Frugal Camera Crane / Jib 2.0

[@AboveAndBeyondProduc]

Ok, so I'm in Home Depot today getting pvc for my frugal filmmaker light stand and I see a young guy with items for a frugal filmmaker jib, great joB frugal filmmaker! I think your DIY's are the best! Thank you for sharing you knowledge and clear instructions.

[@Tricknologyinc]

Re: Stabilizing Tilt... Forget pulley ratios and friction! One to One rotation gives perfect reference to camera angle and you can add a protractor and stops to calibrate shot points. LOSE one sided PVC CRANK! Install long metal pipe centered on pulley's center. Length and mass along with ability to adjust grip to the center of rotation will give all the leverage you want or don't on the fly! This is a brilliant design! You killed a ton of over priced professional jib sales. I love you!

[@wesleycurryii3341]

I am now a subscriber to this person. Excellent teacher, good videos, easy to understand teaching, and extremely expensive camera equipment price gougers are a thing of the past.

[@marsmediapro]

OK... I have watched both of your jib/crane videos multiple times, and finally many years later, I am ready to finally make a similar version, though it will cost considerably more than $50... I plan to make a video showing how it's assembled, and will link your video as my inspiration! Thanks for sharing!

[@francisbailey3831]

Many thanks for this DIY project that you have shared with us. I am now inspired to build/construct my own crane camera/jib. What I like is the modifications you have made to the camera crane. All I have to do now is to obtain the parts required for the project and get to work.

[@francisbailey3831]

Camera Crane/Jib is my next video project.

[@StudioBonn]

Hello from Bonn, Germany. Your Video was the first that I've seen 5 month before, and it inspired me to build an own crane. Now I'm ready and I have introduced it on youtube now for other enthusiasts in building own things. I have to thank you, it was a great time for me to create the crane and to get a positive result for myself.

[@Domin117]

I've assembled the arm with pulley system already since the end of last year, but never got around to finishing the head mount. thanks for updating, i would've been SOL with my DSLR!

[@pierdolio]

I've copied your techniques pretty much to the letter so far. I finally made the pulleys from 1/4"Masonite and mounted the arm bearing the camera with its pivot located at the center of the pulley rather than the outside edge. This eliminated the touchiness of the camera movement. Thank you for all the great ideas. It's not making me a great filmmaker but it is providing me with ideas to tinker with.

[@enigma1331e]

I Found that the "L" brackets from your "cage" tutorial work well for this bracket. Its already painted and the shape you needed. Also has the non skip mat where the camera mounts. So no need for cutting any metal for me! Also used skateboard wheel bearing instead of just the nuts for spacers for the pulleys. Thanks.for your great DIYs

[@frugalfilmmaker]

It's a Raynox 6600, a great wide angle lens with little distortion.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Adding a larger pulley to the front would do this. I'm looking for one myself, that should appear in a future upgrade episode.

[@RambotEs]

Incredible invention, as everything you do. You are an inspiration for people with a small budget. I made the stabilizer and I try to do the "frugal crane 2.0". Thanks for the inspiration.

[@jamesjason8471]

i watch your videos to the end to see what new cut scenes you have posted and i love them!!!

[@101AOK]

Great presentation of a gear project. No wasted blab. Good views of the materials. Thanks.

[@jcorpus209]

i love it when you put in one of your bad takes in the end.. it's funny. LOVE IT SCOTT!!!

[@frugalfilmmaker]

If you can drill a horizontal hole near the top, you should be able to mount it there. I think.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

The monitor is plugged into an extension cord. The internal battery died pretty fast. I have to get an aftermarket battery if I want to power it remotely.

[@ObscuraFilms]

Thanks for the great plan! I made mine today. It seems to me that if the tilt handle is longer it will lengthen the arc of travel and so reduce the sensitivity issue without trying to fit a larger drive pulley.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

I haven't as of yet, been pretty busy (family, school, projects), but you could try to add some kind of friction that would slow things down. That bearing is nice, but very touchy.

[@FrancoAversa]

Great ! I built - the camera table dolly for 18 euro came very well, I use it with my reflex. I hope to build even this camera crane, your projects are very beautiful and also simple to build enough for me that I have no manual dexterity !

[@SoccerReels]

This is the best jib DiY I've seen. Your attendtion to detail and practical parts makes this a great solution. I wonder if version 3 willl incorporate another garage bearing into the mount for the jib's up/down motion. Thank you for your excellent video.

[@lindamuvic8110]

Love this design, it seems to be the easiest of the cranes that I reviewed. I will try the larger diameter wheel on the upper part of the jib as you recommended in your suggested improvements. Thanks again second project of yours I'm doing this week.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Is there a menu setting on the camera that toggles external output?

[@JeramieCurtice]

just built one with a few changes. I used an aluminum pool pole and clamped it on a dedicated tripod with c mounts used for conduit. this allows for me to slide the handle back for instant weight balancing adjustments. it's so much lighter than the chain link fence pole as well. the second pulley was installed right into my tripod very easily once I took the swivel adjustment knob off and simply bolted in my pulley with no drilling for that. although I have to practice more, the jib works great.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

I don't, I just shoot wide. If you need to, you'll need some kind of remote control for your camera so one person can operate the arms, while the other pulls focus.

[@aumicomfa3]

I would like to thank you for posting this video. It was a great help I've finished building my crane it works perfectly. I shoot with the A Canon 7D and a Nikon D 7000 And the weight of those cameras were no problem

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Hey James. Are you asking if there is a way to operate the crane if you are using a walker?

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Worked on it today, actually. If my super-simple gimbal idea works out, it could be ready this month. I'm guessing it won't, however, which will set me back a month or two.

[@TheaterGeek2007]

I recently finished my frugal crane 2.0, and am very happy with it despite my less than ideal tri-pod. I also added a permanent platform for A monitor. I plan on getting a better tri-pod soon, and then it'll be perfect.

[@StevenSchellinger]

Good question. You bring down audio because if you do have sound in any crane shots you want then you can sync up the clap noise you make at the beginning of your take, so that the words or noises from both audio clips match the video when editing. Then you can delete the audio recorded on crane if its no good. But sometimes even audio from your camera is good. I used audio from my 60D when I threw up in a film and the sound was raw. I layered it slightly off my other audio and it worked well.

[@jagr298]

Amazing. I can't believe you can make this thing for such little money. Thank you for sharing your videos.

[@sethyjp]

Very nice!!! I have been looking for a pulley just like this one. By the way the 3 RCA cables are not all necessary, all you need is the yellow one, the other ones are for sound, so I guess you could take them out, making life easier.

[@sgtstudio2588]

@thefrugalfilmmaker I added a foam disc to the bolts between the pulley and the boom to create the desired friction to make the tilt handle and pulleys less touchy. The effect is amazing. It also allows you to mount a front or rear heavy camera and not have to hold it to keep it from flopping forwards or backwards. Also, I have added a clamp and wing-bolt to the lower pulley to enable an angle lockdown. If you want I can post a video or pictures...

[@Mulletmanalive]

If you check the original designs in frugalcrane 1.0, you'll find that it's made from two nested parts, so it's reasonably easy to transport in most vehicles [I know from experience you can fit 6'3" of pipe into a mini]. The point of this is that something is better than nothing, rather than anyone actually expecting it to serve in place of pro-gear.

[@TheTSFChannel]

I don't think he had any equipment we didn't see in the footage. The jib was max elevated, top of the jib oriented away from the tree, but the camera was mounted to look at the tree, essentially, backwards. When he rotated the jib clockwise, it looked like a pan because the camera was rotating on almost the same axis as the tripod head below. In effect, he rotated the cam into the tree as the jib arm pivoted. It closed the distance between the cam & tree while turning the view to the right.

[@BudzillaCycles]

I've been chewing through hours of DIY jib cranes here on YT for the last few days. Interesting idea for these or boom poles - an average pool cleaning rod (stick) is adjustable like a painter pole, but a lot longer. -- Just wanted to share. Great channel, thanks for help us little guys out!

[@cottonburnstv]

built this one its woks fairly well... thinking of adding a hole at the top rail coupler on a 90deg. and drilling another hole on the handle and adding a bolt with smaller pvc for a 360 effect.....thanks for the build.. will send video soon... also painted it all flat black to have a more professional look if a client ever comes into play...

[@frugalfilmmaker]

I'm sure it could work, though I'm not a fan of the extra weight.

[@thecultofyar6702]

WOW! this is so much better! Wish i could find these materials easily here in Philippines.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

It does, but it quickly died. I have to plug it into the wall, or get an external battery (which I plan to).

[@ChrisNeuhahnArt]

What about adding an adjustable friction lock to the pulley? That way you can have it free spinning or locked.

[@TitvsCaivs]

You could easily attach a weight to the lower pully's arm, so it's always pointed down, so, you would get a continuous leveling stabilisation for the camera. I mean you could do an up/down/up shot whitout having the problem of manually trying to hold the camera at a given angle.

[@torqdoff]

Nice upgrade. I made a smaller version that I can break down to fit in a backpack so I can take it on my motorcycle during motovlogs. Will do a vid on it when the weather breaks. Thanks for the inspiration.

[@mohalidinsuga9492]

The nice thing about this tutorial is, I will never junk my old mini dv tape camcorder, I will use it as a monitor. Thank you so mcuh for this amazing idea you've shared. I will make one.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

+Mohalidin Suga Good luck!

[@LucidDreamTricks]

You might be able to make the pulley less sensitive just by tightening the cable more.

[@sickJLSrecords]

The only issue I could see with having one pulley bigger than the other, is the rig would tilt on it's own as you move the crane up and down. You would have to compensate to keep it level. But you could do two large pulleys, equal size, for the main cable. And then somehow rig a smaller pulley to the large back pulley as a means for slower tilting, but the large wheel could also be used for more rapid tilting and keeping the camera platform level as you boom up and down.

[@stevar4505]

I am not sure on the D5000, but many of the DSLR's do not have live view available from the mini-hdmi. They have playback mode. Also, Magic Lantern for many of the Cannons have a way to actually play live view in HD. Almost all of the external monitors may not work on initial connection and may need to just be replugged in for the camera to make the connection function.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Yes. I've tested it with a Canon 60D.

[@Aviation101]

this is IDENTICAL the the Jib i built after you're original design :) YAAAY ENGINEERING!

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Excellent tip! Do those pulleys have bearings?

[@DanielRize]

Hey Frug, Nice jib design and, as always, excellent, helpful video. To deal with the “over-sensitivity” issue that you mentioned, you might want to consider any a several ways to induce some adjustable drag/friction on either of your garage pulleys. One way would be to drill holes through you main beam/fence pole, and insert a nylon bolt through the holes, so that is could be adjusted to rub on the inside of your pulley. Probably the best way to do that would be to use a thread tap, to thread the holes in the beam so that they would engage the nylon bolt, making it adjustable. But you would have to buy the tap, if you don’t have one. So that may violate your standards on either cost or simplicity. But there are probably at least 5 other ways to induce drag on those pulleys to slow them down/stiffen them up/control them. Another may be just wrapping some foam on the fence pole, between the pole and the pulley, to create some soft friction. Anyway - - - Thanks for an very nice design. I am probably going to try it. Dan L.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Thanks for the tips, Dan! I've been working on a redesign for awhile and your ideas are solid. I'll see what I can do to implement them.

[@brett-westgrove-country-music]

Fantastic build/update!! I know this is old but, to fix the "touchy" problem you could first try shrinking the lever handle down. For example, if you cut the length of the handle from the end (or where ever you hold it) to the centerline of the bearing you'll cut the torque being applied in half! (Y)

[@TheTSFChannel]

of course it is. I figured it out. the jib must have been almost vertical as it rotated, because there's barely any lateral arch

[@zeromkifle]

Hay, I just finished building my own DIY crane, incorporating your Idea of the garage door opener system. I did put a ref and credit to your channel too. I hope you okay about that. your channel ref is located at 18:23 of my "How to Make a Homemade Camera Crane - DIY Part-2" video. Thanks for all you do. Love your work.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Any steel or aluminum pipe should work.

[@cinemaniatv]

Coolie! Now make an aditional episode and demonstrate it in action. Those few shots from this video were aweinspiring! Could you concoct a primitive gear system of some sorts so you avoid use of bigger wheel under the lever for 3.0? That would give you aditional control and gear variation for a smoother control. Great episode!

[@Sprenklefish]

I built your crane and you're right about that back pulley! Have you found a resource for a larger pulley? I have not. I used an extra stage light stand that I have for my base and the crane is bolted the top pole. Works great!

[@leoncillus]

Oh, you're a king, thanks for the input. The take advantage because the video and photography are my passion. (Excuse my bad English)

[@aquataerra]

There was another video showing how to remove pan jitter using a heavy rubber band as a 'shock absorber' between the hand and the handle. I don't know how that would work here, but the principle might be useful

[@Cosme422]

Yes it does look shaky on the tilt. Add a side bar to lock the rear pulley so you can go up and down and it stays level. You cannot change the size of the pulley to make a different ratio because then your going up won't stay level.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Any iPhone tripod mount will work with this. Just attach it like would to a tripod and you're set.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Not really. Tilting is much more of a necessity in my opinion. I've never needed the panning option (yet).

[@Pleb1]

add some friction on the line in the middle of the boom. possible felt bracket? should slow the control input.

[@fadetounforgiven]

I might be wrong, but I think it's quite easy. Look at 10:14 where the camera is pointing "backwards" towards the crane. Now, instead of exactly that, point the camera horizontally instead of looking downwards, and change the movement from counter-clockwise to clockwise, about 180º or a bit less. I think that's it, and it shows how easy ideas can get good results.

[@AYbarraProductions]

Thank you very much Mr frugal, could u upload some shots where a stabilizer is used so i can see the difference from a stabilized version and the shaky version. I noticed it is very jittery, but i know its a work in progress. Keep up the very best DIY'S!

[@cratedigger89]

Excellent improvements, sir!

[@PCOldskool]

In addition to adding friction, try using a larger pulley up front, and a small pulley in the rear. A reduced ratio will allow smoother adjustments, but you may need to add a revolving handle to your adjuster arm, much like a bicycle pedal.

[@Thoracius]

Larger wheel at the top (smaller at the bottom) will give you finer control. If I heard right you had it backwards. But I'm very impressed with how concise this design is. Much more straight forward design than pretty much any other I've seen. How about a v3.0 with tilt and pan?

[@narutokiller9]

Just bought my 600D, and I'm ready to make this sucker in a few days. Wish me luck.

[@puttputtbutt17]

that was awesome. maybe a spring between the turn buckle and the clothesline would lessen sensitivity. like a shock absorber. love the stepdown pully idea though.

[@EmiliosProductions]

You could probably fill the bearings with a thick grease. That would slow the movements down considerably if they use a liquid or thin grease.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

I surely did? Did we cross paths?

[@hiawatha100]

@thefrugalfilmmaker very nicely done. If I owuldnt have bought an 8ft advanced digital for 200.00, But I may still have to make this for the thrill.

[@elreaseo]

hei why it can do panning movement?? but you just made the lever for the tilt move..

[@Beestingprod]

Correct me if I am wrong but could you maybe make a "steady-cam" set up for the lever? You could put a weight at the end of the lever (through your magical frugal ability) therefore creating resistance for you when moving it making it steadier.

[@aussalmo]

Have you thought about attaching a plain large rubber band to the tilt handle ansd pulling on the band to smooth out the tilt mechanism?

[@MrJerryYT]

hello sir i want to buy a camera for my studio but i dont have experince in cameras so plz just guaid me that what kind of camera i want to buy for best performance in indoor or out door shoot plz help

[@20Pilotdude]

could you put a pulley under the camera mount attached to the camera so that you could adjust the pan or would that make it to un-stable?

[@JeramieCurtice]

one other change I will make in mine is an optional free hanging steady can mount to keep my shots more level from heavy swings. it will only provide level shots, but that's why it will connect optionally. check out my last video for my first try with the jib. see half way through the rett syndrome story video.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Most HD cameras have a breakout cable with SD composite outputs that you can run into these cheap monitors.

[@makak-47kalashniko33]

Hello, I was wondering if I could use smaller pulleys, like 2 inches of diameter. I'm in France and i have problems finding pulleys with ball bearings bigger than 2 inches. Thanks a lot for your remarkable tutorials !

[@datOtaku]

By the way, the link to the mini TV is wrong. The TV listed in the description does not have inputs, other than coax. I'm about to try and see if I can use a RF device before I return it.

[@frugalfilmmaker]

In the video, I am running an extension cord from my apartment, but I have since purchased a very nice 12v battery that keeps the monitor going for over four hours. I made a video about it called "Tip: External SD Monitor Battery".

[@muleskinnerpro]

You could use a top pulley with no center bearing and mount it on your bolt shaft with washers an coil springs to adjust the tension. This will create the friction you need to reduce the 'touchy' problem. You could also put a swivel handle on the bottom pulley so it is operated like a fishing pole and smooth to rotate.

[@crashtestprod]

Motion makes sense, and it would seem like a lot of work to try and pull off what he did with a dolly and a crane.

[@puiselo]

I love my HFS100! it is a couple of years old now, but the video quality is still amazing compared to the new cameras

[@tallguytrav]

Does anyone else feel like the tree 10:38 is spinning towards the camera? I have watched that part about 6 times now and I still cant figure it out!

[@johnpaulOscilowski]

I think that weird effect was caused by using a wide-angle lens. Don't count on it though, I'm far from a camera expert

[@PhilippGassmann]

Strange. Saw it at first too, but then I figured out how the camera actually moves, now I can't see the illusion anymore.

[@yavuzulus06]

I watched again and again. strange and amazing effects

[@Paranormresearch]

It almost appears as if the crane itself is on a dolly track moving slowly toward the tree as the crane is being turned.

[@Miriable]

Looks like the camera has been turned backwards (facing in toward the center) and then Scott does a 180 degree spin with the jib elevated. Cool effect!

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Yes you can!

[@frugalfilmmaker]

Yep. It's an HFS100.

[@cinefuze]

How much would all this cost?

[@justMikec]

Nice production. I'm wondering if you would would fix your control issue by simply extending the length of the cable control arm? Just a thought.

[@ShallowBeThyGames]

Perhaps a spring in the pulley cable might dampen down some of that movement.

[@yancy92]

Thanks again man! Going to 'the Depot' to get my materials for my dslr jib! I'll let you know how it goes!

[@NipomoBeach]

Great job!! I have been watching and have learned a lot. I hope to build some of the DIY projects soon. Thank you for sharing your projects. Did you live in Santa Maria CA?

[@NotLordCalvert]

What if you played with the length of the tilt assembly arm? Maybe extend it a bit and make sure to hold it at the end? Wouldn't this create a dampening effect similar to actually increasing your pulley ratio?

[@longhorn4606]

at the beggining of the video what are those small nuts and bolts

[@H2OFilmworks]

I love the idea. I am building one for myself. Is there a reason why you attached the camera "L" bracket so low on the pulley. Wouldn't it tilt more freely with the weight closer to the center of the pulley?

[@giammyzanna]

What's the weight of the final product? I'm a bit worried my tripod can't take it.

[@BuildITWithBrian]

I like the design. I agree a larger pulley up top would help. Also how about adding a 5# barbell weight to the pulley with the arm on it to act as a flywheel to help smooth out the rotation. It would also act as a smooth start stop helper when tilting. Nice job overall!

[@stevar4505]

Just so you know from an engineering standpoint the "depth" of the structural element is the most important. Round and square tubing will never be as strong in bending as oval or rectangular (with the same surface and wall thickness dimensions). However, round is probably cheaper. For instance by equation a 2x3 is 5x stronger than a 2x2 in bending (which is the most critical for a jib design). A possible alternative would be to screw 2 pieces of 3-5/8" metal stud framing track together.