Using the Glidetrack for crane shots
 

Created this little teaser for the Glidetrack a week or so ago. I thought I would try some new moves (rolling, dolly shot) as well as see if I could use my GT as a crane... which you can.


Shot using a GT SD 1meter. I almost never use this one for weddings as the GT compact is all you need.

Looks good, what camera/lens did you use?

Well that's damn good mate...
I'm tryin to figure out how u can use GT as crane...but i can't!

How do u did?

That looked really good.

You simply mount the track on a liquid head, it can then be spun and tilted.

The difference is that on a crane the camera is always level because there are two bars acting together to maintain level.

This is a little like using a pole with a pivot in the middle.

It can be used to great effect, but is not as versatile as a jib/crane. It helps to have a brake on your carriage for obvious reasons.

Olof
Reasonable Priced Sliders ? Westside A V Studios

Would someone be willing to post a video of how using the glidetrack as a crane is accomplished? I just got a glidetrack sd and am using a Manfrotto 501hdv. Seems like this would have to be a two-person technique. Also, it seems like the tripod head would be unable to get up to a 90 degree angle or higher.

Well, Alastair Brown is officially awesome. Not only was my tripod delivered in 1.5 work days (from SCOTLAND to Tennessee - how is that even POSSIBLE???), but I just wrote him an email regarding this issue, and he sent me a link within minutes. Here is his response:

Try fitting the rail to your current head at the end of the rail.

Fit a second head and then you can do up/down shots with a controlled arc.

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