XTENDER Camera Arm & Accessory Testimonials

“Before finding the Xtender I spent a lof of money on arms that allowed my gear to fall and ultimately cost me a ton of money. With the Xtender that doesn’t happen. It saves your gear and saves you money and it just works. I have no idea how I survived without it. It gives you the confidence to do any shot and helps you accomplish anything. The Xtender is the best made arm and accessory for your camera around, point blank! Get an Xtender or break a ton of gear. You will love the Xtender… I do!”
 
Michael Artsis
ArtsIsMedia

“I use the Friction Mount on set to provide a flexible way to support a small LCD monitor for client viewing. The bracket is easily adjustable so the monitor is eye level and at the perfect angle while mounted to a c-stand.”

 
Tom Guilmette
Director of Photography

In June of 2010 I was approached to be Director of Photography for a feature length documentary on Black Friday shoppers and traditions. It is called “Black Friday” and due out 2011. We had 7 small teams made of a camera operators and an audio grip following subjects through their all-night shopping adventures in around the Chattanooga, TN area.

I had to solve the problem of how to effectively light our subjects since 80% of our filming was done at night. I also didn’t want to settle for overused camera-mounted lighting. I wanted to make sure our interview subjects were artistically lit, setting our footage aside from others. Since our chase teams were so small, we couldn’t spare manpower for separate lighting grips. We needed a way to mount our LED lighting panels to our HVXs and HPX170s without sacrificing much weight or flexibility. I first thought about Israeli arms, but they need two hands to loosen, place, and tighten. That would add more complication to an already complicated night.

The Xtender Arm eliminated the need for a 3rd grip. We fitted our lightweight LED panels using the Xtender arm and were fully impressed with its dexterity. It has superb vertical and lateral adjustment which made switching between side-lit interviews and chases through chaotic and crowded shopping centers a breeze. As a bonus, compared to other articulating arms the Xtender was the lightest we could find. The camera operators loved that they were able to adjust lighting while filming without sacrificing their shots.

 
Bryan Fowler
Director of Photography / Steadicam Op
Chattanooga, TN

“THE” piece of gear you should “never” be without! I’m a former photojournalist turned news director turned television/film director and have to say that Shawn’s Xtender is amazing! I just Directed a major show for MTV and told my DP about Shawn’s Xtender. I practically demanded that we buy them for the run of the show. They arrive and within minutes all the operators were raving about them.

There’s a couple of great things about the arm that I love as a director and former photojournalist… options! Options galore! Not just for lighting but also for monitors when using a Red Cam or Cinealta/Varicam’s. Love that you can finally get rid of that “wedding light” mentality to run and gun as well as set up shooting.

The only light arm that has been available has been the Israeli Arm. Unfortunately, it’s not anywhere near as user friendly as the Xtender Arm. I’ve directed Breaking Bonaduce (1&2;), The Two Corey’s, I want to work for Diddy, Kitchen Nightmares (currently), Jesse’s Story (Feature Documentary) and wish I would have had the Xtender on every one of these shoots!!! All the best and have fun!

Mark Jacobs
President of Zzyzx Films, Inc.

“The D-Pro XTENDER® is the perfect accessory for ENG cameras. It attaches quickly and easily allowing for improved use of micro fills, frezzis and sun guns. When you need that close up but don’t want extreme lighting the XTENDER® allows for the photographer to adjust their light for different angles and distance. A great tool for the ENG on the run who wants to be able to control their lighting.”

 
Ricky Bergeron
Senior Medical Television Producer
Biomedical Communications
The University of Arizona

“The XTENDER® is an incredible edition to any photographers arsenal. This device gives me the ability to obtain different lighting angles fast with very little effort.”

 
Erik Naso
Creative Services Photographer
KNSD-TV

“What I really like about this device, is the capability of having offset lighting in situations where a light kit is not feasible. The light bar gives you the ability to light a quick interview without giving the interviewee the “deer in the headlights” look.”

 
Matthew Cyr
Photographer/Editor/Truck Op.
News 12 Connecticut