The native penguins and seals are optimally adapted to the hostile living conditions with a thick layer of fat and dense fur or feathers and can move quickly over ice and under water. For human feet, this is more difficult, especially when it is also necessary to carry heavy equipment. "Transport over icy, snowy, and rocky terrain is very difficult; thats why the equipment has to be extremely robust and very lightweight at the same time. The less weight, the better, says Beltrame when explaining the challenges of filming at the South Pole. During shooting, temperatures between 40 to 50 C below zero (-40 to -58 F) were the norm. And this is what the fluid heads of the Sachtler FSB series were made for! Its metal casing makes the FSB 6 particularly resistant and robust. Even the damping mechanism with three horizontal and three vertical grades of drag +0 remains unfazed by the extreme temperatures. Together with the ENG 75/2 D tripod, the fluid head weighs in at only 5.3 kg (11.7 lbs), which makes it easy to transport through rough terrain. With a transport length of 84 cm (33.1 in), the compact tripod system can be comfortably carried on the shoulder.

Wether in the Cold, up high or down low: Always the right Setting

Beltrame is not only on the go for projects commissioned by public and private Italian broadcasters; he also works for the BBC and the National Geographic Channel. Every shoot is an individual challenge and this is exactly what the Italian cinematographer finds so appealing: "I like the adventure and extreme productions. Underwater, windy mountain tops and caves these are my specialties. Thanks to the sideload camera plate with the Snap & Go mechanism, camera configurations can be prepared according to climate and project requirements and then be set on the fluid head from the side with a turn of the hand even when youre wearing thick gloves like Beltrame at the South Pole. During the Antarctic shoot, the extreme temperatures required frequent battery changes. For this reason, it was especially important to Alessandro Beltrame that the counterbalance of the camera set-up worked quickly and simply. He found support in the especially long 120-mm sliding range of the camera plate and the 10-step counterbalance with Speedbalance technology for set-ups from 1.5 to 8 kg (3.3 to 17.6 lbs). With the step-shifting system, the settings can be reproduced exactly, and counterbalance is achieved instantly every time. This way, preparations for filming dont become a test of patience.

Bucking freezing Temperatures: Smooth movements at down to -40 C

With more than 20 years of professional experience all over the world, Alessandro Beltrame knows what counts when choosing his equipment for work, which takes him to the most remote and barren corners of the planet: "The quality of pan and tilt movements is a basic requirement. It doesnt matter how well you prepare, you never know how much leeway youll actually have. Thats exactly why you need the best possible camera support. Especially when, as in the Antarctic, contact to the outside world is only possible every 15 days when a military airplane comes from New Zealand. The worst case scenario is that you have to do without a tripod system for more than two weeks. For The Antarctica Project, he relied on the FSB 6 by Sachtler and, with this choice, on the authentic German art of engineering. The patented damping system of Sachtler heads with very finely designed step-shifting uses a special lubrication grease which guarantees smooth tilt and pan movements, even in extreme temperatures of -40 to +60 C (-40 to +140 F) without tedious warm-up panning and time-consuming experiments with the settings.

For more information, go to www.sachtler.com.

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