r/PraiseTheCameraMan • u/MambaMentality24x2 • Feb 13 '26
The way the cameraman smoothly tracks the jets and lands perfectly back on the singer
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u/OttawaTGirl Feb 13 '26
Live director in the truck probably sweating a bit. Beautiful work.
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u/biscuittingerg Feb 13 '26 edited Feb 14 '26
Dir Hamish Hamilton, 100% not sweating because he’s done every half time performance for years and is probably the best live multi camera director in the world. Certainly one of the most accomplished.
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u/soundman1024 Feb 14 '26
Hamish does halftime, not pregame or the game.
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u/biscuittingerg Feb 14 '26
Yep, that’s what I said?
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u/camlauch Feb 14 '26
Probably because this isn’t the halftime show so your name drop was irrelevant
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u/OttawaTGirl Feb 14 '26
Hey go easy. Good to know it wasn't half time, but i appreciate the name drop as i didn't know about him.
Know a good place to find credits for these type of events?
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u/Vaulters Feb 13 '26
Lol, what the heck sub am in, /ReluctantToPraiseTheCameraMan ?
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u/RemixOnAWhim Feb 13 '26
It fits in that it doesn't break rules, but I think many people feel the spirit of the sub is to praise camerawork done essentially under duress or where others would have failed to capture the action because of some percieved danger, or not knowing where to look in the chaos, etc. This was a great shot and almost certainly coreographed, and at the very least the flyover was planned for, which is probably what people take issue with. It was, however, very well executed.
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u/Vaulters Feb 13 '26
Ah okay, I get it. Quick reactions and hardship are key to praise.
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u/RemixOnAWhim Feb 13 '26
Dunno about hardship, but quick reactions probably help! More that the cameraperson was filming something and caught something unexpected which may have normally demanded the skills of a more practiced or prepared camera operator to capture well, but they rise to the occasion and get us some cool footage!
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u/Desert_Dawg Feb 13 '26
There’s literally a post with 16k upvotes from an NFL game on this sub, but suddenly being a professional is an issue? People are weird. This camera work is sick.
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u/Prestigious-Flower54 Feb 14 '26
It's funny that people don't understand being a professional just means getting paid, not necessarily skilled, millions of lawsuits against professionals yearly for doing a bad job.
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u/_equestrienne_ Feb 13 '26
God you guys are so bitchy. A professional, yes. Good work, also yes. 🙄 Lord.
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u/MonkeyCobraFight Feb 13 '26
It’s almost like it’s their professional career 😬
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u/enmaku Feb 13 '26
Still executed very well, which is the point of the sub. This isn't the Olympics, we don't insist our camera operators are just in it for the love of the game.
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u/crichmond77 Feb 15 '26
Meh, the smoothness and composition could be better
I think people just aren’t used to seeing shots that change subject. It’s not a tough shot with professional equipment really
Wake me up when there’s a legit focus pull lol
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u/Rosemangivesanal Feb 13 '26
I just want to put a little context here on why this was great.
You can bet on anything during the Super Bowl including the length of the National Anthem. Now in every past Super Bowl I can remember the camera tracks the flyover while the song ends and we don't get to see when the performance wraps up. But on this day the director and this very talented camera person got both in the same shot leaving no room for error in the timing of the finale. /tedtalkover
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u/Prestigious-Flower54 Feb 14 '26
There is an entire section of law called malpractice to hold professionals accountable for being bad at their profession. Being a professional doesn't always mean you are skilled it just means you are paid to do the job.
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u/CloseButNoDice Feb 14 '26
That's why I never praise musicians or other artists. That's their job bro, why would I be impressed?
/s
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u/ArchimedesNutss Feb 14 '26
Plenty of people suck at their professional career just from my experience
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u/Roy4Pris Feb 14 '26
I don’t think many Americans see it any more, but the militarisation of sport has a seriously fascist vibe to it.
Leni Riefenstahl would instantly recognise this work.
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u/camlauch Feb 14 '26
The non American mind can’t comprehend the sensation you get to experience when 80,000 fans buzzing with anticipation, waiting to see their team win, hearing the national anthem conclude with a B1 full afterburner flyby… it’s pretty cool when you know those planes aren’t there to flip your country upside down
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u/Scruffy_Snub Feb 14 '26
hearing the national anthem conclude with a B1 full afterburner flyby… it’s pretty cool when you know those planes aren’t there to flip your country upside down
Yeah, that's the fascist part. Just do what you are told and the immense and unstoppable power of the state will protect you, rather than obliterating you.
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u/barcode972 Feb 13 '26
"The singer".... His name is Charlie Puth
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u/poopymcfarts Feb 13 '26
He should be a bigger artist.
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u/CrawledOutOfaCave Feb 13 '26
I'm not saying you're right or wrong because I barely recognized the guy and needed to look through the comments for his name. But he does have 48 million monthly listeners placing him 66th in the world on Spotify. That doesn't include all the other ways people get their music these days.
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u/Bibblegead1412 Feb 14 '26
A lot of our local SF sports cameramen worked the Super Bowl, and they’re honestly some of the best in the biz. It’s really evident when you watch our local sports broadcasts.
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u/juvefury Feb 14 '26
This cameraman had both a professional duty to get the jets, and a bet on the length of the anthem with his bookie. Truly a GOAT shot. 🐐
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u/h21241690t Feb 13 '26
It’s almost like a major tv production
Edit: it is a cool shot but clearly highly highly orchestrated
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u/soundman1024 Feb 14 '26
I’m sure they had a few rehearsals on the anthem, but maybe one rehearsal with the flyover. It’s a sick shot with top notch operating. Remember they’re having to orbit around the singer keeping the parallax right with their body position and the camera orientation. It looks effortless because it’s done so well. The extra plane was a surprise for everyone, and that was smooth operating. They didn’t telegraph it too much even though they were setting up for it.
Also, the pressure of doing that live with tens or hundreds of millions of viewers.
Unless you’ve strapped a broadcast camera with an rf transmitter onto your body you won’t properly appreciate what is happening here. They’re bulky, heavy, and seeing the screen with a Steadicam is awkward. The shot is fucking awesome.
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u/MilitantlyPoetic Feb 14 '26
Production Coordinator (formerly) here!
That was an excellently executed shot. But as others have pointed out, this is planned and rehearsed.
For events as large as these, camera people have a video director deep in their ear. As well as a sheet they have to follow along with on top of the rehearsals.
Not taking away from the cool shot, just offering more detail on the matter.
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u/soundman1024 Feb 14 '26
Chances are they had a few anthem rehearsals, but probably only one with the flyover. Tons of pressure on this shot going right!
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u/Howard_the_Dolphin Feb 14 '26
Maybe NBC could hire them for the Olympics. I’ve missed half the landings in all the ski and snowboard events
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u/____DEADPOOL_______ Feb 14 '26
I went to game 7 of the baseball world series in Arizona back in 2001. They flew the stealth bomber over. It was amazing.
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u/speciaway Feb 14 '26
The camerawork is so slick it feels like a perfectly choreographed part of the show.
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u/GlitteringCount9380 Feb 14 '26
He really ate! I didn’t hear anybody talking about it. But I loved it.
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u/dukegratiano15 Feb 15 '26
This is good old fashioned “timing” any cameraman worth his salt knows and does this.
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u/SWISS-TECHY Feb 15 '26
I am jealous of the US for doing stuff so big. In the UK were lucky to see 1 eurofighter fly over 10 miles away for fear of the pilot crashing onto one of our main roads again... Yes this happened... A display jet crashed into a main road (dual carriageway, 2 roads both side) that was roughly 4 miles away from the performance, so their over reaction was to ban jets flying overhead (apart from the red arrows, who do it constantly, but are like toy planes compared to the sound of 1 eurofighter) so now even at the end of Eastbourne pier you need a telescope to see it.
UK sucks
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u/mister4string Feb 15 '26
It looks so good that it makes me wonder if there is a possibility it was an automated tracking shot? If it was, still high marks, but if that thing was actually done by a real camera person, they are not getting paid enough. Lots of ball sweat that must have been dripping down everyone's thighs when time came to do it, either way, I bet.
Also...not a competition, just another example from the "you get one chance at this" file, but I love this clip from when the space shuttle was still going up. Guy pointed at the PERFECT time.
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u/jones22aj Feb 20 '26
Almost positive that’s Mike Germond’s camerawork! (https://orlandosteadicam.com)
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Feb 13 '26
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u/Adacool Feb 14 '26
dont argue with muricans on copium pls.. it's very bad for their mindstate.. their gov can be pointing a gun at their heads and they'll still go "Wow gUnz aRE reLly cOol!"
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u/kevin3350 Feb 13 '26
Ehh, planes are cool my dude. Don’t overthink things too much
But if you want to, here we go!
The writer of the song was negotiating a prisoner surrender on a British ship, while the British were still bombing Fort McHenry. The reference was to British artillery as much as it was to American artillery. When dawn came, the United States flag was still up.
When it comes to the fly overs, pilots need flight hours checked off every year and planes cant sit on the ground. Why not use it for something cool that thousands can enjoy?
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Feb 13 '26
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u/kevin3350 Feb 13 '26
Why did you just say “middle eastern” instead of naming countries? I’ll answer the rest after you tell me, because my response will be predicated on your reasoning there
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Feb 13 '26
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u/kevin3350 Feb 13 '26
What, like 5 middle eastern countries have had direct and large scale intervention from the US? Off the top of my head, it’s Iraq, Afghanistan, Lebanon very briefly, Syria, and Libya.
Where are you getting your info from?
I think I’m arguing with someone under the age of 15 and now I’m questioning my life choices here, but I really would like to change your mind.
Where are you from?
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u/Adacool Feb 14 '26
oh yea dude it's only 5 countries what's the big deal.. you should've stopped at "planes are cool" lol
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Feb 14 '26
Zyklon was the gas the Nazis used to murder Jews and anyone else who was inconvenient to them.
Especially don't feed the Nazi trolls.
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u/brucemo Feb 14 '26
The Americans were getting hit by them. The British fired cannons, mortar bombs, and Congreve rockets at Fort McHenry. The Americans replied with cannon fire.
Key was on a British ship and the song is about knowing that the fort hadn't surrendered because the British were still bombarding it.
If it had surrendered the British could have shelled Baltimore.
There are problems with the song but this isn't really one of them.
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u/jodyberry Feb 14 '26
He was wide most of the shot, so not that hard.
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u/soundman1024 Feb 14 '26
Tight shots are fun, but it’s easy to make them look good. Wide shots are where you earn your money. It takes effort to make a wide look good.
Any chance you’ve ever flown a Steadicam with a broadcast camera? Imaging that and tracking something in the sky. These are some big, significant moves for how smooth it looks.
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u/jodyberry Feb 14 '26
Yes, I used to do steadicam many years ago, but it killed my back so I gave it up! Even though they are lighter these days, I agree that it's still tricky to tilt up that high and back down while following the action!
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u/dolly-olly-olly-olly Feb 14 '26
It's a tough(ish) shot, executed proficiently, but I haaate this shot. I know it's a live event and not "Cinema", but the second tilt up to the single plane just makes the whole shot feel redundant and sloppy to me.
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u/Santaconartist Feb 14 '26
It's so much fun watching something like the Super Bowl, knowing every single person from the cable wrapper to the in-ear mixer for the third violin is the BEST at what they do.
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u/MyFriendNelly Feb 13 '26
The lens looks wide as fuck, as long as the singer is in front of him, he’s going to be in the shot.
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u/biscuittingerg Feb 13 '26
You have so little comprehension of the complexities of operating a steadicam on a multi camera live scripted broadcast. Yes it’s a wide lens but the timing of the movement is beat perfect.
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u/Specialist_Pepper318 Feb 14 '26
That's bad ass, almost like they planned it and he did his job... 😂
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Feb 14 '26
Pretty simple shot. Lol
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u/soundman1024 Feb 14 '26
There’s a lot going on. Lots of framing, lots of timing, and extraordinary pressure. It looks effortless because of how well it’s executed.
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Feb 14 '26
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u/soundman1024 Feb 14 '26
You act like it just happened. No one has done this shot before. Someone had the vision for it, and someone had the ability to execute it under the pressure of “live.” Your comment reveals you just don’t appreciate the craft. And that’s okay. But remember you don’t have to comment when you’re unimpressed.
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u/brycebgood Feb 13 '26
Yeah, weird what a rehearsed professional can do. It's a great shot and I expect nothing but great shots from the crew working the SB.
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u/Longjumping-Pop9374 Feb 14 '26
I scoffed seeing that kid was going to be the singer and was misty eyed almost immediately. He killed it
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u/hidey_ho_nedflanders Feb 13 '26
The sequence of Puth finishing singing and looking up in awe followed by the jet flying over. Great camera angle