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Camera
Mounts > Tripod
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It may not look like much, but this
is a $5,000 fluid head. Not only does
it offer smooth resistance to your
jerky camera moves, but it allows
you to regulate just how much resistance
you want.
(Photo Courtesy Vinton)
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All tripods have a couple parts in common. The two most
basic parts are the legs and the head. Typically, tripod
legs are expandable--so you can set the sticks to any
height you want.
The
tripod "head" is the part that actually
attaches to the camera. There are three basic types
of tripod heads:
HEADS:
1) Fluid Head: Good tripods have a "fluid"
head. The basic idea is you have chambers of goo inside
the head. When you pan or tilt the tripod, you, in effect,
push the goo from one chamber to the next. Why create
goo chambers? Because the goo offers resistance. It
dampens your jerky movements and the result is smooth,
professional camera movement. One way to understand
how this works is to imagine yourself running in three
feet of water. When you are in water, can't make any
quick moves; your attempt to run is slowed down and
"smoothed out." That's a pretty good analogy
to how fluid heads work.
2)
Friction Head: Cheaper tripods have "friction"
heads. These heads offer no resistance, and so it is
hard to do smooth pans and tilts. Your natural shakiness
is transferred to the shot. If you try really hard,
you can do a pretty good pan with a friction head, but
it is a LOT easier with a fluid head.
3)
Cam Heads: Big studio cameras have "cam"
heads--which consist of a collection of counterweighted
gears and balances. Cam heads work great, but they weigh
a hundreds pounds or more and are very expensive. So
again, they are for big studio cameras only.
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