xh a1 Optical Image Stabiliser and fig rig

[Jorge Mendoza]

hello from spain, is my first post in this forum, i have the a1 and fig rig and i have a dude, when the a1 is mount on the fig rig, is recomendable deactivate the stabiliser or let it on, (sorry but my english is limited for the moment)

[Don Palomaki]

Your English is better than my Spanish.

In general, when on a reasonably sturdy tripod it is better to turn the image stabilization OFF. This eliminates the lag and overshoot at the start/end of pans and tilts.

But the Fig Rig is something different. From what I've read it sounds reasonable to turn the OIS OFF with the rig. Part of the reason for use the Fig Rig is to retain some of the smoother, wide range of motion, characteristic of hand-held shots with heavy camcorders, and OIS would tend to fight that effect.

Best idea is to try it both ways as see which results are more to you liking.

[Josh Laronge]

I use the A1 with a Fig Rig and leave the OIS on. I've tried it both on and off and can't really see a difference.

One thing I've found is that I've gotten some really beautiful smooth shots (arguably close to a stedicam) with the fig rig and then using the smooth cam filter in FCP.

[Jorge Mendoza]

thanks, I had to try both(on & of) and no see difference, i will prove with different movements as pans or running with it for see the results and i´ll write here

[Steven Dempsey]

I would recommend shooting with the OIS off. Shooting with it turned on tends to give an exaggerated stutter when you are panning or if fast moving objects go through the frame.

I'm speaking based on my experience with the XLH1 although I haven't really seen that same issue with the XHA1. I wonder if they changed something in the latter?