The New Wave of Stabilizers

At NAB this year a come company called Freeflysystems showed off a new type of stabilizer that really turned some heads. Compared to the traditional Steadicam this stabilizer was smaller, lighter and could be completely handheld. No vest required. It uses a gimbal similar to what is seen on many quadcopter stabilization systems for video cameras and DSLR's. In this post we will take a look at three companies setting a new trend in camera stabilization.

First off  Freeflysystems

This company was the first to get peoples attention when they announced the Movi M10 and M5 stabilized gimbal systems. Check out the videos below to see what M10 and M5 are all about:

   

   

    

The M10 is available for pre-order and will start shipping on August 15th 2013 at price of
$14,995 US.


 

The next system we will take a look at is the G2 and G5 DEFY products from company called Relentless Inc:

Their stabilizers come in at much cheaper price point however with much less payload capacity as well.  The DEFY G2 can hold only up to 2lbs however this is perfect for the Blackmagic Pocket Camera or the Panasonic GH3. The DEFY G5 Can hold up 5lbs, perfect or Full body DSLR's. They are also currently working a system that can handle even larger payloads for cameras such as the RED Scarlet and Epic.

       
       DEFY G5 Preorder Launch from DEFY Gimbal on Vimeo.


Here is a link to their Vimeo page where you can see the units in action.
DEFY G2/G5 Videos    

The DEFY G2 will cost $2,300 US and the G5 will come in at $3,200 US. The G2 is currently shipping and the G5 is expected to ship this month.


The third company we will take a look at is Kickstarter project by Jesse Spaulding:

Jesse has been working on a stabilization system since 2011, his product is The Ghost and there is great video that explains the whole system in great detail.

         

Here is a link to his Kickstarter page: The Ghost   
His unit will hold up to 3.5lbs and will cost $1,995 US


So these are just three of the companies making waves in the new stabilization industry. There are many others currently working on similar products as well. I am sure you will see some sort answer from Steadicam and Glidecam very soon as these new breed of stabilizers gain steam in the hands of film makers around the world.