User Manual

8
USER’S GUIDE
Using the
Free Spirit
Camera Stabilizer
(continued)
Achieving balance with your camera on the
Free Spirit Camera Stabilizer (continued)
Vertical Balance
Once your Free Spirit is horizontally balanced, its vertical balance
can be tested and properly adjusted. As with horizontal balance, the
objective in obtaining correct vertical balance is to get the camera
and Free Spirit unit to remain level during operation, unless you are
intentionally applying a pan, tilt or roll type of hand pressure.
Most importantly, the Free Spirit’s center shaft should remain vertical
when you are walking, running, or turning while using it. In other words,
if the Free Spirit is vertically balanced correctly, then the camera should
remain level, and the center post should remain vertical. The Free Spirit
should always return to this level and vertical position after you release
any pan, tilt, or roll pressure on the center shaft of the unit.
If the Free Spirit is not vertically balanced properly, it will swing like
a pendulum when you walk, run or turn. if the vertical balance is set
correctly you will be able to move around quickly, as well as start or
stop suddenly, while the center shaft of the unit remains vertical.
1. The best way to adjust vertical balance is to telescope the center
shaft in or out from the counterweight base plate. To do this,
loosen the red-ringed height adjustment ring (24) on the center
column and slide the shaft up or down as required. Then, re-
tighten the adjustment ring to hold the column at this length (25).
2. Another way to adjust the Free Spirit’s vertical balance is to add
or subtract counterweight discs on the bottom base plate of the
unit (26). To do this, you would remove the tie-down screw at the
top of the weight stacks on both sides of the base plate, and then
slide on or off one or more weight rings on each side.
3. To test for vertical balance you can hold the Free Spirit by the handle
with one hand and lift the base plate up until the center column
is horizontal to the ground with the other hand. Then, release the
baseplate and count how long the unit takes to drop and first return
to a vertical position. You want to count only until it passes the
vertical position the first time, not the subsequent swings back and
forth until it comes to rest. Before you achieve balance, this time will
likely be very fast, a second or less. The ideal time on a perfectly
balanced unit will be two to three seconds.
4. You can also test vertical balance by moving quickly forward carrying
the unit and stopping quickly. If the Free Spirit swings like a pendulum
away from the upright position, then it is not yet balanced properly.
5. Until you can perform these vertical balance tests succesfully,
you will need to make finetuning adjustments as outlined in Steps
1 and 2 above.