Zhiyun Skull M2 3 Axis Stabiliser Crane M2

Product Information

However, when carrying our iPhone 13 Pro Max the Crane M2S performed perfectly. We enjoyed experimenting with the various modes, especially with the drone-style floating movement produced when shooting in POV mode. Modes such as Follow or Go cause the gimbal to pan and tilt, so you can intuitively produce interesting camera work that tells a story in a few seconds. Verdict Switching on and the gimbal comes to life; in the case of the action camera and Camera, which were both balanced OK before switching on, everything worked fine. The Smartphone while not perfectly balanced levelled out fine, and any worries that the slight imbalance would upset the gimbal came to nothing. Essentially the Crane M2 S is the lighter weight sibling of the M3; it does most of the same things but is slightly more limited by size and the weights of larger cameras. The final point that we want to make about the Zhiyun Crane M2 is that the handle grip is excellent. It is comfortable to minimize aches and pains during use for those longer sessions while also being very easy to grip even if your hand is wet or cold. This makes sure that you always have a firm hold of your gimbal and minimizes the risk of you accidentally dropping it when in use. Our Verdict The gimbal also comes with some additional control functionality from the grip controls for supported cameras to make your life as easy as possible. At the time of writing, these additional features will work seamlessly with the following camera bodies:-

Full-follow mode keeps the camera level but pans and tilts with the motion of the handle. In any mode, you can triple-tap the trigger button to swivel the gimbal 180-degrees and pop it into vlogging (selfie) mode. Sitting between the superb ZHIYUN M3 and Smooth 5, the M2 S is the perfect balance of the two in every respect. Design-wise, it’s very similar to the M3, yet in size, it’s closer to the Smooth 5. The only issue with the action cameras and smartphones is that you need to use the device’s screen and app to control the camera rather than being able to control it through the handle. Through the test, I warmed more and more to the ZHIYUN M2 S; mainly, its small size meant that it was easy to transport and always available to use.At the price, I like the ZHIYUN M2 S a lot, it’s worth every penny for what it does, and the build is suitably solid and offers plenty of flexibility. The M3 may be a better choice if you’re filming with smaller mirrorless with small fixed focal length lenses, smartphones and action cameras. However, if you mainly shoot with a smartphone or action camera and sometimes with a small mirrorless the compact size, price and features of the M2 S make it an ideal solution. The Zhiyun Crane M2S is a solid mutli-purpose gimbal which is a good staring point for relative newcomers to videography, those who want something relatively affordable, but with features beyond what you might get with an entry-level device. It does have a few snags which may frustrate more seasoned users, and physical limitations mean that its main selling point, that you can use it with a range of phones and cameras, might be oversold if an encased Pixel 6 can’t sit comfortably in there.

Effective image-stabilisation is a big selling point in smartphones and action cameras these days but nothing quite beats the fluidity and professional look that a motorized gimbal can bring to your video. In our opinion, the Zhiyun correction and detection system is the best system available at the time of writing. Although the DJI system is solid and the Moza system has come on leaps and bounds over the last few years to make it into the top three, we feel that the Zhiyun is ever so slightly ahead still. Although the gimbal sensors and motors on the Crane M2 are smaller than the ones used on their higher load capacity gimbals, it still uses the same, lightning-fast balancing algorithm. The section of the gimbal that enables you to roll, tilt and pan your camera is made of metal. Each axis is controlled by a motor that produces a smooth movement.One thing that we often see people new to using a gimbal worry about is the balancing process but thankfully, Zhiyun gimbals have had one of the easiest balancing procedures for years now and the Zhiyun Crane M2 is no different. The gimbal is extremely easy to balance and the included user manual offers a very easy to follow tutorial on how to best balance the gimbal when you get it. Additionally, Zhiyun has the video above on their official YouTube channel going over how to balance the gimbal but it really is an easy process and we doubt that anyone will run into any issues.