152 Better Available Light Digital Photography
Flashpoint’s carbon-fi ber mono-
pod is 19 inches long when closed
and extends to 58 inches. Its 10-
ounce weight makes it a good
choice for sports and nature
photographers who work with
long-focal-length lenses and don’t
always have enough space or time
to set up a tripod. The three-
section Flashpoint monopod has a
1-inch diameter main tube and a
foam grip over the main portion.
The top of the monopod (and all
the Flashpoint tripods too) has a
reversible attachment for mount-
ing a camera or tripod head.
A monopod is a necessity when
working with a large, heavy lens
such as Canon’s EF 500 f/4. A
tripod is just not practical in such
fast-moving situations. This race
car was photographed at Laguna
Seca Raceway with an exposure of
1/320 sec at f/10 and ISO 800.
The picture is so sharp you can see
the driver’s eyes clearly through
his helmet visor. © 2004 Joe
Farace.
zontal axes, and is grippy on normally slippery surfaces including
tile—and even on ice, which we have a lot of in Colorado.
Whereas Joe prefers the three-section Professional model, some
pros might prefer other confi gurations in terms of length and
number of sections. The RS16K All-Round is a four-section
monopod that extends to 61 inches, but can be retracted to 19
inches. It weighs 1.3 pounds and is available in matte aluminum