What is the best practice for ensuring a stable tripod setup?

The best practice for ensuring a stable tripod setup involves lightly stepping on all legs. This action helps to create a firm grounding by applying pressure and ensuring that all tripod legs are securely embedded in the surface. It minimizes any movement or wobbling, which can occur if the legs are not uniformly pressed down or if there's any unevenness in the ground beneath.

By stepping on the legs, you achieve better contact with the ground, thereby reducing the chance of the tripod slipping or shifting during use. This is particularly important in survey work, where accuracy can be compromised by an unstable setup.

While setting up on flat surfaces is a good starting point, it doesn’t guarantee stability if those surfaces are not firm or have loose soil. Leveling instruments are important tools, but they primarily assist in ensuring that the instrument is set properly for measurement rather than stabilizing the tripod itself. Securing with ropes might be necessary in specific conditions, such as on high surfaces or in windy conditions, but it is not a universally applicable method for establishing stability. Therefore, stepping on all legs is the most effective and immediate action to ensure a solid tripod setup.