Those of you that have been following me for a while will know that I work some long hours - I’d even go as far as saying ridiculous hours. If any of my previous bosses had turned around and asked me to put in a 24hr shift I’d have told them where to go. My problem is, is that I don’t consider what I do work which gets me in all sorts of sleep deprivation issues. That, however, is the only downside as the benefits to not working for a living far outweigh the negatives, as I thrust myself into a 24hr (ish) challenge…
The Challenge
‘Unprecedented times’ had seen me spending most of my time in my studio and on various edits so I’ve been gagging to get out on a mission for a while. I’ve been out and about on various shoots including a short stint on a film in Norway but doing something for myself just for fun was most needed.
Around the time I was planning a mini-adventure, the good folk at 3 Legged Thing got in touch and asked me if I’d like to try out one of their new offerings so it gave me a good reason to head out and have a play!
On paper, the challenge was simple - 10 locations and 10 timelapse tips all shot over 24hrs (sunrise to sunrise) with a bit of everything thrown in for good measure. I’d written a few scripts with grand intentions of sticking to it but as always, things change on location so we winged our way through the majority of it!
The Tripod
As a 3 Legged Thing Pro Team member, it would be outrageous of me to write a review of any kind as I’m obviously biased. They’ve looked after me absurdly well over the years but even before I became part of their pro team, I was in love with their kit when I first stumbled across their products at the Photography Show many moons ago.
Having used Tommy on this shoot I do need to tell you though that I bloody love it. I’ve been looking for something like this for a long time. I’m in an odd position as a timelapser - kind of between photography and cinematography so something that covers both bases is great for me. Keeping my camera solid and stable during a shoot is important - whether it’s a static shot or on a slider. More important than that though is the weight of a tripod. If I can’t comfortably carry it around, I can’t shoot in the first place!
For a lot of the shots in this challenge we were on cliff edges and it was windy throughout the day. On a setup with two tripods I would normally have to stabilise the shots when editing but with a combination of two Tommy’s and spikes instead of feet, it was rock-solid. If you’d like to learn more about Tommy you can do so here.