GH2 Most recommended stabilising rig

wgzn said:
i think that people tend to get drunk on the concept of shoulder rigs. ive owned about 4 different rigs from ultra low to ultra high end. and found ALL of them lacking from a usability standpoint to one degree or another... when you spend $100 on it. thats ok. but when you drop $3500. thats kind of a buzzkill.
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I pieced my rig together for about the $3,000 - $4,000 range and am exceedingly happy with it. I continue to upgrade parts, but I truly enjoy using it. Well worth the money, and it has already paid for itself. Unfortunately, I don't have any really good pictures of it. It's comprised of over a dozen manufacturers.

I spent a year, like most, trying to find that "one rig" to rule them all...forget it. I tried out friends' rigs from Jag35 to Zacuto, and I really didn't like what I saw. I decided to assemble mine based on the individual pieces of kit I liked most - the shouldermount, cage, matte box, and even the two different sets of rails I have are from different manufacturers. It took me over a month to sit down and list all the parts I wanted, price everything out, and then order things, but it was so worth it. Like I said, it's paid for itself because I use it on every shoot - with every camera from the 7D to the F3.

This is just my take, as I never found an all-in-one solution that worked for me. I had to frankenstein it myself. And it was honestly more cost-effective in the end.


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Damn, well I'm not looking to build my own. So based on the description of my last post, which rig would you recommend?
 
I've never used a fig rig, and I don't understand that concept. All the weight on a giant steering wheel out in front of you - I don't get it. Unless I'm missing something...

I really do recommend piecing your rig together based on what you like from several manufacturers. For me, it was more affordable and more beneficial to my needs. With every bell and whistle, my DSLR camera builds are around 16-20 pounds; with the EX-1, F3, or bigger cameras, it's 18-25 pounds. So, there are a few things I look for in every rig design (and you have to think about the whole rig in terms of functional design and not just "will it put the camera on my shoulder"):

Balance - fore/aft and yaw (left-right stability)
Weight - more is better, but only when balanced
Transition - from Handheld to Tripod/Slider
Modularity - important for me because I shoot with many different cameras on the same rig

For the most basic, but functional handheld assembly, I recommend these elements:

Redrock Shouldermount - Incredibly genius solution for mounting your rig to the tripod and going to the shoulder, something that is normally achieved by two separate pieces of kit that RRM has accomplished in one $200 solution. Well worth it.

Rails - You can skimp on rails and get something cheap and simple. If you want good balance, get at least 15" rails, as I've found 12" are just too short when you have a DSLR, FF, Matte Box, and battery system or counterweight.

Follow Focus - I love my Redrock microFocus Blue, but you can certainly find something cheaper for your budget. Just don't think you're going to comfortably and accurately pull focus handheld while tracking with a subject unless you have a decent follow focus. You're just going to be frustrated.

Top Handle - You need something with which to hoist and carry your rig when it's not on your shoulder. You can use a top handle to fly the rig low for nice handheld shots, too. There are a ton of solutions, but it's somewhat dependent on the other solutions you use - like a cage system. My top handle lives on the top rails of my DSLR cage from CPM FilmTools. There are affordable sub-$100 versions of the top handle out there from a ton of manufacturers to suit your needs.

Handles - You need at least one handle when flying handheld; your other hand can/should be on the follow focus. I use handles made by a Chinese eBayer, but they are NOT that great given the cost, and I don't recommend them. Get good handles - this is not something you want to skirt by on. A handle readjusting or sliding during a shot can not only mean a bad take but could also damage your rig. I will be picking up the Berkey long handle system soon.

Counterweight - I use a V-mount battery system with a giant V-mount battery that weighs an awesome truckload and balances out my rig and powers my two monitors and the camera. I love it. I believe in everything on the rig being functional, if not multi-functional, so I don't like using actual counterweights to balance the system - I prefer to use a battery for that, but a simple counterweight will do the job, obviously.


Depending on how you build your rig, a monitor system may or may not be critical: If your camera lives directly above your shoulder, like in my rig's design for balance, you won't be able to see the LCD and will need a monitor (I use the SmallHD DP4 EVF for all handheld as it's a great EVF and another point of contact for stability; a cheap director's monitor sometimes lives on the dumb side of the rig if they're following me).

I might not be much help after all, since I can't recommend a one-in-all package rig for your needs, but I hope this helps some.
 
Mj882 said:
Damn, well I'm not looking to build my own. So based on the description of my last post, which rig would you recommend?
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Do you have any kind of shoulder mount now? I would pick up a cowboy studio one for cheap and give it a go. It works really well with a GH2.

The non fish shots were with the cowboy studio a gh1 and a nikon 50mm 1.8. They were static and this was at the end of the day of shooting so I am a bit wobblier than I normally am. But it does a decent job for the cash.

 
Jonathan Scott Price - Thanks a lot for all the information, it is all very useful stuff. I'm not looking to build my own rig, but this will come in handy if I ever plan to and if anyone else aims to.

tommyp - Nice footage there. The Cowboy Studio has been one my mind, especially with it's relative cheapness. My only worry is how good it is with tracking shots.

I think I may have found what I'm after though - The Pocket Rig from Edelkrone: http://vimeo.com/31303563 http://www.edelkrone.com/store/. It SEEMS to be exactly what I'm after, but it isn't out yet so don't want to buy it without seeing any results.

Anyone heard about the Pocket Rig?
 
The cameras are so light that for a tracking shot on a smooth counter top I used a towel and gently pulled down the counter and it looked great like I had a pro dolly / track setup.
 
Mj882 said:
Jonathan Scott Price - Thanks a lot for all the information, it is all very useful stuff. I'm not looking to build my own rig, but this will come in handy if I ever plan to and if anyone else aims to.

tommyp - Nice footage there. The Cowboy Studio has been one my mind, especially with it's relative cheapness. My only worry is how good it is with tracking shots.

I think I may have found what I'm after though - The Pocket Rig from Edelkrone: http://vimeo.com/31303563 http://www.edelkrone.com/store/. It SEEMS to be exactly what I'm after, but it isn't out yet so don't want to buy it without seeing any results.

Anyone heard about the Pocket Rig?
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The most important thing with any handheld tracking shot is weight and balance, short of an appropriate focal length for the speed you're moving the camera. Weight stabilizes the camera and allows the camera to work with your body instead of against it; proper balance means your moves will be smooth and accurate instead of jittery and tilted. However you can achieve that, do it.

That Edelkrone Pocket Rig will not give you stability while tracking. You need to keep your hands away from the body and lens of the camera. A proper rig that sits on your shoulder absorbs the jitters and micromovements from your hands, and a balanced rig will have a center of gravity over your right shoulder, which allows you to use your body as a precision steering device instead of having to fight the camera.
 
For starting off - Would any of you guys recommend the Cowboy Studio to use for both stabilising AND also for tracking shots. I'll stress it again, I'm not after super smooth steadycam style tracking shots - just steadier than hand grip, to avoid the jello effect.
 
The Cowboy Studios rig is surprisingly good, much much steadier than a hand grip. Well worth the cheap investment.

And the concept behind the Fig Rig is the idea that you'll get less shake if you can more your hands away from the CoG of the camera. I haven't used it myself, but the physics make sense. Imagine holding a camera in both hands and raising your right hand 1". You'll probably get 20-30 degrees of angular tilt. Now imagine holding a bicycle wheel and raising your right hand 1". You'll probably get 5 degrees of angular tilt, if that.

With that in mind, the Fig Rig and similar devices will help reduce (angular) rotational motions, but won't help so much with up and down or side to side. So it will be better than hand-holding, but probably not as good as a shoulder rig.
 
I have both Cowboy Studio and Gini shoulder-mounted rigs, and find them useful for different types of shots:

Cowboy Studio: Great for stationary panning and zooming with a bare DSLR, your left hand bracing the lens. Unsuitable for walking or follow focus shots.

Gini rig: Great for mounting follow focus, matte box, and/or LCD monitor, with unrestricted panning and zoom capability. Slow tracking shots are possible if you learn how to creep. Unsuitable for normal walking pace.
 
Mj882 said:
I'm curious to hear what people think of using the Joby Gorillapod as a cheap solution to use as a rig. Have a look at this: http://vimeo.com/21472727
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I've been using a Gorillapod Focus with a Manfrotto head and the results are much better than using the camera naked. I fold the legs in a way that I have two handles against my chest, one in my right hand and the viewfinder pressed against my eye socket. That makes four points of support. With practice it can become quite stable. Of course it's no substitute for a proper rig but it can work in a surprisingly amount of situations.
 
AtticusD said:
I've been using a Gorillapod Focus with a Manfrotto head and the results are much better than using the camera naked. I fold the legs in a way that I have two handles against my chest, one in my right hand and the viewfinder pressed against my eye socket. That makes four points of support. With practice it can become quite stable. Of course it's no substitute for a proper rig but it can work in a surprisingly amount of situations.
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Hey AtticusD,

Have you tried it in the way it's demonstrated in the video? The Gorilla Pod Focus is the heaviest and most expensive out of the others, I might go for the Gorilla Pod SLR (or SLR ZOOM).

I have a Libec tripod quick release plate, will that work on the Gorilla Pod?
 
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