One of the most difficult and inefficient things i have had to encounter during my move to video production was stability, movement and mobility. Having decided to stay in the small camera arena, as most users know, encompasses one of the biggest problems filmmakers today have to overcome i.e. balancing camera movements with adequate stability whilst maintain ample freedom of movement. I have read and researched numerous articles and reviews and spent wasteful amounts of money on cheap and cheerful methods including two ridiculously cheap but also inadequate solutions from the Great Bloom himself. Both shoulder mounts were sadly not the solution for me (though it may suffice for many others). 

Camera stabilisers comes in all shapes, sizes, costs and ultimately varying degrees of 'stability and look.' Some costs tens of thousands and produce flight-like gliding movements like the much raved steadycam systems with sophisticated knobs and gymbals balancing and counter-balancing weight distributions with even more complicated electronics whilst others cost under a tenner for  simple DIY PVC pipe solutions and masking tape. What a world we live in. I like many dont have a money tree in my back yard producing tonnes of legal tender to acquire the high end stuff nor do i have any need for such things yet. 

Whilst on my quest for the ultimate value for money product, I encountered two products that seemed to be ideal. One was a 'steadycam-like' product called the Sanda100 @ www.sanda100.com and the other is Manfrotto's Fig Rig @ services.manfrotto.com/figrig/. I will not talk about the italian gizmo yet as I have not yet personally tried it but it seems full of promise. I will however talk about the Fig Rig because i recently ordered one in based on the logical physics of the technology behind its innovation. 

Lets talk about the physics first. Camera stabilisation is based on two separate methodologies based on the same principle of momentum where the reaction (force) is equal and opposite to the load multiplied by distance to the turning point (fulcrum). The steadycam works with this principle by using gymbals/counterweights to equalise the moment of a camera against a point (fulcrum) thus giving the camera POV a free-floating look. The Fig Rig works on the same principle using opposing forces (multiplied by the holding point to fulcrum) on either side of the camera (fulcrum) to overcome the moment produced by the camera thus giving the camera a solidly held and stable POV. The two looks are very different and have very different movements. The steadycam method produces very fluid but yet quite unprecise camera movements because of this floating method whilst the Fig Rig produces a shoulder-mount camera look with the movement possiblities of a hand-held handycam. 

Although i do not have a steadycam of my own yet, i have however had opportunities to use a friend's Merlin and from my experience so far.. they are a hassle to set up. Takes 5 minutes just to balance it right.. another minute to keep it pointing where you want it and ermm.. the right arm of Hercules. The FG on the other hand takes about 15 secs to lock and load. Also, having a Manfrotto Tripod, allows me to quickly swap from tripod to the FG in seconds. 

Now, to compare the pros and cons of both.

Ultrasmooth gliding movement

Very smooth on running shots

Has Low Mode accessories for low level shooting

Looks cool and sophisticated 

Very slow to setup

Heavy to handhold as almost 100% of weight on one arm (unless you are fortunate enough to have the vest arm system)

Imprecise camera movement, usually slow

Direction of POV can be easily lost if operator movement is irratic and/or susceptible to wind

Unable to change or move rapidly from one subject to another through high speed movements

Unable to shoot vertically upwards or downwards or rotate quickly for special movements or dutch tilts

Difficult to add and remove accessories without affecting balance and re-setting equilibrium point.

Low Mode shooting requires re-setup and balancing

Cannot focus/adjust settings on the fly without proper remote controls

 

Very high rate of movement in any direction and speed in all horizontal, lateral, rotational AND forward/backward axis!!!

Weight distributed on both hands

Very quick setup (unlock, slide)

Frame allows mounting of mics, lights, monitors etc quickly and easily

Stable Shoulder-mount look stabilisation (some call it 'the organic look')

Low level shooting is matter of changing hand position

Not affected by wind

Light-weight (feels but can take its toll if held over long periods)

Manual control settings possible

Cannot be set down on its own with camera (camera needs to be removed)

Looks like a steering wheel and ultimately operator looks ermm.. 

Not as smooth in look as the steadycam especially when running

 

Personal usage opinion:

I prefer the Fig Rig. Why? I rather give up the ultrasmooth flying look for more control over my camera movements. For very fast and creative camera movements in any situation, nothing beats this Rig. I can pan almost 270 degrees and stop in an instance precisely framing your subject without hesitation or overshoot. I can move from a low level POV to above the head POV in one movement. I can rotate the framing. In run and gun situations, i can be shooting a subject now and another subject behind me under 2 secs and another vertically above the next. One of the most important thing I have discovered recently is that I can angle the camera of its axis (towards my left) so I can manually focus/control aperture and zoom fast whilst bracing the wheel against my upper left arm and elbow whilst maintaining an acceptable degree of stability (note: I also have a Libec Zoom controller mounted so I can simultaneously focus and zoom too.) The frame itself helps the lone videographer control lighting bounce in virtually any direction as opposed to the vertical forward and backwards on the onboard camera mount. This is extremely important for me. 

And probably most importantly, it costs a lot less than a steadycam system. 

Cheaper DIY alternatives are available but at this point having bought and used the Manfrotto version, I have no regrets. The frame itself is as rigid as it gets and I am confident it will securely hold my mics, lights etc without fear of the tubes breaking or bending. 

My 2 cts. 

 

This review is just to add to the lack of reviews on the Fig Rig and allow others a more comprehensive comparison of stabilizers out there. Its a personal point of view and I'm not paid by anyone to do this (though i wouldnt mind being given freebies and the opportunity to test out new products)

 

 Prelim Test 1

Merlin vs Fig Rig Demo