Tripod.

[wlehman]

Hi guys
Was out yesterday taking a few shots when I broke my tripod. (was a $50.00 & about 6 years old)
So now I am looking for a new one, I have had a look around the web site and found some that are recommend, but what ones should I stay away from. I have a 400d with battery grip but am looking to upgrade in the next year or so. And about $300 or so to spend, am happy to wait as it still works just can’t adjust the center shaft height.

Thanks for the help

Wayne

[solace]

I guess it depends on what you're after it for? I currently have a slik brand tripod, and although it's light and easy to take everywhere, it comes at the cost of stability in windy conditions etc, and the handles to lock a position in are fiddly and struggle to get tight in a hurry. But for my price point it does the job. If I was looking at $300 would probably be looking at the manfrotto range.

[Jimbo]

I have a Slik AMT700 - unlike solace, mine is sturdy and was about $400... but it's quite heavy, and I wouldn't like to be carrying it for more than a few hundred meters.

I read an article online somewhere that described the perfect tripod as:


light
stable
cheap


This, of course, is a "unicorn". In the real world, we only get to have 2 of those 3 criteria! Given your budget, you'll have to choose between light or stable. To get both, you're going to be looking at more than $300.

[peterb666]

I picked up a Manfrotto 190XDB plus 391RC2 head for $169 from Teds last month. They normally sell them for $199.95. Great value for money.

The mid-priced Slik tripods are worth a look too but not the cheaper models. I have a 30 year old Slik Goodmans S205 which is great but a more recent Slik Sprint Pro tripod and it isn't anywhere near as durable.

Look at the Slik 500DX and 400DX or even the 700DX as moderately priced tripods that seem well built. The AMT models ae good too but the price starts to go up into carbon-fibre territory.

Any of the 190 or 55 series Manfrottos are hard go go past.

The minimum spend on a tripod should be around the $160 to $200 range and up.

Note that while I paid only $169 for my Manfrotto tripod, the legs and head combo has a rrp of over the $300 mark and cost closer to $350 if purchased separately.

[wlehman]

Thanks for the information, I have been looking at the Manfrotto and slik range so I will investigate them more, seen some packaged deals that look good. I am not to concern with weight of the tripod, more with getting a stable one.

[OzzieTraveller]

G'day WL

The above suggestions are good ones
What I would suggest also, would be -when you are looking at one- for you to :..

1- extend the legs to max - how high is the upper platform? is it at or close to eye level?
2- grip the bit ot the tripod where the 3 legs are attached - what force does it take to twist it? - ie: don't bust the bloody thing but look at it - does it 'wobble'? - will is vibrate in the wind?
3- Is the 3-way tripod head made of cheap-plastic or metal or "polycarbonate hi-density plastic"?? Cheap plastic will crack all too easily, metal or poly will last for years
4- How easy is it to swing the camera from horiz to vertical?? - When vertical is the camera still close to the centre-column or is it a fair-way-out (centre-of-gravity issues here)
5- of you lose the qwik-release catch, how much is a replacement?

Hope this helps a bit
Regards, Phil