Worst tripod use of the year award

I wonder if any of you see this stuff like me but bad tripod use really amazes me. Folks buy thousands of dollars of cameras and cheap tripods. Well that's bad enough but sometimes they really take the use of the tripod to some amazing extremes.
I though I would share this image with you.... So yesterday, I am out in the Col. River Gorge shooting some if the iced up waterfalls when I cam upon this fellow... He was using a Cannon 50 D on what I bet was a 50.00 tripod. That's not the worst part.... don't you love the technique?

JG

PS_-Maybe a weekly challenge subject"poor equipment use"!

A cheap tripod is better than no tripod at all.

OK, maybe not....

Pretty funny Graham - but I've been known to do that when some animal surprises me and I don't have time to set up. I've felt a little stupid, but so far, I don't think anyone's seen me...

Well no one said the legs had to go on the ground....

Maybe he gets better reception that way. You know, that little TV screen on the back...

Cheers,

Yeah, but after Feb 9, 2009 it won't work... he'll need a converter box.

It certainly doesn't look like this is what he's doing, BUT...

When I'm out shooting I'll often leave my camera+lens on my tripod with the lens attached and the tripod legs collapsed. If my camera is mounted on the ballhead horizontally or vertically, and I want to take a quick look through the viewfinder, I'll often do that. But obviously, I wouldn't actually take a photograph that way...

Just saying that he may not have been doing what you think he was.

Personally, I don't find anything odd at all with what he is doing. I do it all the time. Especially with today's lightweight carbon fiber tripods. Sometimes it's just as easy to frame a shot to see if it's worthwhile, with the camera attached than to go to the trouble of removing it. No big deal.

Simple, Jack. He didn't have time to go to the gym so he's building up his biceps

Carol

Yes, it is faster to look through the viewfinder this way than detaching the camera.

Don't ask me how I know....

I'm sure he was using it this way to tune in the Digital camera GPS coordinates maybe.

I've done similar to that for checking framing (does the image look reasonable enough to actually be worth setting up the tripod?). But shot like that... No. Not often either. The Gitzo 1340 is too much of a beast and besides, I've never decided the shot was worth taking anyway.

I've seen people shoot like that and then they wonder the image on my LCD looks so much better.

Jack, I think you need to add that one to your teaching presentation

I just looked at the instructions for my tripod and it says absolutely nothing about positioning the legs on the ground. In his defense, as others before me, I too have done this for a compositional comparison, i.e. vertical instead of horizontal. Lucky for me I didn't have anyone around to capture me looking at first glance like some sort of photo-dork. A nice capture by the way of human behavior.

as long as we're being critical of others, I think your WB is set a bit cool in the pic.

I actually do this sometimes as well, for the same reasons described above: carrying the tripod with camera attached, and just want to do a quick check for framing the shot. Of course, I don't do this when other photographers are around, for the exact reason Jack posted this in the first place.

I bet if we knew the rest of the story, it might change the title to "best" use. Why dismount a tripod without a quick release for only one quick shot?

Actually I think TPN has got this one beat for unusual tripod form. Scroll down to the 6th photo on this thread. And yeah, the whole story pegs it as pretty creative, rather than weird. She was wading in the river for shots, then retreating to shore for her feet to warm. Why not entertain yourself with shots while waiting for the circulation to return? She'd just have to remount the tripod a few minutes later for the next wade.

Hmm. This might make a good photo for an advertisement for the Kirk quick release plates.


Kent in SD

Come on now...you all jest about this. spill it, how many of you done the very same thing, come on now fess up I have.

I 'fess! Why not?? It does steady the camera SOMEwhat... in a pinch, you do what you gotta do. Better than missing the shot! Just 'cause the camera's on the tripod doesn't mean you always need the tripod. What if the subject's moving a bunch, or you have no time to remove the camera when something comes by? What if the tripod doesn't extend far enough? C'mon, people, get creative-- try it! --Anna Lisa

I'm guilty of doing this, too. I've never taken a photo in this manner but I often walk around with tripod and camera over my shoulder, only to peer through the viewfinder with the tripod legs perched over my shoulder to frame a scene. If I like what I see, I'll then set the tripod on firm ground and go to work. I'm sure I've received some goofy looks doing this, but I've learned to accept it.

Well, NOW I've seen everything!
Edit: And you're right, someone probably has a nice photo of me doing this too-- for all the reasons mentioned. I've just never seen a picture of a photographer doing it!

I never thought of this.
I use the quick release.
I feel........so.......foolish.

I have enough trouble holding a camera steady, let alone adding the weight of a tripod to the whole. One of the members of our camera club was the first to show me how he uses a tripod..sideways....of course!