July 21, 2010   iPhone, iPhone Tips, News

DIY steadicam for the iPhone

This is really awesome. While there are rumors that an iPhone 4 steadicam is in production, Spencer Watson didn’t wait — as you can see above, he went ahead and built a steadicam rig for his own iPhone out of some parts he had sitting around.

As you can see from the video it takes, it works pretty well. While you probably wouldn’t want to use it in place of a professional rig (the iPhone isn’t really meant for high-motion video, and it looks like he’s applied some other stabilization filters), it definitely looks better than if the iPhone was on its own.

You can pick up some of the parts he used in his online store, but it all looks pretty easy to put together. All together, he says it was about $40 of parts from Home Depot or a skate store, and I’m betting it’s about a weekend of work. Very cool.

DIY steadicam for the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)DIY steadicam for the iPhone originally appeared on The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW) on Wed, 21 Jul 2010 10:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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[via | The Unofficial Apple Weblog (TUAW)]

  • johnnythegeek1

    where is the demo video?

  • BankaiNoJutsu

    What camera do you use?

  • MrSpecial18k

    :46 it thought the book was a face…

  • nosiahtnroh

    clear vidieo, clear voice, clear instruction. hands down the best diy tutorial ever. now im gona make me self a stabilizer!

  • vartika707

    BTW, nice video quality. did you shoot it on iPhone using a steadycam ;-) ?

  • vartika707

    Ok, can I buy this from you for 40 bucks or may be 50. Common I find it complicated to make, I am a woman!! =(

  • AlkimyDeal

    I’ve had trouble trying to put together some of these DIY stabilizers, most are ineffective at some point. I picked up a Cam Caddie for $38 and never looked back.

  • hermanwahsletn

    Less complicated: “the string video stabilizer”

  • offgridnorthwest

    Quick point: If you have a small bench vise you can simply take the bearing, apply a small amount of machine oil to the outside edge, apply a small amount to the inside of the PVC ring, then press them together in your vise. It saves heating anything up. If you don’t have a vice, then you can heat it, but like others have said, do it in a well ventilated area. I am building one of these now, and will post a follow up video on my channel later.

  • vexedrex555

    What camera are you using?

  • ArtOfficialFilms

    best DIY video i’ve seen yet, and a very professional finish. awesome work.

  • rob327c

    god bless the metric system

  • Dee1production

    Nice job

  • EmceeLito

    Hi, nice vid.I’m trying to make this myself right now.Btw, how did you bend the metal so smoothly?

  • toonberry

    good job. very cool.

  • jaysenstudios

    You’ve got 4 vids… but they’re all awesome!

  • pontifarro

    hola tengo un ipod cuarta generacion y quiero hacer lo mismo que tu pero necesito las medidas del balero que utilizas!!!!! gracias

  • daniel869106

    what kind of camera you use its nice

  • jakevhughes1

    Does not work; your bolts will fall out.

  • zer0cool81

    Could you please send me the specs for the build? I would love to try and make this!! AWESOME WORK MAN!!!

  • clankm

    @jessiper Awesome! Which lens on the 5D did you use?

  • Icezasuckone

    Good

  • tommyepaillebvf

    Holly shit here Latino Beauties **rockmycity.info**

  • legendofmatty

    you should put adsense on your Videos. this will be Very popular Very soon.

  • OcRowen

    We only wish every youtube tutorial was this good. Congrats on a cool vid.

  • 1iNova

    The real Steadicam Smoothee for iPhones (4 included) operates on principles WAY more refined than this DIY unit. Smaller, too. Better camera holder, too. Better shots, too. See what it achieves on vimeo 17824739

  • ingsting8

    this is a joke. this work for maybe a 1hour before it fell apart. Dude, why are you suggesting that other people try this……Also It seems the one in the demo is made of different parts then the one in the instructions. do not try this at home

  • DAILEYericCaryUSA

    …This is brilliant and fun to watch. Thanks for sharing. BTW, I ain’t a hater but the wristband 0:08 is gay.

  • absynth808

    It is NOT a stabilizer. I does not stabilize any walking shake and nothng to be compared to any even simplest stabilizers in pocket photo cameras. Insane unfunctional gadget that just interferes with pointing the camera, yet transfers all the vibration. SOFTWARE DESHAKER used for the demo.Another clever viral marketing campain from Apple. For these two (and only) videos “jessper” got an iphone. Cool.