Pole Saw Picture Taker

A few months ago I saw a guy photographing a parade with a camera mounted on a long pole. He was able to shoot video from about ten feet above the crowd and see far down the parade route. It was such a great idea I had to try making my own!

Elevating your camera is a great way to get a striking perspective. In fact there are several websites dedicated exclusively to pole or elevated photography.

For my attempt I used an old pole saw. It’s a two-section fiberglass pole that extends to about 15 feet. Using a PVC fitting I attached a Slik tripod ball head to end of the pole. A ball head is a simple device, but I sprung for the SBH-100 that includes a quick release plate.

A 1/4″ x 20 screw holds it to the fitting, and I used a small screw to cinch the whole mess to the end of the pole.

Here’s my first aerial photo I snapped in the back yard:

Altogether it took about 20 minutes and  required the $25 ball head, about $3 of hardware and the pole. So far I’ve only used it with my Olympus E-410, but I’m looking forward to using it for video soon!

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