To achieve smooth, professional-quality videos, you need a stabilizer like a Steadicam or camera jib. But unless you work in video production, most of us don’t have easy access to that type of equipment. So in order to create steady action videos with unique perspectives, with a lightweight tool designed around action cameras and smartphones, a German action sports photographer invented the Kamkop Action Jib. It’s currently raising funds via Indiegogo.
With a max load of 1.1 pounds, the Kamkob Action Jib is designed for small POV cameras like the GoPro Hero and smartphones. Weighing a little less than 3 pounds, the German-made Kamkop jib is designed to be portable and easy to put together, yet the pole can telescope out between 3 feet and 19 feet when it’s set up. The jib, which is described as slightly larger than a hiking stick when collapsed, mounts onto any standard tripod. To help create smooth videos, it uses a fluid-damped, self-leveling gimbal that lets you sweet the camera across the scene – similar to pro camera cranes. (Watch the videos to see how it works.)
“As an action sports photographer I needed a tool in my arsenal that would allow me to take sensational pictures from extreme perspectives,” says its inventor, Peter Koppendorfer, who’s also a trained toolmaker. “Since drones aren’t always permitted and expensive cranes aren’t practical, I decided to invent the Kamkop Action Jib.”
The basic package includes the jib, fluid gimbal, tripod adapter and screws, ballast bag, and transport bag. If you want even greater fluidity, also available is a 3-axis, electronically stabilized brushless gimbal that can be remotely controlled via an Android or iOS smartphone. “This stabilizer increases the production value of your shots even more because you are able to take dynamic high and low reaching shots covering 360 degrees.” Another package adds a zipline cable system that works with the brushless gimbal.
The Kamkop Action Jib starts at 280 Euro (approximately $350), with the full kit costing $990 Euro (approximately $1,230); the prices are for early backers through Indiegogo campaign. Delivery is estimated for August 2015. More details can be found on its Indiegogo page.
