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Arca Swiss
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One of the most important pieces of photography equipment is also the most overlooked. A good tripod can bring your photography to new levels, yet most people never use one. Here are a few ideas that will hopefully inspire you to begin using a tripod and looking at your images in a whole new way.

Tripods give your camera a solid support in just about any situation you can imagine. A good tripod...

1. gives you more time to compose your images.

2. allows you to shoot at slower speeds which in turn, can provide greater depth of field.

3. allow you to have your hands free for other things like a flash.

4. allows you to capture identical images with different settings - HDR images?

5. enables very slow shutter speed images like star trails

Most tripods are light-weight and fairly easy to carry. Some come with foam insulation around the legs which adds bulk, but creates a nice cushion when carrying the tripod on your shoulder. Look for one that has independent legs that are only connected to the center column only at the top. These will usually allow you place the tripod almost flat on the ground. Two popular brands are Gitzo and Bogen, and both can usually be found in your local camera shop.

Tripods are commonly made from either carbon fiber or aluminum. Carbon fiber tripods offer equal or greater stiffness, and are lighter weight, but more expensive. Keep in mind that though they are durable, a direct impact could shatter a carbon fiber leg while only denting an aluminum one. Your tripod also needs to be strong enough to support your largest lens and camera combination.

Tripods are meant to offer you sold support for your camera. With that in mind, you should find one that rises up to roughly your eye height and skip any with a center column that rises up any further. Raising the center column negates the advantages of your sturdy tripod, so avoid them whenever possible. It might be possible to remove the center column and mount your tripod head directly to the legs. If this isn't an option, make sure to keep the center column as far down as it will go and lock it there.

Most tripods are sold without a tripod head. There are many options here and personal taste often comes in to play. Some things to consider:

1. Most inexpensive tripods come with a pan/tilt head. These are the ones that have two knobs you turn in order to move the head around. Avoid these like the plague. They are awkward to use and if you are learning to use a tripod, these could put you off for good.

2. Ball heads are, without question, the way to go. These have a single ball with a spindle on top where you mount your camera. They provide easy and smooth movement, and the better ones allow you to adjust the tension/resistance of the movement allowing very fine adjustments. Arca-Swiss and Kirk Enterprises both make excellent ball heads.

It should be noted, that ball heads are not the best for very large lenses i.e. 400mm and up. If you are shooting with lenses like these, consider a gimbal-type design, like the ones made by Wimberley.

3. Use a quick release, which will enable you to quickly mount and un-mount your camera to/from your tripod. To use these, attach a plate to the bottom of your camera, and then simply click the plate on your camera into the ball head. Put a plate on every camera body and all lenses that need them. You don't want to be switching plates each time you change camera bodies. Keep in mind that the plates must be compatible with your quick release system. Both Arca-Swiss and Kirk make plates for your camera bodies and lenses. Really Right Stuff also makes plates for just about every camera and lens. Theirs are very well designed and manufactured.

Using a tripod gives you time to compose your image and forces you to look at what you are producing. They can be a bit awkward at the start, but with practice, they become second nature to use. Use one on your next shoot and see what an improvement a tripod can make to your photography.

Colin McNulty has worked as a Natural History Guide and Professional Photographer for over 18 years. He now operates an Adventure Travel site where he offers natural history expeditions to remote destinations around the world. For more information on photography and exciting destinations, visit http://www.rosmaru.com Colin offers regularly updated photo tips on his site http://www.rosmaru.com/photography

Why A 4x5 View Camera?

The view camera which is still popular today with both amateurs and serious photographers was actually one of the earliest camera designs.  Particularly the 4x5 view camera has a prominent place in the modern film camera industry.  The excellence of the photographs as well as the freedom of creativity offered are a couple of the many reasons for this.

So a 4x5 view camera is what precisely?  Although the majority of people accustomed to dealing with digital cameras would find a view camera very complex, the reality is the total opposite.  At it's foundation it's the simplest a camera with a lens can get.  Basically it consists of a rear standard, a front standard, a set of bellows in between and a lens.  The front standard is where the lens is attached and where the shutter (usually inside of all modern-day lenses) is found.  The shutter (which is normally located within most modern-day lenses) and the lens itself is connected to the front standard.  And the rear standard at the back of the camera is where the film is retained for exposure.  Although this is the basic layout the majority of cameras are, naturally, going to have more components, especially more recent models.

The 4x5 part of 4x5 view camera is simply the size film it employs and the format negative which is produced.  4x5 is the most common due to it's ease of use and price but view cameras come in numerous formats including 5x7, 8x10, 11x14, 12x20 and several more, not to mention custom sizes.  A credit to it's ability to be found at most specialty stores and the fact that it can be processed for a moderate price (which is almost never the case with most others) 4x5 is still the most popular format.

The 4x5 view camera is normally seen in one of two standard designs.

The first type is known as a monorail camera.  A portrait studio or similar situation is where you are most often going to see this camea being used.  In this model the rear and front standards both are mounted to a single main rail that permits them to slide backward and forward for focusing.  Monorail 4x5 cameras usually have a much better range of movement and are more appropriate for making various types of delicate shots, including macrophotography, than their counterparts.  They are, nevertheless, rather weighty and cumbersome to carry around which is their main downside. Monorail  cameras are manufactured by a number of companies, including Arca-Swiss.

Field cameras make up the second common type of 4x5 camera.  It basically reverses the advantages and disadvantages of the monorail type camera.  It is far simpler to manage and lighter to transport than a monorail but the 4x5 field camera is usually somewhat wanting in technical movements.  Also, the field camera can normally be folded up to rather small proportions for comfortably lugging around.  Landscape photographers will very typically choose this type of 4x5 view camera.  A good line of field cameras are produced by Wista.

If there is more you'd like to find out about 4x5 cameras please see us at The4x5Camera.com.

About the Author

My name's John and I'm an semi-professional photographer, art student and the webmaster of The4x5Camera.com. If you're still interested in learning more about cameras like the Arca-Swiss 4x5 feel free to check out the website.

8x10". Arca Swiss or Linhof?

The Linhof is about £350 more than a comparable Arca Swiss. Will it make any difference in the image quality. Save the quid and buy better glass instead?

It depends on how often you plan to use 8"x10". The Linhof will be better built and last longer than the Arca Swiss but that wont affect image quality. If it's only for occasional use the Arca Swiss will be fine and your £350 can go towards a lens.

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This article was inspired by a conversation in January 2010 with fellow directors of the Gold Anti-Trust Action Committee: Chairman Bill Murphy, Secretary/Treasurer Chris Powell, and Directors Adrian Douglas and Ed Steer.

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