Hi All,

I've currently shooting some product videos for a company that makes vehicle lights. One of the shots the company really wants to achieve is a through-the windshield (occupants perspective) shot looking straight ahead at the road, comparing the performance of different lighting set-ups. As many of the lights are designed for 4x4s, a big proportion of the footage will be filmed off road so camera shake will be a big issue.

I'm wondering if anybody has any mounting ideas for this situation? I'd like to hire a Grip to take care of it but I'm not sure if this is even something they are used to dealing with as it is a rather specialist shot. I don't imagine a gyro stabiliser will work in this situation because the vehicle will be going up and down a lot and the frame needs to stay oriented to where the vehicle is pointing, rather than on a horizontal plane is as I imagine a gyro would do.

Looking forward to hearing your suggestions, and in particular whether this is something most Grips could pull off pretty easily.

Thats not any real issue. Do you know what kind of camera you will be using? The heavier the camera package the heavier the rigging will be.

Generally you do a hard mount so the camera moves with the vehicle. That will keep the frame of the window you are looking out steady.

The key to a shake free setup is having multiple solid points of contact on the vehicle and on the camera setup. Don't rely on that single threaded connection on the bottom of the camera in situations where something will be shaking with a lot of energy. You do a hard mount so the camera moves with the vehicle. Make sure the Grip also has safety tethers on the rig. You don't want to have "bricks" flying around the inside of the car if something comes loose.

Hiring a Grip with that kind of experience is for sure the way to go. They will have access to the tools to do the job safely and get the shot you want.

Thanks Chris, good to know that this is pretty standard stuff for a Grip. I'd like to shoot on a 5DmkIII because it's going to be a tight space and I'll need a really wide lens - but I'd need to know for sure that there'll be no problems with vibrations. If there's any doubts about eliminating the vibrations, I might try and get hold of a Panasonic HMC150, purely for the global shutter CCDs which will allow me to do post-stabilisation as well if required.

You'll be able to get a solid mount with a 5d. Make sure you have a small rail setup on the camera with a lens support. That will be important if you are using a heavy lens. You don't need anything large.

Be sure to let your Grip know that you are using a 5d. That way they will have a shoe mount to attach to the top of the camera.