2-Axis Brushless Gimbal on Steadicam

[Shawn Sutherland]

You really need to see this:

2-Axis Brushless Gimbal + Sled-Type Camera Stabilizer = ? - YouTube

Flycam C5 ? TAROT Brushless Gimbal???????1??? - YouTube

Although it's amateur footage, it's still good enough to make the case for a brushless gimbal on a Steadycam. Just look how much it cleans up his bad work.

So here's what I'd like someone to do: Put a brushless gimbal on a Steadycam-like rig, shoot some footage, and post it on Youtube. You're gonna love what you see, and so will everybody else.

Then get ready to hire yourself out because once people get wind of what you can do, your phone won't stop ringing.

Let me know when the link is up. I can't wait to see it.

[Noa Put]

The first video is great for people that don't know how to stabilise a steadicam :) But I would buy one if it became available at a decent cost.
What's great about that one is that you have full tilt control during flight with a touch of a button and the camera stays level at all times, wonder if this guy will commercialize it.

[Nigel Barker]

The combination of a 2-axis brushless gimbal with a hand held stabiliser looks like it could be a really good low cost option. The Glidecam (or similar) already does a halfway decent job even in unskilled hands so adding the powered device could add that extra level of stabilisation to give a really professional effect & is vastly cheaper than a more complex 5-axis device.

The Tarot Gopro3 Brushless Gimbal on the Flycam in the second clip is only $199 & designed for flying a GoPro3 on a model helicopter Tarot T-2D Brushless Gimbal for GoPro HERO 3 - HeliPal

[Shawn Sutherland]

Some might be tempted to say that a Steadycam/Brushless Gimbal combination is overkill. As a Steadycam Operator I know first hand that long-lens shots are particularly difficult to do with Steadycams so when it comes to getting the shot, I don't care much for pride. I'll take all the help I can get and personally, I'd love to see what a Brushless Gimbal would do for long lens shots.

[Nigel Barker]

Originally Posted by Shawn Sutherland

Some might be tempted to say that a Steadycam/Brushless Gimbal combination is overkill. As a Steadycam Operator I know first hand that long-lens shots are particularly difficult to do with Steadycams so when it comes to getting the shot, I don't care much for pride. I'll take all the help I can get and personally, I'd love to see what a Brushless Gimbal would do for long lens shots.

Sticking a powered 2-axis brushless gimbal system isn't cheating by any means. Steadicam operators are always looking for better ways to achieve their aim. Traditional gyro stabilisers with spinning flywheels like the Kenyon ones have been used by Steadicam ops for years. They are not cheap & aren't just pick up & go e.g. I believe that they take 20-30 minutes to spin up to full speed ready for use.

[Charles Papert]

More like 5-10 minutes for the gyros to spin up, but yes they were always a handful (so to speak) in terms of power and weight. I myself used them a few times but wasn't a huge fan, preferring to use the Antlers for inertial stability.

There is potential in a gimbal/stabilizer combo but it raises as many questions as it answers. The next few months will obviously see a lot of experimentation in this arena.

[Shawn Sutherland]

Hi Charles. Remember what I predicted?

Interesting new rig - Page 13 - General Discussion - The Steadicam Forum

Told ya'

NAB 2014: Freefly Systems presents: Garrett Brown, inventor of Steadicam from Teradek on Vimeo

Here's how the Steadicam will work with the Movi:

Instead of placing the monitor on the sled, mount it to the Steadicam arm post with one of these:

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/648157-REG/Ikan_MA210_MA210_10_Articulating_Arm.html
I recommend using a wireless video transmitter to send the video signal from the sled to the monitor, now located on the arm post. Don't forget to mount a wireless video receiver to the arm and plug it into the monitor.

Secure the Movi on the Sled, balance it up nice and neat, and make sure it passes the spin test. After the sled is in dynamic balance, get rid of the 2-3 second drop time. There won't be any need for it because the sled won't have to stay upright. That's what the Movi is for. Also by balancing the sled to neutral gravity, you won't have to fight with it in low mode. The sled will stay wherever you put it.

Now let's take it for a ride.

With the Movi/Steadicam combo, You won't have to watch the sled's horizon anymore. The Movi will take care of this for you. Re-locating the monitor on the Steadicam arm puts it directly where you need to look. This is particularly useful with Don Juan shots. No more craning your neck to get a better look while hoping you don't trip on something. Just a forward looking view with the ground in your line of sight at all times. This also works for high to low mode shots as your rig just became a jib, and you won't have to worry about the monitor "hitting" the arm like it used to.

First thing you'll notice is that the camera pans and tilts all by itself. That's the DOP doing his thing. You will instinctively follow what he does by panning and tilting with him. There won't be any learning curve on this one. It's a positive feedback loop. Everything else is handled by 2 way voice communication. With a blue tooth in your ear, you'll receive real time directions from the DOP: Move In, Move Out, Move Left, Move Right, Boom Up, Boom Down.

Enjoy....

[Charles Papert]

If all you are looking to do is stabilize the roll axis, there's a better way to do it, which is the Lynn Axis introduced at NAB and based on a long-existing concept.