Why bother with AI-generated photographs when you can have a robot take them? Nikon has just released a new small camera robot that copies your handheld postures to provide motion control to the masses.
The Cinebot Mini, which was launched by Nikon subsidiary Mark Roberts Motion Control (MRMC), is intended at studio owners, content creators, grips, cinematographers, and camera operators, and aims to democratize the tremendous yet puzzling capability of motion control.
While the technology allows for repetitive (and identical) high-precision camera moves for several passes, as necessary for visual effects approaches, it is significantly more science than art. It’s a technical talent more than anything else, driven by software to input keyframe sequences – and because of the size, cost, and knowledge required, it’s generally the preserve of huge budget projects.
The Cinemot Mini, on the other hand, offers to record a user’s handheld camera motions (or manual dolly pushes) and turn them into repeated sequences, allowing operators to control the robot by hand using a mobile device or a computer.
The Cinebot Mini, which is designed to be highly portable and transportable, can be readily deployed on set or on location and can run for up to eight hours without electricity. It has a 10kg payload and a 1.3m arm reach, as well as track and pedestal options for maximum versatility.
“It’s the ideal solution for professionals looking to record and replicate any movement manually made on set with maximum flexibility and ease of use to meet a wide variety of production requirements,” said MRMC CEO Assaff Rawner.
If you like your robot overlords in virtual form, check out the greatest AI image producers. Check out the top Nikon cameras if you prefer to control your camera with your own hands.
