Estimate height measurements. Ask yourself how tall the crane jib needs to be for your shoot. Bird's-eye shots from above houses or traffic require a longer crane. For a simple shot from a few feet above, a 4- to 6-foot crane would be acceptable.
Find a tripod. An inexpensive option is to purchase a shop light at your local hardware store. It comes with a tripod and a light, which could come in handy for the shoot. Make sure the tripod is stable and strong enough to take a lot of weight. Remove the head of the tripod.
Measure and saw off a 7 1/2 inch wooden board to fit the dimensions of the Lazy Susan. The Lazy Susan at the base allows the jib to pivot, so turn the discs to make sure rotation is smooth. Mount a Lazy Susan on the wooden board using 3/16-inch machine screws.
Build a bracket for the top of the Lazy Susan. Both the front and back jib arms will join here. Screw in a piece of wood on top of the Lazy Susan as a base. Mount two pieces of wood of equal size to stand perpendicular to the base board so they are several inches apart. Mount the newly bracketed Lazy Susan onto the tripod, making sure it is securely fastened.
For the jib arm, use metal tubing, perhaps from an old steel clothes hanger. Saw off a section according to your measurements for the extended jib arm. Measure the front jib arm longer than the one in the back.
Build support beams on the bracket to hold your jib arms in place: Saw off two metal tube pieces of the same length, several inches taller than the bracket. Mount one tube against the center of one of the standing boards, on the center-facing side. Do the same to the second tube to the other board. Make sure the tubes line up. Drill a couple of holes a few inches apart into the metal tubes.
Add the jib arms to the bracket: Drill holes near the bottom of the longer front arm and near the top of the shorter back arm. Line up the holes in the arms with the holes in the support beams. Use a large bolt to go through the holes and hold the arms in place. Fit washers onto the bolt to further tighten and secure the arms in place. The front end is bound to be heavier than the back, so secure a weight onto the lower end to keep the mechanism stable.
Construct a place for the camera to stay on top of the front arm. Mount a plate or flat surface to the top of the front end of the jib arm and an old tripod head on top of the plate. Secure the camera onto the tripod head.