THE PHOTOGRAPHIC EYE

appendix 4 Advanced Techniques
TOOLS
Tripod
Any time you need to hold your
camera very still, either during or between
exposures, you need a tripod.
For example, you can probably handhold
your camera (with a 50mm lens)
at 1730 of a second without blurring
the shot. With a tripod, the shutter
can stay open for as long as needed
without blurring. You can also use a
tripod to support a long telephoto
lens (if the lens needs support, it
should come with a tripod mount on
the barrel), to pan for action shots,
to make accurate multiple-exposures
or to make a series of exposures of
exactly the same area.
There's no such thing as a good
cheap tripod. There's also no such
thing as a good small tripod. If a
tripod is cheap enough to be bought
without a second thought, it's almost
certainly too flimsy to be useful. If
it's small enough to be carried
without a second thought, then it's
certainly too flimsy.
Plan to spend close to $100 for a
good tripod. Also plan to complain
a lot about how heavy your tripod is.
Don't carry it around unless you expect
to need it.
A good tripod is, above all, sturdy.
When extended to its full height, it
should not wobble, wiggle or shake
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