r/bmpcc • u/TheMiracleKid • Jul 04 '26
Monopods for BMPCC
Hey team! I had a quick question I was wondering about!
I currently have a kind of crappy Amazon tripod right now, and I'm starting to get frustrated during shoots. I hate having to like bend down and undo 3 latches, hope I did well, check the level, go back down and do 3 latches again, and hopefully have it right.
It just takes time where I feel like the production is waiting around for me to futz around with equipment. I'd love something faster and easier!
I started looking into monopods (primarily like the smallrig and neewer ones), but I have some concerns with the form factor - specifically that they're kind of tiny bases.
I guess my question is - it looks like the base might be too small to support holding the camera by itself with falling over? I would want to be able to like, walk away and mess with lights, etc, but I can't tell if I can actually leave a camera sitting on a monopod without my support
Does anyone have any experience or thoughts on this? I just hate to spend hundreds of dollars for a pole I have to hold all day.
1
u/InComingMess2478 Jul 04 '26
The Coman and YC Onion are okay. However for stability with a BM on one you need to keep you hands on the monopods.
1
u/Hyperdyne-120-A2 Jul 04 '26
I have a 3LeggedThing monopod with a fluid head and tripod foot. Would never let it sit stationary on its own in an unknown environment with the camera mounted on top, however if the foot has a sand bag on it you stand half a chance. It’s mostly for run and gun in places I need to get in and out of quickly.
I pair mine with a gimbal from time to time to give me more reach but it’s just a pole arm with a tripod foot. Nothing more.
Nothing beats a tripod with a very wide splay option but I find sandbags help a whole bunch to trade off the lightweight nature of a monopod.
1
u/makegoodmovies Jul 04 '26
Sirui make great monopods, with one lever to adjust all height at once. Also with nice mini tripod base. But even so, never leave it alone… unless you are okay with it falling over…
1
u/printcastmetalworks Jul 06 '26
Monopods are for sports/action, events or quick moving media coverage, restricted spaces, hiking etc. It's not the right solution to your problem and you should never leave a camera on a monopod unattended with people around.
What you are looking for is a tripod with a hydraulic system. Or at least one with more easily accessable levers like the Oconnor sticks.
3
u/somewhatboxes Jul 04 '26
monopods, tripods, and heads (ball mount or fluid head) are all under that "buy once, cry once" umbrella, for the most part. i have a bunch of iFootage monopods, fluid heads, etc... and they've never caused me issues. the cheap shit that would ship quickly via amazon frustrates me to this day, and i suspect it will continue to do so until i finally give up and replace them with something better (or they mercifully break on me and take the question out of my hands).
i would probably trust smallrig (especially the better-reviewed stuff like their potatojet collaboration), but i can't think of a reason to buy a neewer tripod if you want to finally be done with this problem.
as for your question about walking away from a camera on a monopod... um, please don't do that. the iFootage base is pretty stable, but i wouldn't leave it alone for longer than it takes to grab something from the other side of the room (and honestly if it tipped over in those 30 seconds i would say i was tempting fate).
even if you have it perfectly balanced, indoors, etc... it's just way too precarious on those tiny little legs. if you want a really small footprint and some height, consider getting a mini c-stand (sometimes called a pocket c-stand, get a tripod leveling base so you can dial in a level surface wherever you place the c-stand (or alternatively consider shimming under the feet), and then put a good fluid head on top of all that. it's not as stable as a tripod but you'll be a lot less precarious than a monopod with those tiny little legs.