 Mobile gimbals like this one have become very popular for video creators, particularly those looking to create dynamic looking shots with their smartphone. They offer incredible smooth footage and are portable and offer a range of features to make video creation as easy as possible. In a previous video, you all enjoyed the challenge I made of comparing mobile gimbal to handheld footage. But what if we would compare mobile gimbal to a slider? Don't get me wrong, a slider is awesome, but can the mobile gimbal do the same camera movement as a slider? Well, there is a key difference between the two and in this video I'll explore the pros and cons of a gimbal and a slider to help you decide which one is best for your video project. What's up guys, Bennett here with SmartphoneFilmmaking.com and today I will be challenging myself to try and create the same shot using both a mobile gimbal and a slider to compare how each performs. I'll use music from Epidemic Sound who is our sponsor of today's video to create the final edit. The camera I'll be using is the iPhone 14 Pro using the default camera app. I'll be using the Insta360 Flow which has become my favorite go-to gimbal. If you haven't seen my in-depth review of it, I highly recommend you check it out after this video. And this over here is the Movie Maker 2 by Grip Gear which I think is the most affordable and compact smartphone slider. Now it's not the most high-quality slider out there, but it does its job and for the price it's actually quite a good option. I'll also be using a tripod with the slider. This way I have more options when creating my shots. Now one key difference between mobile gimbal and a slider is the type of camera movement each can achieve. While a mobile gimbal allows for greater flexibility, a slider restricts two linear movements. Therefore, in this challenge I'll be focusing on movements that are possible with both devices. So with that said guys, let's get started with the challenge. You ready for this? I am. Let's do this, let's do this! Or I think I'd rather just enjoy the sun and just lay down here. I don't know. So the first shot we're going to create is a push-in shot and we're going to start off with the slider. I've already set it up on my tripod. The camera settings I'll be using is 4k 25 frames per second. I'll be using the wide angle lens for now because if I use the ultra wide angle lens, the tracks will be in the frame. I could move it forward a little bit, but then I only have a small amount of movement. And I also have some foreground over here just to make the camera movement more apparent. I'm going to start by setting focus on this plant over here. I like having the background out of focus sometimes. So I think this is going to be an interesting shot. And then starting from here, I'm going to create the push-in shot. So I'm going to start recording and slowly push in. So yeah that was basic push-in shot. We're now going to move over to the gimbal. So I'm going to shoot in 60 frames per second. I want to take advantage of the slow motion. And again I'm going to set and lock focus on this leaf over here. What's great about using a gimbal is that I can create longer camera movements and with a slider. So let's do that. I'm going to start recording and then slowly push forward. Now when operating a mobile gimbal, there is a lot to focus on simultaneously. You must be aware of your body posture because how you move with your body also determines how stable your footage is. You also need to focus on your composition to make sure your subject is positioned correctly while you create your camera movement. For beginners, this can be very challenging. With a slider, however, you can set up the shot and let the camera do the work. And because I can automate the camera movement, I can focus on composition while creating a smooth constant shot. The next shot we're going to create is the crane shot, where the camera will be starting at a low position and then moving upwards to reveal the location. And we're going to start with the slider. You can see that I already set it up and actually took me a while to you know get everything right to make sure the horizon is level that nothing's off. Again, I'm going to shoot in 4k 25 frames per second. And before I start recording, I'm going to set and lock focus over here so that no changes occur while recording. And also when moving behind this rock, I don't want to focus to shift. So once I have that, I've set the speed to nine, which is the highest. And I can just simply press the record button and then select the arrow. And then it will do the work for me. And while it's doing it, I'll just enjoy the view. Now I'll be checking the framing, of course. But yeah, this really makes my work easier. So right now it's going to move up. And I think this looks really nice. Oh yeah, that's a pretty nice reveal shot right there. So we're now going to do the same thing with a gimbal. I'm going to choose 4k 60 frames per second. I'm going to take advantage of the slow motion. I can actually use the trigger button over here to lock all motors. This way the camera won't move in any direction as I move up with the camera. Now since the tilt range is limited on this gimbal, I'll have to do a side grip mode and then move upwards like this. So this is going to be my end position. I'm going to set and lock focus. And I'm going to hold the trigger button, start recording. And then I'm going to move down and then slowly move upwards. So let's now create a detailed shot. I want to start very close and then move backwards to sort of have a wider field of view of this branch. I'm going to shoot in 4k 25 frames per second. I'm going to leave the focus in auto because I want this branch to be continuously in focus as I move backwards. Now currently it's out of focus because I'm very close with the lens. What I'm also going to use is the two times telephoto lens. This way the track won't be in the frame as I move backward. I'm going to start recording and let's see how it looks like. Wow. This looks amazing. Look at that shot. It's crazy. Nice one. So this time I'm going to shoot in 60 frames per second. So this is going to be my end position. I'm going to hold the trigger button and I'm going to place the camera over here and then I'm going to start recording and then slowly move backward and go. This is really difficult. When creating detailed shots with a gimbal it isn't easy to move in a perfect straight line without having other motions involved. Because it's a three axis gimbal it doesn't absorb up and down movement so you will have to compensate for that with your body and this is quite difficult even for me who films a lot on a gimbal. However what additionally helps and I always say that is by filming in 60 frames per second you can slow down and smoothen the shot making those unwanted motion less noticeable. With the slider I don't have this issue and it clearly has the advantage here. I can be more precise because it moves on tracks creating a perfect straight line and I can repeat the same shot as many times as I like. There is also no need to film in slow motion because like I said I can control the speed of the slider. Okay so while I'm having my lunch break let's take a moment to talk about our sponsor of today's video which are my friends at Epidemic Sound. So if you don't know it already music and sound play a huge role because they enhance the viewing experience and will make your videos stand out. Choosing high quality music and sound that aligns with the tone and feel of your video goes a long way. All the b-roll shots that you've seen so far have been edited with Epidemic Sound's music a really great platform with an extensive music library and sound effects that suits any video project. With their user friendly search function you can easily find music by genre, mood and theme. Additionally they provide curated playlists and albums to simplify your search. You can even find similar tracks to the ones you have already discovered and if you don't want to download the full track you also have the option to download stems which are individual parts of the song. Because I'm filming at a beautiful location here in Switzerland I will add a song that really brings the atmosphere to life by choosing a more calm classical song. I will also add sound effects like nature sounds such as wind birds and leaves to make the video more realistic and immerse and you also don't have to worry about copyright issues because Epidemic Sound handles everything. Now guys make sure to use the link in the video description below so that you can explore Epidemic Sound's music and try it out for 30 days for free this way you can test out their music platform risk-free while still being able to download and publish as many tracks as you like. So with that said I'm going to finish my second sandwich and then we're going to continue with the video. We have two shots left and after that we will compare both so that you can see the difference so you want to watch me eat. Lunch was great let's now continue with our next shot which is the slide shot. You can see I've already set it up we have foreground over here which adds some depth as well as emphasizes the camera movement. I'm going to use the standard wide angle lens in 4k 25 frames per second and what's great about creating a slide shot with a slider is that the tracks are not in the frame so I can add as many tracks as I like to create a really long slide shot but I think this will be more than enough. I'm going to start by setting and locking the focus and exposure and then I'm going to set my A point or starting point which is right over here and once I'm ready I'm going to start recording and action and this looks really smooth and nice because the speed is also constant and I can really just focus on the framing and if I want to I could just walk this path to add a subject in my frame but for now we're just going to keep it like this. So this is going to be my end position I'm going to set and lock focus I'm going to hold the trigger button and set it to side grip mode and then I'm going to and then from here I'm going to create the slide shot so let's start and go. Okay so I think that was really fast but luckily I can slow down the footage. Now something else I want to mention is that most mobile gimbals have a low payload capacity this means using heavier iphone like the pro max case and a third party lens can often result in the gimbal not operating properly so with the inset 360 flow I'm limited to a payload of 300 grams so using it with a rig and a heavy lens would often result in the motors struggling so the only solution would be to upgrade to a more powerful gimbal such as the crane m3 by whereas the movie maker 2 has a payload of 750 grams supporting heavier setups even allowing you to mount a DSLR camera so depending on the type of shoot you're doing a slider could be the better option. The last shot we're going to create is the low shot so I've already unmounted the slider off the tripod to place it on the ground and you can see that we have this nice path over here and I'm going to shoot using the ultra wide angle lens in 4k 25 frames per second and I've angled the camera a little bit upwards this way I can create a longer moving shot so again I'm going to set and lock focus we're going to start recording and then I'm going to press the arrow key and this looks really nice now it's going to push backwards might even use that shot or you can see it's going in a very straight line you can now see the tracks so I'm going to stop recording so I set it to 4k 60 frames per second using the ultra wide angle lens again I'm going to set and lock focus and I'm going to place the camera upside down and I'm going to hold the trigger button this way all motors are locked and then I'm going to start recording and then slowly push forward so you can see that I'm holding my breath while doing it and it isn't as easy as using a slider but we'll see how the results are so now that we have all of our shots let's compare them so that you can see the difference starting with the slider let's now look at the shots taken on a gimbal I think both shots came out pretty well except for that detail shot with the gimbal so when should you use a mobile gimbal one of the main reasons to use a gimbal is when you're creating content on the go if you need to capture footage while walking around or running for example a gimbal will help you maintain that steady shot a gimbal is also ideal for capturing complex camera movements such as creating those parallax effects and another situation in which a gimbal is useful is when filming events such as weddings or concerts a mobile gimbal really allows you to move around and capture different angles and perspectives as with a slider you're more likely to miss the moment because it takes a lot of time to set it up action shots are another scenario in which a gimbal is available tool if you need to follow a subject while they're moving a gimbal can help you create smooth fluid shots without any jarring movements however there are some downsides to using a gimbal as well you know these up and down movements can be more apparent especially when shooting detail shots or using longer focal lengths additionally using a gimbal requires you to focus on so many different things such as body posture camera movement and composition you may also need to shoot in slow motion to smoothen the shot and avoid jittery movements now I usually bring a gimbal with me as I can quickly capture moments and get smooth looking shots more easily when I'm in a hurry or don't have the time to set up a slider so when should you use a camera slider a slider is great for creating smooth and precise shots I see this especially useful for product type videos where having that perfect linear movement can make your video look more professional also when filming detail shots a slider can help you create that shake free shot because the closer you get the more difficult it is to counteract the motion with your body when using a gimbal other video shoots such as real estate interview and time lapses are a great use case of a slider also if you're working alone like me and want to capture yourself in motion a slider can help add that dynamic movement to your footage without requiring extra help one of the main con of using a slider is the limited camera movements additionally a slider requires a longer setup time which may slow your shooting process finally while a slider is convenient to bring along especially the one from grip gear as you can break it down it does add more weight to your gear because usually you would also bring a tripod with you to have more option when positioning your camera overall whether you choose a gimbal or a slider ultimately comes down to what type of content you are creating and the specific shots you are looking to capture both are great options for creating dynamic shots each delivers a different look and feel I don't believe that a gimbal can replace a slider both are different tools and each has its strengths it is like a scissor and a knife a scissor will do better at cutting paper while a knife is better for cutting vegetables now learning how to use these filmmaking tools is just one aspect of creating great looking videos there's so much more that goes into it and you've seen it yourself so if you want to learn how to film professionally with your phone then make sure to check out smartphonefilmmaking.com the link will be in the video description below other than that guys I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and I will see you the next time you guys take care