Hand-Held Balance for Sharp Images

DIY Tripods| How to Stabilize Your Camera without Buying a Tripod

Richard Bennett

Oct 26, 2023• Proven solutions

When you’re trying to grow a channel on YouTube it can feel like equipment is a barrier, but it shouldn’t be. If you can’t afford a high-end tripod, for example, there are loads of ways to get by without one.

DIY Your Video with Wondershare Filmora

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Here are 3 of our favorite DIY tripods.

DIY smartphone tripod using binder clips or hair clips

You’re a solo operation and your best camera is on your phone. That’s pretty common.

If you have a DSLR then you can set it down on any stable surface while filming yourself, but your phone can’t stand up by itself. It needs something or someone to hold it. Do you just accept that and shoot everything as a selfie?

No. No, you don’t, because there are common household items that can help you out of this problem. For this DIY tripod, you need either 2 binder clips or 2 ‘claw clips’ (also called ‘hair jaws’).

Hold your phone in landscape mode (horizontally, so it’s long rather than tall) and attach clips to the bottom corners. If you are worried about scratching your screen, fold up some paper to place between your clip and your phone.

Here it is with binder clips:

And here it is with hair clips:

Now you can set your smartphone upon any stable surface, like a table or a stack of books.

Here are some more cool ideas!

DIY adjustable tripod using books and a towel

You’ve probably heard a million times that you can stabilize your camera by sitting it down on any stable surface – on your desk, on a stack of books, up in a tree, etc. This is very true!

But if you can use any stable surface, why do people buy tripods?

Because it isn’t convenient to rearrange your furniture whenever you want to make a video, and also because tripods are adjustable. You can change their height, you can use them to pan or tilt, and it’s pretty easy to move them a bit forwards or backward while you’re setting up your shot.

To get similar functions from the ‘any stable surface’ solution you can use a table, a stack of books, and a towel.

Set up the area where you’re going to sit while you’re filming on one end of the table.
Put the towel down over the approximate spot you want your camera to be.
Stack your books on top of the towel.
Put your camera on top of the books.

Now if your camera isn’t up high enough, or is too high, you can adjust it just by adding or taking away books. If you want to move it closer or farther away from you, just pull the towel forwards or backward.

DIY gripping ‘Gorillapod’ using wire and tape

Gorillapod’s are cool because you can use them like normal tripods, carry them around like selfie sticks, or attach them to things like fences and posts. Here’s how you can make something similar using wire, electrical tape or duct tape, and a 1/4 bolt.

Your wire should be fairly stiff and you’ll need three pieces the same length, which should be at least 10 inches. Old clothes hangers work well. This needs to be something strong enough to support the weight of your camera, but soft enough that it’s not impossible for you to bend.

All of your supplies plus the finished product.

Readying your legs

Step 1: Bend 2 inches at one end of each wire into a ‘U’ shape. You will probably need pliers for this.

Step 2: Pick up one of your pieces of wire and wrap one end with electrical tape. Go around 5-10 times (to prevent it from coming undone at the end) and then, without cutting your tape, start moving up and wrapping the rest of your wire. Stop before your ‘U’ section.

Repeat this with the other two wires.

Attaching your legs

Step 1: Place the ‘U’ section of a leg against your bolt. The bolt’s threading should be pointing away from the leg. Now, use your tape to attach them. Wind it around 2 or 3 times, then repeat the process with both of the other legs individually.

Step 2: After all the legs are attached, wrap some more tape around all 3 as tightly as you can.

Your camera will mount onto the bolt! You’ll be able to use this as a normal table-top tripod or use the flexible legs to grab onto different things like a Gorillapod. Read more at Instructables.

Note: make sure the bolt is a fit for your camera before you get too far into this process.

Richard Bennett

Richard Bennett is a writer and a lover of all things video.

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Free, Safe Steps to Extract Audio From YouTube Videos

How to Rip Audio from YouTube in 3 Ways [Free and Safe]

Shanoon Cox

Mar 27, 2024• Proven solutions

Top lectures, top debates, and top music are present on YouTube. But watching them is time-consuming. This is where people want to rip audio from YouTube videos. The ability to extract audio from YouTube will allow them to listen to these audios anywhere, anytime.

Many online websites are famous for extracting audio from YouTubevideos. They let you choose the available audio formats like MP3, WAV, etc. Then, you can download the converted file on your device. And the best part is that it is completely free.

Here, we will show you 3 ways of how to rip audio from YouTubeusing ‘free and secure’ websites:

Method 1: Rip Audio from YouTube Online with Ytmp3
Method 2: Extract Audio from YouTube Using Desktop Software
Method 3: Record YouTube Screen and Extract Audio from YouTube - [Video Tutorial]
A Legal Warning for Ripping Audio from YouTube
Bonus: How to Edit the Audio to Your Own Video

Rip Audio from YouTube

For Win 7 or later (64-bit)

Secure Download

Rip Audio from YouTube

For macOS 10.14 or later

Secure Download

Note: We resolutely oppose all forms of copyright-infringing downloads. This tutorial is only for downloading YouTube videos/audio materials from your own channel.

Method 1: Rip Audio from YouTube Online with Ytmp3

Another easy program to rip audio from YouTube is Ytmp3. This tool is ‘free and safe’ and easy to use. You can convert YouTube videos into mp3 and mp4 formats. A simple step-by-step guide is provided for your convenience:

Step 1: Copy YouTube video URL and Paste into Ytmp3

Firstly, copy the URL of the YouTube video you wish to convert. Then, go to the Ytmp3 website and paste the URL into the box shown on the home page.

Step 2: Choose the format and convert

Secondly, you can choose the available formats. The website offers two formats; mp3 (audio) and mp4 (video). As you want to rip audio from YouTube, choose the mp3 format. Afterward, click the convert button to start the process.

Step 3: Download the converted file

Lastly, you can click on the Download or Dropbox button. Clicking on the button will get your file downloaded. Additionally, you can choose to convert more. Otherwise, you can access the downloaded file.

Method 2: Extract Audio from YouTube Using Desktop Software

Sometimes you watch a YouTube video and happen to like the audio but not the video. To just listen to the audio in the video, you need torip audio from the YouTube video. For this purpose, the 4K Video Downloader is the best desktop software for ripping audios. The software can extract audio from YouTube videos and convert it into an mp3 file. This software is available both free and paid. A step-by-step guide is provided for your convenience:

Step 1: Launch 4K Video Downloader and paste the URL

Firstly, launch the software. Then, copy the YouTube URL. Now, click the Paste Link option on the top left corner. Then, a pop-up will appear where you have to select Extract Audiooption.

Step 2: Choose the quality

After that, you have to choose the quality for the to-be-extracted file.

Step 3: Choose the format and extract

Lastly, choose the format (MP3, M4A, OGG) of your file. Afterward, hit the Extract button to extract audio from the YouTube video. After the process is complete, you can access the file.

Method 3: Record YouTube Screen and Extract Audio from YouTube

Here is another way to extract audio files from any videos included YouTube.

Step 1: First Download Filmora Video Editor from the button below and use the ‘Screen Recorder‘ feature to record the YouTube video that you want to rip to audio.

Extract Audio from Video

Step 2: Import the recorded video to Filmora and right click on the video track, select ‘Detach Audio‘ to extract audio track. Then choose the audio track and click the ‘Export‘ button to save ripped audio files.

Here are more features of Filmora Video Editor:

Edit screen recorded video and audio with various tools.
Record screen with high quality.
Export video and audio with multiple formats.
Offers cool effects, filters and stickers to make your video professional.

A Legal Warning for Ripping Audio from YouTube

Is the downloading of YouTube videos, including ripping audio from YouTube videos, legal? Here, we’ll have a brief discussion regarding the legality of downloading and converting YouTube videos.

According to YouTube’s Terms of Service , it is completely illegal to download, convert, or share the video without getting the appropriate permission from the owner.

However, there are some types of videos that are legal to download, and you can extract audio from YouTube videos falling into these categories:

Public Domain: These videos’ copyright is either expired or abandoned. So, there is no owner, and the public can use the video for any purpose.
Creative Commons: These videos are owned by the artists, but they have allowed the public to reproduce and share the content.
Copyleft: These videos are granted free rights to change, share, and reproduce as long as the same rights apply to derivative content.

Bonus: How to Edit the Audio to Your Own Video

Usually, the audio of your video is not clear. Sometimes the background music is irritating, and you want to replace it. In short, the point is to edit and enhance the audio track of your video. All these changes can be achieved by using Filmora.

Wondershare Filmora is a video editing tool equipped with many features. Along with video editing options, this tool is perfect for audio editing. This software allows you to trim, add effects, or replace the audio track of your video. A simple step-by-step guide is provided for your convenience:

Edit Audio & Video for Free

Step 1: Import the media