One of the major features of this Ronin 4D is 4-axis camera control. The presence of this fourth Z-axis highlights the presence of this camera. This Z-axis has a spring inside the arm, and the strength of the spring can be easily adjusted. Adjustments are made with the knob on the top of the camera, and it feels like adjusting the arm of a Steadicam, making it intuitive and easy to understand.
Also, an even better point of the Z axis is that all five sensors (forward, downward, ToF, IMU, barometer) are dedicated to the Z axis, and the combination of sensors activates the motor and suppresses is doing Unlike Steadicam or TILTA's FLOAT, it does not move only with a spring, but because each sensor detects various shaking in conjunction, it has a very high accuracy and stable movement. As an RS2 user, I also introduced Steadicam and TILTA's FLOAT to suppress pitching, and had a history of trial and error to find out how to stabilize RS2's pitching.
Steadicam and FLOAT are not so easy to operate as soon as they are installed, and it takes time to learn. In addition, it is undeniable that the threshold is high, such as the need for experience points to quickly set up such as balance adjustment. However, the quality of the images obtained is overwhelming, and I wish that an operator would always be on site.
In order to manage this, we have devised the Ronin series, but the Ronin 4D is very important in that it can shoot stable images to some extent without practice. Furthermore, the Ronin 4D excels in space-saving mobility, as a single camera is enough.
Actually, when I shot a slow walking scene with the same feeling as the Ronin series, I was able to shoot a perfect take on the first try. Of course, it's a slow walk, but once you use it, you won't be able to leave the stability of the Z axis. Naturally, the faster you walk, the more difficult it is to control the sway, but if you're a Ronin series user who has been walking forward, the vertical sway will disappear considerably! I thought that it would shake when I ran, but although I was a little worried, it was very suppressed compared to RS2.
Also, when I took a slightly difficult-to-operate rearward pull take, the shaking was about the same as the forward walking take, and I was able to shoot a very stable image. Actually, walking backwards should cause more swaying, but combined with sensor control, the vertical swaying is probably suppressed considerably.
In this way, the Z axis, which is a function that suppresses pitching that has never existed before, has been found to be able to shoot fairly stable images. However, the important thing is that the Ronin 4D has a maximum payload of 2kg. When using a cinema lens, of course you need a Steadicam or a large gimbal, so I feel that the Ronin 4D is quite useful if you limit it to the current stage of still lens operation.