Are you reluctant to carry a tripod when you travel for photography? Do you want to reduce the burden of carrying a heavy tripod when you are going for a shoot? Let us check out the different tripod alternatives. 

Tripod Alternatives 😎 

1. Monopod

Tripod Alternative Monopod

Monopod can’t be an exact replacement for a tripod. But there are many places where monopods are more useful than a tripod.

Wildlife photographers, Sports photographers, Event photographers, and journalists can use monopods.

You can reduce the weight by almost one-fourth if you carry a monopod instead of a tripod. It will not cost you much also.

You will get both carbon fiber and aluminium monopods. You will get 4 section as well as 3 section ones. You can go for any. I recommend a 4 section one since it is compact and easy to carry.

2. Beanbag

If you are a wildlife photographer or a bird photographer then you should definitely consider beanbag as a tripod alternative. It is very useful when you are inside the safari vehicle.

Nowadays, there are additional hook-up plate accessories coming with beanbags. It will allow you to mount your gimbal head or any other tripod heads on top of it.

If you are lying down and photographing birds or wildlife then a beanbag is a better choice than a tripod. It is also  easy to move around with a beanbag.

Bean bags are also useful for shooting at lower angles. It would be a pain to set up the tripod at such a lower angle. Only certain high-end tripods support such lower angles.

3. Platypod

Tripod Alternative Platypod

Another good alternative for a tripod is a Platypod. Platypod serves the same purpose as a beanbag.

It is easy to change the angle of shooting using a Platypod. It is very useful for shooting videos. You can mount your normal tripod head on top of the Platypod and use it.

If you want to put your camera set up at a height, then you need to place the Platypod on top of a wall or on any raised level surface. Platypods are available in different models that are capable of mounting high-end DSLRs with a heavy lens, lightweight DSLRs, and even mirrorless cameras. You can choose one accordingly.

4. Gorillapod

Gorillapod is another best tripod alternative. It serves the purpose of a tripod. It can be fitted in places where tripods can’t go. Joby Gorillapod is one of the well-known Gorillapod brands.

The legs of the Gorillapod are very flexible. You can fix it on a rod or a branch by folding legs around the rod. The only disadvantage is that you can’t use a Gorillapod for high-end cameras with heavy telephoto lenses.

5. Pocket Tripods

There are many pocket tripods on the market. They are also referred to as tabletop tripods. You can easily carry it in your pocket.

You can use it to attach the camera and lenses set up which weighs up to 2kg. The payload capacity varies with models.

6. Use your Hands

You can shoot handheld if your hands are stable.

It is not recommended to take handheld shots with heavy telephoto lenses. It can be tiring and can cause back pain and other health issues later.

7. Clamps

Tripod Alternatives Clamp Mount

There are clamps available in the market on which we can fix the tripod head or camera on one end. The other end of the clamp is used for clamping on poles or windows or rods.

8. Suction Mounts

Suction mounts are similar to clamps. The only difference is that instead of the clamping feature it has a suction cup on one end. It works on the vacuum principle.

So you need a clean flat surface to fix this mount and there would be a lock to tighten. It cannot handle heavy lenses.

9. Shoulder Rigs

Shoulder rigs are costly tripod alternative options. It is mainly used by videographers.

You can mount the camera on the shoulder rig and the extended bars on the rig are placed on the shoulders for balancing and support.

It is useful in places where you can’t keep a tripod. It gives you more mobility too.

10. Use your Environment 

It is the easiest and cost-effective alternative. You can place your camera on top of any surface in the location like rock, wall, ground, table, etc.

Here, you will not have the flexibility to position the camera since you may not be able to move the thing on which you have kept the camera.

11. Bottle Water Technique

You can use this technique if you are carrying a water bottle in the field. You can make use of the top part to keep your small camera like GoPro.

Make sure that the bottle contains water. It is required for stability. You can stick one of the GoPro mounts using double-sided tape on top of the bottle.

So, these are the various tripod alternatives. You can choose any of these if you are looking for one.