Gimbal vs Handheld: Mastering Cinematic Camera Movement

[00:00:00]there's a ton of videos on YouTube about gimbal  vs handheld this one's different I'm not going to tell you which one is better or which one I  prefer because both are equally important instead I'm going to explain the when and why behind  Gimbal and handheld filming so that you can make an intentional choice about using the right  tool in the right scenario we'll do a comparison by shooting the same scene with both and explain  the motivation behind it My Philosophy towards gimbals is pretty much the same as My Philosophy  towards slow motion if you overuse it or use it without motivation it distracts more than anything  I always opt for natural frame rates first and only use slow motion when properly motivated  but we're not here to talk about frame rates with handouts it's exactly the same I naturally  go for handheld first until I can justify a reason for using the gimbal what are these reasons  I make decisions based on two factors feeling and camera movement camera movement can be broken  down into two broad categories motivated movement an unmotivated movement motivated movement is when  the camera has a reason to move our subject is moving from the door to the couch and the only way  to keep up is to move the camera in a way that she stays in frame an unmotivated movement is when the  camera moves beyond the movement of the subject and this is either for dynamic effect or to reveal  something like in this case a pullback shows where the model is going any motivated movement that  covers a significant distance generally works better on a gimbal because it takes attention  away from the camera moving and focuses more on the movement of the subject it's important to  nail the movement and framing because if you miss a beat it immediately becomes a distraction in  this case I framed the subject leaving space for her to move in the opposite direction and only  when she settles to be correct more to the rule of thirds a good example is the sideways tracking  shot of the hurdles the golf cart wasn't able to keep up with the speed of the athlete so there's  only a small we know of usable footage because the moment we fall behind the attention is on  the camera that can't give up this shot would be super shaky handout and they are isolated  cases where it would not be a distraction but more about that later if there's any need to  track a subject over a distance a gimbal is a strong consideration but where does handheld fit  in handheld works great for Motivated movement if the camera doesn't have to move over distance but  rather track an object or Movement by tilting or panning tracking objects or body movements are  much easier to capture handout especially on close-ups these are still considered as motivated  movements because the camera has to keep up with what's important in the frame with unmotivated  movement my choice is largely influenced by the type of project and ultimately feeling but first  let's focus on the type of project consider these two shots one shot handout and one on a gimbal  the gimbal one can easily go for a marketing video selling a product the clean movement has a  commercial feel to it the handheld shot although the same movement pushing forward feels completely  different and would be much better suited for story based content like a short film or  documentary for marketing based content I prefer to do most of my unmotivated movements on a  gimbal because it's clean and neutral and doesn't communicate a feeling other than Dynamic movement  which can be pleasing to look at for story based content handheld is the winner because it has  the ability to communicate in motion with more accuracy which brings me to the most important  factor feeling take this example from a short film I DP'd on with Reilin Joey in the beginning  of the story we're using a gimbal to track the character as he hears something at the door  we're still not sure who or what it is so the gimbal shot is neutral and clean and allows  us to track him all the way as he gets closer what our characters see scares them so much that  he immediately looks for a weapon on the floor and here shooting handheld creates the feeling of  tension and angst the rapid shaky camera enhances the feeling in this moment something that would  have been impossible with a gimbal in the same way we established the second character with  the gimbal which makes her come across calm and clinical upon arrival but when she leaves at  the end she's filled with emotion and regret again the handheld shot is motivated to complement her  feelings going back to this handheld shot in the kitchen instead of the normal happy commercial  shot our subject has an emotional response bad news perhaps either way the imperfect movement  of shooting handout complements her emotion a lot better than a smooth gimbal shot what can we  learn from this shooting handheld has the ability to communicate certain emotions like tension or  uneasiness it can also give the viewer a more immersive experience almost as if they're right  there in a moment observing this is a product of camera breathing or as some will say the handheld  look now before I carry on I want to take a moment to thank the sponsor of this video musicbed I've  been using musicbed for over 10 years now which is why I can confidently say that it's the  absolute best platform to license music my main reason would have to be because of the vast  amount of unique artists available don't you just hate it when clip starts playing and the first  thing that comes to mind is oh no not this song again everyone always uses this song with over  1 000 authentic artists musicbed has over 40 000 high quality songs to choose from when I say  high quality I mean the highest level production value out there from well-known artists to  ones you've never heard of I generally prefer someone saying wow who is the artist the site  is incredibly easy to use with amazing curated 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creates  more energy than a perfectly steady gimbal shot instead of a steady push with a gimbal up the  stairs I went for a shaky handheld shot because the feeling is intense and complements the energy  of that specific film yet in the same form for the opening scene I used the gimbal the music hasn't  started yet and we're just hearing Ambient sound the gimbal is the perfect choice for the shot  because of the smooth movement we're focusing on what's around the corner where a shaky camera  would distract once the Music Drops majority of the shots in the film are all handheld some  tracking movements and a few unmotivated movements yet the moment we get to the hurdles the gimbal  was the only option looking at these two factors I'm playing them against each other with feeling  always being more important feeling is dictated by the following story emotion music and pace if  you want to immerse your audience into a scene go hand out and let the camera breathe if you want  to create more emotion handout will translate easier than a gimbal energetic music Fast Cuts  handheld is the way on the flip side if you want to make sure the camera movement doesn't distract  in any way go for a gimbal or a slider or any tool that will allow you to put a focus on a subject  movement unless on the camera this all sounds like a lot of thinking but really only takes a few  seconds to figure out when planning your shots with all this being said sometimes I don't make  my choice based on any of these factors but only around agility when time is an issue and you're  working with limited resources going handheld is always the winner because it can frame your shots  much quicker and capturing a great moment is much better than creating a cool movement let me say  that again my moments always trump movement I've done my fair share of documentary work and when  you're telling a story capturing the emotion in an authentic moment is much more valuable than  a cool movement without any substance behind it gimbals can take time to set up and also draw  extra attention to yourself if this resonates with your project leave the gimbal at home  and go for handheld and sacrifice those big tracking shots if you want bigger movements at  least use something to give you more stability than your feet like a skateboard or shooting  from a car gimbals are pretty amazing and when used in the right context it has the ability to  add a lot of extra production value if you use it the whole time without any motivation your  edits will become stale over time but more than anything it still comes down to the project  and your own creative choice as long as your choice is motivated by reason if you have any  questions let me know in the comments below and I'll do my best to answer thanks so much  for watching and I'll see you in the next one