>>4315923i find tripods too cumbersome and not versatile enough for macro photography of a dynamic subject. they're fine to use in a studio with everything sitting still but when you're trying to shoot a live subject that can move around the only way i can make it work is camera in one hand and a flash with a softbox in the other hand and i can adjust my positioning and distance from the subject in real time as needed. i just don't even bother with focus stacking at all unless i'm shooting a dead bug on my desk. if i need deeper depth of field i'll close the aperture as needed, find the sharpest pictures and the ones that capture the areas i want in focus in post and live with the results.
that's the only way i can get useable results with my level of patience with a live bug that move around. if i spend even one minute setting things up on a tripod only for it to move and ruin it then i want to rip my hair out of my scalp.
