Holding down the middle of a tripod for stabilization?
 

I find myself having down the middle column with my left hand and placing my right hand on the control handle. It seems that wihout my left hand on the column, the tripod will tend to stager or move one way as I am applying force on the handle. Is this normal? How do people do it where one hand is a LANC controller and one hand is the control-grip and still maintain good stabilization?

Pro (expensive) tripods resist twisting and have spreaders to keep the legs firmly in position with respect to the others. They are frequently of twin-tube design to better resist the twist and may be made of carbon-fiber which is much stiffer than metal tubing of equivalent cross-section.

You may be clamping head movement to much. If the locks and friction setting are completely released, you should be able to move the camera around without moving the tripod. If so, then lighten up on the adjustments.

You should expect to have to hold on to the camera or pan-handle at all times when the locks are off unless you have a counter-balanced tripod head.

To improve stability, you can also try the following:

1. upgrade the fluid head

2. don't use a center post. the gitzo 1411 and other variants allow you to remove the center column and replace it with a plate that has a 3/8" stud on it. Or just get a tripod with a full or half bowl, and mate it with the appropriate head.

3. if you absolutely need the center column, then the gitzo has a hook on the bottom where you can add a weighted sand or leadshot - filled bag.

4. use spiked feet. this will eliminate the tendency of the tripod to slide.

Holding Down……,
 

I just returned from a trip where the wind was gusting up to 65 mph.

The system that I use to "cement" the TP in place, is a couple of 2½ gallon (10 Liter) collapsible plastic water containers. At 8.3+ pounds/gallon, two or three work very nicely.

You can purchase them at most outdoor sporting goods stores.

Plus, it is nice to have extra water handy.