Wooden Tripod Photography
Why would you choose a wooden tripod over a traditional metal or carbon fibre model? Well for me there are a number of reasons why I love wooden tripod photography: –
Sustainability
I am a firm believer in sustainability, therefore when I designed my camera hide plate I was determined that it would be environmentally friendly, so as a result, the wood I use for my hide plate wooden tripod is manufactured from recycled timber which is sourced locally to me in Shropshire.
I use a variety of different timbers including Oak, Iroko, Ash, Teak Beech etc. I think the very natural look and feel is this is the number one reason for my love of wooden tripod photography.
Weight
Very often I have to walk a fair distance to reach my preferred shooting location; because of this, if I am doing some landscape photography I will take a lighter travel tripod which gives me the height I need, but if I am going to a hide, which are invariably located in remote locations, I take one of my camera hide plates. The plate is a low profile wooden tripod which has adjustable feet and is designed to work with a gimbal head. It is extremely stable and is only 26cm wide.
Portability
The problem with full size metal tripods is that they are more cumbersome when lugging them around over difficult terrain. Lighter carbon fibre versions help with the weight issue, but in reality a full size tripod can only pack down so far and even with a large kit bag I have to hang it off the side which upsets the balance.
Personally if I am going to a hide I will always choose a hide plate over any other type of tripod, because the majority of photography hides do not allow the use of full size tripods due to the space they take up. This is another reason why the hide plate is my first choice, and why I am an advocate of wooden tripod photography.
Design & Style
In my opinion, photographic gear is dull and boring. It comes in black, usually with more black. I prefer my kit to have a bit of style but unfortunately the choices are very limited. I love being unique, and having things which stand out from the crowd. Although I have a traditional metal tripod, I am currently looking to get a full size wooden tripod to compliment my wooden hide plate.
This is the wooden hide plate with a depth of 30mm. This one has been manufactured from Beech. The natural grain is lovely.
This is the wooden hide plate with a depth of 20mm. This version is manufactured from Iroko and I think the grain looks absolutely stunning.
I hope you enjoyed reading this short article.