Roxant Pro Camera Stabilizer - Top 5 Beginner Mistakes

[@davidsandovalrios7952]

Im from Mexico and you are the only one who teached me how to balance a stabilizer in the correct way, now my shots are amazing. Thanks for your high quality videos and i hope that your number of subscribers rise up.

[@OtisOriginals]

I'm so glad you found my videos and that they were able to help you. Please keep shooting and making amazing shots, and thank you for your comment.

[@big3littlechannel169]

Great video as always! Perhaps a video about some of the dos and don'ts of movements while filming with the stabilizer would be helpful. You the man!

[@OtisOriginals]

Thanks! I'm working on producing a video like that now, but unfortunately I'm in the middle of shooting a TV series that's keeping me very busy. But as soon as I get some free time I'll get it shot and posted.

[@gloriafolasadeabraham7792]

Don't stop. You got me there..1 & 5. I just love this.

[@kearnsey64]

I bought this on amazon and is amazing. However, knowing how it reacts everytime you adjust one thing is the key. Otis here has 2 great videos explaining how to do it. I opted to buy some large fender washers instead of using the supplied weights and had great results. Took hike in woods and was blown away how much better $50 makes your films.

[@OtisOriginals]

Hi Charles. I'm so glad you found my videos helpful and that you were able to get some great footage. It just takes a little time to learn, and each time you use it the whole process gets faster. Happy shooting, and thanks for watching.

Great video!!! So many people have been doing this wrong... Im still having issues Im using the Sony a5100 to get it balanced, Spent about 40 minutes lat night.

[@OtisOriginals]

Hey Brett. Dang, I'm so sorry you're still having problems with the balance. I'm working hard to finish this new tutorial on balancing small and lightweight cameras...hoping to have it online next week. In the meantime, can you describe the problems you're having? Can you not get the 2 second drop time?...is your drop time too slow or too fast? Does the stabilizer feel too top heavy or too bottom heavy? I really want to help you get it figured out.

[@EBL11518]

Awesome video, you should have more subs, nice content and very clearly Cheers from Chile

[@OtisOriginals]

Thank you for your kind words, and thanks for watching!

[@eamchheng_sim]

I use the stabilizer for a canon 70D and I can’t balance it

[@onemprod]

I love your tutorials 😍😍

[@OtisOriginals]

Thank you. And thanks for watching!

[@marvavlogs]

I’m shooting with my nikon d5100 and still can’t balance it esp its screw that holds the camera is too long thats why my camera is a bit wobbly. Do you have any recommendations on how to solve that?

[@crackstoneproductions4054]

Add sort of a washer, so as to shorten the screw

[@Nate20]

THANKS AGAIN OTIS

[@davidchrismansyah7550]

true, i got strap on my camera... thanks for the tips!

[@OtisOriginals]

David Chrismansyah Yes, remove the camera strap before you balance...it will make it so much easier. Thanks for watching!

[@robbykidman]

thanks. i also thought the heavier the bottom, the more stable.

[@OtisOriginals]

Yes, that's a very common mistake...you'd think that by having the bottom heavier it would make the rig more stable. But it will actually cause the stabilizer to swing wildly and "Pendulum" any time you make a move. Just make sure to balance it to get your 2 second drop time and you should be good to go. Thanks for watching!

[@WoogieG]

I would love to see some simple footage. I'm curious to see what this stabilizer can do when properly balanced

[@OtisOriginals]

I'm working on it. Until then you can see a few samples in my video "Trimming for Headroom"...right around the 3 minute mark in the video. kzbin.info/www/bejne/rGXHlGCZoJWBbpo I'll get the other sample footage up as soon as possible. Thanks for watching.

[@Bakadragon]

you can add some chill music in your video

[@vg4223]

I have a topic I would like you to cover....how can you get low, close to the ground shots with the Roxant Pro Stabilizer?

[@OtisOriginals]

Vane Gifton Great question. What you are asking about is what we call Low Mode with a regular Steadicam, where we basically turn the entire rig upside down and rebalance it so that now the camera is slightly heavier than the counter weights..which are now on top. Since the camera is now upside down you either have to flip your image in post, or use a cage so that you can mount your camera right side up. The Roxant Stabilizer was never designed to operate in Low Mode, but there might be a way. You'd have to still use it in the upright configuration, but mount the camera on the bottom..where the counter weights are currently. And move the counter weights to the top, where your camera would normally be. Balancing would be tricky as now you want the bottom (the camera) to be level, so you'd have to adjust the counter weights (which are now on the top platform) to compensate. Perhaps mounting the camera to a sliding base plate and then attaching that to the bottom of the rig would help. The only major issue I can see is how to operate at that point. You'll either have to bend way over or duck walk to get the whole rig close to the ground. And unless you have an adjustable LCD screen on your camera you're going to have a difficult time seeing your image. I'm not saying it's not possible...just could be very challenging. Let me look into it, and if it seems feasible I'll do a video on it. Thanks for watching and for your question.

[@francescapavino2097]

THANK YOU

[@OtisOriginals]

You're welcome. And thank you for watching.

[@altermann1ify]

There's one thing I didn't see you address. That is the little knob that controls how loose/tight the hand grip thing is. If it's tight, the whole device doesn't move at all. Loose, and it moves (mine tends to squeak quite a bit). Is it supposed to be loose? Tight? Somewhere in between? I did everything in the video, and my footage looks better, but not as good as could be. It's level and the drop time is around 2 seconds. While moving, however, there seems to be wobble, especially on the sides, but not so much up and down.

[@OtisOriginals]

I Troy. I thought I addressed that question in this video?...But I could be wrong...I forget things as I get older...haha. To answer your question, the only time that screw/knob should be tight is when you're screwing in or unscrewing your handle from the bottom of the top section of the stabilizer...in those holes where you can move the handle forward or backwards. It should then be loosened when you are shooting so that the gimbal (the metal ball head) is free to move. You should have added a drop or two of regular 3-in-1 oil to the ball head when you first received your Roxant Pro, as the stabilizer comes unlubricated from the factory...but only a drop or two. If you add more than that it could gum up the gimbal and it won't move freely. That should also help with that squeaking. As for the wobbling, try experimenting with your drop time. I give the suggestion of 2 seconds as a starting point, but depending on your camera's weight you might need a little bit slower or faster drop time...anywhere from 1.5 to 2.5-3 seconds. I find I need a slightly different drop time when I use different cameras. Thanks for your questions...I hope I was able to answer them for you. And thanks for watching.

[@StephenStewartSydney]

thank you

[@HipGuitar]

What happened ? No more videos?

[@OtisOriginals]

So Sorry. My current network TV series has me working 65+ hours per week, so i haven't had much free time for the past year. I have a hiatus coming up soon so I'm hoping to get some more videos produced and uploaded. Stay tuned!!

[@HipGuitar]

@@OtisOriginals No worries man ! Thanks for replying ! All the best with your business !

[@destefanisyalmar]

Why there are subtitle in Dutch language!?

[@OtisOriginals]

Yalmar Destefanis Hmm, I have no idea...I didn't put the subtitles in the video. Maybe another viewer provided and added them. But thanks for letting me know about it.

[@rhov1422]

do you have any tips to zoom/focus using a dslr and this stabilizer? I know you are suposed to set this up before balancing, but sometimes you have to adjust this on the go. thanks!

[@OtisOriginals]

Hi bob. Yeah, focusing and zooming is difficult on any manual stabilizer, since you can't touch the lens or camera without affecting stability. On full size Steadicam rigs we use wireless focus motors, but they are expensive and add weight to the rig. The best thing you can do is use a wider lens with a deep f-stop to give the deepest depth of field for focus. As for adjusting the zoom which changes the balance, the best advice I can give is to practice your balancing so that you can make adjustments quickly. Again, we do this on full size Steadicam rigs when we have to change prime lenses that are all different weights...and we have to rebalance in mere seconds. Thanks for your question and thanks for watching.

[@morgan.lucero]

When I make slight adjustments to the position of the camera, it tilts the other way. Is my rig too heavy? And if so, is there something I can do to add more weight than the weights that come with it?

[@OtisOriginals]

Hello Gavino. Yes, it sounds like your camera might be a little bit too heavy. What camera and lens are you using, and do you know how much they weigh? I've had luck purchasing a longer 1/4"-20 bolt at the hardware store to replace the original bolt that holds the included weights, and then adding some large washers or even some nuts to that bolt (In addition to the included weights). You can also try finding some small pieces of scrap steel and just taping that to the bottom of the stabilizer. What you are trying to do is add weight to the bottom of the stabilizer to counter-balance the heavier camera that you are using. I'm trying out some screw-on weights that I've recently found and will make a new video showing how to use them if they work out properly. I hope that answered your question, and if it didn't please let me know.

[@marselgregoric]

I have an iphone 7 plus and i can’t balance it.. i have only one weight. Should the weight be heavier or lighter them the device?

[@OtisOriginals]

Marsel Gregorič Hi Marsel. You probably have too much weight on the bottom of your stabilizer. For an iPhone you should try the smallest weight first, and if that's still too heavy try replacing the weight with a few washers from the hardware store. My video "How to Balance Any Camera in 5 Minutes" will explain everything you need to know about balancing your Roxant Pro kzbin.info/www/bejne/r6DcYpmlac-trtE. Thanks for your question.

[@schmautzi.filming]

thank you sooooo much for this video it helped me a lot!!!

[@OtisOriginals]

You're very welcome. I'm so glad it helped you. Please let me know if you have any questions, and thanks for watching.

[@ArtInMotionStudios]

do you have any footage shot with the stabilizer all set up ??

[@OtisOriginals]

Hi. Most of the footage i have shot with this is copyrighted (I work on major network TV shows as a camera operator), so I am not able to post the footage here. I am working on taking shots of friends or just random things and putting together a video to show what you can achieve. As soon as my work slows down a little I hope to get it posted. Thanks for your question.

[@moonkitten3758]

@@OtisOriginals can't wait to see it in action when it's well balanced! subscribed for the sole purpose of not missing that video.

[@noChillnoFiltertvTHEEOG]

I just got one of these not a roxant but does it matter?

[@OtisOriginals]

noChill noFiltertv All manual stabilizer will balance differently, depending on the brand and design, but they all use the same laws of physics. Without knowing which stabilizer you bought I can't tell you if it will balance the same as the Roxant Pro.

[@noChillnoFiltertvTHEEOG]

Yea it has absolutely no name on it but it's pretty decent I guess

[@sujanreshmi8183]

Is it good for canon 1300d?

[@kearnsey64]

You can balance ANY camera with patience

[@avielvaknin2004]

go pro 5 problem!!!

[@OtisOriginals]

Hi. What seems to be the problem? I'm guessing that you're having difficulties balancing because the GoPro is a very lightweight camera. In order for stabilizer to balance properly you need to have a minimum amount of weight up top (the camera). You probably need to add some weight to the camera, or at least to the top part of the stabilizer. You can use large washers and a bolt, or even just tape some washers or weights (coins, scrap metal, anything that's slightly heavy), or what I've done is bought an aluminum housing for my GoPro...that adds just enough weight to get a good balance. Please let me know if that's the issue that you're having, of if you need some additional help. And thanks for watching.

[@ShanKochiArtist]

thank you sir