I wanted to build a jib crane for my Hero and Hero2, so here's what I came up with: http://imgur.com/a/N597z#
This is a work in progress for me, and it's currently resting at 'Hey, this works pretty good ' I've taken some test footage outside and this actually works pretty good. I just need to get it out to the
lake or park and get some real footage ((kiting footage ) now.
If anyone has any suggestions, I'd be glad to hear them!
My next phase is making the control rod easily removable. My requirements are simple:
1. Able to attach/detach easily.
2. *Very* secure when attached.
A nice to have would be for it to be retractable as well, so I'm currently going to look into retractable ski poles for their light weight,
retractability, and comfort-grip handles.
My first idea was to be static while the kiter passes by me, or throws a trick in front of me. The original shot in my head worked as follows:
1. Kiter is approaching, camera is high
2. Kiter starts coming in close, camera remains trained on the rider, but starts descending.
3. Kiter throws trick/boosts right in front of me, camera is at lowest point facing upwards at kiter.
Then later I realized I could release the control rod, then face towards me while I was riding (kiting with one hand, camming with the 2nd). Or I
could use it to cam other kiters riding around. For this case, I'd have to incorporate a float of some sort in case I dropped it.
Another shot I had in mind was spinning the camera on its Z axis as it filmed the kiter throwing an S-Bend or backroll kiteloop right in front of me.
I'm sure when I start using it, I'll come up with more ideas for shots.
Can't quite see what you're trying to do there - looks like monopod mounted gopro with a secondary handle to adjust the camera ??
Or have you got it pivoting on something? If you use a parallelogram mount (er...something like that!!) the camera will continue pointing in the same
plane regardless of how high or low it is. Check some of the astronomy forums - particularly for home made binocular mounts. I think that's what the
commercial jibs use but wouldn't be too complicated to knock one up. In the last video I did Speed Week 2011 I think I took all the footage with the gopro mounted on the end of a tripod leg (a crappy cheap one). Wasn't too bad to wave
around in the buggy and I could tuck it under one leg quickly when it got gusty. My favorite shots are the ones where the gopro is only a couple
inches off the ground and moving forward.
spring loaded pistol grip style to give tilt action when squeezed, could have click lock action maybe.
like a device used to pick items from the ground without bending over. a basic design to start with and cheap easy protos. just suggestions and
could get pricey with custom Al parts
John, the crane in the pic you linked will produce a similar effect as my DIY project. Perhaps I should have named this something different as it
isn't a full-blown jib crane, just a cheaper/simpler version of it. In my case, I don't have it pivoting on a tripod or anything- I am the
pivot/tripod. As far as creating the effect produced by a parallelogram mount, I'd simply just have to move the control rod slightly to keep the
camera level as it changes altitude.
Phree, what you mentioned about a pistol grip is what I first had in mind to control the tilt when all of this popped in my head. I wanted something
I could rest on or under my arm and use my hand to control a joystick that connected to the mount the camera sat on. I might still go that route
later, but I think for now I can use this to achieve the type of shots I have in my head.
![[*]](images/perspective/default_icon.gif){kind=icon}
' I've taken some test footage outside and this actually works pretty good. I just need to get it out to the
lake or park and get some real footage ((kiting footage 
) now.
