Most used tripod height?

A

analogs

Well-known member
I would like to know from very experienced people what height do they usually place their tripod at in most of their shots.

People with tripods that have a maximum height of 1.3-1.5m, when filming are they finding the height just too short majority of the time for shooting without taking into account that they may have to crouch down?

I see plenty of users buying those 1.3-1.5 meter tripods and all they seem to be complaining about in regards to the height is that they have to crouch down but yet they don't really complain that its too low for most framing.

Is there an average height that is most used on a tripod for shots in general?

Thanks
 
Thats too general of a question. For comfort you want the height that puts the cam at your eye level when standing comfortably, but in reality height is dictated by what youre shooting. Tall person? Taller height. Short person? Short height. Cool low angle? Lower it. Shooting down on something? Up high.
 
depends on what you're doing....

if it's a narrative work, then it's entirely on what's called for.

if it's doc/eng, eye level with the subject is about the most common. give or take a head
 
I usually try to find the nicest shot first, then use that height. There's no real rule book. If it looks good, shot it.
 
Let me rephrase the question then. With your vast experience so far and if money was no object:
- would you buy a 1.3-1.5 meter height tripod now? If yes or no, please explain why?

Please take into consideration productivity. If 80% of your shots are at 1.3 meters height, then wouldn't buying a tripod 2 meters tall would actually be less productive?
 
...I have one client that wants teleprompter presentations shot at eye-level ( he thinks people give a better performance when they are standing, and I kind of think he's right about this ), so I use a large Gitzo studio tripod with 20 inch geared column that I used to use for my 8x10 inch large format field camera. The tripod does a great job and has no problem with the weight of the 15 inch teleprompter rig, and the geared column makes it quick and easy to fine tune the height of the whole rig.
 
analogs said:
Let me rephrase the question then. With your vast experience so far and if money was no object:
- would you buy a 1.3-1.5 meter height tripod now? If yes or no, please explain why?

Please take into consideration productivity. If 80% of your shots are at 1.3 meters height, then wouldn't buying a tripod 2 meters tall would actually be less productive?
Click to expand...

Every project is different. It depends on what you shoot. Better to have it and not need it than the other way around.
 
Most used tripod height..

Eyeline standing. Which with 1.5m sticks and 30-40 cm of gack is basically perfect.

Second most used tripod height ? Eyeline someone sitting 90 cm sticks and 30-40 cm of gack is basically perfect.

--

I have two sets of legs a two stage 1990s sachler and miller solo. The first set is certainly easier for my most used shots. The solo is a pain to do those eyeline shots quickly.

the go high an go low solos are better for whacky b roll.. so yes IMO longer legs with more joins can waste time on set..
 
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there are several sticks by different companies, one being the oconnor 35L, that have this great feature where you can lock/unlock all the legs simultaneously with one button press to quickly raise or lower the height. you can buy head and sticks separately, might look into those via ebay. great for moving between shots fast like for b-roll.
 
I rarely shoot at eye-line. I find it lacks dynamism.

Often I'll have tall and short legs with me. One of my tripods extends to 8ft which is very useful. If I'm only using one tripod it's usually the tall ones.
 
I am trying to weigh out my options here and it seems I can only afford one of the following:
- a 1.89 meter tripod with an OK fluid head - 4-6kg payload
- a 1.3 meter tripod with a better fluid head - 6-8kg payload

Anyone using a 5D III with a portable recorder, 7inch monitor and maybe a cage or shoulder rig?

What minimum payload on the tripod head were they able to use to still get good smooth panning and tilting results?
 
For the nearly 20 years I've used my Oconner 1030B and 25L carbon legs. I also have the Oconner "DV "head" which is the same design as the 1030, but slightly smaller with another set of 25L legs. Those 2 complete sets plus my Oconner aluminum legs for jib, prompter, etc... have served me well and have never let me down. Yes, they are expensive but hold their value very well. If you buy good quality you can use it for years and then sell it when you are "done". Tripods and heads are like C-stands, they'll never go out of "style".
 
gkantziper said:
For the nearly 20 years I've used my Oconner 1030B and 25L carbon legs. I also have the Oconner "DV "head" which is the same design as the 1030, but slightly smaller with another set of 25L legs. Those 2 complete sets plus my Oconner aluminum legs for jib, prompter, etc... have served me well and have never let me down. Yes, they are expensive but hold their value very well. If you buy good quality you can use it for years and then sell it when you are "done". Tripods and heads are like C-stands, they'll never go out of "style".
Click to expand...

Agree, a good head/sticks will last the lifetime of the user, and can then be passed on to the next user.
 
I like higher angles, especially in industrial settings. You can eliminate distracting backgrounds, overhead lights, and isolate subject. You don't necessarily need taller sticks--get up on a solid table, bench, stack of pallets-whatever, just make sure its secure for tripod and camera. Cameraman can be on a side stepladder.
 
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