GEAR MINI TESTS
KONOVA P1 KMS-S3 SLIDER £259/$269
konovaphoto.com
More than a dozen years ago, when I first got into ‘serious’ filmmaking with my Canon EOS 5D Mark II, I thought all I needed was a fast lens with a slider and I’d be making cinematic masterpieces. Fast forward to now and there are lots of ways of making the camera move, but I still love the controlled movement a slider brings. Back then, I bought a rudimentary four-foot-long slider with a basic carriage that you had to push along. It was never that smooth. There’s been a revolution in the intervening years, becoming lighter and made from more exotic materials, with the ability to turn a tripod head as they move. And motion has gone from push-it-yourself to hand-cranked – and electronic motors controlled by an app. But prices have been high, unsurprisingly. Now there are some far more affordable versions, like this Konova P1 KMS-S3, which costs just £259/$269 for the 80cm/31.5in version – an ideal length. It comes in 60cm/23.6in, 100cm/39.4in and 120cm/47.2in models, too. It’s a lightweight, carbon-fibre slider with a quiet motor, controlled by a free smartphone app. The device takes a payload of 8kg/17.6lb when used horizontally, although this drops to 1kg/2.2lb if vertical. Mount it at a 45° angle and it’s good for 3kg/6.6lb. That’s impressive. Use manually – without the motor – and that maximum payload rises. Assembly is easy. It comes in a padded bag, but without the motor bolted on. Do this with the included
SMOOTH OPERATOR The Konova is lightweight and gives great results for not a lot of money
hex head bolts – there are plenty of spares with wrenches to fit. Then feed the toothed belt through the end of the slider, around the motor, and clamp it to the other end. It’s very simple and only takes minutes. After that, you can store it assembled. The slider has a bubble level to make sure everything is straight, and adjustable legs at either end if you’re setting up on a flat surface. It may also be mounted to light stands or a tripod, if you have one burly enough. The motor doesn’t come with a battery, but accepts standard NP-F fits. There is also a USB-C input for charging from a power bank or mains adapter. Just scan the QR code to download the Mars-2S app. Open this and you are prompted to Bluetooth it to the slider – job done! This worked flawlessly every time. To use the slider, set an ‘A’ start point and ‘B’ end point each time. App controls will move the head to wherever you want, then hit OK and you are good to go. With the ‘video’ section of the app, you can tell the slider how long the slide should last for, then press go. This is the only way of adjusting speed. Try to set it to a quicker time than the maximum speed would allow, and it defaults to the minimum. The slide motion is smooth, very quiet and far more well-controlled
SPECIFICATIONS Length: 80cm/31.5in
Sliding system: Belt-driven Load capacity: 8kg/17.6lb horizontal, 3kg/6.6lb diagonal, 1kg/2.2lb vertical Accessory and tripod mounts: 1/4in-20 and 3/8in-16 female Rail: Carbon fibre Carriage: Aluminium Motor speed: Up to 100cm/sec or 39in/sec
Battery fit: Sony NP-F Weight: 1.48kg/3.26lb Dimensions (wxl): 12.5x75.5cm/4.9x29.7in
than you could do manually. Hit pause any time you like. At the start and end of the slide, the speed ramps up and down, although this can be prevented. Set it to loop by simply repeating the slide over and over. Even though it doesn’t have a motorised head – or any head at all, you have to fit your own – there is a central rail that adjusts to give parallax shots as you slide, ensuring the camera is pointing at a specific subject. This takes time to get right, but does work. The app allows for live motion, multi-shot and time-lapse; regular slides may be controlled manually. The Konova comes with a shutter release cable, so you can hit record via the app. But ours came with the wrong one! Despite that minor gripe, this is a highly featured slider that works very well, for a price we could have only dreamed of just a few years ago. PRO MOVIEMAKER RATING: 9/10 Great performance and incredible value for money Pros: Inexpensive and easy to use Cons: Tricky to adjust speed
SLIDE AWAY The motor unit bolts onto the carriage and uses an NP-F battery. It’s controlled by a simple app (bottom left)
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PRO MOVIEMAKER
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