What's the difference between a steady camera and a handheld one?

Answer 1

if you are referring to steadicam (spelt with the 'i'), it is a proprietory camera-stabilization rig that helps you remove jerks and jitters from your shots that come from moving your camera using just your arms/body. put simply, it is a 'shock absorber' for your camera movements.

for example, if were to shoot a subject using a camera mounted on your shoulder while walking behind him, your shot might 'bob' up and down in correspondence with your steps. this will be especially pronounced if you are using the camera's lens in a 'zoomed' position. a steadicam (or other stablization rig) will help reduce or eliminate such problems.

the stabilization rig works by doing three main things, using the principles of isolation, inertia and balance:

1. it isolates the camera from your body.
2. it increases the camera's resistance to rotation (tilt, pan, roll).
3. it place the 'center of gravity' outside the camera to a position where you can manipulate it directly.

a combination of all this and some practice will help you take smooth shots that are otherwise difficult/impossible.

a handheld shot will be only as smooth as you can 'humanly' make it. the steadicam will make it less 'human', if you get what i mean.

have a nice day :-)

Answer 2

A 'steady-cam' has inertial rigging which virtually eliminates the camera operator's movements from the camera's perspective. While the operator can move about freely, moving the camera with them, the steady-cam rigging eliminates the minute jittering caused by the rise and fall of the operator's strides, shifting weight slightly, or repositioning their feet while turning.

Answer 3

steady cams are a rig that straps to the chest and use a gyroscope to kepp them for having the jerky effect you get with hand held

Answer 4

Steadycam are mainly used for capturing motion shots with full smoothness and stability which mechanically isolates the shots from the camera operator’s movement. It allows the camera operator to capture smooth silky shots even when the person is walking or running or jogging, going up-down stairs. The camera equipments and stabilizers are used in film making /production, photography and sometimes hand held stabilizers are used for home videos also.

http://www.dvcity.com/dvshop/FLYCAM-5000-Camera-Steadycam-System-with-Comfort-Arm-and-Vest.html

Camera stabilizers are generally hand held but can be used in number of ways. Hand held can be used with arm support brace and a body with mounted system. The benefit of using arm brace is that it can be used for all-day long shooting hours as a result the operator’s arm doesn’t get tired. By using body pod, the weight of the stabilizer is shared with the entire body, making the stabilizers even more comfortable and stable to use.

http://www.dvcity.com/dvshop/Hand-held-Stabilizers/

http://www.dvcity.com/dvshop/FLYCAM-Body-Pod-for-Flycam-3000-Flycam-5000.html

http://www.dvcity.com/dvshop/FLYCAM-Arm-Brace-support-for-Flycam-3000-Flycam-5000-Flycam-Nano-Glidecam.html