Subscribe to our newsletter. Whenever I watch television documentaries about wildlife photographers, I always notice the equipment they are using, or, more often than not, the equipment they don't have-specifically, a tripod. While hand holding a camera is fine on a bright, sunny day with a fast shutter speed, once you slow down that shutter or use a large telephoto lens and then a tripod becomes a necessity. It is the only way to get sharp, defined photographs consistently.
Many photographers argue that using a tripod is a hassle.
They are a bother to lug around, they pinch your fingers every time you try to make an adjustment and take too much time to set up and take down. But, despite its shortcomings, for the photographer concerned with consistently high-quality results, a tripod is a must. First, above all, a tripod needs to be sturdy. Photographing a fiery moon over Mono lake at an exposure time of seven seconds requires perfect stillness. The slightest shake of the photographer's hand or the rustle of a gentle breeze would ruin the photograph.