My new camera stand for my portrait studio

[CharlesWaugh]

I'm a portrait photographer in Portland, Oregon www.charlesfineartportraits.com

In my studio, when photographing people, I have my camera cabled to my laptop, which is called 'tethering'.
So, I need my laptop right at hand.

Also, I like to have my camera very stable and secure, so I use a tripod, or (better yet) a camera stand, which is a purpose-built counterweighted stand on casters for holding the camera.

I used to use a Foba stand (roughly $3500) but it was too tall for my new studio, so I sold it when I moved.

Well, I finally got around to building just the stand I've always wanted.

It combines a camera stand and sit/stand desk that has 10" of vertical travel. That way I can shoot tethered then sit down to present images to clients using just one 'appliance'. Since I only have a 18.5 x 28.5 foot camera room for my entire studio, I have to use every inch carefully.

My camera is perfectly counter-balanced (using a purpose-cast lead weight with felt glides inside the upright tube) and can go from just over 7 feet high to ground level (for those doggie or kid shots!). The Space Frame that holds the camera runs on rubber-covered ball-bearinged wheels from a piece of imaging gear I got off Craigslist. It is smooth as silk and dead silent. : - )

The front of the desk has a full-width handle which allows me to move the stand around easily and also 'extends' the top to support the leading edge of my sales book and my forearms when making notes.

The camera mount 'space frame' also swings out of the way when not in use to keep the camera (and my head!) safe when in 'sales position'.

The festooning structure for the cables on the ceiling was fun to design and build - it works wonderfully well for getting the audio, power, and video cables to the stand. It allows about 12 feet of front/back movement range, which is way more than I need.

It also powers my phone that sits on an angled mount next to my laptop, and there's a small shelf under the desktop that holds my sales book.

The last image shows one style of work that I do.