Originally posted by csa Anyone use a Monopod with the feet? I am planning on getting one, but do want the feet, for more stability. $50-$100 range. I do have an excellent tripod with a Gimbal head, but want a quicker/easier to grab unit for wildlife. This would be for my K3, Sigma 300 F4 Macro.
Thanks in advance for any suggestions!
I can't provide feedback on units in the price range you're looking at but I hope the feedback I can provide will assist you in making your decision.
In 2016 I bought one of these:
Aluminium Video Fluid Monopod with 9.5mm top attachment The model shown can be seen on the Manfrotto page but not at B&H which suggests it's market specific or a bit long in the tooth. Price-wise via B&H this is as close as I could to your price range and what I have:
Manfrotto XPRO MPMXPROA3US Aluminum Monopod with XPRO Fluid B&H The foot is different so I'm guessing this is a newer model.
This may not be the style of foot you're looking for, but this style of fluid base is what my experience is based upon.
I bought mine for use with the K-1 and 150-450 when capturing racing motorcycles. I used it with motocross and road racing and it worked well with both. I liked the more compact style of foot compared to the thin long option which I felt were too static for my subject and probably less robust. The fluid foot is good for uneven ground and assisting with vertical changes in your subject (eg motocross bikes going over jumps). For lateral motion with less vertical adjustment like road racing it was good for allowing me to lock the head off from vertical movement as there was enough in the foot if it was needed.
The Manfrotto foot is metal and built to their usual standards so it's good kit. It is tension adjustable so whilst you can tighten it up to the point of leaving your camera/monopod supporting itself it's not something I'm silly enough to do. Any shots you see of people doing this invariably have a small lens on so these shots are just for show.
I can recommend you consider the fluid style of foot but also consider that if you don't have a normal foot to swap it with it's likely to be more susceptible to damage if you take it to the beach or similar conditions. I haven't tested mine for this, it's just a concern I had so I use a different monopod if I'm going to capture surfers. Maybe it would be alright, and the instructions do cover maintenance so maybe I'm just being overly cautious too. However if you look at the B&H link above you can see where the feet screw on and off so quick changing of feet is possible if this suits you.
If there's any caution I can offer it's the fact that this style is more complex than three straight bits of metal. There's locking parts, rotating parts, tilting parts etc. so whilst I think these are the better foot option there's more that can go wrong with them too.
So in summary, I can recommend the Manfrotto (if for no other reason than to have 'Made in Italy' on something I own) as a good quality option though not cheapest. Its fluid foot is a really handy tool and if respected would be a wise choice to go with.
Tas