Basic photography
Five main facts when we looking for a good tripod
✦ Camera weight:
Just like people,
cameras vary greatly in how much they weigh. A tripod that works just fine
supporting a point-and-shoot digital camera is likely not to have the rigidity
necessary to hold a pro-level DSLR with a heavy lens.
✦ Tripod material:
Tripods come in
several different types of construction. Most are machined from aluminum, but
some (the more expensive kind) are made from carbon fiber composites. Both
types of tripod can be good if made properly, but the carbon fiber tripods are
a bit lighter than their aluminum counterparts. This can be an important
consideration if you do a lot of photography in the back country. It’s still
possible to find wooden tripods, which do provide great strength when properly
made, but these monsters tend to be big and heavy. More often than not, they’re
used by large format film photographers rather than digital shooters.
✦ Tripod sections:
Most tripods are
built to be collapsible so that they take up less room when not in use. Although
more sections can mean a smaller tripod when fully collapsed, they also mean
more potential failure points and a tripod that won’t be quite as solid as the
same model with fewer sections. (Many manufacturers offer the same basic design
in three and four-section models.)
✦ Tripod heads:
Tripods generally come in two parts, the legs (usually with
a center column that can extend upward), and the head, where the camera mounts.
Cheaper versions usually come with a basic head of some type, whereas better ones
are usually sold as two distinct units because more serious photographers have
their own preferences. There are all sorts of heads available, so try to check
out a variety of them to see which style you find most comfortable. For many
photographers, the ball head is a favorite because you can adjust it many ways
while only having to turn one knob. It’s a quick and reliable device for
re-positioning your camera.
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