It's mostly a matter of the types of photography you do, and can be very subjective..

What are the constraints on movement (are you hiking, walking with a group, setting up and moving away often, etc.)? What are the rules where you'll use it (tripods not allowed)? What are the constraints on packing the equipment (must fit in the suitcase)? What kinds of photo subjects are you shooting (pictures of yourself, your flowers, your kid on the soccer pitch, mountains)? What kinds of shutter speeds do you tend to use (very low light situations, action situations)?.

[ e d @ h a l l e yc c ] http://www.halley.cc/pix/..

Http://www.bythom.com/support.htm.

It will tell you all you need to know..

Rob.

If you're bored...http://braveulysses.deviantart.com/gallery.

'Have the courage to be ignorant of a great number of things, in order to avoid the calamity of being ignorant of everything.' Sydney Smith (1771-1845)..

Several thoughts....

Tripods have various purposes. Do you want one to hold a camera rock steady for long exposures, or do you want one that holds a camera in position so that you can carefully arrange what the camera "sees" while the camera stays in the same precise spot?.

Do you want to follow moving action with the camera on the tripod? If the motion is horizontal or vertical, a three-way head is the best bet, but if the motion is in many directions, a ball head is best..

How level will the surface be? Benbo and Uni-lock are designed so the legs are very happy on a mix of rocks and stream bottoms and tree stumps. Most other tripods like fairly flat surfaces..

And there are more considerations..

BAK..

While there is sound reasoning behind it, it's akin to telling a new driver, go buy a Mercedes..

Tripods are a matter of compromises and just rushing off to buy a $700 leg set, a $400 head and $200 in plates and L plates is not necessarily going to help..

There is no question that buying too cheap or buying the wrong gear means you may well buy more or better later, but buying wrong can be done with expensive gear too..

Things to consider?.

Subject matter? Birds and nature shooting can require very large and heavy super telephoto lenses. These do need the best legs and heads and gimbal supports. If you aren't going to be spending several thousand a piece on a single lens, then you can probably get away with a good, quality aluminum tripod until you have more experience in judging your needs. Landscapes and panoramas may be better served with a much less expensive pan/tilt head as opposed to a super ball head..

Portability? Carrying it a long way? Traveling by air? Need compact size to minimize bumping and bashing of things around you as you walk the tourist routes? Good CF pods do reduce weight. 4 section legs shorten the folded length but maybe add some more vibration potential and do add some added fuss to extend. Lighter gear is easier to carry but may not have the overall capacity you need..

Height? Extending the center column really adds to the vibration problems. Stooping can be very uncomfortable if you use the tripod a lot. But you may find that "portability" is more important than worrying about having to stoop now and then..

Capacity? Both heads and legs have some recommended "capacities." The more extreme the conditions, the more capacity you want. Breezy outdoor shooting needs more support than quiet indoor shooting. A light wide landscape lens is going to weigh less than a big birding lens..

Budget? It is quite true that the cheapest tripods and heads are made of poor materials, have springy legs, and won't stand up to rough treatment. Unless a table-top tripod, something under $50 is probably "disposable." As you push closer to $100, there are some reasonably well made trpods. but they will still have some compromises in capacity, smoothness of the head controls, some sag or slip when setting up, etc..

Heads? The ball head is very easy to position. Too small a ball means it's hard to tighten well, so suitable for only fairly light cameras/lenses. They are hard to control for repeated shots and panning is tough - for panoramas to get flat horizons/vertical rotation angles. Pan/tilts do well for sticking to movements in 3 orthogonal axes. Bang for the buck? The pan/tilt is going to be more effort to use and less effort to pay for. they are also usually bulkier. You need to get to the $300 range before you get smooth adjustable friction that allows for nudging a camera into position without loosening/tightening ball head controls..

Delvo wrote:.

I see "recommendation" threads about 'pods, but mostly people gostraight to their own conclusions without explaining much of theirthought processes or the factors that are involved..

Factor #1: size of camera and lens. if you have a larger camera, or use longer lenses regularly, then you will need more than a small, basic tripod[but see exception below] and head. if your gear is on the small side and/or you don't use tele much, you can get away with less..

Factor #2: height. basically you want something that will be at a comfortable height for you with the legs extended but WITH THE COLUMN DOWN! full extension of the column makes the setup more wobbly/vibration prone. it is best not to extend the column more than 1/2 way on all but the very heaviest studio tripods. secondarily, but also important, having legs that can be positioned at multiple angles from the head 'spider' is very handy..

Factor#3: portability. if you are not hiking, backpacking, trekking, or traveling, then a larger, heavier tripod is best because it will be more sturdy and have more mass [and usually be taller and have more features or available accessories]. but if you are doing those things then you have to carefully account for weight and collapsed length and compromise as best you can. btw, for travel-size tripods there is little weight advantage with going to carbon fiber: the weight advantage is much more pronounced in the larger sizes, and then that is where it's worth the extra money. but at travel size the difference between an aluminum and a carbon fiber is only several ounces. remember that you can hang a bag or other weight from the center column to add mass to these necessarily light tripods [the weight needs to brush the ground to eliminate a pendulum effect].

Factor#4: features and accessories. ideally your tripod should be able to grow with you. this argues for buying one of the larger manufacturer's models, since they have additional accessories available. as above, independent leg angle is an important feature, and another good one is the ability to reverse the center column and/or position it at a different angle/axis from the legs..

Factor #5: the head. there are multiple types, and in some ways it's a matter of taste whether a pan-tilt head or ball head works best for you. important considerations are that it is big enough to accommodate the weight and leverage of you cam/lens combo, quick release systems, bubble levels, independent panning capabilities and tension adjustments[look for these last two on better ball headspan-tilt heads already have independent panning by design].

Factor #6: price. user/buyer dependent, obviously. but expect to pay between $80 to a bit over $125 for a decent small aluminum travel tripod, $125-$175 for a modestly featured but decent all-around alum tripod for a dslr and modestly sized lenses, and over $200 for a tripod that will accommodate larger cameras and larger lenses. all these are staring prices and include basic heads. for carbon fiber add at least $150 to all these prices..

And unlike withcameras, I can't just go to the manufacturers' websites for productinformation because I don't know the companies that make them..

True, but using the B&H photo site is the next best thing. [it's actually BETTER than some of the manufacturers' sites! the current manfrotto site is a disgrace].

Here are my reccomendations:.

Travel: slik sprint pro, about $80. for what it is and the price, it is really hard to beat. I have given mine a beating. the head is adequate, but you should think about putting a better head on it, like a giottos'. next choice: manfrotto modo. similar price range, interesting head, decent legs and features.



Basic all-around: there are tons of decent ones now. some good buys are manfrotto's, some of the slik's [pro range], induro's, giottos', and others. manfrotto leads the pack in accessories by a wide margin, however..

A step up from basic: manfrotto 3021PRO or755PRO are hard to beat, although the induro's and giottos are also very good. but in this range there are even more options, and some of the more expensive models begin to compete..

For heads, there are even more options. don't be afraid here to mix and match manufacturers[some fine ones only make heads, not legs].

I haven't mentioned a number of other manufacturers that I have used because I think the ones i've mentioned above give the most bang for buck...

Simple home truth, that has cost me a lot to discover. A CHEAP LIGHT TRIPOD IS USELESS. If you really want a tripod that is worth using, you will save until you can afford one that is worth using. But I guess we all have to learn from our own mistakes.Rob.

If you're bored...http://braveulysses.deviantart.com/gallery.

'Have the courage to be ignorant of a great number of things, in order to avoid the calamity of being ignorant of everything.' Sydney Smith (1771-1845)..

Ed Halley wrote:.

What are the constraints on movement (are you hiking, walking witha group, setting up and moving away often, etc.)?.

Hiking mostly, followed by tourism in civilized areas, which might as well just be considered "urban hiking" in terms of carrying stuff with you..

Ed Halley wrote:.

What are theconstraints on packing the equipment (must fit in the suitcase)?.

There's no hard limit for that; I'll do whatever packing and get whatever cases/luggage it takes to take it with me, but would prefer that that be minimal, but don't have any specific cutoff point..

Ed Halley wrote:.

What kinds of photo subjects are you shooting (pictures ofyourself, your flowers, your kid on the soccer pitch, mountains)?.

Never myself. Sometimes other people, flowers (of various sizes), hills/mountains/valleys, trees, insects, birds, bigger animals, city scenes/scapes, farms, weather, occasionally still-life or staged quick-action close-ups using my spare bedroom as if it were a "studio"... I'm sort of generalized and curious to try out a bunch of types of picture..

Fortunately, some of that might not matter because I can find other ways to make up for the lack of a tripod. There are some night scenes I'd like to try out, but can put the camera on the ground, or the top of my car, or a bean bag, or a bean bag on the ground or the car. Anything I set up at home can be done with the camera on a desk or shelf or such. Basicly, if I can plan the "shot" ahead of time, I can come up with something and plan around that. The major issue here seems to be when something catches my attention during a hike or vacation and I couldn't plan and prepare for it. I've been known to stabilize on trees or rocks or railings, or sit or squat and use my knees or put my elbow(s) on the ground, but such options aren't always convenient, and might not be enough if I must zoom in too much.

(Do they? Can they?).

BAK wrote:.

Do you want one to hold a camerarock steady for long exposures, or do you want one that holds acamera in position so that you can carefully arrange what thecamera "sees" while the camera stays in the same precise spot?.

Some of both..

BAK wrote:.

Do you want to follow moving action with the camera on the tripod?.

No..

BAK wrote:.

How level will the surface be? Benbo and Uni-lock are designed sothe legs are very happy on a mix of rocks and stream bottoms andtree stumps. Most other tripods like fairly flat surfaces..

Unpredictable... and so is the angle I'd want the camera at. I might want to catch something on the ground straight below. Are 'pod heads that wide-ranging? (I'm fairly sure they can acommodate turning the camera sidways to get a "tall" picture instead of a "wide" one, which seems like it would be essentially the same thing...).

Craig Gillette wrote:.

Capacity? Both heads and legs have some recommended "capacities."...A light wide landscape lens is going to weigh less thana big birding lens..

I have a Fuji S9100. It has one lens permanently built in with 35mm-equivalent focal lengths from 28 to 300. It weighs 23 ounces and is about 5" wide and 5"-7" long with the zoom lens all the way in or out..

Craig Gillette wrote:.

Unless a table-top tripod, something under $50 isprobably "disposable.".

Tabletop tripod? This intrigues me.....

BraveUlysses wrote:.

Simple home truth, that has cost me a lot to discover. A CHEAPLIGHT TRIPOD IS USELESS. If you really want a tripod that is worthusing, you will save until you can afford one that is worth using.But I guess we all have to learn from our own mistakes.Rob.

That kind of advice is seen as foolish when offered to the guy who wants to know if he should wait for the next generation of cameras. It's usually suggested that they get out there and take pictures. So should this guy. Most people will never "need" $1000 worth of tripod and head and another $300 in QR plates..

Cheap light tripods are not useless. A man needs to know his tripod's limitations. And how to use a timer, a remote and a mirror lock up...