Best steadicam/stabilizer for hvx200a?

L

lando

Active member
Hey I'm looking to pick up a handheld steadicam or stabilizing setup for my hvx200a and am wondering what you guys would recommend? I love the merlin for its size and weight but realize that the hvx is on the upper end of the weight limitations so I'm thinking there's probably a better option out there? I shoot mostly sports action stuff and will occasionally use a wide angle or fisheye adaptor as well as a shotgun and G2 wireless mic setups (I realize I wouldn't be able to use any of these with the merlin). I also have to transport all my gear in a backpack as I don't drive and usually just ride my bike so portability is a necessity. My apologies if that has been asked before I searched the forums and couldn't find much info.
 
The Merlin is a great choice, but with the weight of the HVX200- especially with more stuff on it- you'll be hard pressed to hold it steady long enough to get decent shots in sports work, especially considering the length of the games. It can be done, just not comfortably.
 
I guess I should have been clearer, by action sports I meant extreme sports...I shoot mostly bmx right now but would end up using it for shorts and commercials as well. Generally shots will be quite short, under 30 seconds, but may take many attempts until things are done up to par but I do get a break between them.
 
an even minimally outfitted hvx200 rig is going to overweight a merlin right out of the gate.

are you wanting to run with the thing? or just smooth out your moves? a simple fig rig or one of the many pvc "ghetto stabilizers" out there might work...
 
I'm looking to run with it up stairs and such so the ghetto stabilizers aren't really an option.
 
The Merlin works brilliantly with an HPX170 , also pushing the weight limit. The newer ones with metal gimbals carry a bit more than the earlier plastic ones. I really wavered about spending the extra but am so glad i did, ease and speed of use, amazing results. A LOT of effort to learn to use properly, if you're prepared to put the time in you'll love it.

The arm is fantastic too, but the ability to stick the basic unit in a backpack and go places no sane crew would go really opens up the possibilities. even though it costs more than the cheapies it is great value for what you get.

If cost's a worry look secondhand, people buy them then realise what's involved in really using it so they're around.
 
With the equipment you state, it says fig rig/shoulder mount all the way....and a handheld stabilizer, like the merlin, with that rig? You'll be in the hospital quick.

Plus your statement against "Ghetto Stabilizers" is silly....look up the fig rig, as IMHO it's a good choice...as well as shoulder mount. There are even shoulder mounts with extra amounts of support other then the shoulders.
 
Last edited:
That amount of weight, you are getting pretty heavy for any hand-held stabilizer. Which means the next option for the shots you describe is a body-worn stabilizer; the arm & vest, etc..
And the best suited one of them for that camera & accessory range is the Steadicam Pilot.


Or leave the extra gear off the camera and go with the Merlin
Or: with the new metal gimbal Merlin; add Jim's accessory plate and put the radio mic receiver on there as counterweight and you should have enough offset to still mount the wide-angle lens on the camera - maybe even the shotgun.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/445745-REG/Merlin__Accessory_Plate.html

- Mikko
 
Glidecam 2000 or 4000. The 4000 would be better but I've got the 2000 and it works extremely well with my HPX170. It's also easier to carry on a backpack (which I also do). Forget the vest and just hold the thing. If you ride bmx, you've got the arms to do it easily. It's no big deal for <1min shots.

I put a quick release plate on mine that matches my video head so I can switch back and forth easily with my tripod.
 
I have a stabilizer i built for my HVX that started out its life as a rugged, heavy-duty mock-Merlin but these accounts are right - the camera is just way too heavy to balance on such an apparatus. So I made it into a shoulder/belly/wrist mount that can easily be adjust to whatever comfortable angle you need. Mainly just a piece of aluminum and some PVC and I've been unexplainably happy with it.
 
This is exactly the question I was about to ask--I'm also using a 200A--with a hitch (intended pun obvious in a moment): I need something for event videography, mostly weddings. For the price the Glidecam 2000 looks pretty sweet, but it doesn't strike me as something to use for an entire wedding/reception. My arms would be Jello, would they not? The MultiRig Pro page has a (hard to follow) video showing, and a LAFCPUG review indicating, that it can give passably smooth walking shots while also providing, obviously, long-term support for the kinds of shoots I'll be doing.

Can current or past MultiRig users speak to that? I fully understand that shoulder mounts aren't for stabilization, which is why I've not bought one up to now, and I don't expect much in that regard, but I simply can't afford a Pilot, and for what I'm primarily going to be using it for, I don't see being able to use a Merlin or Glidecam for an extended period of time. (Not to mention because of the camera/equipment weight.) I've done two practice weddings now and it's apparent I need *something* that will let me move and shoot at the same time with decent smoothness.

I've been trying to figure this out for months while building my other skills. What's the best solution here?

Thanks,

Clint
 
Last edited:
At $3500 (for the AA battery version) the Steadicam Pilot's not the cheapest, but it's almost certainly the best...
 
texvanwinkle said:
For the price the Glidecam 2000 looks pretty sweet, but it doesn't strike me as something to use for an entire wedding/reception. My arms would be Jello, would they not?
Click to expand...


Yes they would. Even as an owner, there's no way in hell I'd try to use that thing for shots more than a minute or so. Coupled with a vest and arm sure..... But not by itself.
 
Here's my bottom line: I need to be able to get some smooth tracking shots--walking, circling, going up steps, tilting up and down on subjects. But I also need to be able to be locked down for periods of time, i.e. during the service itself, to be able to get cut-ins. I'd like to be able to be mobile up to the point that the bride hooks up with the groom, to the degree I'm allowed, and then pop the camera on a tripod. At the end of it, pop it back off and get moving again.

That doesn't appear to be an easy thing to do with, say, the Merlin/arm/vest set-up. It appears to be either on or off; I don't see any sort of quick release, and considering how it seems like it would have to work, I don't see how it could. The MultiRig lets me do that, but it's not a stabilizer. I'm told by users, and it's illustrated (kind of) on the website that you can get relatively smooth walking footage, but it's not going to go up stairs with me, obviously.

So it seems I need to have an honest-to-god stabilization system, but what's the solution for being able to switch back and forth from a tripod? Can the Merlin/arm/set-up do that? If it can't, is it actually stable enough for me to wear the darn thing throughout the ceremony? And again, it'll be a 200A with a shotgun on it and possibly a Litepanels Micro. (I assume the wireless receiver can be on my belt.) Can the Merlin with arm/vest support all that? The Tiffen website seems to indicate it'd be at its limit, but could.

If the Merlin can do all that with the arm/vest, I'll make the investment. Otherwise, I need some other suggestions--that don't, if you please, suggest spending even more than the Merlin set-up. It's just not possible.

Thanks again to all, and to all, finally, a good night.

Clint
 
Merlin has a quick-release built in. And there's a "tripod plate" for the same release available from Steadicam. You put the plate on your tripod, and then the same quick release attaches the camera to both the Merlin and the Tripod - with no added weight to the camera on the Merlin.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...m_801_7950_801_7950_Tripod_Adapter_Plate.html

With the vest and arm, you should have no problem wearing a Steadicam Merlin through a whole regular length wedding ceremony - though do note that a Steadicam is not a tripod .. you'll have trouble getting equally super lock-down solid shots - especially with a longer lens. So switching to a Tripod is recommended (and easy with the plate).

The HVX200 and the Litepanels Micro and the shotgun will be pushing the limit on the Merlin. Check out the Merlin Accessory Plate: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/445745-REG/Merlin__Accessory_Plate.html
You'd mount your wireless receiver there (You won't want a wire running from your belt to the camera on the Merlin).

- Mikko
 
mikkowilson said:
Merlin has a quick-release built in. And there's a "tripod plate" for the same release available from Steadicam. You put the plate on your tripod, and then the same quick release attaches the camera to both the Merlin and the Tripod - with no added weight to the camera on the Merlin.
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/produ...m_801_7950_801_7950_Tripod_Adapter_Plate.html
Click to expand...

Great to know. Thanks for that. But that leads me to this question:

mikkowilson said:
With the vest and arm, you should have no problem wearing a Steadicam Merlin through a whole regular length wedding ceremony - though do note that a Steadicam is not a tripod .. you'll have trouble getting equally super lock-down solid shots - especially with a longer lens. So switching to a Tripod is recommended (and easy with the plate).
Click to expand...

Doesn't that require recalibrating every time you take the camera off the tripod and put it back on the Merlin? And if so, isn't that a little involved? I want to be able to move with it in short order if something spontaneous occurs. Won't that require just leaving the camera on the Merlin, which in turn means just leaving it on the arm/vest? If not, fantastic; that means I don't necessarily need the arm/vest; I could just use the tripod until the short tracking shots I want with the Merlin.

mikkowilson said:
The HVX200 and the Litepanels Micro and the shotgun will be pushing the limit on the Merlin. Check out the Merlin Accessory Plate: http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/445745-REG/Merlin__Accessory_Plate.html
You'd mount your wireless receiver there (You won't want a wire running from your belt to the camera on the Merlin).
Click to expand...

Ah. Good point. I checked the chart on the Tiffen site and it says the upper bound is 7.5 lbs. I just weighed my 200A with the LitePanel, shotgun, and battery, but no cable from the shotgun to camera, and it comes to 7.4 lbs. I realize it's in the range, but is that going to be too much?

Thanks for all the invaluable assistance. I know we did, but I don't know how we made decisions like this before the Internet.

Clint
 
texvanwinkle said:
Doesn't that require recalibrating every time you take the camera off the tripod and put it back on the Merlin? And if so, isn't that a little involved? I want to be able to move with it in short order if something spontaneous occurs. Won't that require just leaving the camera on the Merlin, which in turn means just leaving it on the arm/vest? If not, fantastic; that means I don't necessarily need the arm/vest; I could just use the tripod until the short tracking shots I want with the Merlin.
Click to expand...

Unlike other hand-held stabilizers; the Steadicam Merlin remembers it's settings when you detach the camera with the quick release and fold it up. Just note the stage mark the plate is is at when you detach. Unfold the Merlin, attached the plate at the same mark, and you are 95% back in balance.
With any stabilizer you will occasionally need to re-trim between shots; with the Merlin you simply turn a knob (maybe 2) and you are back in balance. No locks to undo, just turn the trim roller and you are done - most operators do this adjustment as they are walking to the start position of the shot. It becomes fast and mindlessly automatic with a bit of experience.


texvanwinkle said:
Ah. Good point. I checked the chart on the Tiffen site and it says the upper bound is 7.5 lbs. I just weighed my 200A with the LitePanel, shotgun, and battery, but no cable from the shotgun to camera, and it comes to 7.4 lbs. I realize it's in the range, but is that going to be too much?
Click to expand...

That definitely is pushing up against the weight limit. Close enough that you can't really tell without trying it. Or being prepared to make a compromise and leave off (or creatively re-mount) a piece of gear.

- Mikko
 
mikkowilson said:
Unlike other hand-held stabilizers; the Steadicam Merlin remembers it's settings when you detach the camera with the quick release and fold it up. Just note the stage mark the plate is is at when you detach. Unfold the Merlin, attached the plate at the same mark, and you are 95% back in balance.
With any stabilizer you will occasionally need to re-trim between shots; with the Merlin you simply turn a knob (maybe 2) and you are back in balance. No locks to undo, just turn the trim roller and you are done - most operators do this adjustment as they are walking to the start position of the shot. It becomes fast and mindlessly automatic with a bit of experience.
Click to expand...

That is outstanding. It seems to me, then, that the Merlin alone would suit my purposes, which would free up the money to get a MultiRigPro as well. I like the strengths of both, and could get both for much less than the price of the Merlin with the arm and vest. (Which I can get later when it's not straight out of pocket.)

That definitely is pushing up against the weight limit. Close enough that you can't really tell without trying it. Or being prepared to make a compromise and leave off (or creatively re-mount) a piece of gear.
Click to expand...
I'll see who here in Dallas might have one in stock that I can try it out. It would usually only be an issue when I have to have the light on it, and at receptions I don't need shotguns on both cameras, the way I set things up. So it would probably never get that close.

You've done what no one else has been able to do for a year now in helping me figure this out. Can't tell you how much I appreciate that. You're welcome at my fire anytime.

Clint
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top