Zhiyun Crane

I have the crane and initially used it with my gh4, speedbooster and a canon 28mm 1.8. The setup is too heavy for the crane and there was too much micro vibrations. I ended up getting the a6500 and the images I'm getting are perfectly smooth, so for those saying that the crane can only get reasonably good stabilization - the camera/weight of your setup has a lot to do with it. The stabalization with the a6500 helps a lot too. I can run around with this thing and it is perfectly smooth. Just my experience. I'm running it with the 35mm 1.8. Nice DOF with the terrific autofocus.
 
I have the crane and initially used it with my gh4, speedbooster and a canon 28mm 1.8. The setup is too heavy for the crane and there was too much micro vibrations. I ended up getting the a6500 and the images I'm getting are perfectly smooth, so for those saying that the crane can only get reasonably good stabilization - the camera/weight of your setup has a lot to do with it. The stabalization with the a6500 helps a lot too. I can run around with this thing and it is perfectly smooth. Just my experience. I'm running it with the 35mm 1.8. Nice DOF with the terrific autofocus.

Panasonic GH4 560g inc. battery and card
Canon EOS 28mm 1.8 310g
Metabones M43 to EOS speedbooster 172g

Total 1042g

You either have a broken Crane, have more than the three items listed above mounted, or are using a speedbooster that is heavier than the Metabones or you are balancing wrong. The V1 firmware will handle up to 1200g and you are at 1042g. I run the Canon 80D 730g inc. battery and card with the 28mm 1.8 310g for a total of 1040g and it runs like a champ. Assuming you have V1 Crane, update the firmware, it can then easily deal with up to 1800 grams, should handle your GH4 without breaking a sweat.
 
I initially noticed issues with my GH5 and crane and then I updated the firmware. Much better

Panasonic GH4 560g inc. battery and card
Canon EOS 28mm 1.8 310g
Metabones M43 to EOS speedbooster 172g

Total 1042g

You either have a broken Crane, have more than the three items listed above mounted, or are using a speedbooster that is heavier than the Metabones or you are balancing wrong. The V1 firmware will handle up to 1200g and you are at 1042g. I run the Canon 80D 730g inc. battery and card with the 28mm 1.8 310g for a total of 1040g and it runs like a champ. Assuming you have V1 Crane, update the firmware, it can then easily deal with up to 1800 grams, should handle your GH4 without breaking a sweat.
 
@puredrifting - Did you ever try the Zhiyun with a Fujifilm XT-2?

No, have a friend who lives a few hundred miles away who has the XT-2 and I want to but we have both been too busy to get together to play with camera gear. There are plenty of clips on YouTube with the XT-2 on the Crane, no reason why it shouldn't work great.
 
So, since firmware seems to be important and I never updated mine: what version should I install for a very light camera? (RX100 IV)
There was a point where they forked into light/heavy setups, not sure if they've converged since then.
 
Hello fellow filmmakers !
what would you choose between the came tv optimus and zhiyun crane v2 if you could pay them the same price ?

there is not many review on the optimus and all of them seems to be sponsorised. But it seems stronger and smoother than the zhiyun ?

I can have it for cheaper than the zhiyun if I had to buy arms for the crane.
 
zhiyun... very reliable and with newest firmware very strong.

V1 and V2 are identical except for a few cosmetic items and the way the mounting plate works.

And if you want a zhiyun crane v1, I changed cameras and so am selling mine, PM for details, will give a great deal. Like new, purchased January, must have been used less than 15 hours.
 
zhiyun... very reliable and with newest firmware very strong.

V1 and V2 are identical except for a few cosmetic items and the way the mounting plate works.

And if you want a zhiyun crane v1, I changed cameras and so am selling mine, PM for details, will give a great deal. Like new, purchased January, must have been used less than 15 hours.

Hey Filmguy123, if you still have your V1, check your joystick for me, would you? On mine, I used to point the joystick straight down and the camera would tilt down, up, it would tilt up. Now, when I point the joystick straight down, either nothing happens or the Crane tilts up. I can only get the Crane to tilt down if I point the joystick left or right and down? Does yours tilt down if you pull the joystick straight down? Wonder if I am wearing it out or the joystick is going bad? Other than this little glitch, I love this thing, used it on a pretty fun shoot last week about Girls Who Code at a school. Worked great.
 
^ There's a setting in the app where you can set the vertical control to normal or inverted, but the fact that it works for you when going sideways and up/down probably means the joystick itself is the source of the problem.

In any case, on mine, when switched to joystick-control instead of just follow mode, it works as expected.
 
Sam said it! I changed my joystick on Zhiyun Crane (And DJI controller) to mirror FPS game controls ;)

And yes, I still have the V1. Someone buy this thing off me!! :D
 
how well would this gimbal work with the LX100? (393 g with battery and SD card). i plan to use my A7sII but also interested how hit might work with such a lightweight camera as well? would i need a different firmware to do this?

thanks
david
 
(also: anybody knows about a gimbal that's designed for a 400g max payload? I see a big jump from smartphone and gopro gimbals to 1000g payload, with nothing in between)
 
Has anyone tried the control cable for AF and record on the GH4. I just got one and am having no luck on my crane 2. Followed all the setup instructions (I think) and it wont trigger the AF or record on/off.
 
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