Zeapon PONS PT Motorized Pan Head / Zeapon TImelapse Trigger / Zeapon Lab

[@TheRealRichardWong]

It seems these new products are still not widely available yet due to shipping time, but here are a few links for you guys i've got so far. Amazon US: amzn.to/39QMfOy (affiliated link) AU: www.videoguys.com.au/Shop/p/43824/zeapon-timelapse-trigger-af-e1.html UK: www.cinegearpro.co.uk/products/zeapon-timelapse-trigger?_pos=1&_sid=780e5a169&_ss=r

[@mossiegalvin8269]

With some very careful shopping around i was able to get the Micro 2 and the Pons PT for under €700 on ebay

[@alassafcam]

I love to have the same table mat 😍

[@Mike0193Azul]

Fantastically helpful in depth explanation. The graphics and visual examples are always super helpful

[@hanshuang4287]

Woooo! Richard, the tutorial is incredible in detail, the footage is clear with high-quality explanation, thank you! You are always the best!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thanks Hans!! Glad you like the video

[@TheOriginalGregToo]

@TheRealRichardWong do you know of any way to edit waypoints in the app after you've set them? The only way I can find is to delete individual waypoints, or reset all waypoints with the reset button in the top right. The problem I have is when I delete a waypoint the slider then automatically moves to whatever waypoint is remaining, and it slows things down. I'm hoping there's a way where you can just move the slider to a new position and overwrite a waypoint with this new position.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

No sorry not that I know of

[@markshirley01]

Hi - 4:02 does the circular plate you screwed on come with the pan head unit.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Yes Mark it does

[@markshirley01]

@@TheRealRichardWong thanks Richard 👍

[@D_L_J_83]

Hi again Richard. is there a way to move the camera further away from arm to have more clearance for cables? If I intend to shoot with this I would have cables sticking out of the camera ports on the left side

[@TheRealRichardWong]

in theory if you can find an arca swiss plate that extend/shift the camera mount position a bit that would work. But i'm not sure if such thing is available and haven't try that myself

[@jsaintfort9210]

What are some of the best tripod options for the Zeapons pan head?

[@mrshaheedmalik]

Quick tip: You don't have to buy both the Pan Tilt Modules together. If one just needs the pan module, look for the ZEAPON PS-E1.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Yes definitely!!! thanks Shaheed

[@BranRistic]

Thanks Richard, what is the price? Are there any links where to buy, or am I missing the point looking through the official site and not able to find a price?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey Bran Ristic, sorry i think most reseller outside of China still hasn't receive the stock yet, but for the price: Zeapon Timelapse trigger is US$69 PONS Motorized Panhead is US$249 PONS PT Motorized pan head (pan and tilt) is US$589 These are the suggested retail price btw

[@D_L_J_83]

Hi Richard! How much weight can the whole 3-axis motorised slider setup support? The slider itself is up to 4.5kg right? I can’t seem to find the weight of the PT pan head but that would cut down the overall weight the setup can handle

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hi Diego, the maximum vertical payload of each pan head is 4kg. But if you are using the whole system with slider, you need to take into account of all these modules as part of your payload

[@tomdchi12]

Richard - thanks for the in-depth review. One question: will the pan head on the motorized slider work well together for a simple "parallax" move repeating back-and-forth for an interview 2nd camera? Can they move slowly enough to create subtle movement and will they stay synchronized over a longer period of time?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hi Thomas, the slider/panhead can move quite slowly. but hard to say if it's slow enough for your requirement ( i feel it can be slow enough) They will stay in sync over long period of time as they are sync to the waypoints

[@LICENCIASACTIVIDAD]

Excelente!! So, can I use the zeapon trigger in the Lumix S5ii? Is it compatible?? Thank you very much

[@brucel33t2]

Thank you for the excellent review, I've been researching for weeks, everything has pro's and con's but this system looks like the best. I'm surprised I don't see more reviews about it.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Glad it was helpful! Yeah i defintiely agree each system has it's pros and cons. I think biggest cons with the Zeapon is its software/app that is still not very polished and has quite a few bugs. But the hardware is super solid

[@MrExel47]

The trigger seems pretty disappointing. I was expecting the same functionality that qDSLR-Dashboard offers to create a holy grail timelapse. I dosen´t even work without the app! Do you know if it is working without the app when using the new unit of the AXIS Pro?

[@zh27iii47]

thanks for the review. Is it possible to use this device for macro photography in focus stacking mode? Set the distance between frames?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

No, not exactly. I thought the same too and have suggested Zeapon to add a focus stacking mode to the app a while ago. but so far I haven't heard any solid plan to implement it in the near future

[@zh27iii47]

@@TheRealRichardWong very sorry. the implementation of this function would expand the audience of photographers

[@justint8115]

Thanks for the review. Being waiting for a while. I don't need pan and tilt but I'm very interested in the pan head itself. Maybe the trigger too for some timelapse.😎

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Thanks Justin! If you do timelapse and have any zeapon motorized product, it really is a no brainer

[@RonnelCuison]

Any vibration on the footage?

[@PolioVitruvius]

Thanks! Is there any plans for Astro tracking with the app since this is a capable alt azimuth mount and the smart phone would have the gps location?

[@calebwhite681]

fantastic in-depth review sir! Was looking for someone showing the shutter release cable plugged into the PONS unit to make sure that I can trigger the camera shutter that way since the timelapse trigger isn't compatible with a lot of camera bodies. I have a Sony A7S and Canon 6D that I have existing cables for that should work with the PONS PT head, but not Timelapse trigger, which is fine. I know the longest shutter speed I need for my day-to-night timelapses and keep that interval the entire time so I can increase the SS to it as it gets dark and the interval doesn't change.

[@Mastroprimo]

I have watched almost all the review and im keep seeing micro stepping on slow movements with the pan tilt head still thinking if can be used for composit vfx works as whe made with bigger motion control sistems.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Have you been waiting for the Zeapon pan head / tilt head module for a long long time? Are you going to get one of these modules?

[@RodrigoSilvaFilms]

Do recommend use this with Blackmagic Pocket Cameras with cage? Like a 6K Pro?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

I am not sure if the width works ok especially with cage. If it fits then sure I think it would work great

[@nightscapeimages.richard]

Hi Richard, thanks so much for your comprehensive review of all the new features with the Zeapon equipment. I have a couple of questions. Firstly I notice you're using the Nikon Z6 with the Timelapse trigger . .that's my setup as well. I'm having a lot of issues getting the camera interval shooting mode to actually start the slider sequence using the Zeapon Timelapse Trigger. If I manually press the camera shutter button it works as it should but when I start the inbuilt interval shooting mode as you did in this video it doesn't seem to work. Having said that . .it did work on a couple of occasions randomly so I'm wondering if this may be an android app issue ..?? I also discovered that electronic shutter won't work with this device. No issues with the device. .it's a camera issue with flash triggers and electronic shutter .. but I often shoot my timelapse with electronic shutter to save wear and tear on the camera. My second question relates to the Pons Pan head. When initially setting up the A and B waypoints the slider and pan head both go to the correct positions .. but as I extend the time interval for my timelapse, which may be 2 hours or so from point A to point B .. .the pan head doesn't move for the first hour and then suddenly does all the required movement to get to the B waypoint in the second part of the timelapse. The slider does the correct amount of movement but the pan head seems out of sync with it. Have you encountered this .. ??? Perhaps an app issue .. I'm not sure but it's very frustrating. It seems fine at shorter timeframes but I need it to work over multiple hours. I've tried this with all the different modes with the same result. PS: This is obviously using the updated app .. all items are running latest firmware. The vast majority of my timelapse work is nightscape long exposures or day to night sequences so that's why I want to use the timelapse trigger. Any help would be appreciated. Richard

[@TheRealRichardWong]

1. yes i think the current android version has some issues with the time-lapse mode when work with Z6. it has no issue with other cameras (like sony) and it also works ok on the iOS version 2. you are correct. This is due to the limitation of the electronic shutter on Z6 (and most mirrorless cameras) that cannot be used with flash 3. re 2 hours+ time-lapse, i haven't tried that myself. I only tried short period one. but it does sound like another bug in the app. so for the 1 & 3, i think Zeapon most likely can fix that in a new version of app. 2 i don't think it can be fixed as it is a limitation of the camera itself. I would suggest contacting Zeapon and reporting the issues. i know they are working on improving the stability of the app and fixing bugs so if you report to them then they can look into them and hopefully get them fixed in the near future.

[@nightscapeimages.richard]

@@TheRealRichardWong Thanks for looking into it Richard. I'll keep doing some more testing as well. Appreciate your work.

[@mohammad_yazbek]

Hello! Thank you for your video! I received the motorized pan head, and I noticed that both intelligent timelapse and customized timelapse features are not working in the Zeapon Lab app. It tells me, "At least two key points should be set." and the page is not switching. I just want to know if these features can be used with pan head only because if not, I will have to return it back.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hi Mohammed, I was checking that with the Zeapon team but it seems like their after sale team replied your question already? if you have any other questions, feel free ask Zeapon by emailing them [e-mail]

[@mohammad_yazbek]

@@TheRealRichardWong Yes they did and they were amazing! Thank you very much Richard for your tremendous effort. I can't wait to shoot my panned astrolapses!

[@stephanyandreas]

Dear Richard, thanks for the in-depth review and explanation! Sadly my Slider doesn't move at all, when using the Timelapse trigger. I tried all the steps you mentioned - but I'm doing something wrong?! Andy advice?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

So it moves normally, but just not when use with timelapse trigger? is the camera shutter keep firing periodically?

[@stephanyandreas]

---> UPDATE

[@TheRealRichardWong]

@@stephanyandreas A) it depends on your camera. The trigger relies on the camera flash to sync the movement, so if you camera can support flash with electronic shutter, then you can. B) choose an interval that is longer than your exposure duration. so if you exposure will be as long as 8sec, then choose 10sec (a bit higher than your longest exposure time)

[@stephanyandreas]

@@TheRealRichardWong Thank you very much for your quick reply! I really appreciate it Richard. Indeed I now did get it to work properly. But somehow I am confused, because actually I don't know the final exposure time beforehand. I thought, this is actually the idea of the TT?! I thought the slider only moves, whenever a shot is taken - regardless how long it takes (shorter when beginning a scene and longer when it is getting dark e.g.). I have to try it out the next days. Sadly it is raining a lot here in Germany right now... What mode do you use (M or A). Working with a fixed ISO or do you dial in everything manually - but then I guess you have no advantage of the TT? I hope this is my last question - thank you so much for your support. Waiting for my Pons PT Head to arrive :-)

[@PaulMrPKcom]

Hi Richard, the app is not working for me and most other users. I have Android app v 1.03 and firmware v2.5(20211119), the app does not detect the slider. This is huge problem and drawback due to most of important functionality is lost without the app... Thanks for any help I can get.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Is your phone's Bluetooth on? And maybe try reinstall the app and restart the slider

[@PaulMrPKcom]

@@TheRealRichardWong BT does find the slider. Tried to do all that.. old firmware, new firmware, app from Google Plays store, app from their website. Always same problem, the app does not find the slider. There is a lot of people writing about this al lover Internet... Great slider but without the app it's a huge drawback, specially when using 2-3 motors at once. (PS I am on Android 10)

[@TheRealRichardWong]

@@PaulMrPKcom sorry to hear that, I actually never had this problem myself , the slider always connect immediately. I would advise contacting the Zeapon support

[@TheRealRichardWong]

@@PaulMrPKcom another thing I can think of is to find another Android device and give it a try.

[@PaulMrPKcom]

@@TheRealRichardWong Yes! That did the trick, tried on an old Android 8 phone.. But who use Android 8 now ? :) So it means it's not compatible with Android 10.. Well better than nothing. Lets hope Zeapon can manage to get an updated app soon for their own best, they should invest in new app developers.

[@D_L_J_83]

Hi Richard have they updated this to have the ability to remove the pause between waypoints?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

I do not know. let me check with Zeapon and get back to you when i heard back

[@D_L_J_83]

@@TheRealRichardWong thanks!

[@TheRealRichardWong]

@@D_L_J_83 i heard this hasn't been fixed yet :(

[@jesserodriguez143]

Awesome! I just picked up the micro 2 today. Do you know when the pan motor will be available in the US?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Should be very soon I heard like a week or two ? Do you like your micro2?

[@jesserodriguez143]

@@TheRealRichardWong its an awesome slider. I'm surprised at how strong the motor is. And its great that the tripod support sticks are included. I was not expecting that.

[@jcstephenchan_hk]

hi, i can't find the function key on the app about the drives back the straight position after moving ? is it must manually to move ?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

you have to move manually

[@DuncanDimanche-sreview]

great review ! I would have liked to see the pan and tilt in action... on your small action figure for example... and I'm guessing that if you did not post any examples it is not a good sign... am I wrong to think that ? I bought the pan and tilt kit so i'm waiting to receive it and test it out

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hey Duncan, thanks for watching! I've posted a few samples shot with the pan and tilt module at 6:47, 21:48 (you can see the result on the monitor in background) and just the pan head + slider at 3:35 , 4:26 (which uses the same module anyway) I've shot quite a lot more footage shot indoor and outdoor but just can't fit them nicely into the video and don't want to make the video any longer than it is already. I do not have any real issues with the performance of the modules or i would have mentioned (like in some of my previous Zeapon video), My main issue is really about the buggy firmware and app at the moment, which I've also mentioned in the video.

[@CephasNso-ErigoKassetti-ov6vz]

Does this package come with a remote control or phone app?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

There is a phone app

[@barryobrien1890]

Really great video Richard. I will definately get the timelapse trigger as I use the foolography trigger for timelapses as it uses the camera histogram to adjust exposure and it would be really great to have it drive the slider. Any idea when they will post prices or where they are. I am surprised how large and heavy all the pons devices are from manufacturers so zeapon is certainly not oversized. Will pick up one to start. Thanks

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hey Barry, thanks for watching. The suggested retail price for the trigger is US$69. There is currently only UK reseller have it in stock but the US reseller should have them soon like this : amzn.to/39QMfOy (affiliated link btw)

[@santoriniphotography1260]

Hi Richard, your review is great and helps a lot. I start to make the camera mode with the timelapse trigger, everything was worked. But I test it inside my room so when I close the lights the trigger didn't change the exposure. I have my camera in a rear sync as you said and in manual mode, I add all the settings for my timelapse, so when the light will change the trigger will change the settings of my camera for smoother results? With kind regards, Ben.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hi Ben yoy need to be in non manual mode, or at least turn on auto iso so the camera can try to adjust the exposure for you. For me, I would try aperture priority with auto iso on . Hope that helps

[@leemjdaley]

I have the same dislikes, no carry case is an issue, hoping to find a case on Amazon. Glad to know the pause between waypoints is being addressed it makes it unusable at the moment. So far I really like it the price is amazing

[@TheRealRichardWong]

yes. while I can fit in my camera bag, I would love to have a better solution :)

[@jonasdiehl1306]

because of this reason it is still unusable....at the end of 2024.

[@1992M-e3f]

can use it to take full 360 panorama?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

yes you can

[@Miguel_Molina]

what is the VERTICAL load of the pan head when on the arm bracket?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

4kg :) 6:05

[@GeraldBertramPhotography]

Thanks so much for the video! Do you know if we will need the newer Micro 2 Slider Plus to be able to use the PONS PT system or can we use it with the original Micro 2 slider?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey Gerald, i'm 99% sure the original motorized micro 2 can work with the PONS PT system

[@lovettd]

Richard - Nice video.. Can you confirm if the Zeapon Lab app supports Android when used with the PAN motorised head

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Yes it does. But the current Android version is a bit buggy

[@lovettdsouzaexternal8353]

@@TheRealRichardWong Any idea when Zeapon will fix this or is this already fixed

[@TheRealRichardWong]

I heard there was a new version but they still working on more fixes

[@raychew320]

Nice Review Richard ^^, I think the Zeapon Pan Head is bigger size than edelkrone HEADONE? I just like the zeapon slider only , do you think the edelkrone HEADONE can use on the zeapon micro 2 plus slider ? need your advice, planning to order on coming black friday : D

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hey Ray, it might work but i think it would be a terrible idea to do that. Reason is that you'll need to use the two different apps to control the slider and pan head together and it would be really hard to synchronise any movement. one reason why the Zeapon pan head is it's size is because of the high payload limit.

[@MariusVolden]

Watched this video to see If there was a way to remove the pauses between points and two years later it dems they forgot to remove it

[@AustralianImage]

I'm an owner of the original Zeapon Micro 2 and in my view it's the best slider you can get. I've been waiting for the pan motor on its own for some time and unfortunately it's still not available in Australia. I'm glad that you made a comment about the Zeapon Android app. I installed the new app and find it not only buggy, but it's the least intuitive app I've used. The original app, which I still have, is the best app that I've ever used regardless of device and won't get rid of it any time soon. I don't know why Zeapon didn't continue with the old design, with the excellent graphical interface and the time lapse features on a second screen. I was going to release a video this week showing how bad the new app is compared to the old, but decided to hold off on that as I wanted to show something that the Zeapon Micro Slider can do that nothing similar can do and put both apps to the test at the same time. But I implore Zeapon to go back to the old app design.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hi there, i'm also curious about why Zeapon redesign the app completely. there are a few features now not do-able anymore with the new app like adjusting the speed of each waypoint individually. I'll see if i can get some information and the reasons behind from Zeapon.

[@AustralianImage]

@@TheRealRichardWong The speed control is my major complaint including the loss of the excellent visual display via the graphical interface. It was so good and now it's not.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Hey Australian image, did you left me a comment? I saw a notification but when I click it says it's no longer available. I have a lot of disappearing comments recently from different people :/

[@AustralianImage]

@@TheRealRichardWong Yes I did. I don't know what happened to it.

[@AustralianImage]

@@TheRealRichardWong That last one seems to have succeeded. What I said was that overseas manufacturers need to be careful about appointing just a sole local distributor for their gear, I've been waiting weeks for Videoguys to reply with availability of the panning motor on its own. Clearly they are only interested in selling the complete kit, so I got fed up and ordered one via eBay.

[@lettermanian9938]

Great reviews as always, keep up the good work :) I have just purchased a Panasonic S5 w/24-105, mostly for its in-camera astro-friendly features (waiting for the 20mm Sigma to be available too). I really like the idea of the camera controlling the motion gear. Questions: 1. Is a slider necessary, or can I start off with the two motion heads + arm package + TL trigger? 2. Can I use the camera's Exposure Leveling feature during interval shooting instead of Zeapon's? i.e. will the Zeapon heads still work in camera-controlled mode if I don't use other app settings? thanks for any reply to this. Any chance of Zeapon adding star tracking to their feature list?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

1. Yes you can start with the head/arm package 2. Not too sure if i really understand your queestion. But if the exposure time would change a lot, then you need to use the Zeapon Trigger to make sure Zeapon app is controlling the head/arm works correctly Re Star tracking. I had some discussions with them before about that. I believe they were interested but whether it is doable (as it would require very precise movement control) or whether it will be implemented, we will have to wait.

[@lettermanian9938]

@@TheRealRichardWong Thank you Richard, I appreciate the answer. I think my question is this: can I program motion settings to the heads while using the Timelapse Trigger in Camera-controlled mode?

[@TheRealRichardWong]

Yes you can.

[@BenMilford]

Their app unfortunately requires location and storage permissions on Android. I really like the hardware but don't like the implications of them having access to my location.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hey Ben, i would suggest sending this feedback to Zeapon and let them know about your concerns

[@BRIONIDESIGN]

Hi , I just bought Micro E800 slider and Pons PT pan head . You forget to mention that regardless of speed that you set up in app slider and pan head are moving always the same constant speed at least in my Android app.). There is no 10% or 33% .So after endless numbers of try's I ditched the app and control pan head with left hand finger and rail with right hand and one finger and this is the ONLY way that you can get any meaningful control of this devices.Maybe if DJI buys this silly company one day we will be able to use mobile phone app.

[@TheRealRichardWong]

hi Goran, the Android app is quite buggy as i mentioned in the review. What you mentioned is one of those. It does work, but not always. The iOS version works much better. I'm hoping Zeapon can fix all those issues and get a more stable/bug free app for us soon!