Easyrig ERIG-TURTLE-XS Turtle-XS Camera Support

Comments about Easyrig ERIG-TURTLE-XS Turtle-XS Camera Support:

I bought the Turtle XS to use with my Sony PMW-F3. I've had it for about 3 months, and it's been useful.
Extremely well-made, and it carries the F3 without a problem.

My big issue with the Turtle is that the pole doesn't clear my head. In order to use it, I have to shift it to the right. I'm 6'2" tall, with a long waist. Not freakishly tall.

With the F3, if I want to use the back viewfinder, I have to tilt my head at an angle to line it up with the eyepiece. If I do this for very long, I get a nasty kink in my neck.

Look at the product photo, and you'll see the bar above his head. Imagine that bar rubbing the top of your head, or resting on the side of your head, and you'll get the idea.

I still use the Easyrig, but it's not as comfortable or as versatile as I'd like it to be.

Comments about Easyrig ERIG-TURTLE-XS Turtle-XS Camera Support:

I'm using the Turtle X Strong in conjunction with Canon XH A1 and Manfrotto's FigRig, loaded with LitePanels Micro Pro camera lamp, a LANC controller and a shotgun mic and/or wireless receiver. I can walk around with this setup all day long without any signs of fatigue in my arms or shoulders. Without the Turtle X Strong I could lift the combo for about 7-8 minutes steadily shooting at most. Now I can do the same for hours, if I have to. Feels like the FigRig is held by a rope from a cloud.

Moving around and shooting at the same time is very easy with the Turtle X. It is not specifically a stabilizing unit for walking shots. Still, slowly moving/turning is very easy and stable. Walking slowly is most difficult as your body will move back and forth and this will move the camera up and down a bit. When you walk faster the movement will be reduced to a small shock each step that can be fully absorbed by the camera's image stabilizer. The sum of this is that you will have to learn control your movements in a different way, but in the end an extreme amount of stabilisation can be achieved.

The quality of the Turtle X Strong is excellent. The bag is made on spec by Petrol for Easyrig and has the typical Petrol quality of workmanship. Petrol dividers will fit inside the padding system. The fit and finish is excellent, with a sturdy harness built in. The bag can be zipped off the harness base which makes the rig more compact to walk around with it. The arm of the Turtle X is beautifully made with very precisely fitting connects for the three separate parts in which it breaks up for folding away. At first use I thought there was some springy bending in the arm, but I soon learned that this would help keeping the camera more steady during walking.

The Turtle X Strong is not a cheap piece of gear, but the advantage of using it is priceless. I regret I didn't buy it years ago. It would have saved a lot of pain in my back and arms.