[TAZZ]

Hi everybody ...I'm new here and to serious photography, and this is probably one of thousands of questions. I don't embarrass easily so I will ask about EVERYTHING

My first photo related question is this:

My "NEW" camera is a canon 40D and I will be using a 75-135 and a 100-400 lens. This is all new equipment and I know that this will be the least of my worries, but someone mentioned monopods and I picked up a $30 one today. SO...

Monopods...Where do you stand with them? And in what situations would you carry one instead of a tripod? I've taken a couple of night shots and found it's not holding the camera still enough...is that me or are they not made for that?

Cheers,
mitch

[Dabhand16]

Monopods are not a substitute for the low light situations where you need a tripod.

Their strength is mostly for action and wildlife situations where to use a tripod would be too restrictive. They provide a steadier platform than hand-holding and also allow easier camera movement than you get with a tripod.

You can also use them for any situation, not just action/wildlife, when you are using long lenses that require good support. You might be able to use slower shutter speeds than normal too.

[VinnyP]

Originally Posted by TAZZ

Hi everybody ...I'm new here and to serious photography, and this is probably one of thousands of questions. I don't embarrass easily so I will ask about EVERYTHING

My first photo related question is this:

My "NEW" camera is a canon 40D and I will be using a 75-135 and a 100-400 lens. This is all new equipment and I know that this will be the least of my worries, but someone mentioned monopods and I picked up a $30 one today. SO...

The more support you have the sharper your image will be. The more support you have the less mobile you will be. It's always a balance between these 2.

With modern DSLRs with high ISO performance like the excellent 40D you can shoot at higher shutter speeds in light that in film days would have meant using a tripod. The old rules still apply for moving subjects ie 1/focal length = minimum shutter speed. But with IS add/or steady hands if the subject is relatively static then you can stretch this. But if you can use a support then use one because lower ISO pictures are better and so are sharper pictures in general. Monopods are great for the longer lenses for all those reasons and also because they make them easier to hold for any length of time.

[silkstone]

Another suggestion is to buy an 'angle finder' - that's not some kind of protractor but rather a gizmo that slots onto the viewfinder so you can view from above. It's very handy with both a tripod and a monopod, as you can have the camera below eye level without needing to do contortions to look through the viewfinder. A decent angle finder (like the Canon Angle Finder C) can also magnify the image, which helps a lot with manual focusing.

[TAZZ]

Thanks guys, I've only had the monopod for the day and was able to run out during work and take a couple of pics during day light hours and then a couple pics when I got home in the evening. All of what you have said here makes sense even with my limited experience. It did not give me the stability I needed in low light, but now that you have mentioned it I can see where being able to pivot on a stable base could be a huge advantage...there's some more money I didn't waste

Didn't know about the angle Finder Silk Stone, I'll Google it and see what comes up. My Power shot has the pivoting screen and I just love that, gets shots you could never get with a big camera. I was out getting shots of some tassi devils a while back and was able to hang over the wall with my Power Shot and get pics of the devils running right into the camera. Never could have done that with a stationary view finder. I know what you are suggesting won't give me that kind of freedom but anything that helps get those awkward shots sounds good to me.

[Dabhand16]

Manfrotto do a monopod head that enables changing from landscape orientation to portrait quick and easy if your lenses do not have a rotating mount. You can get it with or without the RC2 quick release system, but I find the ability to mount and remove the camera pretty much instantly to be very useful.

Without RC2 QR mount

With RC2 QR plate.