How to Make a Tripod for a Camera
A tripod is an essential piece of equipment for any photographer, from novice to expert. By stabilizing a camera, a tripod enables the shutter to stay open for a longer period of time without producing blurred, unidentifiable images. In standard low-light situations, a photographer depends on a flash. With a tripod, however, he can capture natural lighting with a longer shutter speed. If you're looking for a way to effectively steady your camera without having to lug around a bulky, expensive tripod, follow these steps and create your own.
Things You'll Need
- 1/4-inch washer
- 1/4-20 by 1/2-inch pan head machine screw (1/4 refers to the diameter of the screw or hole for the lock nut and bar knob; 20 refers to the thread)
- 1/4-20 bar knob
- 1/4-20 lock nut
- Drill with 1/4-inch drill bit
- Screwdriver
- Wrench
- 2 L bottle with lid
Instructions
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1
Remove the lid from the bottle. Drill a hole in the center of the lid using your 1/4-inch drill bit.
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2
Insert the machine screw through the washer. Then screw both into the underside of the lid. The washer helps add stability to the tripod and strengthens the bottle lid. When finished, the screw should be sticking up through the top of the cap with the washer on the underside.
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3
To keep the screw from rotating while using the tripod, screw the lock nut onto the machine screw until it's firm against the top of the bottle lid.
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4
Twist the bar knob onto the screw until it's tight against the lock nut. At this point, the screw, lock nut and bar knob should all be sticking out vertically from the top of the bottle lid.
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5
Connect the bottle lid tripod to your camera by screwing the remaining tip of the screw into the tripod dock located on the base of the camera. Fill the bottle with water or sand, anything that will counter-balance the weight of the camera. Re-attach the lid to the bottle. For extra stability, add a second washer to the base of the camera between the camera and the bar knob.
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Tips & Warnings
The measurements listed are suggested for most cameras; however, you'll need to make sure the 1/4-20 by 1/2-inch pan head machine screw fits into your camera's tripod dock without stripping the threads of the camera. If it doesn't fit, find one that does and adjust your drill bit, washer, lock nut and bar knob sizes accordingly.
