1. Camera Mounts and How to Use Them

2. Camera Mounts You can support your camera:
1. By carrying it with your hands or on your shoulder
2. With a tripod
3. With a studio pedestal
4. With several other special camera mounting devices

3. The camera mount you use greatly influences, if not dictates, how you operate the camera.

4. The Handheld and Shoulder-Mounted Camera
To keep the handheld camera as steady as possible, support the camera in the palm of one hand and use the other hand to support the camera arm or camera itself.

5. Leaning against an object will steady the camera operator and the camera
Panning the camcorder: Before panning, point your knees in the direction of the pan, then uncoil your upper body during the pan.
Walking Backward rather than forward makes it easier to keep the camera steady.

6. The Shoulder-Mounted camcorder is carried on the shoulder
The Shoulder-Mounted camcorder is carried on the shoulder. One hand slips through a special strap that is attached to the lens, leaving the fingers free to operate the zoom control. The other hand steadies the camera and operates the focus ring.

7. The Tripod-Supported Camera
The best way to keep the camcorder steady and the movements as smooth as possible is to support it on a tripod or some other kind of camera mount.
A good tripod should be light but sturdy enough to support the camera as it moves.

8. Its collapsible legs must lock securely into place at any extension point and should have rubber cups and spikes at the tips of the legs.
The rubber cups prevent the tripod from slipping on a smooth surface, as do the spikes on a rough surface.
Most professional tripods come with a spreader, a triangular base mount that locks the tips in place and prevents the legs from spreading no matter how much weight is put on them.

9. Camera Mounting Head One of the most important parts of your tripod.
Permits smooth pans and tilts with the panning handle.
Lifting the handle makes the camera tilt down, pushing it down makes the camera tilt up. Moving the panning handle to left makes the camera pan right, moving it to the right makes the camera pan left.

10. The mounting head also has a tilt and pan lock mechanism that prevents the camera from moving horizontally or flopping forward or backward when unattended.
Make sure to lock mounting head every time you leave the camera unattended, no matter how briefly.

11. Wedge Mount Also called the quick release plate.
The wedge mount consists of a wedgelike plate that is attached to the bottom of the camera and that slides into the wedgelike receptacle attached to the mounting head.

12. Why use a Tripod?
The tripod steadies the camera, whether you are zoomed in or out.
Your pans and tilts will be much smoother than with a handheld camera.
The tripod will keep you from moving the camera excessively, which is a positive rather than a negative factor in good camera work.
You will get less tired with the camera on the tripod than on your shoulder or in your hand.

13. The Tripod Dolly
In order to dolly or truck with the tripod-mounted camera, you must put the tripod on a three-caster dolly base.

14. The Field Dolly
When dollying on a rough surface, such as gravel or grass, you need to mount your tripod on a field dolly.
The field dolly has a platform with four pneumatic tires that support the tripod-mounted camera and the camera operator.

15. The Studio Pedestal
A studio pedestal is a relatively expensive camera mount that supports even the heaviest of cameras and additional equipment such as a teleprompter.
The studio lets you pan, tilt, truck, arc, and pedestal while the camera is “on the air.”

16. Special Camera Mounts
Range from robotic pedestals whose movements are computer-controlled to large cranes that can swoop the camera with its operator as high as 30 feet above ground to common beanbags and shopping carts.