do you ever use a monopod at weddings?

Do many or any of you use a monopod when shooting candids at weddings?

I use one for sports but have never been to a wedding where the

photographer was using one. Would they get in the way or take your

focus off your subject?

I haven't used a monopod for general candid shooting with flash. I have used a monopod for low light shooting during the ceremony. I love this Bogen model with the retractable feet:

 

 

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=332749&is=REG&addedTroughType=search

 

 

Also, I've seen photographers shooting with heavy medium format rigs- i.e. RB67 camera/lens, big bracket, Norman flash- use a monopod to steady themselves and so their arms don't fall off from hours of holding up a ton of equipment. Shooting candids with 35mm or Mamiya 7IIs at events, I've not had the need for a monopod.

No, I almost always have my tripod with, mostly for some of the church shots....for candids I like to travel light. In 14 years of shooting Chicagoland weddings, I've never seen another photographer use one. Seems to me that if you need the extra stability go ahead and use a tripod.

i don't use flash -- except in the dark. so, i tried using a monopod at a holiday party recently. i was able to shoot *reliably* at 1/25 sec (not just when i got lucky, as before). yet, it was lightweight and there was nothing for anyone to trip over. (plus, it further sets you apart from 'Uncle Bob'.)

 

i will never again do indoor-event photography without one.

The photographer who did my wedding used a monopod. He shot digital, but I have a vague

memory of him shooting with a digital-backed medium format camera. I'm pretty hazy about

the camera details from my wedding though. :)

I find tripods and monopods to be very limiting! Don't have the time to fuss with them...

 

I DO use my monopod though - for my 550ex flash as my slave flash indoors ;-)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=387806&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

 

 

this is one we are ordering--like the moveable "quick foot" ~~ great at 1/15 or below ---collapes quickly

i love using my monopod, before and during the wedding event. When I need more mobility I either take it off completely or compress from a 5' section to a 1' section. I saw a distinct difference in my shots.

Sometimes. Like Mary, I find them cramping my style. But in Michigan it's hard to do without

them due to low light interior shots. I use a tripod for most formal photography. A monopod

makes moving around a dark church interior a bit easier for ceremony candids.

I use one of these on top of my mono pod,

 

http://ostg.pricegrabber.com/search_getprod.php/masterid=736408/

 

 

and when I have the time, move it over to my tri-pod. Makes life so much easier to be able to squezze the lever, compose, release, shoot. And the quick realse plate gets the cam off of there in a snap too.

For long lens shots down the asile in low light we always use a monopod. But that's the extent of it. Otherwise it gets in the way.