5 (more) Creative Tripod Tricks for Video

Published on April 25, 2017

Cinematography & Filmmaking

film making, Tips and Tricks, Tripod, tripod hacks

A film maker without a tripod is like a camera without a lens, everybody has one. But how are you using it? You can of course use the tripod like is was meant to be used, creating steady shots. So what if you want more dynamic then a pan or tilt? In this tutorial we show 5 tips and tricks to use your tripod in a creative and unconventional way and give that extra dynamic punch! And if you want even more tricks with your tripod, check out our first tutorial about tripods tricks.

So what tripod should you use for these awesome tricks? A question you may never thought about because of the simplicity of a tripod. In almost every circumstance, the one you use doesn’t really matter, they were all designed for the same job. But for every situation there is a different tripod with certain features. A main difference is the weight, if you want mobility and preserve space you can go for a light carbon fiber tripod. This could be perfect for travelling or shooting at events where your have to move all the time. But when you know you’re shooting from one specific spot, you can go for a much sturdier tripod. These have the ability to add extra weight and are perfect for in studios or for long exposure shots, where you need to be still for a long time.

Another factor in choosing your tripod is the head, which comes in many different forms. Many still photographers are using a ball head as their equipment, this head increases the stability and provides a faster, more accurate rotation. But for film making this head won’t allow you to create that smooth fluid pan or tilt you see in almost every movie. This is where the fluid head comes in, a head specially designed to create that smooth motion in your shots. It works with a fluid chamber which dampens the sudden movement and vibrations of the camera when panning and tilting. You can also control the tension so the friction could be adjusted to your needs.

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