The Best Gimbal For Fuji XT2 Cameras!

For today’s article, we are going to be going over what we feel is the best gimbal for Fuji XT2 cameras on the market right now due to seeing a steady stream of videographers who own the XT2 reaching out each month. Thankfully, the Fuji XT2 is a pretty lightweight mirrorless camera the comes in at around 1.11 pounds when you have no other accessories mounted on it.

Due to this, it is pretty easy to find a great little cost-efficient gimbal stabilizer for the camera that is able to easily support the camera body as well as the weight of having a bunch of accessories mounted on it too. We have chosen to feature three different gimbals that we feel are suitable for the XT2 and all three of them are able to provide you with solid levels of image stabilization to help improve the image quality that you are able to capture when working.

As usual, we have a comparison table that goes over the three gimbals that we recommend for your XT2 below. We find that this usually helps to offer a quick overview for our readers who are short on time and shows the key features of the gimbals. For those of our readers who prefer to read a full break down of the gimbals, we have more information about each of our recommendations below the comparison table going into why we feel they are suitable for your Fuji XT2.

Comparison Table

Last update on 2023-09-03 / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API

As you can see from the table above, the Zhiyun Crane Plus comes out as our top gimbal recommendation for the Fuji XT2 for a number of reasons. It offers great performance while also having a lower price tag than the DJI gimbal as well as a larger load capacity and battery life too. This makes it the obvious choice for us and we have no doubt it can provide your XT2 with all the image stabilization it could ever need.

A close second place is the DJI Ronin SC that really is a great bit of kit. It offers excellent performance but we just feel that its price tag is too high to be placed in joint first alongside the Crane Plus although it is very close. We know that there are a number of videographers who prefer the stick with the DJI brand no matter what so we have no doubt that the Ronin SC will be popular amongst some XT2 owners anyway.

The third gimbal that we decided to feature is the Feiyutech AK2000 and although it is from the latest generation of gimbals at the time of writing just like the two units above, it definatley has a few issues that hold it back forcing it into third place. Although the majority of the Feiyutech AK2000 gimbals perform well enough, we see no reason to risk getting one that has its problems with the gimbal head vibrating. Additionally, there are a few other issues that hold it back too but we will cover them in more detail later in the article.

The Zhiyun Crane Plus

Starting off with the Zhiyun Crane Plus that has been popular with the community since launch due to a large amount of hype surrounding its release, it should be no surprise that the gimbal managed to quickly take the top spot. The Crane Plus is the follow up to the hugely popular Zhiyun Crane v2 that was the leader of the mirrorless camera gimbals period to the Crane Plus being released onto the market to replace it.

Zhiyun have improved on the v2 in every way while also managing to bring the price tag of the Crane Plus in at a lower point than the v2 retailed at while having all their latest tech on the gimbal too. It offers your Fuji XT2 some of the absolute best image stabilization possible even if you are using a heavy lens on the camera and the gimbal provides the camera with a full range of motion.

It really is hard to find fault with the Crane Plus and it is easy to see why it is such a popular gimbal that has managed to earn itself a well deserved excellent reputation amongst the community in a very short period of time. At the time of writing and if the history of Zhiyun gimbal reputations is anything to go by, this is only going to get better as time goes on and the Crane Plus cements its place as the king of the mirrorless camera gimbals.

Performance And Functionality

As we mentioned, the Fuji XT2 camera body only comes in at around 1.11 pounds meaning that the 5.5-pound maximum payload capacity that the Crane Plus is able to offer your camera is able to support pretty much any modern XT2 setup that you may be using. This also includes heavier lenses, decent external microphones, heavier video lights, and a camera cage if you use one. All the while, the gimbal will ensure that your XT2 is getting the absolute best possible image stabilization possible resulting in some super smooth video footage.

Now, when it comes to battery life, the Crane Plus actually has a pretty large advertised range that starts down towards the twelve hours of battery life mark and goes all the way up to the eighteen hours of battery life mark. As the XT2 is such a light mirrorless camera, we would expect you to bet getting the higher end of battery life during regular use but even if you are taking up most of the available load capacity, twelve hours should be plenty to get all the video footage that you require.

Zhiyun have also put their latest quick charge technology in the Crane Plus too and this allows you to charge the gimbal in as little as three hours! That’s right, you can charge the gimbal for three hours and get up to eighteen hours of battery life per full charge. At the time of writing, no other gimbal even comes close to this type of charge time/battery life set up helping to push the Crane Plus out ahead of the competition.

The cinematic test footage in the video above shows exactly what level of image stabilization you can expect from the Zhiyun Crane Plus 3 axis gimbal stabilizer when used with a mirrorless camera. As you can see, the handheld gimbal performs flawlessly and ensures that the user gets some amazingly smooth video footage that does an excellent job of telling their story. If you are a professional videographer doing paid work for your clients then we are confident that they will be very happy with what the Crane Plus is able to offer them when it comes to the image quality of the video you can capture.

As we mentioned at the start of this section, the Crane Plus is essentially a totally overhauled Crane v2 that has all of the latest Zhiyun technology and upgrades. These include a newly coded balancing algorithm to offer snappy image stabilization, brand new top of the range gimbal motors to support the weight of your rig and provide the image stabilization, a totally overhauled point of view mode, a new night lapse mode, an excellent intelligent object tracking mode, and an updated motion memory mode too.

This ensures that no matter what your client requests of you, your Zhiyun Crane Plus and Fuji XT2 will be able to meet their needs and keep them happy. When it comes to performance, we really can’t fault Zhiyun and thing they have done a great job, especially for the low price tag that the Crane Plus is going for.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability!

User Interface And Control System

Zhiyun is well known for sticking to their simple and easy to use user interface system that has remained pretty consistent throughout all of their drones. As you can see in the image above, although a few tweaks have been made to the system, the majority of the user interface is very similar to previous Crane gimbals.

If you are upgrading to the Crane Plus from a previous version of the gimbal then this should be easy enough to get to grips with due to their being so many similarities. If you are moving over to the Crane Plus from a different brand of gimbal then you should be able to get to grips with its control system quick as it is similar to what most other modern gimbals use.

If you are shopping for your first ever gimbal stabilizer then the Crane Plus is an ideal choice due to its ease of use and the fact that it has been designed to be as easy for someone new to gimbals to work efficiently right out of the box. That said, if you have been using gimbals for some time now, we are confident that you will be able to get the most out of the Crane Plus as it also offers all the advanced settings and gimbal modes that you would expect from a gimbal of this price.

The Smartphone App

This is not specific to just the Crane Plus but the only real weak area of the whole Zhiyun gimbal range is their smartphone app as it does have a few issues with it that hold it back slightly. That said, Zhiyun is apparently going to update the app soon and fix all of the problems that it is having to make the app more competitive with the apps that brands like DJI and Moza offer their users.

Although the Zhiyun app will work fine sometimes, it can be a pain to initially pair up with your gimbal but if you don’t plan to be using the smartphone app much anyway then this is not really an issue. Additionally, as we said, an update is apparently just around the corner for the app.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability!

Build Quality And Design

You can tell that Zhiyun has put plenty of time into the design of the Crane Plus as it looks very professional and sleek while also being very functional. With the vast amount of experience Zhiyun has been able to gain in the gimbal space of the last ten years or so, you would imagine nothing less from them with their latest gimbal range though.

The build quality of the gimbal is outstanding and the Crane Plus has been put together very well using some of the best materials possible. The ensures that the gimbal is able to perform perfectly while also being pretty robust as far as gimbal stabilizers go. Although the Crane Plus is not as light as the DJI gimbal, we feel that this won’t be an issue for the majority of our readers and we rather have the lower price tag than the lower weight unless you need the lightest gimbal possible for your Fuji XT2 to make traveling easier due to weight limits.

Our Verdict

There is no doubt in our mind that the image quality that you are able to capture with your Fuji XT2 will increase when mounting your XT2 to a Crane Plus. It offers plenty of load capacity for your camera as well as all the battery life that you could ever need. The lower price tag helps to push it out ahead of the Ronin S and the rest of the competition on the market at the time of writing too.

The Zhiyun Crane Plus will make an excellent investment in your videography business and is an excellent addition to your camera accessories. If you would like to know more about the gimbal then we have a full, dedicated Zhiyun Crane Plus review online that goes into as much detail of the gimbal as possible that may be helpful to you.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability! 

Click Here To Read Independent Reviews!

The DJI Ronin SC

Next up, we have one of the newest gimbals available on the mirrorless camera market at the time of writing, the gimbal is literally weeks old and has been quick to make an impression. With its big brother, the DJI Ronin S pretty much dominating the DSLR gimbal market, it is no surprise that DJI decided that they wanted a dedicated mirrorless camera gimbal to try and repeat its success and thus the DJI Ronin SC was born.

The SC keeps the same great points of the S but reduces the payload by about half and slightly reduces the battery life while keeping the same excellent levels of performance that have allowed the Ronin S to dominate the DSLR market since its release. Additionally, the Ronin SC has had a few tweaks to the flawless design of the Ronin S to make it a little more suitable for use with mirrorless cameras.

All in all, DJI have smashed it out of the park and its easy to see why the Ronin SC quickly earned the reputation it has. That said, as we mentioned earlier, the Crane Plus is not only cheaper but also offers very similar levels of performance with higher maximum load capacity and longer maximum battery life to help push it ahead of the Ronin SC.

Performance And Functionality

Just like its big brother, the DJI Ronin SC is able to offer some of the absolute best performance available on the market at the time of writing. The 4.4-pound maximum load capacity should be enough to support the majority of Fuji XT2 camera setups that we can think of and still have some payload spare after mounting. That said, if you do prefer to use a camera cage when working then the additional 1.1 pounds of load capacity on the Crane Plus really can push it further ahead of the Ronin SC.

Like we said though, the load capacity of the Ronin SC handheld gimbal stabilizer should be plenty for the vast majority of our readers. The gimbal can also provide a pretty stable 11 hours of battery life for use ensuring that you are able to use it for as long as you need to get all the video footage that you could possibly need between recharges.

When it comes to recharging the gimbal, you can take the Ronin SC from empty to full in as little as two and a half hours. Although this is the quickest recharge time on paper, you have to remember that the Crane Plus is only half an hour longer but has a potential seven hours of additional maximum battery life once fully charged.

The video above shows an excellent example of just what the DJI Ronin SC 3 axis gimbal is able to offer your Fuji XT2 when it comes to capturing the best, smoothest video footage possible. The clip does a great job of showing off the level of image stabilization that the Ronin SC is able to provide you.

If you are doing any kind of paid videography work then the difference in image quality between using the Ronin SC and trying to go handheld is a no brainer. Additionally, with the Ronin SC being a brand new gimbal that is literally weeks old at the time of writing, it has all the latest technology to offer the quickest and most stable image stabilization for your XT2 pushing it ahead of the older generation of gimbals on the market.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability!

User Interface And Control System

Similar to Zhiyun, DJI has kept the user interface of the Ronin SC as simple and easy to use as possible. This ensures that anyone who is looking to purchase their very first gimbal will be able to quickly and easily get to grips with the controls of the Ronin SC and get the most out of it right out the box. On the flip side of this, if you are an old hand and have plenty of experience using gimbal stabilizers then we have no doubt that you will be able to get the most out of it with ease while also enjoying the advanced features that the gimbal has to offer.

The joystick on the Ronin SC is very responsive and easy to use, even if your thumb is cold or wet, you will easily be able to get the joystick to control your gimbal with your Fuji XT2 mounted on it without issue. Additionally, the LCD panel on the gimbals handle is very clear and bright making it very easy to see if being used in low light conditions. This ensures that no matter the conditions you are required to capture your video footage in, you should always be able to get the job done with the Ronin SC.

The Smartphone App

Unlike Zhiyun, DJI has always ensured that any issues with their smartphone app have been corrected very quickly. This is probably the only area where the DJI Ronin SC leaves the Zhiyun Crane Plus for dust. When it comes to smartphone apps, at the time of writing at least, there is just no contents, the DJI app is the winner.

That said though, as we mentioned in the section above, Zhiyun is apparently planning to totally overhaul their smartphone app so this may end up being the apps inline with each other. Only time will tell but it will take a lot for Zhiyun’s app to actually beat the DJI app in our opinion.

Build Quality And Design

The Ronin SC has been designed with the DJI design philosophy in mind of making the best and most professional product available from the very start. This philosophy really shines and you can tell that DJI has put the time on during the design phase of the gimbal to ensure that everything is flawless, sleek, and professional.

Coming from DJI, the Ronin SC has an absolutely outstanding build quality that offers the lightest weight featured gimbal on our list that is actually pretty robust too. If you know that you are going to be traveling a whole bunch with your Fuji XT2 rig and that airline luggage space and weight allowances will be a factor for your videography then the lower weight of the Ronin SC can help score it points.

Our Verdict

As we mentioned back at the start of this section, the DJI Ronin SC is without a doubt an outstanding gimbal that offers some professional-level image stabilization that can do wonder to improve your image quality. It would make an excellent investment and addition to your collection of XT2 camera accessories but we feel the Crane Plus is just a little bit better due to the increased battery life and load capacity with a lower price tag.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability! 

Click Here To Read Independent Reviews!

The Feiyutech AK2000

The final gimbal stabilizer that we will be featuring on our list of recommended Fuji XT2 gimbals is the Feiyutech AK2000 and as we mentioned at the start of the article, although the AK2000 is a popular gimbal, it does have some issues that we would recommend that our readers ensure they are aware of prior to considering it over either of the two gimbals covered above.

That said, the AK2000 can perform very well and it has managed to earn a decent reputation within the community but for a gimbal at this price point when both the Zhiyun Crane Plus and DJI Ronin SC offer similar if not better performance, sell for a similar price tag, and have none of the issues the AK2000 has, we would recommend either of those gimbals be chosen for use with your Fuji XT2 over the AK2000.

Due to this, we will just be quickly going over the AK2000 in this article to help save you time rather than doing a full deep dive into the gimbal.

Performance And Functionality

The Feiyutech AK2000 is able to support a massive load capacity of 6.17 pounds and out of our list of featured gimbals for the Fuji XT2 it has the highest payload of all three gimbals. When it comes to battery life, the gimbal is able to provide you with between eight and twelve hours of battery depending on the amount of its payload your camera rig takes up as well as what you are doing with the gimbal.

The video above shows exactly what the Feiyutech AK2000 3-axis gimbal stabilizer is capable of when it is serviceable and not having any of its problems. As you can see, it can definatley provide you with some solid image stabilization and for a handheld gimbal designed for use with mirrorless cameras, it has a massive maximum load capacity too.

That said, the AK2000 does have a known issue that has been confirmed by Feiyutech where around a fifth of the gimbals produced end up having issues with random vibrations during use. As you can expect, this totally ruins the video footage that you are recording. Thankfully, Feiyutech has been quick to release a fix for the problem but as the problem stems from a hardware issue, you do have to implement this fix yourself.

Additionally, the fix may have to be doing multiple times and there are also a small number of reports of it not correcting the issue at all. Due to this, we would advise our readers not to run the risk and just take the Zhiyun Crane Plus or the DJI Ronin SC instead, especially when you are spending this much money.

On top of this, there is also a known issue with the smooth mode function on the gimbal where it will slowly pan to the left no matter what you are doing. If you are trying to do any type of static timelapse recording then this bug will spoil the video footage. Although there is no official word on a fix for this issue from Feiyutech at the time of writing, a number of people have confirmed that they have reported it to them so they are aware of the problem.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability!

User Interface And Control System

Its such a shame that the Feiyutech AK2000 has these problems as we actually love the control system used on the gimbal. The touchscreen interface is innovative and we feel that it is the future of gimbal user interface systems. The mafic wheel on the handle of the AK2000 is great and offers some focus control functionality as well as a few other things too.

The Feiyutech Smartphone App

The Feiyutech smartphone app is in a similar state of the Zhiyun app where it is going to need some work to compete with the DJI or Moza apps. At the time of writing, there is no confirmation from Feiyutech if they are planning to overhaul their smartphone app or not but we would at the very least expect some bug fixes to be pushed live.

Build Quality And Design

Another issue with the Feiyutech AK2000 is that is has a problem with its build quality that has a direct effect on the functionality of the gimbal. Now, your Fuji XT2 is a pretty light camera so unless you are using some heavy accessories on it while mounted to the AK2000 the problem may not occur as it needs heavier camera rigs.

Essentially though, rather than using a fitted grip on the handle like most other modern gimbal manufacturers, Feiyutech went with a non-fitted grip on the AK2000 that can actually slide up the handle during use with heavy camera loads. Eventually, this makes its way to your control panel and can start to randomly press the tilt manual control for the gimbal and ruin your footage.

Although people have tried a few things to fix the issue, no one seems to be having any consistent luck with the problem. In our opinion, this is just another reason to take the Zhiyun Crane Plus or the DJI Ronin SC over the AK2000 but many people still do pick up the AK2000 and seem to be happy with it.

Our Verdict

Although the AK2000 has a pretty large customer base, especially for the number of problems it has, we only featured it on our article for your Fuji XT2 due to it having such a large user base. Personally, we feel that for this price, you should not have to risk having these problems and would recommend either the Zhiyun Crane Plus or DJI Ronin SC be added to your XT2 camera accessories instead.

For anyone interested, we also have a full review of the Feiyutech AK2000 where we go into more detail of its problems and how we feel if Feiyutech made a few corrections, it could be a dominant gimbal in the mirrorless camera niche. We also have a Feiyutech AK2000 vs the Zhiyun Crane Plus article online due to seeing so many people ask for comparisons between the two.

Click Here To Check Prices And Availability! 

Click Here To Read Independent Reviews!

Wrapping It Up

That wraps up our article on what we feel is the best gimbal for Fuji XT2 cameras on the market right now. We hope that our readers have found the article helpful and that you feel like you are in a better position to choose the best gimbal for your needs for use with your XT2.

We also have a dedicated article that covers what we feel are the five best gimbals for mirrorless cameras on the market right now too. That said, the Zhiyun Crane Plus and DJI Ronin SC still come out on top like in this article so it won’t offer any new winners but it does have info about two other popular gimbals that could be suitable for your Fuji XT2.