Everyone says a tripod is the best support for your camera and that it will increase the quality of your pictures dramatically. Among the professionals it is believed you have to carry and have it available at all times – without exceptions. Why do they say that?

In this article I will talk about why and when do you want to use a tripod, describe its different parts and features, as well as guide you to how to choose one that is best for your purpose.

Why to use a tripod?

Tripod, well a good tripod at least, can keep your camera completely steady: no shaking of your camera whatsoever. This is something you cannot do when holding your camera with your hands, or when your camera (or lens) have image stabilization technology either (btw, when using a tripod, image stabilization technology should be turned OFF!).

So tripod keeps your camera steady. What does that mean?

Images are sharp.

No shaking of your camera = sharp images. If you are holding your camera with your hands only, you will create shaking (and that softer images), no matter how steady you are. Additionally, the only way to get the best out of your lens, to really see how well it can perform, is to place it on a steady tripod. To that respect: you can impose shaking with your hands even if your camera is on a tripod, therefore, use a self-timer or a quick release to capture images.

It is possible to take sharp images in difficult lighting conditions.

Taking sharp images in the low light conditions, i.e. at night, during sunrise or sunset, or when you don’t want to use a flash indoors to capture that nice soft light coming through the windows, is difficult without the use of longer shutter speeds and keeping a camera completely steady to avoid any shaking. Additionally, longer shutter speeds are required when you want to achieve some effects (i.e. smooth running of water, road of car lights on a street at night). You need a tripod for that.

Maintaining the best quality of the image.

For the best quality of images, with as little noise as possible, it is best to use a low ISO.This is very difficult to do in low lighting conditions if you don’t use a tripod.

Using longer focal length.

Longer lenses, especially telephoto lenses, are heavier, longer and more difficult to keep steady. Additionally, they intensify any vibrations made. You can be more precise. Precision is important when shooting panoramas (you need smooth transitions) and very important whenever you are shooting multiple shots of the same scene, where good alignment is very important (HDR images, 3D images).

It is easier to control the shallow depth of field.

This is especially critical when you are using longer lenses or shooting macro photography: you are zooming very close to the subject and the depth of field is very shallow. The slightest movement can spoil the shot! Additionally, when shooting macro, it is best to use low ISO (for which you will need a tripod), and a tripod will help you be more precise when framing the shot as well.

Start thinking about the image.

Although this might seem as a disadvantage at first, tripod slows you down. And makes you think of the image more. That can only be good! It makes you more aware of different elements on the image when framing a shot and choosing appropriate composition, lighting settings, making sure the camera is levelled, and additionally it let’s you consider shooting the same scene with a filter attached (if you choose so).

Take self-portraits!

Especially when you are shooting at family events, you want to be on the images as well, no? So place your camera on a tripod, frame the shot, set the self-timer (or use a quick release) and run on the scene! Additionally it is very helpful when taking portraits of other people: it is easier to frame an image precisely as you want and choose the best settings to the lighting available (without any need to use a flash).

Shoot from different angles.

Or from the same angles: when you need the background to be taken from completely the same angle, while the subject changes.

Downsides of using a tripod

• Very hard to use (if not impossible) in crowded places. Tripod legs require certain space to be extended. Many places ban it.
• It takes some time to set it up, so you can miss a moment.
• Weight.

In such cases it is best to use another accessory.

Which tripod should you buy?

You have realised you need a tripod. But which one should you buy? – There are so many to choose from! How can you make the decision?

This is what I am going to try to answer in this article. (It is not that difficult as people want to believe.)

Please note that this article was written with primarily DSLR owners in mind.

I will try to guide you through the process, by stating important questions that you need to ask yourself and decisions that you need to make along the way.

But first, I have to point out that there is no perfect tripod out there. With “perfect” I mean a tripod that would be ideal for any situation. You will eventually have to make a compromise.

For example:

Ideally a tripod should be light. But a light tripod:

• is less sturdy;
• can support less weight. In order to support more weight and be light, it needs to be made from better and lighter materials, therefore more expensive.

Ideally a tripod should be sturdy. But a sturdy tripod:

• is heavier. It makes it more tiring to carry around (and less likely to want to use it). To be lighter and sturdy, it needs to be made from good materials, which makes it expensive.

Ideally a tripod should be compact (small when folded) for easier transport.

• But then its height is smaller. It can be made higher with a center column, but that makes it less stable.
• If it is tall enough, it has more sections of legs, which means it is less sturdy.

Ideally a tripod should be tall enough to capture the images from eye level.

• But the taller the tripod, the less compact it is.

Ideally a tripod needs to be quick and easy to assemble.

The above example illustrates the features of a tripod intended for travelling. For other uses there could be other and/or additional features.

Tripod parts

Before I start talking about the features of a tripod, here is a quick look at its parts:

Also a quick note about the symbols the manufacturers use:

In the above example, I have listed different symbols manufacturers use to describe the height of a tripod. Note that it is more of a rule than exception that the specifications will be described with the use of symbols, rather than text. The symbols are not standardised around manufacturing companies, but are very similar to each other and easy to recognise once you know what you are looking for.

For easier understanding, I have included in the article the symbols for all the specifications that manufacturers use.

Decision: Integrated or removable head?

The first decision that you have to make is how much you want the tripod to be customizable. That mostly comes down to whether you want a tripod to come with an integrated or a removable head:

Integrated / non-removable tripod head

Simple tripods (read less expensive tripods) come with a fixed head. You cannot change it. You are stuck with that exact head. Does it fulfil your needs?

Advantages:

• Simple to use.
• Lighter.
• Cheaper.
• Satisfactory for a compact camera owner and some DSLR owners.

Disadvantages:

• You cannot remove and change the head.
• Usually of lower quality.
• When there is a problem with one part of the tripod, you need to replace it all.

Interchangeable / removable / detachable tripod head

Normal and advanced tripods (also more expensive) usually come without a head. Such heads are interchangeable or removable. It means that you buy a tripod and a head (or more heads) separately, depending on your needs. Advantages:

• Buying flexibility. When you are buying a tripod and cannot afford a very good head (or you are not sure what head you would exactly need), you can buy yourself a decent head and when you are aware of your needs, get yourself another head.
• You can have more heads with one tripod, for different types of photography.
• You can share the head between different tripods or a monopod if having one.
• When there is a problem with one part of the tripod (for example, legs get warned out from usage), you can buy a new tripod, but you don’t have to buy new heads (and vice versa).

Disadvantages:

• However, be sure that the tripod you buy can hold the head and vice versa (if it does not, you can buy a head fitting).
• Usually bigger and heavier.
• More expensive.

Some companies are selling a tripod and a removable head in form of “kits” (what is included will be stated in the specifications).

Question: What are you going to shoot?

What kind of photography will you do?

Family events, around the city, shooting panoramas, cities at night, macro photography, sport events or in the mountains?

When you know what and where you are going to shoot (the type of photography that you will do), it will give you a better idea of the most important features the tripod should have.

The most common mistake the novices and the first-time-tripod-buyers do is that they don’t really think of what they need. Well, I cannot blame them. If you are just starting, it is difficult to know exactly what you need, and especially, what (and how) you will be shooting in the future!

Nevertheless, you just need to have at least an idea.

If you don’t know what features you need, you can easily buy the “wrong” tripod: it could be too heavy (ouch, my back!), too light (watch out that wind!), too short (ouch my back & neck), too slow to assemble (there goes that shooting moment), not precise enough or any other reasons. You will be forced to eventually buy another one, ending up in spending more money than you would in the first place.

Therefore, take a moment and think of all the situations and subjects that you might use the tripod! They don’t need to be exactly precise just now, but when you will be reading through the next sections of this article, you can recognise what features are the most important to you.

To help you, I have written some guidelines on different types of photography:

• Macro photography: You will need to get close to the ground, so look at minimum height characteristics. You will also want greater freedom of movement.
• Sports photography: If shooting with heavy telephoto lenses, you will need a sturdy tripod to be able to hold the camera and the lens. It should also be easy to move around (the head and the tripod itself), since there will be a lot of action from all directions. You want to set up the tripod quickly. Consider if you will have enough space to set it up and whether you should consider a monopod instead!
• Panorama and Landscape photography: You will be walking around so a tripod that won’t be heavy is a must. Your back will appreciate it! In the nature it is also very likely to encounter wind, so it should be sturdy enough. You might also want to shoot panoramas, so you need a panoramic head and ability to slide it gently from side to side.
• Low-light (night) photography: It is important the tripod to be sturdy to allow longer exposure times.
• Studio photography: Precision is usually the most important here. You don’t need to be concerned about the weight; it is even preferable that it is heavier to be able to support heavier lenses. Therefore you don’t need to be concerned about materials. Make sure the height is right. How easy it is to move around (all the shoots may not be from the same location)? How easy it is to adjust the angle?

These are of course not all the features that might be important to you, but only guidelines that you might want to consider about specific type of photography.

Last but not least, don’t forget that there is no one-fits-all tripod. If you are very serious about photography and you are going to use tripods for two very different purposes/situations, you might have to buy more than one!

What camera do you have (are you going to mount on a tripod)?

There are two important differences between compact and DSLR cameras regarding tripods: weight and size.

Compact cameras are much lighter and smaller than DSLR cameras, so they will do fine with a lighter tripod (but not too light for the wind to move it if shooting outside!).

If you own a DSLR camera, buy yourself a good steady tripod. It needs to be able to hold the camera and lenses with no problems in any conditions. The worst case scenario: the camera and the lens topples down the tripod on the ground and breaks. Yupiii!

To be continued

In this article I have introduced to you why you should use a tripod in the first place, briefly described its parts and discussed the first steps on choosing a tripod.

In the next article I start to go through the individual features of a tripod.

Read the « previous article or the next article »