Alpha Photography Blog

As you begin to get more and more interested in photography, a sturdy tripod is a must.

The world opens to new possibilities, and you can then achieve some fantastic effects and create very emotive, moody images.

You can do headlight trails, soft waterfalls, fireworks, and even remove people out of a cityscape shot at dusk!

The major downside with a tripod is they’re either awkward, heavy or both.

Technology has come a long way, but physical weight is something you can’t trick gravity with. If there’s a bit of a breeze blowing, or you’re in a crowd and there’s the potential to knock your camera and tripod over, then you want something with a bit of “meat” to it.

Sure, the camera adds weight, but you don’t want your setup to be too top heavy.

My photographic kit has expanded to include 2 tripods:

1. Lightweight metal compact tripod - for on-the-go travelling; and
2. Heavier tripod - for when I need extra stability and/or when I have a car to help lug my equipment around.

There are quite a few brands out there, but the brand that was recommended to me by my photography teachers is Manfrotto.

The tripods I have are:

1. Velbon Maxi - this is my travel tripod. It is very lightweight and works well, though not having the 3-way head (see below) does get annoying sometimes; and
2. Manfrotto 190 body and 141 RC head - it’s heavier and bulkier, but is much more pleasant to use.

For the sturdier tripods, these days it’s more common to buy the tripod head and body separately (you can get kits, but they are pretty limited in terms of choice). In some ways this is good, but if you don’t know what you’re looking for, it’s just another decision to make.

Here are a few features I would recommend looking for in a tripod head and body:

• Quick release plate - a detachable plate that fixes itself onto the tripod head. It can be detached and screws into the base of your camera. You are then able to leave this plate on your camera and quickly attach and detach your camera to and from the tripod - it comes in very handy;
• 3-way head - there are a few alternatives here - namely a 3-way head, ball head, and geared head. My preference is the 3-way head. It’s simpler to use and you can individually set each of the 3 angles. For example, if the horizon is just a little off, you can keep all the other settings the same and just adjust the one thing; and

• Flip level leg lock - now that’s a mouthful! All it means is that to lock the legs at a certain extendable height, you have a flip-type lock, which is faster and easier to use that other types.

Having a bag also helps - not just to keep your tripod clean, but it makes transportation much easier. You can even buy camera backpacks with looped straps on the bottom of the bag that you can slide a small tripod through.

When using the tripod, make sure everything that can be tightened is firm - you don’t want anything to fall.

Tripods are great, and as I mentioned above, they provide the ability to achieve effects not possible when hand holding the camera. You’ll also get better exposed and sharp images.

If you’re serious about taking good photographs, you’ll get used to carrying bulky and heavy equipment around. In the end it really is worth it when you see the result!

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