| They're heavy, expensive, conspicuous, take time to | | | | shooting a low light landscape and pointing your |
| set up and take apart again. In short, tripods are a | | | | camera out into the vast beyond, there is little or |
| nuisance. And in this age of digital cameras, we can | | | | nothing for the flash to bounce off and the light it |
| always increase the ISO sensitivity to accommodate a | | | | produces will be lost. So sometimes there is no other |
| low light situation. So why bother with one at all? Let's | | | | choice but to sit your camera on a tripod, reduce the |
| look at some of the advantages of using a tripod. | | | | ISO and slow down your shutter speed to take in all |
| Noise reduction | | | | the available light. |
| Fist of all, what is noise? Increasing the ISO level in a | | | | Creativity |
| digital camera amplifies the signal through the digital | | | | Like just about any other camera accessory, tripods |
| sensor that records the image. This is much the same | | | | can be creative as well as utilitarian. Think cityscapes |
| as turning the volume on your home stereo up to 10. | | | | at night with traffic trails running through the scene. |
| You will hear a hissing in the background. This is | | | | Think clouds moving through a twilight sky. To capture |
| amplification noise. It looks like grain in a low quality film | | | | this movement and keep the static objects in an image |
| would and decreases the quality of the image in the | | | | sharp requires a long shutter speed. So the camera |
| same way. | | | | needs to be kept deadly still for 20 or 30 seconds or |
| The technology used to make digital cameras | | | | even longer. It is just not physically possible for a |
| advances almost daily. One day, hopefully soon, digital | | | | human to do this, so the only thing for it is to drag out |
| cameras will be created that can record the same | | | | the tripod, perch your camera on top and use either a |
| quality image no matter what ISO setting is used. But | | | | self timer or cable release to take the shot. |
| until then, we just have to except the fact that if you | | | | Depending on what you want to do with your images, |
| want a better quality image, you need to use a lower | | | | you will either regard your tripod as your best friend or |
| ISO. If you want to shoot in low light or at night, there | | | | biggest annoyance. If your photos are destined for |
| are a couple of options. Firstly, you could use a flash. | | | | web use or maybe small prints for a photo album, you |
| Using flash can produce some very natural or very | | | | might not be as concerned with the technical quality of |
| creative results, depending on how you use it. But | | | | the end result, but if you want to enlarge prints to hang |
| there are a couple of drawbacks. Firstly, you have to | | | | on a wall, or are looking to sell your images, you will |
| buy a flash unit. In most cases the little pop up flash on | | | | soon discover that a tripod is a valuable tool capable |
| your camera is simply not powerful enough to do | | | | of being the difference between getting that million |
| anything more than fill in some dark areas in an already | | | | dollar shot or missing a golden opportunity. I carry mine |
| well lit scene. Flash won't work for all subjects either. It | | | | just about everywhere. |
| is fine if you want to take portraits, but if you are | | | | |