FiLMiC Pro and Zhiyun Smooth 4 – A Perfect Match for Mobile Filmmakers?

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by Richard LackeySeptember 10^th, 2018

FiLMiC Inc and Zhiyun have announced a collaboration that brings tactile control of many FiLMiC Pro app functions directly from the Zhiyun Smooth 4 gimbal itself.

There are many smartphone gimbals on the market to choose from, but when using a third party video camera app, such as FiLMiC Pro, most of them still require a lot of screen tapping and swiping to change settings, exposure and focus. Now you can have fingertip control of many FiLMiC features from the Zhiyun Smooth 4 gimbal handle without touching the phone at all.

Key features of the FiLMiC Pro and Zhiyun Smooth 4 integration include:

• Quick mode selector allows users to effortlessly progress through three shooting modes (Reticles, Full Auto and Manual);
• The ability to start and stop recordings directly from the Smooth 4;
• Lock and unlock focus and exposure reticles with a single press on the Smooth 4 thumbwheel;
• Ability to use the side handwheel for highly responsive focus pulls and cinematic zooms;
• Quick lens selection to effortlessly switch between front, rear, zoom and tele lens directly from the gimbal (on dual-lens iPhones);
• Manually override focus and exposure in any mode to ensure perfect results.

If there is one thing that has been missing from the mobile filmmaking experience it is tactile control. Control of any app is limited to a touchscreen and whichever assignable buttons can be mapped from a particular phone. In one sense I enjoy the touchscreen control experience, it can be fast, intuitive and effective, and of all the pro filming apps, FiLMiC Pro is one of the best in this regard.

If you’ve never used FiLMiC Pro and would like to give it a try you can get it from the App store and Google Play. I’ve also previously reviewed FiLMiC Pro version 6 log gamma capabilities here.

However, having fingertip control of major functions from the handle of a gimbal is a real game changer. FiLMiC Pro and the Zhiyun Smooth 4 could well be the perfect match for mobile filmmakers.

A full review of this combination is coming up soon. 

You can read the full press release here.

Are you using your phone to shoot videos or films? Are you considering it? What do you think of this solution? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.