# Crane down

Camera / Camera move / Drone and crane. Checked 2026-10-13.

Descends into the scene: arriving, focusing in from a wide view.

- Use when: Openings that land on the main character, arriving at a location.
- Phrase: crane down, the camera descends from above the trees to eye level and lands on the couple at the table
- Page: https://directorchair.ai/move/crane-down
- JSON: https://directorchair.ai/api/move/crane-down.json

## Watch out

- Give one main camera move per shot. Two moves at once, or orders that contradict each other, make the camera wander. (vendor; Kling camera guide and ByteDance Dreamina Seedance guide, via Director Chair field notes on video prompting)

## Move card

- **Camera:** descends through open space
- **Pace:** slow
- **Keep:** the subject readable as the camera comes down
- **Ends:** at the subject's level

## Reference: Crane down

> crane down. Movement: travel smoothly downward through open space. Speed: slow controlled vertical descent. Framing: keep the subject or location readable as the camera descends. End: finish with the lower subject or destination clearly visible.

Credit: AI Camera Movements (aicameramovements.com). Source: https://aicameramovements.com/previews/hq/25b-crane-down-hq.mp4
Clip: https://directorchair.ai/media/aicameramovements/25b-crane-down-hq.mp4
Poster: https://directorchair.ai/media/aicameramovements/25b-crane-down-hq.jpg

## Prompts

### Seedance 2.5

```
Scene: [your subject] in [your setting].
Shot 1 (0:00 to 0:05): one continuous shot
Optics and camera: Crane down, the camera descends from above the trees to eye level and lands on the couple at the table. Camera: descends through open space. Pace: slow. Keep: the subject readable as the camera comes down. Ends: at the subject's level.
Reference clip (Crane down): https://directorchair.ai/media/aicameramovements/25b-crane-down-hq.mp4
```

### Seedance 2.0

```
Scene: [your subject] in [your setting].
Shot 1: one continuous shot
Optics and camera: Crane down, the camera descends from above the trees to eye level and lands on the couple at the table. Camera: descends through open space. Pace: slow. Keep: the subject readable as the camera comes down. Ends: at the subject's level.
Reference clip (Crane down): https://directorchair.ai/media/aicameramovements/25b-crane-down-hq.mp4
```

### Kling 3.0

```
[your subject]. The scene is [your setting]. Crane down, the camera descends from above the trees to eye level and lands on the couple at the table. Camera: descends through open space. Pace: slow. Keep: the subject readable as the camera comes down. Ends: at the subject's level.
Reference clip (Crane down): https://directorchair.ai/media/aicameramovements/25b-crane-down-hq.mp4
```

### Veo 3.1

```
Crane down, the camera descends from above the trees to eye level and lands on the couple at the table. Camera: descends through open space. Pace: slow. Keep: the subject readable as the camera comes down. Ends: at the subject's level. [your subject] in [your setting]. Framing and subject stay as in the start image.
Reference clip (Crane down): https://directorchair.ai/media/aicameramovements/25b-crane-down-hq.mp4
```

## Look further

- https://aicameramovements.com/ : a looping example clip of this move and a free prompt card (link only)
- https://aicameracontrol.com/ : a free 3D stage to place the person and set the lens before you generate

## Goes well with

- Crane up: https://directorchair.ai/move/crane-up
- Drone push in: https://directorchair.ai/move/drone-push-in

## Source

Move names and the seven groups from aicameramovements.com (names and structure only); behaviour and numbers in our own words from Director Chair field notes on video prompting and the first Director Chair spec

Text CC BY 4.0, Director Chair (directorchair.ai). Reference clips and their card texts belong to their makers.