Edelkrone SliderPlus, Motion Kit and Pro-Pack

Now available for Android users, Edelkrone’s SliderPlus app features Live Mode, new to the Edelkrone Motion Kit setups, which provides wireless control over focus, tilt, pan, and object or subject tracking. A “focus” button locks a target, and from there up to five more can be set to rack focus automatically. With settings for duration and speed, the target can be shifted manually through the graphic interface thumbwheel. Lens information and focal points can all be stored and repeated. 

Custom thumbnails and transition durations can be set and Edelkrone says that camera slides, even when done handheld, including pan and tilt, can be recorded and played back with settable, tapered stops and starts. With repeating “loop” button, there are also settings for in- and out-points. Communication is performed through a low-power-consumption Bluetooth connection. With a graphic thumbwheel interface, operations are accessible from a single screen. It also offers a manual sliding mode and motions can also be converted into time-lapse through the “Convert to Stop-motion” button. Time-lapse can be set for several days. The SliderPlus app and program executions will also run in the background so your phone can use other applications. 

First introduced in 2012 as the SliderPlus and SliderPlus Pro, the unique design of the slider, which dollies with the camera as it moves along a motion belt, produces twice as much travel as other sliders its same size, making it easier to shoot from tighter quarters. There are now two sizes available. The SliderPlus X is built to accommodate professional cameras with setups at up to 30lbs on the SliderPlus X Short, which offers 1.6 feet of travel, or 22 lbs when using the SliderPlus X Long, with 2.9 feet of travel.

The smaller and more affordable SliderPlus M will slide smaller camcorders and DSLR systems of 17 lbs for up to 1.3 feet on the Edelkrone SliderPlus M Short and 9 lbs for up to 2.6 feet when using the SliderPlus M Long. The heaviest model, the SliderPlus X Long, weighs 4.05 lbs. Those are the weight capacities for the sliders only, however. 

There are three components to the SliderPlus motion-control system. Powering the lens focusing module and the motorized, pivoting camera head, the $699 Slide Module sits atop the slider and runs along the belt. When not plugged into the wall via included 9V DC plug, it requires the (commonly used) 1800 mAh Canon LP-E6 battery-type, available from Edelkrone with charger and two batteries at $49. It also has metal stickers with magnetic holder to mount phones to the module for monitoring. 

With pivoting, motorized L-bracket support system, the Edelkrone SliderPlus Head Module, available piecemeal at $1,499, supplies step motors for 2-axis pan-and-tilt motions in 360º. It has a recommended camera load of 7 lbs or less, while the Pro L Bracket, available in the Pro Pack, bumps that up to 14 lbs. Finally, the $799 Focus Module with standard 0.8 mm gear pitch, encoders and core-less DC motor more or less acts as an automated follow focus unit. The Motion Kit can also be used without the focusing module for subject tracking from two angles without focus changes. Similarly, the entire camera head module can be pulled to use the system as automated slider, or time-lapse and stop-motion tracking solutions. 

At $799 extra for your choice of 14.8V Sony V-mount or Anton/Bauer Gold mount battery-types, the Pro Pack comes with the heavier-duty, articulating Pro L Bracket for support of up to 14 lbs systems. The Motion Kit Pro Pack comes with a riser bar which raises the head module to accommodate the needed range above the slider for heavier camera sizes. There is also cheese plate to mount extra accessories. Starting at a list price of $2,999, there are additional SliderPlus models available as well as custom $144 Incase DSLR Pro Backpack, $149 FlexTilt Head 2, and $99 QuickReleaseOne. 

At $899 for the SliderPlue X Long or $849 for the SliderPlus Short, SliderPlus X and SliderPlus M are optional purchases, with the SliderPlus M Long and Short add-ons at $599 and $549 respectively. The sliders each have industry-standard, retractable 3/8”-16 tripod screw that can be mounted on the bottom or top for tripods and support systems, as well as upside-down or low-to-the-ground shots. 

The SliderPlus models can also be used as standalone tabletop dolly using the flip-down, independently adjustable legs. With non-friction ball bearings and thumb-lock for the SliderPlus camera head unit, the SliderPlus slider and slider modules are CNC-machined from monobloc-aluminum for strength and double-coated for scratch resistance. 

Edelkrone makes a number of unique camera slider devices, like the brand new SurfaceOne 2-axis tabletop dolly, which also works with the Edelkrone SliderPlus app, and the diminutive $199 SliderOne, available with a Motion Module at an additional $399 for up to 20 lbs of support and 6” of travel. 

They also have the compact $249 FocusOne focus puller and the $289 3-wheel PocketSkater, providing smaller cameras of up to 5.5 lbs with tabletop dollies and close-up, wide-angle arcs. Thanks to two front wheels and Edelkrone’s Flextilt head with a relocatable center of gravity, it can also be used in a “compact mode” without wheels extended for smartphones and action cams.

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