Hi All,

I don't expect too many complete responses on this but between those that wish to contribute, I may be able to assemble a consensus and make a decision.

I was first attracted to camcorder steadying systems by this bit of footage (take a squint!);

http://www.glidecam.com/gcMediaPlay....o_vineyard.mov

Apart from the subject being very photogenic (!) the footage is very impressive which led me to investigate a little more and ask a few questions on this forum. My questions are;

Given a choice of;

Varizoom VZ-FP Flowpod - £350
Glidecam 2000 Pro - £275
Manfrotto Figrig - £193
Steadicam Merlin - £680 (phew)

1. What would you choose?
2. Do you use one of the above?
3. If you do, what have you found to be the advantages/disadvantages?
4. Is there a system I haven't mentioned?

Please don't talk about the real pro systems (£2000+) as this would be a mere dream. I want something affordable!

Help me out.

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Steadicams of whatever description are specialised pieces of equipment and unless you will be using one on a reqular basis I would consider hiring one out instead whenever the need arises. If you use one in all of your videos they will all start to look the same and you will end up using it as a crutch, it's a bit like overdoing effects or transitions in editing. I would stick to hiring one out when the need arises and stick to handheld and tripod shots.

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Better than a poke in the eye with a pointy stick any day...