Alex Cabrall |
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New Tripod/Head.
My cheap quantaray tripod gave up the ghost last night, and I'm looking at a new tripod. I was always fighting with the pan head anyways, and it wasn't interchangeable. I heard somewhere to look into ball-heads, and found a Calumet model made of aluminum with such a head for $90 shipped. I shoot 35mm SLR's with short lenses, so weight capacity shouldn't be a problem.
Is this a good deal?
I tried out a ball head in a local photo store and liked the fell: any reason to go for the model with the pan head?
Thanks.
December 28, 2004
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Bunny Snow |
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I have a 486RC2 head on 3001BD tripod. I know from past experience that buying a tripod for
under $100 is not very protective of one's camera, nor is it very sturdy. But I needed something
lighter than my standard fair for traveling in Europe and Costa Rica. Therefore, I chose this
combination after trying it out in a local camera store. The local store sold it for far more than I could
afford, but after shopping around online, I found a similar combination for a decent price.
Another reason why I chose these pods, is that I could purchase an additional center post (which
could replaced the full length center post), making it easier to photography wildflowers. This tripod
spreads close to the ground and is much easier to use than my other pods. I love photographing
wildflowers.This combination supports up to 11 pounds weight, which is more than I'll need for some time to
come, and likely more than I can carry. For me, my camera weighed in at about 1.26 pounds for the
Nikon FM3A (whereas the Canon Elan 7E weighed in at 1.27 pounds). The heaviest lens which I
currently have weighs 765 grams equals 27 ounces.
http://tinyurl.com/42slq My Manfrotto-Bogen tripod is steel and is much sturdier than aluminum. My long gone Slik was
aluminum, and I would not go that way again. I guess it depends on the value you put on your camera and lenses. Are you willing to lose them to a weak tripod, take the change of the camera falling off the tripod head, as well as lose the quality in your pictures to something more flimsy? I'm a bit worried about this tripod, but my other one weighs well over 6 pounds and is too heavy to carry for very far, especially with everything else.
Whereas the 3001BD is a good travel pod. The head itself weighs 1 pound but can carry 13.2 pounds. The rapid release plate and head sells for $58.95 at B&H and Adorama. The feet cost $111.95 at Adorama. Whereas, the total package is $169.90 at B&H Photo. What it boils down to is the value of the camera and lenses you are using, and how much you value your equipment and pictures, as well as how much you can carry or the amount of money you have to spend. There are lighter tripods which are of much sturdier material, but can cost as much as $400 or more. Don't you just love making decisions? I wish someone could make the decisions for me. Bunny
January 05, 2005
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Michael H. Cothran |
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Alex,
I firmly believe that the most important accessory you can own next to your quality lenses is a good tripod and head. Spend the money one time, and you'll never have to worry about it again. Bogen/Manfrotto is a good brand, but they break easily. I prefer Gitzo. I own two - a large one for my studio work, and a smaller lighter one for field work. The larger one is 20 years old. Needless to say, I will never HAVE to buy another tripod. As for a ball head, you are right. I much prefer a ball head to a pan head. I think (and own one) that the best head on the market is made by Kirk Enterprises. Check out their website. I've owned the smaller of their two heads for a year now, and it works silky smooth, and can hold the Empire State building, I feel.
Michael H. Cothran
January 06, 2005
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Alex Cabrall |
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Thank you all so much for the replies. I went down to my local wolf camera and, basically, played around with tripods and heads for half an hour, comparing sturdyness and ease of use. In the end, I decided on the 3001BD and a nice 484RC2 head.
January 08, 2005
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Bunny Snow |
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Looking at the 484RC2, it looks just like mine. I love mine! However, if you are out on a windy day or in an area where they are a lot of people, it would be a good idea to attach a heavy camera case (or a sand bag) to the center post to weight down the tripod. I noticed that because it's light weight, it does have a tendency to not be as sturdy as my heavier pod. And, never leave the tripod unattended. People or pets can trip and knock it over, and disasters happen. I've caught my camera before it hit the ground, but I know how easy it is to lose everything. You'll have fun with your chosen combo.
Enjoy! ~Bunny
January 08, 2005
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