The Best Gimbal For Sony A6300 Cameras!

The Sony a6300 is without a doubt one of the most popular cameras on the market right now and it has an absolutely massive user base of both photographers and videographers spread out all over the globe who use it as their go-to camera of choice. With competition for videography jobs, YouTube views, and social media clicks becoming more and more competitive year after year image quality is the name of the game and people always looking for ways to improve theirs.

This is where the trusty gimbal stabilizers come in to ensure that you get the smoothest video footage possible when using your a6300. Now, the gimbal market is a bit of a minefield right now as there are a load of older generation gimbals with excellent reviews from back in the day that has a higher price tag than the newer, modern gimbals that outperform the older generation products. This leads to a lot of confusion and many people overpaying for a bit of kit that underperforms.

Thankfully, that is where we come in with our build on what we feel is the best gimbal for Sony a63000 camera users on the market right now. As the a6300 camera body comes in at around 0.9 pounds it is pretty easy to find a great gimbal unit that can support its weight as well as the additional weight of any accessories that you may want to mount on your camera!

Comparison Table

Last update on 2023-09-01 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

Our comparison table above is intended to offer a quick and easy comparison of the three gimbals that we decided were ideal for ue with the Sony a6300. As we know many people are strapped for time, we feel the comparison table format offers a quick and easy suggestion at a glance without having to take up too much of our readers precious time.

That said, we will also be covering each of the three gimbals in much more detail below going over why we chose the Zhiyun Crane Plus (Click here to check for product prices and availability) as our winner as well as why we feel the other two gimbals are suitable for the a6300 but lose out to the Crane Plus. We will also be covering the gimbals in recommended order so you can save time by reading the section on our winning gimbal and not having to read the rest if you wish.

The Zhiyun Crane Plus

In our opinion, the Zhiyun Crane Plus (Click here to check for product prices and availability) is without a doubt the best gimbal currently on the market for mirrorless cameras. Zhiyun has designed it to replace the dominant position in the market that the Zhiyun Crane v2 (Click here to check for product prices and availability) previously held. Due to the v2 starting to show its age and products like the DJI Ronin S already being on the market and the Feiyutech AK2000 in development with its eyes on the v2, Zhiyun knew they needed to take action.

Being one of the oldest and most experienced gimbal producers on the market, they build on all the lessons that they have learned over the years to produce the Crane Plus in record time with it instantly being hit with the community. Since its release onto the market, it has only gone from strength to strength and shows no signs of slowing down anytime soon. It has quickly earned itself a well-deserved reputation within the community and ensured that Zhiyun holds onto the dominant sport for the foreseeable future. Additionally, we also published our own dedicated review of the Zhiyun Crane Plus that does a massive deep dive into the gimbal and offers a ton of information on it.

Performance And Functionality

The Crane Plus offers an upgraded maximum load capacity as well as an increased maximum battery life when compared to the older Crane v2. Where the v2 could only support a payload of 3.97 pounds, the Crane Plus can support a maximum payload of 5.5 pounds. Where the v2 had between 6 to 12 hours of battery life, the Crane Plus has between 12 and 18 hours of battery life.

As we mentioned, the Sony a6300 camera body comes in at around 0.9 pounds, a popular lens like the Sony 50mm f/1.8 (Click here to check for product prices and availability) comes in at around 0.45 pounds, and the Rode Video Mic Pro (Click here to check for product prices and availability) is around 0.19 pounds. We know that everyone’s rig is different but let’s just use this as an example for now.

So we have 0.9 pounds + 0.45 pounds + 0.19 pounds giving us a total payload of 1.54 pounds for the example camera rig above. If this was your real Sony a63000 camera rig then you would have 3.96 pounds of load capacity left over. This can be used to support the weight of a heavier lens, a lighting unit, a field monitor, pretty much any camera accessory that you can think of. If you leave the free payload weight unused then it helps you by reducing the load on the gimbals motors and pushing the battery life closer to the 18-hour mark than the 12-hour mark.

Additionally, if you choose to upgrade from your Sony a6300 in the future to a heavier DSLR then there is a good chance that the Zhiyun Crane Plus will be able to support its weight too. This prevents you from having to shell out again in a few years and get a new gimbal to support the weight of a DSLR camera.

The sample video footage above was recorded using the Crane Plus as well as a Sony a6300 and offers a decent example of the type of performance that you are able to get out of the gimbal. As you can see, 3 axis gimbals have come on a long way over the last few years, the video footage is very smooth when the camera operator is on the lead vehicle recording the bike while both vehicles are moving at high speeds.

It is almost like a match made in haven between mirrorless camera and handheld gimbal and the low price tag for the Crane Plus makes it a no brainer in our opinion. In addition to the increase in battery life and payload, the Crane Plus also has an updated balancing algorithm, overhauled gimbal motors, an updated point of view mode, a new night lapse mode, the best motion memory mode available at this price point, and one of the best intelligent object tracking systems that we have ever seen. This level of performance for this price tag alone should be enough to show why we feel this is the best gimbal stabilizer for your Sony a63000 but, we aren’t done yet.

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User Interface And Control System

Zhiyun have taken a ton of feedback from the community on board when coming up with the Crane Plus and have made a few tweaks to the interface and control system of the gimbal too. Although the system is still as easy to use as ever being easy to pick up for new gimbal users as well as highly customizable for seasoned pros the new navigation menu does make your life slightly easier when compared to older Crane gimbals systems.

The bulk of the control system on the Crane Plus is designed around allowing you to control is using just your thumb ensuring that the rest of your hand can focus on gripping the gimbal and supporting the weight of your a63000 for optimal use.

The Smartphone App

In addition to the control system on the actual gimbal handle, it can also connect to your smartphone to allow you to control it via the Zhiyun smartphone app shown in the image above. Now, the smartphone app is probably the only weakness of the Crane Plus at the time of writing and I guess technically, it is not a weakness of the gimbal itself but the app but it constantly swings between being fine and being totally unusable.

When Zhiyun first released their app it was a total nightmare to use and rarely worked. Then they managed to overhaul it and it worked fine for a few years and at the time of writing, it has just broken again being a pain to pair with your gimbals. We hope that this is just a temporary problem that will b fixed as soon as possible but you never know and it may take a few months for Zhiyun to work out what’s wrong as their app does not seem to be the main priority for them.

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Build Quality And Design

The build quality of the Crane Plus is second to none. At the time of writing, it is one of the newest gimbals to market so has all the latest technologies and materials on it to ensure that it is as light as possible while also being robust enough to take the bumps and knocks that are inevitably coming its way during use. The design of the gimbal is also flawless in our opinion and Zhiyun have built on everything that they have learned from their previous gimbals to ensure that this one is the best yet.

This ensures that the range of motion on the gimbal is flawless and there are no hot spots where two moving parts of the gimbal can run together and degrade the image stabilization that it is providing for your Sony a6300. On top of this, the handle has been designed to be as easy to use as possible so you are able to keep holding it for as long as you need while capturing your video footage with your a6300 without your hand cramping up.

Unlike some competing gimbal stabilizers, the motors in the Crane Plus are very quiet and there is no chance that the a6300 onboard microphone or an external microphone mounted on your camera body will be able to pick any sound from the motors adjusting up. There is nothing worse than having your audio track ruined by being able to hear the gimbal motors triggering to stabilize your camera rig. Thankfully, this will not be an issue for you with the Crane Plus.

Our Verdict

We have absolutely no doubt in our mind that the Crane Plus will make an excellent addition to your camera accessories as it is the ideal gimbal for your Sony a6300. It has all the payload and battery life the camera could ever need so the gimbal will easily be able to provide you with constant image stabilization. This then helps to improve the image quality of the video footage you record with your a6300 and results in better work and happier clients.

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The DJI Ronin S

Now, as the DJI Ronin S (Click here to check for product prices and availability) gimbal is not our primary recommendation for use with your Sony a63000, we will be brushing over this section to save our readers time. Now, before we go any further, we just want to confirm that we totally agree that the DJI Ronin S is one of the best gimbals on the market right now. If has some of the best performance and functionality going, one of the best build qualities we have ever seen as well as an outstanding reputation within the community.

The reason that the Ronin S is not our primary recommendation for use with your Sony a6300 is its price tag. We see no reason to pay almost double the money for the Ronin S to get some additional payload that a camera as light as the a6300 will probably never need or use. The Crane Plus gets the job done while being so much cheaper than for lightweight mirrorless cameras, it is the obvious choice.

That’s said though, if you already do own a heavy DSLR or plan to pick one up in the near future, the DJI Ronin S would probably take the lead over the Crane Plus provided your new camera rig will actually take advantage of its 7.94-pound maximum load capacity. With technology becoming lighter and lighter, there are a bunch of popular DSLR rigs used by professional photographers, videographers, and vloggers that are well within the 5.5-pound payload capacity of the Crane Plus.

Performance And Functionality

The Ronin S really is a beast when it comes to modern handheld gimbal stabilizers as it has a net weight of only 6.48 pounds making it the lightest gimbal featured in this article while also having the highest maximum load capacity coming in at 7.94 pounds. The image stabilization that the Ronin S provides you is flawless and is perfect for any high-end professional videographer who has the budget for the gimbal as well as a camera rig heavy enough to warrant purchasing it.

Although we have seen a number of reports from videographers who use the Ronin S for some heavy DSLR rigs reporting that they get around 8 hours of battery life out of the gimbal per full charge, with a camera as light as the Sony a6300, we would expect you to get pretty much bank on 12 hours of battery out of it every time. This should be more than enough for most of our readers and ensure that you have the juice to keep going between charges.

The video below was recorded using the DJI Ronin S (Click here to check for product prices and availability) and a Sony a63000 showing just how epic the performance of the gimbal can be.

As far as 3-axis gimbals go, the Ronin S has some of the best technology available at the time of writing. The various modes and functions that it supports are all flawless and ensure the best possible image quality for your videos. The gimbal also has quick charge technology meaning you can charge the batteries in it from empty to full in just over two hours, the quickest charging time frame of all gimbals we have featured.

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User Interface And Control System

When compared to the other two gimbals features for the a6300, the control system on the Ronin S showed in the image above does look a little basic but rest assured, it is fully capable of getting everything done that you need it to do at a flick of your thumb. The simplicity of the gimbal also ensures that any first-time gimbal user will be able to quickly and easily pick the gimbal up and get it working without issue.

The DJI Smartphone App

The DJI Ronin S will also sync to the DJI smartphone app to allow for some remote control functionality when your a6300 is mounted on the gimbal. Out of all the smartphone apps on the market today, the DJI app definitely has the best track record with being the most stable and the most user-friendly. The app is very easy to set up with your gimbal while also being quick and easy to learn to use too.

Build Quality And Design

DJI have managed to earn themselves an excellent reputation within both the gimbal and drone communities for having some of the best design and build quality going and their Ronin S is no different. Its sleek design is perfect and ensures that the gimbal will work flawlessly without having any friction problems with the moving parts of the gimbal. This ensures optimal performance for your Sony a6300 at all times when mounted guaranteeing the best possible image stabilization.

The build quality of the Ronin S is also excellent, it is made from the best possible materials to ensure that the gimbal is as robust as possible while also keeping its weight as low as it can be. As we mentioned earlier, the Ronin S has the lowest weight of all of the gimbal stabilizers that we have featured in this article helping you to hold it during use for as long as you need without your arm aching or your hand cramping up.

Our Verdict

You can probably tell that we love the DJI Ronin S and it really is an excellent gimbal system that would serve your Sony a6300 well but it has just one drawback, its price tag. There is just no way that we are able to recommend the Ronin S to our readers over the Crane Plus that is half of its price but performs just as well for the a6300. Additionally, the a6300 will probably never need the additional payload that the Ronin S can offer whereas the additional battery life of the Crane Plus can always be useful.

As we mentioned though, if you do plan to add a heavy DSLR camera to your collection then the Ronin S will probably be the better option to help future proof yourself as it will offer some excellent image quality and image stabilization for a heavy DSLR. If you have the budget available and just want to flash the cash then the Ronin S is an excellent addition to your Sony a6300 camera accessories but we see no need to spend the additional money.

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The Feiyutech AK2000

The final gimbal that we will be featuring for the Sony a6300 is the Feiyutech AK2000 (Click here to check for product prices and availability) and we will be just brushing over this gimbal as it comes in third place with the two gimbals above being much better options. Although the AK2000 has earned a decent reputation within the community much of this was done before the Crane Plus was released onto the market. Back then, the AK2000 has no real competition for the level of technology the gimbal has even with all of its issues.

Speaking of the issues that the gimbal has, we will be touching on them briefly in this article but our dedicated Feiyutech AK2000 review goes into much more detail as well as why we feel the gimbal should be avoided now that the Crane Plus is on the market.

Performance And Functionality

Although the AK2000 handheld gimbal is able to provide some decent image stabilization for your a6300, you are essentially running the risk of having vibration issues on the gimbal due to a design fault on it. It would seem that this problem occurs on around 20%-30% of the gimbals and Feiyutech have released a fix for the issue but for this price tag, the vibration problem should never have made it out of the alpha testing stages, never mind into the live gimbal.

Although a fix is available, there are multiple reports from people saying that sometimes they have to go through the fixing procedure multiple times per session when using the AK2000 as well as some people saying the fix simply never worked for them.

So, you may be asking why are we recommending the AK2000 to our readers if it has such a large problem? Well, if you are lucky and you are in the 70%-80% of people who end up with a version of the gimbal stabilizer that does not have these issues, it really is a great little gimbal. The video below shows exactly what it can provide you when used with your Sony a6300 if the gimbal you receive is fully serviceable.

In addition to the issue above, there is another issue when using smooth mode on the gimbal for capturing time-lapses. Essentially, when set up, the gimbal will slowly pan to the left basically ruining your time-lapse. This issue has been widely reported to Feiyutech and they are working on a fix for it. At the time of writing though, the fix is not available and we hope it comes in the form of a firmware update for the gimbal soon.

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User Interface And Control System

One thing that Feiyutech did manage to get right on the AK2000 is its interface and control system that we actually love! The touchscreen works perfectly and the magic wheel also offers some nice functionality that we think is a nice touch and expect competing brands to start ripping off and adding to their own products in the future.

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Build Quality And Design

Although the general build quality of the gimbal is pretty solid, there is one issue that really annoys us shown in the image above. The handle has a rubber grip that will ride up during use with heavier camera rigs and eventually ride up so far that it will reach the tilt button on the control panel and cause your gimbal to randomly tilt during use.

As you can expect, if you are doing any type of paid work then this is the last thing you want as it ruins the footage. The grip also takes a surprising amount of effort to pull back down the handle too and although people have tried to glue it in place, the glue eventually gives way and the grip slips back up the handle and the problem persists.

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Our Verdict

Although the AK2000 does have a decent reputation within the community, it definatley has its issues and it retails at a very similar price point to the Zhiyun Crane Plus (Click here to check for product prices and availability) that has none of these problems. For us, it is a no brainer to take the Crane Plus over the AK2000 for your Sony a6300 camera any day of the week.

We also have an article where we face the Zhiyun Crane Plus off against the Feiyutech AK2000 but in reality, most of it is just going a little more in-depth on points that we have already covered in this article.

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Wrapping It All Up

That brings our article on what we feel is the best gimbal for Sony a6300 cameras currently available on the market to a close. We hope that you have found it helpful and understand why we made our decision and chose the Zhiyun Crane Plus as our primary recommendation. As many a6300 owners also own other mirrorless cameras in their collection, it may be worth checking out our guide on gimbals for mirrorless cameras too.