The truth about Jib Rentals in NYC or Jimmy Jib Rentals in Boston is that these are tough cities to work in. Loading is difficult, a lot of buildings were never designed for large scale productions, and certain venues don’t even have loading docks,. Part of the grind of working with larger equipment is simply getting it in and out of the door without getting a parking ticket! At the Prudential Center in Newark, NJ you just pull up a vehicle right to a truck loading bay and often smaller vehicles are allowed to park in the dock area. You are loaded and parked in 10min! In Manhattan around 5th ave/midtown, you can have load ins that spiral thru a building, use multiple elevators, garage parking eats up a half hour, and it takes the better part of an hour just to get back to the stuff to start building! On smaller film sets, productions will have hire overnight parking fixers that are putting out fake cones or caution signs in parking spots as spaces free up! What other city works like that?! It’s tough being a jib operator in NYC!
Spider Pod Rentals NYC - Spider Pod NJ
New for 2025!! We aren’t just offering Jimmy Jib Rentals in NYC! We of course can crew full teams for cine or ENG capture styles of events. To help facilitate crewing and set up efforts, we offer up to (6) Spider Pods in NJ, NYC, Boston, or Washington DC. The spider pod is a great camera riser system that is much more compact than dual 4x4 stage decking. Weighing just about 45lbs, each unit folds up into a soft or hard case making transportation easy and possible in a minivan. Twelve 4x4 decks (two sets for six operators) would require far more set up space, a truck to deliver, crew for assembly, etc. Spider Pod Rentals in NYC or NJ are easily added on to jib rentals in NYC OR available for stand alone rentals.
The perfect jib vehicle for being a NYC JIB operator
Jib Operators around the country have it so easy compared to here in NYC! Being jib op in NYC is a little cut throat with loading. Forget the paralyzing traffic, most venues are super old and were never designed for modern load ins. Loading docks are very small and sometimes you can only street load into a stage door. THEN, what do you do with vehicle?? I honestly have no idea what people do with their box trucks OR trailered vehicles! For me it’s super simple, I can fit a 30’ JJ Triangle, many cameras, tripods, and lighting right into a Toyota Sienna minivan. Productions that have reserved street parking love it b/c they think you’re coming with a truck and that means you take up way less space! Parking garages never turn you away and you can street park a whole lot easier than a sprinter van!
When this jib op takes a camera crane rig down to newer buildings in the DC area, I’m always amazed at how intelligent venues are set up! NOT the case in NYC!!
Jib Operator in New York City Using The SmallHD 1303!
OK. sorry to bore everyone with writing about this again. I’m not sure if anyone actually reads this, so it might not matter ; ) I used the SmallHD1303HDR yesterday jibbing a parade in Manhattan. I had an 18’ Jimmy Jib Triangle set up on a super bright sidewalk on 42nd st between 2nd and 3rd avenues. The morning sun was insanely intense and I even got a touch of sunburn despite it barely touching 70degrees. Despite all of this, I could see the smallest details and focus was rock solid. Meanwhile, in video village the director crew had rigs a whole lot of flags on C stands to block the sun. This monitor made SUCH a difference.
Jib Vs Drones Part 2: Legal
The saga continues, Drone or Jib?? They both have their uses but this series is more about considerations which may not always be obvious and that leads up to the legal subject. Not all drone operations are legal to do in the eyes of the FAA. Furthermore, the rules of Part 107 gave communities the go ahead to make their own laws and ordinances on the subject. Flying within the rules of the FAA may actually be violating some kind of local regulation. For example, there are plenty areas within New York City that are not Class B controlled airspace but the city still has banned drones everywhere except AMA fields. Other towns in NJ have made it illegal to fly a drone anywhere other than the lateral limits of private property. It’s getting intense nonetheless! Jibs are still a very handy resource in red tape situations like these.
What is helpful is that an automatic authorization system for surface level class B, C, D, and E airspace has gone live around many airports in the country. This changed the authorization process massively as it may only take a few moments on an app vs 90 days with the FAA. However, what do you do if you can’t get an authorization OR you get an authorization but local regulations prevent you from flying?? If you can’t get authorized, it’s game over. Then it’s jib time. If you do get authorized but it’s still illegal to fly? You may be dealing with red tape, more asking for permission, or going back to the ole reliable camera jib.
Drone flights directly over people are still NOT allowed by the FAA or by local governments. You can fly “around” people but the flight path can’t go directly over anyone. Some cities have restricted this even further by creating specific regulations to keep drones away from people. For massive shots directly over people, jibs still are the best and safest option.
If you think airspace may cause an entanglement for a shoot you a planning, please feel free to reach out to me at steve@Universaljibs.com to discuss options!
Jib and Drone Footage: Fun with Slow Mo!
In my spare time I’ll get out into more secluded areas in NJ and break out the drone. Slow mo helps capture the true beauty of natural elements. They often happen way too fast to take them in so seeing them from angles you can’t be in or at speeds that don’t exist is a great way to change things up. Check it out. I promise this waterafall is much bigger in real life. It’s approximately 25’ from the base to the top!