Tip: Tripod Tricks



In this Tip episode, I make a slight departure and looks at a few ways that I've used my tripod in an unconventional way. A tripod's typical job is to hold your camera steady while you pan and tilt. What if you could turn it into a floating, short-range dolly? A limited-space crane? A carpet slider?

All these methods (and I give credit where credit is due) are examined as I show some examples from past projects as well as some new test footage. I hope you find these tricks useful in your own projects.

Comments

Jeremy Widen said…
Great tips. Also, that shot makes you look REALLY tall.
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DIYFilmSchool.net said…
I really love the furniture slider tip. I was skeptical, too, about how well that'd work, so I'm thankful you did a test shot.

Regarding the "tripod lunge": If you don't own a beefy tripod and the leg locks tend to let the extensions down rather fast, tighten them up a fair amount and spray the leg extension with cooking spray to keep the actual move concentrated and slick.

This will help even a bit more than just holding the camera by the tripod head more firmly. (With more firmth...ha! ;) )