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Television Production & Broadcast Journalism
Copyright Goodheart-Willcox Co., Inc.
Mounting Heads
The tripod head is the assembly at the top of the pedestal column to
which the camera attaches, Figure 3-21. The tripod head has several handles
and knobs. These handles and knobs allow the operator to pan and tilt the
camera while it is attached to the tripod head. The tripod head moves on
the tripod in much the same way as your head moves on your neck—it can
be tilted to point at the ceiling or the fl oor, or from side to side. One or two
pan handles may be attached to the back of the tripod head, Figure 3-22.
The pan handles allow the camera operator to move the tripod head while
standing behind the tripod.
Rear lens controls
for the camera may be found attached
to one or both of the pan handles. Since the camera operator
of a studio camera actually stands behind the camera, the
actual lens of the camera may be 3 feet in front of the operator.
Adjusting the f-stop, zoom, and focus rings of the camera
would be nearly impossible for the operator to reach. Therefore, attached to
the studio camera is a motorized gear driven device, Figure 3-23. A cable
goes from the device to a controller attached to the end of one or both pan
handles. The camera operator manipulates the lens using this rear controller.
Production Note
There are two types of tripod heads available: friction head and fl uid
head. A friction head is found on less expensive tripods and on almost all
consumer tripods. The camera is stabilized by the pressure created when two
pieces of metal are squeezed together by a screw. Releasing the pressure (loos-
ening the screw) eliminates resistance between the pieces of metal and the
parts slide easily against each other. The camera can then be tilted up and
down using the handle. This type of tripod head is not usually found in a
professional television setup because the resistance is either on or off, locked
or completely loose. With the tripod head locked, the camera is frozen in place
and produces images that may be boring to the audience. If the tripod head is
unlocked, the camera is so loose that camerawork becomes obviously shaky.
Either of these extremes can result in poor, unprofessional video images.
tripod head: The assembly
at the top of the pedestal
column to which the camera
attaches.
pan handle: A device
attached to the back of the
tripod head that allows the
camera operator to move the
tripod head while standing
behind the tripod.
rear lens control: A
controller, attached to the
pan handles, that allows
the camera operator to
manipulate the camera lens
while standing behind the
camera.
friction head: A mounting
assembly on some tripods
that stabilizes the camera
using the pressure created
when two pieces of metal
are squeezed together by a
screw.
Goodheart-Willcox Publisher
Figure 3-21. The tripod
head is located on top
of the legs and pedestal
column of the tripod, and
includes the mounting
plate or wedge.
Tripod
head