2009Vehicles and Mounts forum
Safety harness options for shooting from a moving vehicle
17 years old. Gear and prices may have changed since.
DisputedParticipants disagreed and reached no conclusion. Read the findings as positions, not as an answer.
What the thread found
- A positioning belt designed for safety purposes is more appropriate than relying on improvised solutions when shooting from a moving vehicle.
- Climbing harnesses can be used as an alternative to specialized camera harnesses, though they may be less comfortable.
- Daisy chains and carabiners can be used to secure both the operator and camera equipment to the vehicle.
- Full-body harnesses meeting safety standards are available for rent at equipment rental companies for reasonable cost.
- Production companies should provide necessary safety equipment, but operators should verify the equipment's quality before the shoot rather than relying solely on production's provision.
- It is the operator's responsibility to ensure their own safety when production-supplied equipment is questionable.
- Webbing-based harnesses designed for safety applications have greater tensile strength and proper engineering than improvised alternatives like leather belts.
Depends on
- Legality of harness use varies by location and jurisdiction.
- Comfort and ease of shooting may be limited depending on the type of harness chosen and vehicle setup.
- Lower vehicle seats may make it difficult to achieve desired camera angles.
- The thread contains an unresolved disagreement about the viability of using a leather belt with rope as a safety solution.