Martha Cooper

Wind plus the thinnest leg sections is a killer; keep the center column down and use a wider leg angle for a lower center of gravity. Hang a bag from the hook but let it touch the ground so it damps instead of swinging. Flip to spikes if your feet have them (or wedge a rock under each foot) and clean the leg locks - grit can make them creep even when “tight.” Orient a leg into the wind and use a 2–5 second timer or electronic shutter to avoid adding shake.

I got into that model after work too and my first purchase was a huge inexpensive assortment. The colors looked exciting at first and but a lot of them felt chalky and turned muddy when mixed. What helped was switching to a smaller student level range with fewer but better pigments. Twelve to twenty four colors is a sweet spot for learning because you can still mix anything while keeping choices manageable. Pans make cleanup easy in a small space and listings that mention strong pigment load, easy rewetting, and transparency tend to deliver that flowing look from tutorials. Skip metallic and neon colors until you are comfortable since they behave differently and can complicate early practice. If you see lightfastness information and specific pigment names, that is a good sign the maker cares about quality.