I've been toying with the idea of getting a gimbal for use with either my gopro 7 black or my Canon 90D. It would basically just be for social media videos for my real estate business. Yeah I know I could just use the image stabilization in the gopro or my phone but I prefer to make them look as good as possible.

I can get a good quality gimbal for the gopro for around $150. Or I can get a good condition used Ronin S for my 90D for around $200. The question is, which is better.

Anyone have any input?

For professional work for real estate, the DSLR with interchangeable lenses is the way to go. I don't own a GoPro, but have been toying with getting one for a long time. Last time I looked at them was three-four years go, and one thing I noticed if the lens is a fixed mount with a wide angle / fish eye effect.

But based on your input, I would go with the DSLR way over a GoPro.

quote:

Originally posted by IrishWind:
For professional work for real estate, the DSLR with interchangeable lenses is the way to go. I don't own a GoPro, but have been toying with getting one for a long time. Last time I looked at them was three-four years go, and one thing I noticed if the lens is a fixed mount with a wide angle / fish eye effect.

But based on your input, I would go with the DSLR way over a GoPro.

GoPros have variable “zoom” (I believe higher zooms are actually accomplished by cropping the sensor output - which works fine, the sensor is much higher resolution than required for video, you still get full video resolution) and only on the extreme wide angle setting do they have really objectionable lens distortion.

With that said, GoPros are designed around action sports where you want a small, rugged, waterproof video camera, and those design priorities result in some significant drawbacks for general video use (e.g., the ergonomics of operation are appalling compared to a more general-purpose camera).

GoPro video stabilization is astonishingly good for what it is, but it is not as good as a good gimbal.

Using a DSLR for video has its own drawbacks. Many modern DSLRs can absolutely capture broadcast-quality video, but it isn’t trivial to do so. The larger sensor of a DSLR compared to a camcorder or GoPro means much shallower depth of field, which means autofocus has a harder time keeping things in focus (not because the autofocus is worse - it isn’t - but because it is trying to hit a much smaller target).

Virtually all broadcast and cinematic video used manual focus because autofocus just can’t track well enough. Pulling focus on a video camera (operating the manual focus on the fly during filming) requires a lot of skill and experience and isn’t something you can learn to do even halfway-not-terribly in an afternoon.

All of which basically boils down to a GoPro being a tiny, durable, but inconvenient camcorder and a DSLR being an excellent video camera that you will want to throw off a bridge if you expect it to work like a camcorder.

For real estate listings … go with the DSLR on a gimbal every time. GoPros can never match a DSLR with interchangeable lenses for what you are using it for.
For RE work, you want a wide angle to show off spaces, but not so wide that you get distortion around the edges.
20-24-28mm lenses on a full frame sensor work great.
As for focus, I’d suggest manually focusing for a decent distance (across the room, say) and shoot your shot. That is, if you don’t like the AF on your model of camera.
If you have a newer DSLR, the AF will be pretty dang good.
Experiment using your house first, and adjust until you get it where you want it. Use manual exposure for the best quality. Shutter speed should be at 2x the frame rate (example- you are shooting at 30 frames per second, your shutter speed should be at 1/60 of a second, 30 x 2) for the most film-like look and motion blur.
I shoot corporate video for a living, and also shoot for one TV show on Discovery Network on the side, using Sony mirrorless bodies/lenses, as well as a DJI Ronin4D cinema camera.

quote:

Originally posted by VictimNoMore:
For real estate listings … go with the DSLR on a gimbal every time. GoPros can never match a DSLR with interchangeable lenses for what you are using it for.
For RE work, you want a wide angle to show off spaces, but not so wide that you get distortion around the edges.
20-24-28mm lenses on a full frame sensor work great.
As for focus, I’d suggest manually focusing for a decent distance (across the room, say) and shoot your shot. That is, if you don’t like the AF on your model of camera.
If you have a newer DSLR, the AF will be pretty dang good.
Experiment using your house first, and adjust until you get it where you want it. Use manual exposure for the best quality.
I shoot corporate video for a living, and also shoot for one TV show on Discovery Network on the side, using Sony mirrorless bodies/lenses, as well as a DJI Ronin4D cinema camera.

We have been using the Sony A7 cameras for the last year and the quality is fantastic. We aren’t professional content producers but it sure seems like the Sony’s could hit that level.

OP, I vote for the DSLR option as well. Remember, light is your friend. More of it will help the AF to work better.

Victimnomore, what drone do you guys use?

quote:

Originally posted by thumperfbc:

We have been using the Sony A7 cameras for the last year and the quality is fantastic. We aren’t professional content producers but it sure seems like the Sony’s could hit that level.

OP, I vote for the DSLR option as well. Remember, light is your friend. More of it will help the AF to work better.

Victimnomore, what drone do you guys use?

Sony mirrorless AF is the best on the market. The eye-tracking is unbeatable. You’d be surprised how many TV shows use mirrorless and DSLRs these days. Heck, even iPhones get used in broadcast. Which is a viable option for the OP’s real estate needs. I’d use an iPhone before a GoPro … but that’s just me.

I had three shots in the most recent episode of the show I work for … shot with an iPhone 11.

As for drones, I use DJI Mavic 2 Zoom and Mavic 2 Pros. Waiting for the next Inspire to be released.

quote:

Originally posted by VictimNoMore:

Sony mirrorless AF is the best on the market. The eye-tracking is unbeatable. You’d be surprised how many TV shows use mirrorless and DSLRs these days. Heck, even iPhones get used in broadcast. Which is a viable option for the OP’s real estate needs. I’d use an iPhone before a GoPro … but that’s just me.

I had three shots in the most recent episode of the show I work for … shot with an iPhone 11.

This is a good point for the OP... An iPhone 11 Pro or better and a DJI OSMO would be a good bet...

quote:

Originally posted by VictimNoMore:As for drones, I use DJI Mavic 2 Zoom and Mavic 2 Pros. Waiting for the next Inspire to be released.

Thanks for the info. We just got a Mini Pro 3 and I used it for the first time this pasts weekend. Pretty awesome capability for the price.

Thanks all, looks like the best bet for the situation right now is a Ronin S w/ the 90D.

I'm an Android guy so the iphone is out, haha. Although the S21 does have good quality video.