Tripods...? Remotes?!

I think it's possible to get a cheap tripod for not much money. My first tripod was a thrift store find and lasted me about ten years, until one of the legs gave out. My current (and second) tripod is a Hakuba S-4500. I mention the name because, the one thing I really love about it is the quick release plate at the top. Rather than having to unscrew the camera to remove it, you just pop the whole plate out and your camera is free. Less fidgeting with screws when you should be shooting. I'm sure many new tripods come with something similar, but I've only just moved into the modern age when it comes to them.

Lastly, if you use the timer function on your camera, you won't have to worry about shake from pressing the button. Just set it to 2 seconds click and you should be good to go. It doesn't make a difference to your dolls how long it takes you to shoot a single shot.

 

I have this tripod and it's perfectly decent. I don't know if a $12 tripod is going to do you much good but you can definitely get a tripod that will work well enough for under $50.

As for remotes, my understanding is that the Canon wireless remote only works if you're in front of the camera, which is a pain for me since I'm mostly behind it but not touching it to reduce hand shake. I just use the two-second auto-timer instead.

 

You can get a wired remote pretty cheaply (I think I paid maybe $10-$15 for mine), but like Fishiestix and Chibaraki says, the timer is another good way to avoid hand shake so they're not really vital.

Tripod wise there are plenty of decent cheap ones out there that do the job well, my first one cost me about $30 I think and I never really had any complaints about it besides its flexibility, or lack there of, I think it all depends what you want to do with it though and how flexible you need the tripod to be. Most cheap tripods will fold to a minimum of around 50cm (give or take, some will obviously go smaller) tall which is still pretty tall if you want to shoot dolls at around their eye level or lower.
I use a benbo trekker that I picked up pretty cheaply on ebay a while ago, it's intended for wildlife/landscape/macro photography where you need something that can get really low to the ground, which is spot on for shooting dolls with.

I'd also recommend looking out for one with a ball head if you can, though I'm not sure how many cheaper tripods have them, they're much more flexible and allow for a lot more freedom than the traditional hinged ones.

 

Tripods are pretty much like everything else--sky's the limit for how much you wanna spend. Carbon fiber fanciness or inexpensive aluminum. The heads can be even worse: Arca-Swiss compatible ballheads can cost more than the legs, i.e. as much as a camera. (The links are what I use.)

... Yeah, a $15 tripod doesn't seem so bad after all. This was my first one, though I paid about $15 in a store when it happened to be on sale. There's a shorter version they make for even less money, but the bottom leg segment is almost pencil thick so it's much less stable to be almost useless. Cheap is ok, but not <$10 cheap, apparently.

The wireless remote is for self and group portraits where the photographer is in front of the camera. The receiver is the little oval on the grip right below the shutter (normally covered by your right hand). You can use it like a cable release, but it is pretty cumbersome since you have to hold your hand in front of the camera to use it. If you are using a wide lens, you may have to mind that your hand stays out of the picture!

While you can use 2 second delay for free, if you are doing a lot of tripod work, a cable release is much more convenient. As a side bonus, this lets you shoot bulb (manual shutter), which can be fun for nighttime shots and fireworks. It also allows more precise timing than 2 second delay if you want to take pictures of moving things--you press once to lock the mirror, then just wait for the right moment; otherwise, you'd have to guess the correct moment 2 seconds in advance.

You may want to use mirror lockup (custom function 9 on XSi) when on a tripod to avoid vibration from the mirror slap. Mirror slap matters most for shutter speeds from roughly 1/15 to 1 second, somewhat common for continuous lighting indoors.

 

I've got a 6$ tripod I got on sale XD It's wonderful, it has 2 level bubbles and it super light and easy to manage. I refuse to buy a cable release for my DSLR because my model doesn't come with a remote option, so it's like 70$ from sony, so I will just use the timer, or nothing at all.

I honestly think ANY tripod investment is a good one, even if you get a cheaper one.

 

Tripods are totally worth it. Mine is a $20 one from WalMart. Not too fancy. Just remember that the plastic 'tabs' on the legs tend to wear out quite quickly. I'm already looking to upgrade to the screw type.

 

There's a quick-release plate, which is a plastic bit you screw into the bottom of the camera (which has a hole for it), and then it sets in the divot in the top of the tripod and sort of clips in. Then you can adjust the angle and move it around and stuff.

 

I have a velbon tripod and a Nikon corded remote and I have to say they make pictures better.

 

Make sure it can hold up your camera! D: I've heard so many horror stories about tripods falling over with your camera on them because they thought it would be enough. That's one problem about buying from ebay or online, you can never tell.

 

Ohhh *n* I had no idea that so many people used tripods and such for their shots! I own a small wonky one, but I often find that I despise having to mess around with screws and such every time I want to change an angle or something. So I never use it =S I guess my shots do blur 9/10 times though..

How does everyone deal with the large amounts of adjusting?

 

I usually don't use a tri-pod when shooting outside, but it's a necessity for shooting indoors with the low light levels and slow camera speeds. I don't have a remote - I just use the self-timer. Yes, a tri-pod can be fidgety, but you get used to it and it does make for nice clear photos.

 

I have a $20 tripod from RadioShack and I ALWAYS use it for shooting indoors, even with proper lighting. 9 out of 10 times I use the self timer as well.