Alright, I’m gonna just come right out and say it. I hate tripods. I don’t like carrying them, using them and having anything to do with them, really.
I know most photographers disagree and that’s totally fine. But I just can’t bring myself to use or like them. They’re heavy, bulky, time consuming and get in my way.
If you feel the same way, this means you have to utilize other techniques to shoot certain subjects (like some still life) or at certain times of the day (night) and still get a sharp image.
This image was taken sans tripod. Since it’s at night, I didn’t have the benefit of bright sunlight flowing into my lens so I had to find ways to make the shot work. There are a few different methods you can use to mitigate low-light situations, but one of my key strategies is this:
Breath Control.
When you don’t have a tripod you need to find other ways to stabilize your camera. Breath control is one way to do this.
As you’re holding your camera, breath steadily and evenly. As you exhale, press the shutter with a controlled movement, trying to keep the camera as still as possible. Pressing the shutter on exhale tends to be the most stable time you can take the photo.
Hope that helps and I’ll have more tips next week!