The Best Gimbal For C200 Cameras!

There is no doubt that the Canon C200 is a very popular cinematography and videography camera body and although a large number of people who use it prefer the manual Steadicam style camera stabilizer, we are noticing more and more people reaching out for advice on the best gimbal for C200 Cameras. Due to this, we have decided to publish our own article to try and help any of our readers that are in this same situation and considering purchasing a motorized gimbal for their Canon C200.

Now, in reality, the best gimbal is subjective and is going to depend on what you are planning on doing with your camera. As the C200 comes in at around 3.2 pounds of camera body payload weight, it can definatley end up being too heavy for a large number of gimbals once you mount your camera accessories to it. This is why you are pretty much restricted to a heavy lift 3 axis gimbal stabilizer but thankfully, there are some solid options on the table.

In our opinion, for the majority of people, the DJI Ronin S is probably going to be the best electronic gimbal stabilizer for the Canon C200 and will be able to meet the majority of peoples needs. Since its release, the Ronin S has managed to win over massive shares of the market while also earning itself one of the best reputations within the gimbal space.

That said though, the Ronin S does have a maximum load capacity of 7.94 pounds meaning if the payload of your C200 rig comes in above this then the Zhiyun Crane 3 is the only real other option at the time of writing that we are comfortable recommending. We would estimate that the vast majority of our readers who own the C200 will not be using a super heavy rig though and that is why we feel that the Ronin S is the better option.

Throughout the rest of the article, we will be focusing on the DJI gimbal and going over our thoughts on it as well as why we feel that it is the best choice for most of our readers. We will also be sharing a few little tricks you can implement as a Canon C200 user to make your life as easy as possible with the Ronin S and help ensure that you are able to capture the best image quality possible with the combo.

Performance And Functionality

Now, the DJI Ronin S quickly managed to establish itself as the dominant gimbal stabilizer in the heavy camera bodyweight class within weeks of its release due to the excellent performance and functionality it offers. Although brands like Zhiyun have caught up over the last year or so with their Crane 3 and Weebill S gimbals, the Ronin S is still one of the best heavyweight class gimbals made to date.

As we mentioned earlier in the article, the Ronin S has a maximum load capacity of 7.94 pounds meaning that it is able to support the vast majority of Canon C200 rigs that are popular. As we said, the base payload with just your C200 camera body is 3.2 pounds meaning you have 4.74 pounds spare for any camera accessories that you need for your session. This ensures that unless you are working in a very specialist niche with the heaviest possible camera accessories that the Ronin S should be able to support your C200 payload.

Another solid feature for the DJI Ronin S is that it is able to provide you with around twelve hours of usable battery life with each charge of the gimbals battery. This should be plenty for most of our readers to allow you to capture the video footage that you require with your C200 between your opportunities to recharge your gimbal. As you probably know, chances are you may also be using a tripod or a manual stabilizer during your sessions too meaning even throughout a full say or recording you may only use your Ronin S for a few hours meaning the twelve-hour maximum battery will be plenty.

On the off chance that you are working in a niche that needs a whole bunch of run and gun style video footage so you will be using your gimbal with your C200 mounted to it for hours at a time, the Ronin S has the DJI quick charge system allowing you to charge it back to full in only three hours from being totally empty. This minimized the downtime you have for charging while also allowing you to top the juice in your gimbal up when you take short breaks as each hour charging provides you with four hours of usable battery in the gimbal.

The video footage in the clips above have been captured using a Canon C200 mounted to the DJI Ronin S and offers a realistic representation of what you are able to expect. The footage is raw and shows the levels of image stabilization that you are able to expect from the combination and as you can see, even with the heavy payload weight of the C200 rig, the Ronin S provides its famous butter-smooth image stabilization.

The sample video footage above has been more polished with a fair amount of post-production but has still been captured using a DJI Ronin S and shows the type of final product that you can offer your clients after capturing your footage. As you can see, it offers some great base footage to start with and then the post-production brings it all together to create some excellent cinematic video footage.

This is done by the DJI movement detection and correction system that in our opinion holds the top position at the time of writing alongside the Zhiyun system on the Weebill S and the Moza system on the Aircross 2. The gimbal motors on the Ronin S are super sensitive and are able to detect even the slightest movement, the DJI balancing algorithm then decided how best to correct it before the DJI high torque motors carry out the correction.

This provides the user with the fastest possible image stabilization with no hang or lag during the recording process. The high torque motors on the Ronin S also ensures that the system is just as efficient at its lower load capacity all the way up to its maximum load capacity too. As many cinematographers and videographers will hot-swap their camera accessories throughout a session to adapt to their needs, this ensures that your image stabilization remains excellent as your C200 payload changes due to accessory swaps.

It really is easy to see why the DJI Ronin S is one of the most popular heavy lifting gimbals ever produced and why its customer base is still growing at a rapid pace. It performs extremely well with light rigs like mirrorless cameras as well as with heavier cameras like the Canon C200 too. It’s not surprising that it has so many excellent reviews online that you can read from third-party users of the Ronin S who use it as their handheld gimbal of choice.

Making It Easier

Now, keep in mind that depending on what you are actually doing with your Canon C200 as well as the niche that you are working in, you may not need any of these accessories for your DJI Ronin S. That said, the independent video above offers some great insight into how you are able to incorporate the items below into your Ronin S setup to ensure you have an easier time in some niches.

• SmallRig Standard Rosette Bolt-On Mount.
• SmallRig Top Plate for Canon C200.
• SmallRig Baseplate for Canon C200.
• SmallRig Quick Release Safety Rail.

User Interface And Control System

Now, in our opinion, the user control system for the DJI Ronin S seen in the image above is the only weak area of the gimbal. It has a very simplistic control system that is ideal for any first-time gimbal user who have zero experience with gimbals but chances are, if you own a Canon C200, you have probably used a gimbal before or are at an advanced level of videography or cinematography.

Although we are confident that the control system on the Ronin S will allow you to get what you need out of the gimbal for your C200, the system on the Zhiyun Crane 3 is much better for advanced control and customization. On the flip side of this though, the DJI smartphone app that we will cover in the section below can help to pick up some of the slack and offer some quick and easy advanced customization that is lacking from the physical interface.

As you can see from the image at the start of this section, the control interface for the Ronin S is based around the standard handheld gimbal interface of a joystick, some buttons, and a magic wheel if you need the manual focus control. The actual control joystick on the gimbal is very responsive offering you excellent manual control of the gimbal head when needed to adjust the positioning of your camera as required too.

Smartphone App

Now, the DJI smartphone app probably has the best track record of all smartphone apps on the market and has always been kept in a serviceable state. The apps from competing brands have all had their rocky patches where they have suffered from issues ranging from initial syncing, general connectivity, and poor navigation but this has never been a problem with DJI. We feel that DJI have managed to see how important a solid app is from their drone range and instantly tried to incorporate the same strategy into their gimbals and it works very well.

Although the app does offer the standard wireless remote control functionality that you would expect from a modern smartphone app, the main thing we like is the quick and easy access to the gimbal settings. This allows you to quickly and easily grab your phone, sync the app to your gimbal, and tweak key settings within seconds. This ensures that your Ronin S is always performing as best it can for your Canon C200 and that you are always getting the best possible video footage for your clients.

Considering that the app is free to download and that it can actually save you a surprising amount of time over the course of a day when working with your gimbal, we feel that it is well worth downloading and that it is a great gimbal accessory. The interface is also very easy to navigate too allowing you to work your way around the app to the various sections with ease.

Build Quality And Design

The vast majority of handheld gimbals that have been released over the last five years or so follow the same basic design and the DJI Ronin S is no different. This is due to the design working so well while also being so easy to produce, maintain, and operate too. Although Zhiyun is starting to innovate with their included underslung functionality in their Weebill Range, the vast majority of brands stick to something similar to the Ronin S.

When it comes to the actual build quality of the gimbal, DJI has managed to produce a very robust camera accessory that is very tough. If you are working in a niche where you will have to travel with all of your camera accessories on a regular basis then it is nice to know your gimbal can take any bumps coming it’s way. On top of this, the Ronin S can also be fully broken down into two separate parts to reduce its form factor and make it easier to transport too.

Although the gimbal is a little heavy, its weight is around average when you consider the maximum load capacity and battery life that the gimbal is able to provide for you too. Another good thing that the Ronin S has going for it is that the gimbals handle is very comfortable and easy to grip too. As your Canon C200 is a heavy camera, having a comfortable grip on your gimbal of choice is essential for those longer, extended sessions.

Our Verdict

That brings us to the end of our article going over why we feel that the DJI Ronin S is the best gimbal for C200 cameras. As we mentioned back at the start of the article, we feel it is the best option for the majority of people and should be able to meet the needs of the majority of our readers. If you are working in a niche where you have to use a super heavy C200 setup then the Zhiyun Crane 3 is probably the better gimbal due to having the larger maximum load capacity though.