Camera Stabilization on a Budget. (Plus U-Flycam review)

[SergSpace]

It sways a lot means it cost nothing. Check Merlin stabilizer videos which are more steady.

[AlkimyDeal]

Very informative, have you ever used the Cam Caddie Scorpion. I recently purchased one from Amazon for a great price and it's been very efficient and effective helping me capture smooth shots.

[thoughtgrenades]

Steadicam Plans, the real stuff. Check my vids for the plans

[foreya]

Please... you said it costs £50, but if I look on their website now, it's not there and they have replaced it with the mini flycam, which is $150! My best bet is to go with the Hague MMC

[rickvanman]

@foreya this is a very old video

[igalaland]

i really like your reviews but you tend to talk too much - get to the point mate

[havok2]

With the right setup it is still the best product in this priceclass. Watch my tutorial here: youtube.com/watch?v=bdFCuZk4o9­w

[CALMSH1T]

plase post graphical detailed drawing of your device..man I need it...respect 4 non-commercial thinking!

[DGizzle4life]

Name of this song plzz!!!

[Bigoudy59]

Merci pour cette démonstration.

[youwiko]

:-)

0$ Steadicam from junk

watch?v=B5FMTjcF2Ng

[FriendTape]

I use the smoothmount and I love it, plus its only $130 in my opinion it works as well as the stedicam merlin. do a youtube search for smoothmount to see it.

[FriendTape]

I use the smoothmount and I love it, plus its only $130

[ngvgnDOTcom]

These go for 100 dollars on ebat but with 50 dollars for shipping, but still how cam you go wrong. Still a great price.

[fogfrogblog]

Actually you don't really need a glide/fly cam. All you need is to rig something to be able to hold your camera more comfortably. An upside down L shape handle bar that you can hold at the bottom of the cam as well as the side. Your whole body is already enough balance for the camera. With the same amount of practice that you spend on a glidecam, I guarantee you will be shooting with more stability for free.

[attacker5]

hi,

Im looking into getting a camera stabalizer, but i am going to video motocross, so a bunch of bikes coming past, fast and I need good panning speed. Is this stabalizer easy to pan?

Thx

[rickvanman]

It would probably be more efficient to physically hold the camera and pan manually than to try to get something like this to do the job.

[dronus]

aye...I'll be doing the same thing this weekend...and all this stabilizing crap has got me laughing...I've tested my idea and it has worked over and over again...here's what you do. My idea will cost you about $5.00 all together.and it works really good for panning.

get a screw for the camera. wood toilet plunger. screw in screw into toilet plunger spray paint and your done. remove the rubber plunger first...lol...it works good

[dronus]

you wouldn't want a huge ass thing with a 2lb weight at the bottom especially if your going to be filming non-stop and panning left to right, up and down..

[RDPproject]

That is exactly how stedi-can units work. They all need the counter weight. If you ever get the chance, have a look at one. Google it.

They are built with a big body harness that you wear. It takes second person (or three) to help you put it on and take it off.

[jeffbrent]

If you are doing fast panning I would use a shoulder mount.

[xhdproductions]

Rick I love your tutorials. Great stuff.

[vittogol]

Very goo explanation, thank you sir.

[koshua2000]

i bought a U-fly cam as a cheap alternative 2 the Merlin and lets just sa "U get wht you Pay for" it now costs around £80 inc p&P to buy this thing & to be honest i wasn't that impressed. weights r very fiddly & even when u get the weights on right the handle turns sometimes which moves which is really annoying.Respect 4 them makin it though as something like the Merlin costs around £500 so your getin somethin similar 4 just over 1/10th of the price.but it aint no where as good and sphiscated.

[Mxairsoftspeed]

it looks cool!

[branaginslaw]

Hi there Rick !

i really enjoy your video's you are an inspiration for me to pull my finger out and start making short films.. Cheers man.

just a request can you post some recommendation on constructing or buying cheap audio equipment? and what camcorders can you recommend?

[branaginslaw]

rick you are A LEGEND A LEGEND.

[jwalshson08]

what about the pvc figrig?

[mattax222]

ANY OPINION OF THIS ?

Hague Mini-Motion Cam "Steadicam"

[raymercado]

can can you also post the link where we can buy that one ;)

[raymercado]

sir rick I wonder can an ordinary handycam such as canon fs100 would work on this.. or a standard handycam or this is only for professional camera.. please post all those questions and answers in your video discription box

[ChrisMiran]

thanks rick..im gonna look for it on ebay. First thing i'll do is run up the rocky steps in philly!

[mannyhall]

Hi Rick,

Have you tried Manfrotto ModoSteady? Any opinion of the Modosteady?

[rickvanman]

sorry, not familiar with that one.

[flashgunfilms]

This is like a camera man's agony aunt website! Absolutely brilliant. All of the issues you mention I go through all the time, what should I spend, how much is reasonable? Thanks for posting this. I did laugh at 0509m when you jumped up and down, what were the neighbours thinking??? Keep up the good work. Bravo!

[Elvarks]

The problem with that design is that it's sensitive to wind

[shanebarber]

Thanks so much for the effort. Much needed review!

[flagsson]

I know you don't want answer questions about which cameras fit the U-Flycam, but I am about to buy one and the people at the shop on ebay aren't giving me straight answers; do you know if the Panasonic gs400 fits U-Flycam?

P.s thanks for a great review!

[rickvanman]

Hi. I used the panasonic Nv-GS500 on it. As long as you have a standard 1/4" tripod screw thread on your camera I don't see why it shouldn't fit.

[torkrist]

Ok, Thanks for the info.

[aboninix]

Hi. I Just bought the U-flycam but it seems impossible to balance it...do you have any tips? thank you very much

[rickvanman]

Hi - A general rule of thumb is to use less weight than you think you need. When you move in X or Y directions, the idea is that the bottom end moves simultaneously, and doesn't "drag" behind - causing the dreaded pendulum effect.

Might be worth considering adding weight to the upper end if you are using a light camera.

good luck.

[onetwotony]

Hi there ! I am wondering where may I go abouts to purchasing one of those Handy U cams? I would greatly appreciate it. Thanks! Great Job on your U tube videos I am a big fan. I like to produce a music video in the near future and I find your tutorials real handy.

[rickvanman]

Thanks for the vote of confidence!

you can buy these from the cinecity on ebay. (also known as DVshop23).

rick.

[youutubestinks]

:P waht i meant is youtube has 4:3 frames to project the vids, so you take a 4:3 file in your vid editor and bring the wide 16:9 video you did in the 4:3 frame and like the movies on tiv it'll have black frame up and down but the 16:9 is conserved ;)

but in that way you look very slim, don't need diets :P

[DirectorToby]

I've found your videos now from two different sources and your reveiws / instructions are FANTASTIC. i have subscribed. I'm really thinking about getitng this as I can't aford the flycam 5000 - did you get improved results after you practiced?

The video you shot with it seemed to take out the main shake you get from handheld yeat still maintained it's natural motion. I liked it

[rickvanman]

Hi Toby. Glad u like the vids :o) yours are AMAZING!

The u-flycam is ok for helping get rid of the walking judder, but it's really hard to control the side-to-side movement that seems to have a mind of its own. I've never mastered it.

In conclusion , it's definately better than nothing, but don't pin your hopes on it curing all your stabilization issues - not even the flycam 5000 will do that.

hope this helps.

Rick.

[youutubestinks]

why you dont adjust the 16:9 vid inside a 4:3 and then youtubize it :S

[rickvanman]

it started life as a 16:9 but YouTube did wierd things to it!

[stujun]

Don't think I'll be investing... Thanks for the footage thou, do you know where you can see other footage of more pro steadis? Thanks Rick, Stu.

[rickvanman]

my best guess would be do a search on YouTube

[Peot17]

Is this stabalizer compatible with any camera. The U Flycam

[zioguido]

A stupid question... are you Australian?

[rickvanman]

struth! no mate, I'm English! The accent might give it away a bit :)

[mashimarojm]

i noticed you're using a rather compact camcorder. do you think the u flycam will be able to handle a larger camera, say a canon xl2?

[Democratese]

Awesome review.... Glad I stumbled upon these videos.....

Im desperately thinking about picking one of these up.... Only thing is did you find any issues after lubing this thing up with the thing being too smooth or giving you any kind of other issues?

[rickvanman]

in truth i never did fully manage to solve the turning to the side issues. if you can afford it go for the flycam rather than this model.

[capriccioso35]

is this better then the homemade version? it looked kinda unsteady still...

[rickvanman]

definately better than the home-made jobby.

you can dampen the action of the uflycam handle by packing the bearings with thick silicone grease.

[killian1701]

While the unit your using IS a significant improvement over a normal, moving handheld shot, i just purchased a unit called the Flycam 3000, i dont know if their by the same company. But, it cost me $179, which i believe is on the order of around 76 pounds. the footage is about 3x more stable, do a youtube search for flycam 3000. I'll post a demo as a followup soon.

[2ndteam]

Thanks Rick! Very helpful indeed!

[harilalkm]

thanx rick

[harilalkm]

hi rick ,

can you help me find this on internet? I have searched for it.but unable to find :(

regards

[rickvanman]

type "U flycam" in eBay.

[maikoschaffrath]

how much customs duty did you pay?

[rickvanman]

None. You're only likely to pay duty if your parcel is intercepted.

[maikoschaffrath]

thanks :)... do you know, if that is valid for germany,too ?

[rickvanman]

I can only guess it is the same.

[sheeplife]

what camera do you use rick. would love to know, thanks

[rickvanman]

Panasonic NV-GS500

[redtail5]

whell it can but it wont work lol you can hold the weight hehe

[thesixtyninemachine]

Hi Rick

Thank you very much for the review. Thinking of getting into film making, will go look on ebay for the U-fly

[tribunjac]

how much is it??

[rickvanman]

about £50 (GBP)

[oceanzen]

Hi

I'm really interested to find out whether the u flycam can be turned upside down so the camera can move along at floor level.

[vspproducciones]

Hello from Seville, Spain. Is compatible the Flycam pro 5000 for Panasonic HVX200? It assures a movement uniforms this Steadycam for this camera ' Greetings from Andalusia, Spain.

[Andrewz05]

I really want to build something like that, but how would you make the handle swivel like that. hmmm....

I got an idea for one. :o

[casinoman123]

Hello ... last question ... where is the flycam 8000 shown? I looked on ebay, google, etc. but I can t find it?

[rickvanman]

Not sure - I had a look too, but couldnt find it. It normally sells on ebay from a shop called DV-Shop23 - might be worth an e-mail. They also appear to have a stabilizer & body pod for the XL1 - not sure what this will be like though. Good luck.

[casinoman123]

thanks

[casinoman123]

Hello! I saw this product on eBay and I want to get it and use it with my Canon XL 2. Do you think that this stabilizer apropites to the XL 2 or is it not for such heavy cams?

thanks!!!

[rickvanman]

This is a 1-handed device and unless you are a bodybuilder, I think your arm muscles will be screaming at you after about 5 minutes!

I rekon fo something as heavy as the XL2 you might be better off with a body-supported system like the flycam5000 or 8000 with support vest.

[lukewillson]

just saw your video on ebay for the india based company that do them. Are they any good? Im always unsure of buying from companies abroad (im based in the UK). Cheers. Great videos by the way :)

[rickvanman]

Yes they are a reasonably good product. They take some practice to get used to, but they do provide some decent results for the price.

[nasimbahal]

Absolutely amazing review. I really appreciate people like you dedicating your time to make it clear for alot of people interested in these kinda things.

Yeah for the price this is amazing. For balancing I have seen people even with Glide Cam 2000 pro have the same problem. So just some more practice.

However in some shots they have done an GREAT job (which cost not more than £200.00).

Thanks again

[bigsin23]

thanks for all the information, but I also could really use 8 of the minutes of my life back. please write/edit to condense all that info. but like I said thanks

[rickvanman]

sorry, my videos don't cater for people in a hurry!

[redtail5]

oh no what ever will you do a whole 8 minuts what a tradgity! bigsin23 lost 8 minuts of his life it a sighnof the epocolypse! lol stop complaining!

[sdpaterson]

Hi Rick,

Nice review. I was looking at the u-flycan just yesterday on ebay.

Not sure it would handle the weight of my XH-A1 though.

[ALIENFETUS]

thanks o much for your videos. I haven't even gotten up to 'amature' yet. as I have no idea about how to get started, getting started. You're videos have helped me learn a couple of things about film making and the required equipment required, in general.

thanks heaps. I'm off to browse ebay.

[rickvanman]

Glad to be of help! d;)

(I've only been doing filmmaking for 3 months!)

[russthedutch]

recently brought one of the u-flycams from the suppliers' ebay store. i too have had some balancing problems, but it does seem a promising little rig.

good video well put together, very informative and does review the product very well.

[rememberthisproducts]

Hi Rick, thank you so much for a very informative video. I am looking for the same reasons as you for a budget steadycam, and I was familiar with this one. If you could follow up with another video after a week or two of practice, that would be great. I currently just invested in a stickypod unit, and am awaiting it's arrival. It looks promising. Well, cherrio and I'm going to keep in touch.

Thanks again,

eric from

Toronto, Canada.

[SimUK]

It looks like a giant 'c clamp' that you'd do woodwork with or something! Would be very interested to know your experience after a few different attempts at using it - I bought a Glidecam 2000 Pro which works well but I find that it suffers from slowly spinning left/right when I'm walking along rather than keeping looking forward.

[esotericsean]

I've seen similar products, but that one looks pretty decent for its price. Thanks for sharing, Rick! :)

[jonfletcher147]

Nice production rick. Informative and well made. Look forward to more reviews. Jon.

[greenjuggler]

very informative, I'll have top check out your poor man steadicam video