I suppose it depends on what remote facilities your camera has, although there are workarounds so, so much better than autofocus. Everyone assumes you work cranes from the rear, so you need to remote the zoom and focus. This of course is possible, if your camera allows it, and you can afford to do it. However, if you are adept at controlling your camera direct, then work the crane from the front! I simply do it backwards. I mount the camera with the pan handle facing forwards, and then with my arms up, the camera can be high and it can drop down almost to the floor. You can still focus as you would always have done, but the camera can be wherever you like. I often use the crane as a easy to reposition static support. You can set up a shot high looking down, shoot it, then easily move to the next one low down, very quickly. You can of course do the big swoops or the slow moves, but you use the camera as if it’s on a tripod.
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