Are large tripods even necessary anymore?

If you would like to post, you'll need to register. Note that if you have a BCG store account, you'll need a new, separate account here (we keep the two sites separate for security purposes).

Member's gallery
I agree that i rarely see anyone shooting wildlife using a tripod anymore. The only time is at Conowingo Dam where the set up in the fence line and wait for action to happen or if people are waiting for short eared owls to come out at their hunting grounds/fields.

Just about anywhere else I may go that i run into other wildlife photographers, they are all shoulder strapped and hand holding.

Trying to track birds in flight is much more difficult with a tripod compared to hand holding. Doubly so for fast action like Terns, Swallows, Kingfishers and diving Osprey.
 
Member's gallery
I’ve done a lot of handholding telephotos over the years. That convinced me to use a gimbal. It gets tiring holding all the stuff all the time. Even with holders and straps its weight drags. I’ll still handhold some as the situation requires it, though. In my upcoming trip to Yellowstone I’ll handhold my 100-400. But I’m bringing my tripod and heavy ball head for landscape and low light opportunities.
 
Member's gallery
TurtleCat said:
I’ve done a lot of handholding telephotos over the years. That convinced me to use a gimbal. It gets tiring holding all the stuff all the time. Even with holders and straps its weight drags. I’ll still handhold some as the situation requires it, though. In my upcoming trip to Yellowstone I’ll handhold my 100-400. But I’m bringing my tripod and heavy ball head for landscape and low light opportunities.
Click to expand...
When I went to Yellowstone in Dec 2021, I took my D500 and D850 with my 200-500, 500PF and my Tamron 24-70 f2.8 G2. I took my Tripod with me and never once used it hand holding the 24-70 and the 200-500 the entire time. Being in the middle of a herd of 40+ Big Horn sheep and 200mm was to long at times being just 15 feet from some of them (they moved close to me). A Tripod just wasn't an option. Bison and Moose got very close as well. The 500PF was not used till our trip back and stopping in Minnesota for Great Grey Owls. The tripod was never used once, even for the landscape shots with the Moose with the 24-70 in a driving snow at day break
 
Member's gallery
I go to Yellowstone quite often and the problems with using a tripod there are many. For one thing, there often isn't room for one. For another, many wildlife situations are very active and moving around from vantage point to vantage point is necessary. The exceptions to that are when there's a carcass, of course. And for a third, the ground is often uneven. Also, now that I think of it, there are a LOT of situations where you're parking your car quickly and jumping out to capture an active wildlife situation that would be gone by the time you pulled out your tripod.
 
Member's gallery
Wildlife is why I’d handhold the 100-400 but the tripod will definitely be handy at the Tetons and some of the other places where I expect landscape low ISO low shutter speed shots. In also doing some kind of photo thing that starts an hour before sunrise one day. No idea what we’ll shoot but I guess sunrise or predawn is the idea so tripod will likely be useful there.
 
Member's gallery
Len Shepherd said:
It depends - when I want very precise framing perhaps in architecture then a tripod and VR off I continue to find to be the best option.

For wildlife in-lens VR on Z telephoto lenses is often enough - without the burden of carrying a tripod.

For landscape with telephotos when waiting for the right light a tripod and cable release reduces arm fatigue.

Overall though as IBIS becomes increasingly capable I use tripods less.
Click to expand...
Agree
 
Member's gallery
I use a tripod when I do hide photography as it is impossible to keep the camera up all the time. When I am out for a specific target like the snowy owl do I use a tripod as well but all other times do I shoot handhold.
I have a whole collection of tripods:
Gitzo Systematic series 5
Gitzo Systematic GT3543LS
Benro TMTH44C Carbon Mammoth
Somewhere is a Manfrotto and a Sirui tripod as well.

I tend to use the series 3 Gitzo more compared to the series 5, even with the Z9 with 600 S TC lens on it as I tend to shoot pretty low to the ground and find this series 3 more than strong enough to hold the combo.
 
Member's gallery
My ‘divorce’ from heavy tripods started when I went totally mirrorless in early 2017. Full disclosure: My heaviest lens in my Nikon F mount DSLR days was a Nikon 300/2.8 which was not too difficult to hand-hold for short periods of time for me in my early 70’s with a bad rotator-cuff.

Nowadays, VR technology and advancements in electronic shutters with faster chip processing speeds has me quite content to hand-hold. My heaviest ‘rig’ now is a Z6-III and a Z 600 PF. Perfect for an old fuddy-duddy at age 77. I did buy a small-ish Feisol CT-3442 tripod in 2018. But I last used it in 2019 when on a trip in coastal BC Canada when on a hike I used it to hang my backpack from it to keep the pack out of the mud while spending the day waiting for passing wildlife. Otherwise it is now a closet ornament.
 
Member's gallery
EricBowles said:
I understand the desire to make photography fun - to have light weight gear and to avoid using a tripod. But there are compromises when you don't have a tripod or gimbal. There can also be situations that have benefits.

Precise composition - Many times the frame edges are important - both in terms of what you see and what is excluded. Precise positioning of specular highlights or other background elements within the frame makes stronger images. While it's possible to establish that framing handheld, what percentage of your images are discarded because of an intrusion or clipping at frame edge?

Staying on a subject longer - one of the best ways to get good images is to stay on the subject longer - not just seconds but minutes at a time. A tripod makes it much easier to stay on a subject for 5 minutes or longer while you wait for precise movement or action. Have you ever moved off a subject or lowered your lens - just before the perfect action?

Sharpness at lower shutter speeds - We all know how important it is to keep shutter speeds up for action. But there are times when you don't have enough light on the subject and have to slow your shutter speed to avoid excess noise. Stabilization is useful, but there are limits as to when it is valuable. While the keeper rate drops, some images involve very slow shutter speeds and using a tripod over relying on stabilization improves image quality.

Manual focus / magnified viewing - Bird photographers often run into a small subject that benefits from manual focus adjustment or magnified viewing. We can view a subject at 100% or more through the viewfinder - a way to improve manual focus, for identification, or looking for precise timing. When you are using a long lens, it's much harder to achieve precision with fine focus or magnified viewing. A tripod solves that problem.

Focus shift / Pixel shift / Auto Capture / HDR - All of these new features work best when you have a tripod because all of these features require multiple images with exactly the same composition. None of these techniques can be used without a tripod. Auto capture is a bit different in that it is usually set up to operate unattended, but a tripod or something similar to hold the camera in place is usually required.

Balancing action and movement with very slow shutter speeds - Last year I tried to make a photo of the master of foxhounds waving his cap at guests while standing in front of a waterfall. I wanted to slow the shutter speed to blur the water, but time the image so that his cap appeared sharp as his arm changed direction. I was using a 70-200 lens at 200mm with IBIS so I dropped the shutter speed to 1/10 second for the right blur of the waterfall - about 4.5 stops below 1/focal length. I took more than 30 photos trying to get a sharp image at a very slow shutter speed and not a single image was tack sharp due to various sources of movement and operating at the limits. I was running out of time. Ultimately I needed to raise my shutter speed to 1/20 slightly to get a sharp image because I did not have a tripod. I had to compromise creative intent because I lacked a tripod. This image would have been a lot easier with a tripod so I could frame the image and concentrate on timing with a high frame rate and short bursts.

If you are going through an entire year without using a tripod, are you missing something? I am certainly doing a lot more photography without a tripod. But I pay close attention to when a tripod is preferred, and try to use a tripod for those situation. I'm not using a tripod for midday travel photography, street photography, portrait photos or family photos because these photos normally don't require ultimate quality or precision . I don't use a tripod for equestrian, dog agility and pet photography as all of these require mobility. I don't normally use a tripod when hiking to photograph wildlife as the distances are longer and the photos are primarily for identification, social media or eBird use.

My view is that when I want to get the best images, I should be using a tripod most of the time.
Click to expand...
Thanks for these comments. Very useful! I have found most of the comments from all the moderators on this forum to be particularly well thought out and informative and I thank you all for that.

I haven't been using a tripod much historically, as I'm mostly photographing on hikes. But lately I've been using it more and more. If it isn't windy, a tripod really helps with botanical shots and my landscapes are always best with a tripod.

I'm really looking for one I can easily strap on my backpack that isn't too long when packed or too heavy. The Peak Design Carbon could be a good choice. But if others have favorites, I'm all ears. Also a smaller gimbal. I usually have a 500mm pf on my d500 while hiking and a 16-80 f2.8 and maybe a macro lens in the pack.

In camp with lower light at the end or beginning of the day, a tripod helps a lot. At places with shorebirds, a tripod is giving me better images.

I'm still learning, but it's apparent to me that I will need several tripods for different conditions. If I have a tripod choice that matches shooting conditions, I'll be more likely to use it and probably get better shots.
Good discussion.
 
Member's gallery
Though a relatively small RF 200-800/6.3-9.1 IS weighs only 2.5 pounds, I still put it and the EOS R7 camera on my lightweight Zenelli gimbal and big Robus RCC 5560 tripod. (IBIS may be pretty good, but I can still tell a difference between handheld and tripod at 400-800mm.) And I still have 20 year old EF 500/4L IS and EF 400/4 DO IS lenses I use in dim light. Those are my eclipse and wildlife setups.

For night sky and light painting, I use a smaller Gitzo GT1545G and RRS BH-30 ballhead. For exposure times between 15 seconds and 60+ minutes, I need a tripod, especially if I’m remote-triggering the camera and walking around with a light source.
See https://www.markbohrerphoto.com/blog/rhyolite-after-dark and https://www.markbohrerphoto.com/blog/texas-totality
 
Last edited:
Member's gallery
As an oldster I shoot mostly static subjects now and use a tripod most of the time. Most of my shots are focus stacks (thank you Steve). With the recent purchase of a Z8 I'll be trying pixel shift as well. My rig consists of both the camera and my laptop on a crossbar. This requires a large Gitzo and a sandbag hung from a hook on the leveling base. Since I rarely stray far from the pavement I carry it all in a collapsible garden cart that I've equipped with a golf umbrella and a folding chair. I use long lenses to compensate for my lack of mobility and woudn't think of trying to hand-hold them.
 
Member's gallery
I have several tripods and always take one with me for my largest lens. I learned that while shooting BIF that the tripod restricts me and I find it easier to hand hold my camera and use those faster shutter speeds. My panning technique while on the tripod needs more work because the birds along the coast here are really fast. I agree with DR above. They have their place for sure.
 
Member's gallery
I hardly ever use a tripod these days, and only for long exposure shots or video. My main wildlife lenses are 500PF for Nikon and 100-400 for OM-1, both of which I can hand hold easily, and IBIS makes them very stable. I will use a monopod occasionally for wildlife.
 
Member's gallery
I do, indeed, hand hold more with my mirrorless kit than I used to with my DSLR kit, but I still can only hold the Z9 plus the the 600mm Z f/4 for a short period of time. Thus, I still use my Promedia Gear large tripod in low light situations, when setting up to watch a specific place, like a nest hollow, or any where that I have to look through the camera for more than 30 seconds to one minute.
 
Member's gallery
In my humble opinion Yes they are still pretty much a mandatory part of photography. If you’re looking to get the Best images out of your gear it all starts with the best tripod that you can afford. I personally failed on 3 attempts at purchasing a tripod by trying to save a little, Final choice a RRS TVC33, paired with a Wimberley gimbal head. The heavier and longer the lens the greater the need. My 600 F4 G is at home on the tripod. Even my 500pf and 100-400 will find their way on top of the tripod. And even most of my landscape's will be shot from a tripod. There is always exceptions to this and when that time comes you grab and run.
 
Member's gallery
sh1209 said:
With the move to mirrorless we've had substantial weight and size reduction in our gear. Having said that, in the past I used my larger tripod far more often than I do now due to a heavier kit. I have four tripods now and for the last 3-4 years, I hardly ever take my TC34L RRS tripod out. I also have a series 2 Gitzo with center column which is a must for macro photography. I have a couple mini tripods I use occasionally but use the Gitzo far more than all of them. The small series 2 handles my 600f/4 and gimbal with ease, even carrying it attached. Most of the time when using larger lenses I remove the center column for added stability. Just wondering if others are finding they're using their large tripods less after transitioning to mirrorless?
Click to expand...
With the resurgence of pixel shift solid tripods have become irreplaceable again ... 🦘
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top