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DIYP reviews the Zhiyun Crane 2 motorised 3-axis gimbal stabiliser

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Ever since I got to play with the original Zhiyun Crane at Photokina 2016 I’ve wanted to put one of these things to work and see how it handles. I’ve used a number of smaller gimbals for phones, but the ability to load up a DSLR or mirrorless camera offers huge benefits. I almost never invest in the first generation of anything, but then they released the Zhiyun Crane 2.

GearBest got in touch with us to see if we wanted to check one out for ourselves and how it might help with the content we create here on DIYP. With The Photography Show and other events coming up where we need to shoot video, it seemed like a great opportunity to give it a good workout and really put it through its paces. But it’s quickly become one of my favourite video creation tools.

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5 things you need to know to get the best footage out of your gimbal

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Gimbals are probably the single coolest development in filmmaking tech in the last few years. Catering to everything from phones & action cameras to big DSLR & dedicated video camera rigs. They’ve become extremely popular, but they do take a little getting used to. There are ways to get the best out of them and results that you’re really happy with.

I have three gimbals myself. My most recent is the Zhiyun Crane 2 (review coming soon) which I’m planning to use for a shoot this weekend. So, this video from Matti over at TravelFeels comes at just the right time to serve as a reminder. In it, Matti goes over five great tips and techniques to help you get the most out of your gimbal.

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The all-in-one Removu K1 4K gimbal features a built in LCD monitor

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Currently on display at CES 2018 is the new Removu K1 4K handheld gimbal. Similar in style to the DJI Osmo, with a built-in camera instead of stabilizing your phone or a DSLR, the K1 has one distinct advantage. It features a built-in 1.5″ LCD monitor to show you what that camera’s actually seeing. Originally backed through Indiegogo, the Removu K1 is now on general sale.

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DJI announce new Ronin-S and an Osmo Mobile 2 that is WAY cheaper than the original

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DJI’s Osmo Mobile gimbal has been hugely popular since it was first released. But, one thing that gave the competition so much advantage was its cost. Being released at $299, the $150 or less alternatives were much easier for customers to swallow. DJI’s first answer was to drop the price to $199. But now they’ve have answered that price difference again with the new Osmo Mobile 2, at a mere $129.

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Gimbals – Are they terrible and overused or a valuable storytelling tool?

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Gimbals can be a wonderful filmmaking tool. They’ve become quite popular over the last year or two, very popular in fact. But are they becoming overused? That’s the argument put forth by Jakob Ownes from TheBuffNerds. He feels that gimbals are overused and take away from not only the story being told, but the storytelling power of gimbals themselves.

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13 essential camera movements to get amazing footage with your gimbal

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A motorised gimbal is one of the most useful tools you can get today for camera stabilisation. They’re much easier to get to grips with than a steadicam style stabiliser, and their prices have come down dramatically in the last year or so. For mobile phones, action cameras, DSLRs or even big RED setups, they are absolutely invaluable. But using them effectively can be challenging.

The temptation is just to hold them static in front of you and shoot away. But this can lead to pretty boring footage. This video from DP Justin Jones for Aputure’s Four-minute film school goes through 13 essential movements that you should know. You don’t need to use all of them in every production, but they will give you many interesting and exciting options when it comes time to edit.

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4 ways to get silky smooth stable video footage

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Getting clean stable footage is often one of the more difficult challenges with video. Especially while you’re still figuring everything out. Recently, we showed you several tips for getting stable handheld footage. Even relatively smooth handheld footage, though can benefit from a little extra assistance.

As technology advances, there are many ways to make your footage more stable. Using both software and hardware solutions. This video from YouTuber eevnxx goes through four of those methods to help get your footage as smooth as possible.

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How to turn your Mavic Pro into a handheld gimbal camera

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As far as wacky ideas go, this one actually seems pretty useful. Using a drone with a gimbal stabilised camera as a handheld rig isn’t a big secret. I know a few people who’ve done it, and I’ve tried it myself a couple of times, too. But they’ve all been fairly basic. Either they’re using a Phantom and simply holding the landing gear, or it’s a quickly put together DIY rig.

This, though, is pretty cool. It’s the Polar Pro Katana, and it turns your Mavic Pro into a handheld gimbal stabilised camera. This is the first time I’ve seen a ready-made solution, though. I wonder if it was possibly inspired the DJI Inspire 2 launch with a film which was shot by a drone using this exact technique.

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This action camera comes with a built in 3-axis gimbal

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3 axis handheld motorised gimbals seem to be the hot new toy at the moment. Electronic image stabilisation in small systems like action cameras and mobile phones sucks. Optical image stabilisation is rare, and still not amazing. So, a motorised gimbal helps to keep things smooth and steady and level. I got one myself about six months ago, the Zhiyun Smooth C, and they are extremely handy.

For Chinese drone manufacturer Zerotech, though, handheld gimbals just don’t go far enough. So, they’ve built one inside their recently announced Rollcap, and action camera that doesn’t require external motorised control. Photo Gear News got to check it out in person at CES recently.

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This hello kitty gimbal is probably the cutest gimbal in the world

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Looks like stabilizing gimbals are moving from being categorised as pro gear and are being commoditized. And a prime example of this would be this Hello Kitty camera phone gimbal.

I am not sure what is the motivation behind this but if I had to take a wild guess, I would say that the marketing director has small kids. Either way, this 2-Axis gimbal feature 2 Axis stabilization,  a -45 to +225 degrees tilt axis, and a -60 to +240 degrees roll axis. But never mind that, it has a huge Hello Kitty face.

Here is the movie that shows how to use the gimbal:

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