# 25,000 feet at dusk, and the camera falls with him, three feet from his face.

- Series: [How Cameras](https://miu.fm/howcameras.md)
- Premieres: 2026-11-10
- Page: https://miu.fm/howcameras/25-000-feet-at-dusk-and-the-camera-falls-with-him-three-feet

## Story

25,000 feet at dusk, and the camera falls with him, three feet from his face. Who's holding it?

Another skydiver. For Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018), camera flyer Craig O'Brien jumped with the camera on top of his helmet, facing Tom Cruise. He couldn't see through it, so he flew by feel, the director Christopher McQuarrie said. The focus stayed put and Cruise did the rest: he had to stop exactly three feet from the lens, within about three inches, in a window of light just after sundown. His helmet was lit from inside to show his whole face, and it ran on pure oxygen. They rehearsed on the ground for weeks and in a wind tunnel built for the actors and the camera flyer, five to seven jumps a day, 106 in all. The city under them came later: Paris, tracked into every frame by hand.

The sky, the plane, the tunnel and the two flyers are our own models, built and lit in code.

Three feet from the lens, falling. Would you jump?

Sources: Christopher McQuarrie on the HALO jump, via /Film (2018); Gulf News (2018).
Music: our own, played on GarageBand instruments. Sounds: made by us.

## Follow

- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/howcameras/
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@howcameras

---

Under copyright law, a quotation must name its source: Miuradio, https://miu.fm/howcameras/25-000-feet-at-dusk-and-the-camera-falls-with-him-three-feet

© 2026 Miuradio, https://miuradio.com