Tripod recommendations?

[Fullmetal Chocobo]

A co-worker of mine is quite big into photography, and has let me borrow a lot of equipment to play with, try out, etc. The coolest thing so far he let me borrow was a set of lens extension tubes for macro work. I put them on my stock lens and had an absolute blast.

Worst thing so far was one of my Transcend 8gb CF cards went bad. Worst part was I wasn't able to get the remaining pictures off of the card. :| Definitely will not be buying any more of those. I will stick to the Kingston Pro cards.

But anyway. Now I'm looking for a tripod. Light, lots of features, and something that will last a long time. Price really doesn't matter. And it will have to hold a Canon 50D ( not D50 ) with battery grip and flash.

Back to looking for lenses...

A macro shot of my bandolier //not dial-up friendly

 

[soydios]

190XPROB + 488RC2 head is my recommendation for a general-purpose tripod and head.

The 190XPROB legs are plenty strong, making the bigger 055XPROB simply a waste of weight.
The 488RC2 head is stronger and has a separate horizontal panning lock, as opposed to the 486RC2 which is just the ball and isn't strong enough to hold the really big lenses at odd angles.

 

[randomlinh]

Originally posted by: soydios
190XPROB + 488RC2 head is my recommendation for a general-purpose tripod and head.

The 190XPROB legs are plenty strong, making the bigger 055XPROB simply a waste of weight.
The 488RC2 head is stronger and has a separate horizontal panning lock, as opposed to the 486RC2 which is just the ball and isn't strong enough to hold the really big lenses at odd angles.

This. I have the model the 190xprob replaced and the 486RC2. if i had known better, would have got the 488, or another one, culligan? but something w/ individual control of h/v movement.

if cost really isn't a concern, can always go carbon fiber for weight =)

and the canon D50 doesn't exisit

 

[ivan2]

since cost is no concern you should be looking at Gitzo's carbon fiber pods. Just pick one according to your height and that will hold your camera and lens. Pick out a baby arca-swiss head and you are golden.

 

[pennylane]

Originally posted by: ivan2
since cost is no concern you should be looking at Gitzo's carbon fiber pods. Just pick one according to your height and that will hold your camera and lens. Pick out a baby arca-swiss head and you are golden.

I'd also suggest this if the money ain't no thang. Really Right Stuff also makes really good ballheads.

 

[Kelvrick]

I have a manfrotto 322rc2 on a velbon ultra luxi. yea, the head looks a little big for those legs, but they're small and light. I don't want too much weight when I'm already lugging around a sigma 100-300, 150mm macro and the 580 flash with my 20d.

http://www.manfrotto.com/page2319.html
http://www.velbon.co.uk/newvelbon/pages/ultraluxil.html

 

[jpeyton]

People who say "price doesn't really matter" are kidding themselves. Does Fullmetal Chocobo really want to drop $1000 on a Gitzo tripod and a Markins or RRS ball-head?

Give us a budget anyway.

 

[Fullmetal Chocobo]

Originally posted by: jpeyton
People who say "price doesn't really matter" are kidding themselves. Does Fullmetal Chocobo really want to drop $1000 on a Gitzo tripod and a Markins or RRS ball-head?

Give us a budget anyway.

Good point. I'd say up to $500, if it was worth the price. Generally $100-300 preferred. The research I had done thus far pointed to the upper range being ~$400, so I didn't think price was a concern. But with $1k tripods, I see I was sadly mistaken. Sorry about that--should have known better.

 

[jpeyton]

So $300 for a tripod and head means you're looking at Bogen/Manfrotto. I have the 055XPROB; the 190XPROB is the slightly shorter, slightly lighter version of the same tripod. Both are around $175 for the legs. Bogen is running a rebate on leg/head combo purchases. The Manfrotto 488RC ball-head is a good unit. Otherwise look at Cullmann ball-heads; you won't get the rebate, but they have really high load-bearing properties for their price.

If you need a bag, I picked up a padded Vanguard tripod bag for $30 on Amazon. Better than paying $60+ for the Manfrotto bag.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

if you're going to be carrying your tripod everywhere - hiking, on jobs, etc. i would invest in a lighter carbon fiber one. Having extra features like being able to mount the camera at a really low level is also nice. i would get a good ballhead now for when you upgrade to heavier bodies and lenses. Ballheads like the bogen manfrotto 486rc2 can not really hold heavier telephotos without a little bit of slippage after you lock the head. they also slip a lot if the camera is flipped in the portrait orientation.

 

[pennylane]

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
if you're going to be carrying your tripod everywhere - hiking, on jobs, etc. i would invest in a lighter carbon fiber one. Having extra features like being able to mount the camera at a really low level is also nice. i would get a good ballhead now for when you upgrade to heavier bodies and lenses. Ballheads like the bogen manfrotto 486rc2 can not really hold heavier telephotos without a little bit of slippage after you lock the head. they also slip a lot if the camera is flipped in the portrait orientation.

How light of a tripod would you recommend for hiking with medium-heavy lenses like a 70-200mm f/2.8?

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Originally posted by: pennylane

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
if you're going to be carrying your tripod everywhere - hiking, on jobs, etc. i would invest in a lighter carbon fiber one. Having extra features like being able to mount the camera at a really low level is also nice. i would get a good ballhead now for when you upgrade to heavier bodies and lenses. Ballheads like the bogen manfrotto 486rc2 can not really hold heavier telephotos without a little bit of slippage after you lock the head. they also slip a lot if the camera is flipped in the portrait orientation.

How light of a tripod would you recommend for hiking with medium-heavy lenses like a 70-200mm f/2.8?

As light as possible. Realistically, maybe 5lb for the legs? Lighter the better. But be mindful that you don't sacrifice too much stability / stiffness for light weight. A superlight 2lb tripod that flexes or shakes with a heavy body from the mirror slap or doesn't stabilize quickly (keeps on shaking for a long time like a beanstalk) is worthless.

 

[theYipster]

If you're serious about photography requiring use of a tripod, read this: http://www.bythom.com/support. For some, the $1600 Gitzo + RSS ball head option is the right one.

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: theYipster
If you're serious about photography requiring use of a tripod, read this: http://bythom.com/support.htm. For some, the $1600 Gitzo + RSS ball head option is the right one.

Fixed.

That's a really good article which speaks from experience, but I'd add one caveat -- while a good sturdy tripod is ideal, a good sturdy tripod which you don't take with you when you go out because it's too big or heavy is useless, so you should also consider your traveling needs when getting a tripod; potentially considering two.

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Originally posted by: Madwand1

Originally posted by: theYipster
If you're serious about photography requiring use of a tripod, read this: http://bythom.com/support.htm. For some, the $1600 Gitzo + RSS ball head option is the right one.

Fixed.

That's a really good article which speaks from experience, but I'd add one caveat -- while a good sturdy tripod is ideal, a good sturdy tripod which you don't take with you when you go out because it's too big or heavy is useless, so you should also consider your traveling needs when getting a tripod; potentially considering two.

Yes, this is key. And also speaking from experience, my light 5lb carbon fiber tripod is already plenty sturdy in a TON of situations, and I use mine in the wilderness. It's flawless for basically everything else.

 

[Madwand1]

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
my light 5lb carbon fiber tripod is already plenty sturdy

Which model is it?

 

[fuzzybabybunny]

Originally posted by: Madwand1

Originally posted by: fuzzybabybunny
my light 5lb carbon fiber tripod is already plenty sturdy

Which model is it?

It's an old Feisol 3301. Was one of the cheapest carbon fiber tripods at the time at $200. There have been a few select times and scenarios during the years when I've wished for a heavier tripod, but those are few and far between. One time was at night trying to do a long exposure of the Shanghai skyline with a brisk wind with my heavy telephoto.

The big thing is making sure that the entire system is as stiff as possible. You can have the heaviest tripod but if the linkage between the center column + legs is wobbly or sloppy, your camera's going to shake. If the linkage between the ballhead and quick release plate is sloppy with a heavy lens, same thing. Same with if you use a heavy telephoto + full zoom with a lighter duty ballhead that isn't very good at taking all that weight. Same if your camera bracket flexes. And same if any combination of the above is in your system from the ground to your camera.