How to: Tripod Mount Your New 5 Megapixel iPad
With the updated camera in the new iPad our attention is naturally turning to taking more acceptable quality photographs with our favourite tablet device. That of course raises the issue of holding the iPad steady, especially when we start talking about things like timelapse and low-light photography.
So we have looked into a few options that, although mostly made for iPad 2, should work or be updated to work soon, with the new iPad.
Movie Mount by Makayama
We mentioned the Movie Mount in a previous post. It was obviously designed for video not stills necessarily, but it seems sturdy enough to do the job. At $69.95 the price is reasonable and will do double-duty if you also want to take your video making to another level with external accessories.
There is no mention of the new iPad on Makayama's website though and we couldn't guarantee the current model will fit your new 3rd gen device, so there may be a little wait while they update it.
G7 Pro by iShot Mounts
For $10 more at $79.95 you could consider the more adjustable G7 Pro by iShot Mounts. This has adjustable corner clamps that promise to accommodate the new iPad as well as existing models, even if the iPad is in a case.
Tournez Tripod Mount by The Joy Factory
At the same $79.95 price point, the Tournez Tripod Mount by The Joy Factory is another solid looking option for photo and video purposes. It uses a snap in case to hold your iPad though and we have yet to hear if this will work with the new iPad, although some of their other cases are being updated to work with, or promoted as compatible with, it.
DIY for less
Finally, if you want to go down the DIY route and save a little bit of money, then you could try this.
Derrick Story (Photographer, Educator, Podcaster and all round Creative) has created a tripod mount setup from photographic lighting fittings (a clamp and a tripod adapter) that will work with any iPad model.
It seems to do a good job, it was even sturdy enough for Derrick to create a timelapse sequence which he turned into a movie using iStop Motion for iPad (more on this app soon).
There are probably similar, even cheaper, ways of achieving the same thing that Derrick did and we would love to hear from you if you have seen or tried for yourself any other DIY solutions for mounting your iPad on a tripod.
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Reader Comments (5)
Good timing - I need to do a fair bit of iPad filming soon (I'm an iOS dev writing photo + video apps for iPhone + iPad). I'll be using the iPad to video a new iPhone app this weekend. Probably too late to order something now though.
Anyway, point I wanted to make: I have a setup very similar to that DIY clip. I'm using it with my iPhone though, not my iPad. The clip actually opens wide enough to hold an iPhone even with a case, so you have a tripod adaptor that will hold pretty much *any* phone - most of the iPhone tripod adaptors are built for the current device only, so you'd be binning the adaptor when you upgrade.
That's pushing me firmly towards the G7 Pro for the iPad. The other 2, even if they work with the iPad 3, have a pretty high chance of being obsolete in 12 months.
I was going to suggest something different but then I realize it was made by the same company that makes the G7--I bought way before they redesigned the website. I have the G5 (it wasn't called G5 that time); it seems G7 has a tighter lock on the iPad than G5 based on the diagonal angle.
What I like about G5 are it can act not just as a tripod mount but also as a grappler (w/o the neck) and a kickstand (w/ the neck).
The Tether Tools Wallee (www.tethertools.com) has a really cool iPad system. Been using it with the iPad2 and they said the new case will ready in a few weeks.
I have tried the Joy Factory tripod mount and returned it.
It potentially has the elements of a good design. However it is not fully developed and does not securely attach the ipad case to the arm. It is suppose to do that but does not.
It leaves your expensive ipad vulnerable to falling off most unexpectantly.
It is a shame because after returning it a colleague of mine tried it with the same results.
I would recommend the Unibull (hopefully by now they have a new version of the hard case insert) and the the Wallee Connect System by Tether Tools. Super secure The wallee is.
It really seams to be a problem still out there...keeping the option loose seems to be the way to go as there is no guarantee the next version will not be another thickness or configuration...Sometimes I think the best is a home version configuration designed to be adaptable. Cheers.
I am planning on taking video with my ipad2. Does it matter what kind of tripod you get ( tripod for video or straight up camera tripod) for one of the ipad mounting systems? I'm going to try the Grifiti Nootle. Thank you.