I have written a lot about tripods. The fact is they are heavy, cumbersome, unwieldy life savers. However when we are packing our gear for a shoot, we often take a long hard look at the tripod and decide to leave it at home. Our mindset is that we are not going to shoot any night shots, so we are not going to need it.
However, there are actually many reasons why you might want to take a tripod, beyond shooting at night. Today we are going to explore some of them. But first, and I have gone on about this before, don’t buy a cheap tripod. Spend as much as you can afford on a good set of legs and a separate, suitable head. A cheap tripod will put you off for life. Buy a good one and you will understand why tripods matter more than you think.
They Slow You Down
Photography can be addicting, we arrive in a new location, the scenery is stunning, the light is perfect and we rattle off shot after shot. Often however, when we get home and look at those images on a larger screen, we are disappointed. We have been so driven to get as many shots as possible, we have forgotten the creative side of photography.
A tripod can be invaluable in helping you be more creative, simply by slowing you down. The very thought of setting up a tripod means you are giving your images intent. You are tuning your mindset to shoot not the most images but the best images.
For all its unwieldiness, a tripod is a precision tool. One you have that camera locked on, you have to move the head, the legs with careful and deliberate intent just to fine tune your composition. That deliberate slowing down, not only makes you think more about that particular composition, but it also takes away that endorphin rush of rapid fire photography. It relaxes you and a relaxed photographer is a creative photographer.
Nailing That Landscape
Landscapes are a particular genre of photography that require precision and creativity. Often we can be confronted with a scene of unimaginable beauty and simply don’t know where to shoot. We will have a natural tendency to try and get everything in the shot.
However, a perfectly composed landscape is so much more nuanced than that. You have multiple decisions to make on which elements you want in and out of frame, where the focus should be and more importantly what the depth of field should be.
Handholding a camera for a landscape shot makes nailing these elements infinitely harder. By putting it on a tripod, we have free rein to determine the exact point of focus and the exact depth of field.
But beyond that, landscapes are packed full of detail. Even in good light, shooting handheld we will often have small amounts of camera shake. Perhaps, imperceptible on a screen but very noticeable on a large print. There’s a good reason why you see those landscape photographers on YouTube using a tripod.
Low Light Photography
These days, with a combination of amazing sensors, image stabilisations and AI denoise tools, high ISO photography is not something we fear. For that reason we might be forgiven for not taking a tripod with us on a blue hour shoot. Simply bump the ISO, open the aperture and denoise in post.
To do this, however, is to miss out on beautiful detailed twilight shots. Going back to landscape shots, there are going to be plenty of times where we might want a deep depth of field. Closing the aperture is going to push the shutter speed too low and the ISO too high to get good images.
It could be that we want motion in our blue hour shots. Light trails, people moving through. We might want to even remove people completely, by using an ultra long exposure. None of this can be done easily without a good solid tripod.
Going Close
If you have ever tried to compose a macro shot of a beautiful flower, you will know how hard it can be handheld. The closer your subject is to the front of the lens, the more magnified the movement is. That makes compositing difficult but can also make camera shake more likely. To avoid the camera shake you have to bump the shutter speed, and probably the ISO as well.
Macro photography requires precision, not only in the composition, but especially in the focus. There is a good chance that if you are close, you are focusing manually. That can be extremely hit and miss if you are shooting handheld.
Macro is a very slow form of photography which is why it is a perfect genre for using a tripod.
Super Zooms
We are blessed these days to have a plethora of super zooms and ultra telephotos available to us and for not hideously expensive prices. A 200-600mm lens 20 years ago would be unthinkable, these days you can pick them up for less than $1000. There is a caveat though, they are slow.
Often the maximum aperture will be f/5.6 going down to f/6.7 at the longest focal length. Add in the significantly increased effect of camera shake and that makes them difficult to use even in good light. Many will have image stabilisation which will help alleviate the issues slightly, however the fact is that to get the very best out of a super telephoto, it is going to need to be stable, and that means a tripod.
Many of the subjects you might shoot with a telephoto could be moving, which makes the use of the tripod tricky. However there is a type of head called a gimbal that allows the camera and lens to move freely whilst still attached firmly to a tripod. These are ideal for sports and wildlife photographers looking for the best quality.
Shot Consistency
There are times when we need each frame of our shoot to be exactly in position. Perhaps a headshot session or a multiple exposure shot. You might be creating a product shot or even stop animation. In cases like these a good solid tripod is invaluable. Notice I say good and solid, because this is an area where a cheap tripod will definitely let you down. The legs move too easily, the heads are often made of plastic and have play in them. For images that need consistent, accurate framing a high quality tripod is the only way to go.
We often put up a mental barrier about tripods, especially if we don’t think we will be shooting at night. Yet as you have seen with these and other uses, tripods can be an invaluable tool for many different genres of photography. Just make sure you get a good one.
Further Reading
- Have I Solved My Hybrid Tripod Problem?
- The Infuriating Search For The Perfect Tripod
- 4 Ways to Stabilize Your Camera With Tripod Alternatives
- How To Clean Your Tripod And Protect It From Salt Water
- What Photographers Need to Know Before Buying a Tripod Head
- How to Motivate Yourself to Carry Your Tripod Along More Often
