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Remote control of a "gimbal" containing a GoPro

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  • 11-01-2024 4:24pm
    #1
    HappyDancer
    Registered Users Posts: 53 ✭✭


    Hi, this maybe a little strange as I'm relatively new to this field. I've a GoPro Hero 7 and would like to upgrade my setup and use it with a gimbal and access it (control pan and tilt) remotely. I haven't get bought a gimbal for this and I've been looking at gimbals to fit the GoPro too and then access remotely via an App - these seem limited and don't really fit what I'm looking for. What I can't find is a Gimbal (which the GoPro would be fitted too), which I can remote control via my Windows computer. Any ideas if this is possible? Also, is the gimbal the only route for this if I want to do basic motion controls with my GoPro on a "fitting" remotely via my PC? Thanks for any help / guidance this community can offer in this......



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    #2
    Gregor Samsa
    Registered Users Posts: 8,910 ✭✭✭Gregor Samsa


    I'm not sure if you're going to find much that can be controlled by a PC. Phone apps seem to be just easier to develop and maintain, and almost everyone has a smartphone, so I think most companies just go with them.

    Alternatives to gimbals would be motorized sliders and something like the Benro Polaris tripod head. But they'll still use phone apps, and they're not cheap.

    Sliders are basically motorized rails that you can mount a camera on, and then control or program movement up and down the rail, and rotation of the mounted camera (controlling tilt might be an extra layer of complexity, but I'm sure some solutions cover it). There's various manufactures from cheaper ones like Neewer to more robust and modular systems from Edelkrone and iFootage. I've never used one, so I won't even try to recommend any, but here's a couple of links to get you started on the research if you are interested:

    The Benro Polaris is a motorized tripod head. There's 2 versions, a 2 axis one (pan, tilt) that's ideal for panoramas and moving time-lapse, and a 3 axis one that adds a third rotational axis for astrophotography tracking. Again, it's controlled by an app, but the app is very good. I have the 3 axis one (i use it for astrophotography). It's expensive - a grand for the 2 axis one. And I don't think it'll work with a GoPro. You could physically mount a GoPro on it, and move it around using the app, but one of the feature of the app is that you plug your camera into the head, and you get a remote feed of the view of your camera in the app. So you can set it up outside, and control the whole thing (via WiFi) from your living room. But I don't think you can do that with a GoPro. Here's a review of the Polaris to give an idea of what it does: https://robin-oslo.com/benro-polaris-english-version but like I say, I don't think it will suit the GoPro.

    There may well be other solutions I'm not aware of.



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