[Ex Finn.]

A well made tri-pod is a pleasure to use. A cheap and well made do not go hand-in-hand.
$ 300.00 or so should get you a set of decent legs. Then add your preferred head for couple hundred. All the name brands will have something in this range.

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Last edited by Ex Finn.; 10-27-2010 at 03:34 PM.

[Ira]

What is video-head?

For new, cheap tripods, the head comes with it--the thing that screws onto the center column and the thing that you screw your camera onto.

This is the piece with the handle that comes out and allows you to turn the camera left and right, up and down, etc. The head is the piece on the tripod that allows movement of the camera body, while the rest of the tripod is fixed, until you move the legs and such.

A good video head is always FLUID, because it's meant for video work. This allows perfect left to right panning of the head with no jerky movements (up and down while you're dragging the handle), because it's meant for video work. However, it doesn't allow you to flip the camera to vertical/portrait position, since you would never tilt a video camera in this orientation. A video cam ALWAYS has to shoot in landscape mode.

However, for a DLSR, you may want to shoot in portrait mode, and this head is worthless to you. But because of the controls of your camera and getting at them, many people still shoot in landscape mode and then crop later to get a vertical/portrait shot.

I'm just saying that if you find something used that's really solid at a good price, and it comes with a video head, go for it anyway. These are much more common to find on Craigs List and elsewhere, because it's these HEAVIER tripods that are mostly sold for the heavier video equipment that's been out there, and you can always replace the head anyway. It just screws on.

[chalion]

Everyone else has given the good to great advice about the tripod themselves. Your question to Ira about a video head: A video head is a pan/tilt head. This means it swivels left to right and up and down. For a video camera, this is ideal, so you can keep filming moving objects(cars, motorcycles, runners/joggers, etc).

I see I was a bit slow, since Ira answered a minute faster than me.

[Ira]

A well made tri-pod is a pleasure to use. A cheap and well made do not go hand-in-hand.
$ 300.00 or so should get you a set of decent legs. Then add your preferred head for couple hundred. All the name brands will have something in this range.

This kind of money is in no way necessary for what we're talking about here.

[chalion]

Also check out ebay. You can see all sorts of tripods/heads. The sellers usually give the specs. I'm not saying you have to buy from ebay, but it can give you an idea or two.

[Ex Finn.]

This kind of money is in no way necessary for what we're talking about here.

Wait, OP said "sturdy and well balanced"?. Not "cheap and flimsy". I use both, the latter(focal) cost $ 70.00 or 35.00 from K-mart 25 years ago, still gets the job done, butt!

[Ira]

Wait, OP said "sturdy and well balanced"?. Not "cheap and flimsy". I use both, the latter(focal) cost $ 70.00 or 35.00 from K-mart 25 years ago, still gets the job done, butt!

Your post was quoting a minimum cost of $500.

So what exactly are you saying? That you have to pay $500 for a decent tripod?

[opiet70]

Keep in mind that the experts, when using a tripod, will even use the self-timer, so they don't introduce the added shake of touching the shutter release with their finger. Also, the center single column is NEVER raised unless necessary, because it's unstable and it too adds shake when the mirror flips up.

There is a poor man's version if you want to go that route (although, with tripods, you get what you pay for and it is well worth spending the money). You can drill a hook attaching to the bottom of the center column and hang weight from it. This will decrease, but not eliminate, the vibration. A lot of astronomy folks use it when it's a bit windy to steady their tripods and it works just as well in photography. Keep in mind, this dampens the shake, it does not eliminate it. There are only a couple things that will eliminate it:

1) excellent quality tripod
2) mirror control as discussed by Ira
3) finding a place to shoot that is on solid ground and devoid of any wind

An old farmer once told me that you spend as little as possible on the stuff you can afford to not have to use. On the stuff you must have, spend what it takes to buy equipment that will last the test of time and heavy use. Your question needs to be how much will you use this. Then, read more, think what you want to do in the future, and go spend money on a good tripod. Better to save up than purchase junk and have to purchase again.

[stevebrot]

This kind of money is in no way necessary for what we're talking about here.

Ira is so very correct here. Price is not an indicator of quality. Unfortunately neither is weight or published specifications. A few rules of thumb:

• Stated weight capacities are inflated by a factor of 2x-3x. Truly!
• Avoid "video" tripods with fluid tilt/pan heads
• Avoid tripods with permanently attached heads. It is OK to buy a package legs with head, but the head should be removable/upgradeable.
• The tripod head should have adequate weight capacity (see above about inflation)
• Ball heads are handiest
• A three-way pan/tilt is preferred by many people who do verticals. The pan/tilt is also less prone to "accidents".
• Quick release (QR) heads are a mixed blessing. Price the release plates before you buy into a system.
• I have found that the sweet spot for price/weight/performance is found with the so-called "travel" tripods. These are readily available at under $200 for legs and ballhead.
• It doesn't have to be a Gitzo. It doesn't even have to be a Manfrotto! (I have a Giottos...)
• Seriously look at the Tilt-all (see above comments). It is the traditional bullet-proof student tripod and has great value.

Steve

P.S. I suffered for several years with my $45 Slik with the plastic 3-way head. Never again...

[interested_observer]

I am going to say that you have received very good advice so far. When I first acquired my dSLR I had also won an evilbay auction for a cheeeep tripod (11 cents and $7 shipping). The first year I used it very little, then more over time - then it broke and fell apart. I did learned quite a bit from it. What I liked and what I hated. A ball head yes - a pan and tilt head - absolutely not. Also, that a lot of personal preference goes in to this. So, I had put a lot of thought in to what to get next for a tripod.

I wanted and needed something I could travel with in my carry on luggage, so I had size restrictions. I selected the Benro A-168M (its aluminum and referred to as the travel angle - it also comes in carbon fiber model for more $$$$). It came with a ballhead (a cheap POS that I used once - liked the concept, hated the implementation) and went looking for another ballhead. Benro has since come out with a complete line of more substantial ballheads that make the free one they included with my tripod a real embarrassment. I spent $150 on the legs. Some would consider them a bit light, but they work for me very well.

Now, I knew that I wanted to take stitched panoramas shots both in the vertical as well as in the horizontal. I also knew that (for me) its impossible to get a tripod perfectly level, and I did not want to spend a lot of time trying to get it level on each setup, so that when I panned (turned the ball head) it would pan on a level horizontal plane. So, I went looking for a "panning ballhead". Just about all the ball heads have a panning base. However, if the tripod is not level, the panning base will not turn on a horizontal plane. To fix this you need the panning base on top of the ballhead (you level the assembly via moving the ballhead, thus the panning base on top of the ballhead is level). Now that puts a bit more weight higher up, but for me that is a small price to pay. I settled on an Acratech GP (you can turn it upside down and it becomes a panning ballhead and its also a gimble). Its expensive $400, but the other options are even more $$$(Really Right Stuff, Arca Swiss, etc.). 90% of my shots are from a tripod and its worked out to be a very good investment.

Now - the rest of the story. I started out with a K100 body which I kept when I upgraded to the K20 body. I am out taking shots, and started bringing my K100 to take some other shots with. Then I wanted to use one body one way on a tripod and the other body another way - but needed a second tripod. So, I went shopping on Craigslist for a second hand used tripod in reasonably good condition - reasonably priced (under $100 - took about 6 weeks of looking). I wound up buying a Manfrotto 3001 Pro with a 486RC2 ballhead. Now, I find I hate the 486RC2 ballhead because it has a safety catch that I need to work with one hand, while the second hand pulls the release to attach and detach the camera body being held by the third hand (that I don't have). Personal preference (other folks apparently do not have the problem). So, now I am out shopping for another ballhead - however as good as the GP ballhead is, I really do not want to spend another $400 (my wife saw the charge and told me it better be gold plated and jewel encrusted). I have a nodal ninja 3 that I will be using on the second tripod (that has a built in panning base), so - that removes the "panning" requirement. That opens up the entire universe of Acra Swiss (A-S) ballheads (Acratech, Kirk, Acra Swiss, etc.) and brings the price down to a floor of about $80 on up, depending on what you want. I want to keep everything A-S compatible so that everything is interchangeable (able to mount either camera on either tripod or on the NN3).

I have used the term Acra Swiss - which is a company that developed a quick release plate and clamp system. Acra Swiss comparable means that one company's camera base plate will fit into another company's ball head clamp. This style of release plate and clamp works VERY well for me.

So, that is my tale of woe. The cheap tripod taught me a lot of what I wanted and needed. Understand that has let me define my requirements so that I can purchase what I need. Unfortunately - I find my needs are somewhat expensive, so its a pay as I go proposition. I also brown bag my lunch and thus add to my camera / mechanical support piggy bank.

The other thing is that I have found that some of the ballhead companies have videos that explain and show capabilities very well. I would recommend watching to see if that is what you need...

This video gives an overview of a ballhead with both a panning base and on top of the ballhead.
GP Ballhead instructional Video*::*Acratech

Here is a video on the Acra Swiss comparable
Quick Release System Instructional and Tutorial*::*Acratech

Here are a few more videos on related items.
Product Info*::*Acratech

Here are some tripod videos

You Tube

You Tube

You Tube

You Tube

You Tube

You Tube

[her_lp10]

Creo que los tripodes costosos, es por el material que son mas altos y mas finos/livianos por su mejor calidad en el material, pero al ser mas livianos tienen su desventaja tambien, el viento y el movimiento del espejo los puede mover. depende para que se usan. SIno con un tripode mas pesado, economico, esta perfecto. Hasta puedes comrparte 3 en lugar de uno, y los vas cambiando en el tiempo.

[traderdrew]

My buddy let me use his 800mm lens mounted on a $700.00 tripod. We were shooting flying birds. It was a pleasure to handle and I couldn't duplicate how it handled with my old tripod.

[Black_ronin]

Thanks all for input. I've discovered alot from your posts and realized it won't be easy task to select tripod as i thought initially.

A well made tri-pod is a pleasure to use. A cheap and well made do not go hand-in-hand.
$ 300.00 or so should get you a set of decent legs. Then add your preferred head for couple hundred. All the name brands will have something in this range.

One thing i learned so far is cheap doesn't mean bad. If i didn't know that i would not buy Pentax K-X and go with Canon or Nikon.

I just can't justify tripod for $500, which is more than my K-X body, regardless how good it is. But i also understand that i can't buy cheapest tripod available - i need to make sure it is sturdy enough to not cause blurry images.

If i get transit tripod how difficult to attach head to it for DSLR use? Is it easy to attach or do i need to alter anything? How much would be descent tilt pan head?

Tiltall seems great value tripod. Unfortunately classic version doesn't come with QR plate. Can you change head on Tiltall if needed? I found one model with QR plate for $90 but can't find reviews on it. Have anyone used one?

TT08 Tiltall Standard Tripod with Quick Release & Upper Leg Foam Grips, 60.8" Maximum Height, Supports 7.7 lbs.

Also, can i buy any legs and attach any head to it or are there different standards?

I also found Dolica CarbonFiber tripod for $99 with good reviews:

Amazon.com: Dolica CX620B104 61-Inch Proline Carbon Fiber Tripod with Ball Head: Camera & Photo

It seems it can go as low as $76 on sale. Is it good tripod or is it too good to be true? Anyone has experience with Dolica CF tripods?

[Ratmagiclady]

Hrm, Ronin. It's unclear what *sort* of QR you get with that Tiltall version: better no QR than a lame one, and I can't see just what that one has on there. There's actually an Adorama rep here, Helen Oster, who might help you find out, though.

This is the simple reliable I was talking about:

TE01B Tiltall Tripod - Black (Max 70")

You'll note its capacity is much more than the one with the unknown QR system, anyway, so, if it's solid you want, there you are.

(Also notice the key difference: with whatever head is on the little one, you can see that even if the QR is tight, it is on a platform that goes off to the side, then jogs back over the center. That is a *lever.* It will amplify vibration. The traditional head just transfers the weight *straight down.* That is a good.

You can always add an Arca style (or other style) clamp later, if you want to mess with QR plates. These are not the *fastest* QR system out there, but you know you're clamped down. The point of a tripod is 'steady.' In point of fact, if you're not walking around with multiple bodies, each carrying plates, there's not much wrong with the traditional thumbscrew unless seconds really count.

I believe you can change heads on newer Tiltalls (Not so with most vintage ones.)

As for that Dolica, assuming they're halfway sincere about 'list price' on the Amazon listing, that's a fairly cheap CF legs+ballhead set on sale, there. They won't be awesome legs, (what the point is of cheap CF, I dunno, anyway: may shatter, may not. ) but at that price, probably OK. That's a very similar design overall to what I have, actually. (in aluminum and probably bigger) If I were you I'd much rather have aluminum than carbon fiber even at the original price, (All carbon fiber is not made equal: I'd not expect to get into it cheaply) but for the money, it's not an unreasonable risk. It's more daring, but if you get a good copy it may be OK. (Basically, that's a budget copy of a nice modern design. Many nice things many of us here use look and are arranged just like that. If it works, treasure. If not... Well. You'll be back. ) Fair price, in any event.

Safest bet is the plain Tiltall, though.

[chalion]

interested_observer, Interesting and informative videos. I like the comment in the 3rd video: The best tripod is the one you have with you at the time.

I also like the gimball/ball head. I can see one of those in my future.........maybe after I get a K-5 next year.