I came up with this project because I wanted a nice way to improve my product video shots. Adding some extra motion in a shot can improve product videos when it’s done smooth. A turntable can be a great option for that but it is hard to get smooth controlled motion with it when you are working alone. Thats why I made this one motorised and controllable with an Arduino.

I started by making the base and the rotating plate for the turntable. To get a minimalistic look I figured it would look the best when the whole turntable is round. The whole machine is made of baltic birch plywood. I use this a lot because it’s easy to work with, strong, and I like the look of it a lot.

To motorise the turntable I used a stepper motor (type: 28byj-48) and an Arduino Nano. The reason I went for this option instead of a regular dc motor is that it gives the option to program various settings into it like alternate turning direction, slow startup etc.

Checkout this page to get started with arduinos and steppers:

https://www.arduino.cc/en/Tutorial/StepperSpeedControl