Olympus-OM
[Top] [All Lists]

[OM] Re: Looking for a light, not-expensive tripod

Subject: [OM] Re: Looking for a light, not-expensive tripod
From: Moose <olymoose@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: Mon, 22 Nov 2004 20:33:15 -0800
Skip Williams wrote:

>I'm now on the search for a light tripod for travel.  It shouldn't cost a 
>fortune, like a CF tripod, but be able to raise to eye level for a 6' guy like 
>myself without extending the center post.  I guess that means that I need 72"- 
>6" for camera + head = 66" ground to the top of the platform.
>
Well, nobody else has designed one, why don't you do it.  :-)

I don't know your definition of light weight, and you didn't say 
anything direct about size, but did say for travel. I looked all over 
for this 2-3 of years ago and couldn't find it, even with the "shouldn't 
cost a fortune" criterion relaxed. I did come to some conclusions that 
are valid for me and my definitions of lightweight, compact and stable..

Tripods and heads are one of the hardest things to choose without hands 
on trial. I had come to all sorts of conclusions about what I should get 
based on web and catalog research. WAY off when I tried them out.

There are simply no compact lightweight tripods that will bring the 
camera to eye level for a 6 foot person without center column extension 
with anything approaching the stability and vibration resistance needed 
to make it worth while to carry them. I feel I would be better off with 
a monopod.

There are no lightweight, compact tripods that are sturdy and vibration 
resistant on their own. The only solution is a combination of vertical 
support from the tripod and head with weight and damping from the 
photographer's hands The trick is to find one that will 'set' nicely 
with some downward pressure from hands on the camera without twisting, 
flexing or doing other weird things.

The best compromise I've found on he light, small end is the Velbon 343E 
(2#, 18" min length, incl. head), which includes a perfectly usable 
small ball head for $70. I bought this about 3 years ago and I still 
like and use it. It doesn't have the height you want at 53" without 
column extension, but is amazingly stable and sturdy for its size and 
weight. Column extension raised it up to 62.5". I try not to extend it 
that far, but using the body/hands support/damping approach, it is 
ceratinly usable extended. So I crouch or kneel sometimes and raise the 
column a bit and bend over other times. The other big plus is the nicely 
designed flip lock legs. You can have the tripod up, take the shot and 
put it down again in the time it would take to extend a 4 section twist 
lock tripod.

I know its CF, but not outrageously expensive, and the Hakuba 6240C with 
Velbon PH-253 head is a great rather light and compact combo (3.9.#, 23" 
min length, incl. head). It fits nicely in the bottom section of my 
rolling duffle combo travel bag. Wonderfully light for what it does and 
excellent support and vibration resistance. Comes with 2 lengths of 
center column and has multiple leg angles to get down low. This is a 
'real" tripod that happens to be light and small enough for travel and 
the head blows away anything else I found in such a modest size/weight 
and price. As far as I can tell, this is the same design as the Velbon 
Carmagne, but with an aluminum spider, rather tham magnesium, and thus 
quite a bit cheaper. Downsides are the slow to set up twist lock legs 
and the limited height. Height with the head is 50", with center column, 
60".  The center column is sturdier and locks more securly than many 
others. It also has a really nice adjustable resistance, which you can 
set to the weight of your camera and lens, so when you release the lock, 
it either stays put or moves down slowly and gently. The thumbscrews on 
the PH-253 and its bigger brothers, 263 & 273 are the next best thing to 
a QR head, but without the size and weight. Pics and a bit of 
description here <http://www.hakubausa.com/Documents/ta.pdf>.

In another vein, the Ultrapod #2 can be amazingly useful where there is 
a building, tree, pole, etc, etc. to lean on or strap to. The Ultra 
Clamp adds railings, car windows, etc. to the available supports with 
very little size, weight and cost 
<http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?ci=1&sb=ps&pn=1&sq=desc&InitialSearch=yes&O=SearchBar&A=search&Q=*&shs=ultrapod&image.x=0&image.y=0>.

If things have changed and you find the tripod you describe, please let 
me know!

Moose



==============================================
List usage info:     http://www.zuikoholic.com
List nannies:        olympusadmin@xxxxxxxxxx
==============================================

<Prev in Thread] Current Thread [Next in Thread>
Sponsored by Tako
Impressum | Datenschutz