handhold
/ˈhandhəʊld
/noun
Something for a hand to grip on: the rock is steep and there are few handholds...
- I'd managed to scramble up to the crest on what was basically slate: handholds and footholds tended to detach themselves in small, take-home-and-keep pieces.
- Going down had been easy, but with no handholds or footholds, coming up was proving to be much harder than I'd expected.
- I forced myself up from the bed, gasping and gripping whatever handholds I could find.
verb (usually hand-hold) [with object]
1Hold (a camera) in the hand when taking a photograph or making a video recording, as opposed to using a tripod: we could hand-hold the camera at very slow shutter speeds with hardly any blur...
- If you've ever tried to hand-hold an iPad for even a few minutes while recording video, you can imagine what a wonderful thing an effective iPad tripod mount can be.
- The light-gathering capabilities of these latest generation of cameras allow using higher ISOs that negate camera shake to almost nothing and I very often handhold my 400.
- I would expect the VR of the 800mm lens to be optimized for tripod use since it would be difficult to hand-hold such a long and heavy lens.
2Support or guide (someone) during a learning process or a period of change: if you ask a mentor how to register, he or she will hand-hold you through the procedure...
- I can't believe I have to hand-hold you through this argument.
- He hand-held them when they were taking baby steps in the industry.
- I was relieved that showrunner Craig Silverstein trusted in the intelligence of the viewers and didn't attempt to hand-hold them through the story after the first few minutes.