LOS ANGELES, NOVEMBER 10, 2014—When professional products and services provider AbelCine recentlyhosted its 25th anniversary celebration at its Burbank facility, Miller Camera Support, LLC, a leader in the production of innovating camera support solutions, was pleased to auction off one of its LP ’54 Classic Tripods to camera operator David Roy Tondeur, SOC.
The limited edition Miller LP ’54 Classic Tripod was hand-built from remaining components left after the last production run of the Light Professional (LP). Not available for purchase, only 40 of these rare, collector’s items were produced for worldwide distribution in honor of Miller’s 60th anniversary. Each LP ’54 is numbered and comes with its own certificate of authentication and wooden encasement, which is crafted from the finest Australian Blackwood.
“While I first started out in the industry years ago working as a clapper loader, I later worked for Dixons Technical in London, selling Miller tripods and fluid heads that looked very similar to the LP ’54 Classic Tripod, which is quite remarkable when you stop to think about it,” Tondeur says. “All of their equipment is beautifully made and exudes high quality workmanship. I am surprised and honored to have won the raffle and receive this marvelous, rare collector’s item.”
Born in Bude, South West England, Tondeur, after working at Rank Film Laboratories to achieve his British film union card, ACTT, soon became assistant to the celebrated Jack Cardiff, traveling across the globe with the acclaimed cinematographer to work with him on seven major motion pictures, the first of which being The Wicked Lady with Faye Dunaway, directed by Michael Winner. Now specializing as a camera operator on films and commercials, Tondeur is currently working with Tony Richmond, ASC, BSC.
AbelCine, Miller’s exclusive authorized product and service center on the west coast, has been supporting filmmakers for 25 years, meeting the needs of content creators working in digital cinema, high-speed, 3D, broadcast, new media and communications. The recent company celebration boasted close to 400 attendees and included presentations, panel discussions and demos from leading industry professionals looking to share their expertise working on set with an array of production technologies. Additionally, guests were invited to participate in a “Phantom photo booth,” in which they were slowly filmed in 4K slow motion, striking their best poses with a variety of fun props, with all captured footage immediately played back on a 4K monitor.
The latest industry equipment from a variety of top-tier manufacturers was also on display, including Miller’s Cineline 70 Fluid Head, purpose-built for film and digital production cinematographers. The Cineline 70 is ideal for use on feature films, documentaries and high-end television commercial productions that require heavy payload, frequent re-rigging and a diverse range of lenses and cameras. It is set to accommodate industry-leading camera mountings, including Arri, Sony, RED, and Canon, and also features an Arri-compatible side-loading camera platform, along with an easy-to-fit 1225 Mitchell Base Adaptor (optional) to suit traditional Mitchell Flat Base tripods.
AbelCine provides warranty and non-warranty repairs on all Miller fluid heads, tripods and accessories. All Miller products possess the right feel for their users and come with extensive three-year warranties, as Miller is confident in the longevity of its products’ reliability and resiliency.
About Miller Camera Support Equipment
Founded in 1954, Miller Camera Support Equipment designs, manufactures and delivers professional fluid heads and tripods to the film and television industry, providing support for the world’s leading camera operators. Celebrating sixty years in the industry, Miller is a longtime, global leader in the field of contemporary camera support and holds the first patent for fluid head design for film cameras, which it obtained in 1946. Today, Miller’s tripod and camera support systems are frequently used during electronic news gatherings (ENG), electronic field production (EFP), and digital video applications by the world’s leading networks, production houses, corporate, educational and government institutions in more than 65 countries. For more information, call +61 2 9439 6377 or visit www.millertripods.com.
