Marly shen

Hello everyone ,
Nice to meet you ,I having reading this forum for a long time ,love it very much ,I like photography ,and I use most of my free time to have a photography outdoors ,but latest I have a question to ask for some advice ,I want to get a new tripod ,But I don't know how to choose the tripod ,Is there any Experienced one to help me judge? Have you ever heard about K&F concept ,and How about this ?
thank you very much

RobbieAB Loc: UK

It's kinda blunt, and not cheap, but it's quite a popular sentiment:
http://www.dslrbodies.com/accessories/camera-accessories/tripod-101.html

Marly shen

Thank you very much ,It's great ,But It's too expensive for me ,I prefer cheaper one .

Racmanaz Loc: Sunny Tucson!

Can you include the type of Photography you will be using a tripod for and also your purchasing budget?

jerryc41 Loc: Catskill Mts of NY

Welcome to our forum!

Tripods are like camera bags. You're always looking for something better, and you tend to accumulate them. They can cost $25 or $1,000, so shop wisely. The first link below is "by Thom," and it tells you how to save money by getting a good tripod first, rather than working your way up the ladder.

http://www.bythom.com/support.htm
https://digital-photography-school.com/everything-about-tripods-phil-steele/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pIWvjfI_-PA
http://digital-photography-school.com/build-ideal-tripod/
http://www.picturecorrect.com/tips/5-pros-and-5-cons-of-using-a-tripod/
http://www.lightstalking.com/tripod-heads/

Marly shen

Hi my friend ,I would like to photography landscape likes the sky or lake .and My budgets is just about 100 USD .

Marly shen

Oh thank you very much ,my friend ,It's really useful for me ,but several days ago my friend have reference me type , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2t3Vud8ani0 About this one ,Could you give me some suggestions,It is just 79.99 $ ,and It looks suitable for me ,Or maybe you can have one more perfect reference .

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Bottom line, if you think the right tripod is too expensive, you aren't ready for a tripod and anything you buy for $50, $100, $200 and maybe even $300 may not really serve your purposes. Getting a cheap, inadequate tripod is throwing money into the toilet, or worse, putting your gear at risk when it fails and your camera crashes to the ground.

If your needs are modest, like you only want to use it for landscape stuff with a normal to wide lens, you can get by with a lighter-duty tripod. If you a using any lens at high magnification, say 1:5 or up to 1:1, then you need to get the burlier tripod. Hogan's guidance on using top tube diameter as a guide to determining a tripod's stability is exactly how it's done. I use a tripod with a 37mm top tube for 600mm and macro, and a tripod with a 28mm top tube for landscape, close up, long exposures with shorter lenses. My big tripod cost me $525, and the smaller one was $310 - both without heads. If you think this is still too costly, you need to re-think the whole tripod thing.

Cheaper tripods will only add to the cost of the correct tripod later. And you will never hear someone complaining they bought "too much tripod" but you will see pages and pages of articles on how to make inadequate tripods more adequate. The advice ranges from using mirror lockup, shutter delay, remote shutter release, hanging a weight from the hook under the camera platform, etc. Those measures will help somewhat, but most will not dampen shutter vibration, the principal cause of loss of sharpness when you shoot between 1/25 and 1/200 second. Only a well-designed and adequate tripod will help that. Thick legs = stability. Load capacity, tripod weight, metal vs carbon - none of this matters and should not be used as criteria for tripod selection.

LoneRangeFinder Loc: Left field

If there was a photographic junk yard it would be filled with flimsy and poorly made tripods. As it is, they reside in closets and basements, waiting to be joined by more of the same. Penny-wise, dollar foolish applies here.

jccash Loc: Longwood, Florida

Don't go to cheap. Cheap aint good and good aint cheap. When you buy the best it only hurts once.

I am not sure how much your camera and lens weighs but if it does not weigh too much I like the Manfrotto befree tripod for travel.

Boris Ekner Loc: From Sweden, living in Guatemala

Tripods is a hot topic in most forums.

Many argue that a tripod surviving a drop from 3,000 feet, shot at with a cal .50, and ran over by a tank is the tripod to get. I disagree.

The hight should be so you don't have to bend/lean forward to look into the viewfinder.

There are tons of tripods to chose from, from very cheap to very expensive. It's all about your budget. The more you spend the better the quality.

I got a Selens T170 on eBay for $42. It has worked just fine for me, since I'm careful with my gear and don't need military-demolition-grade equipment. I'm actually very happy with it.

I like the ball head and how very quick and easy it is to extract/pull out the legs. The legs angle can be extended for increased stability.

It has a hook underneath to hang a weight on, and folds into a short compact package when not in use.

When I have used it it has done an excellent job.

No, the Selens T170 is not made of carbon fiber, it is not the top #1 in quality. But it has worked just fine for me, the hobby photographer, who needs a tripod every now and then - but don't want to spend a fortune.

I cannot tell you what's best for you. Learn about the different options and figure out what you fancy. Take your time, don't rush it. Ask questions, read reviews, and get the best one that fits your wallet.

Notorious T.O.D. Loc: Harrisburg, North Carolina

http://www.reallyrightstuff.com/Guides-Support-for-Tripods This is a good background for why and how to select a tripod. A good tripod is going to cost more than your $100 budget. Maybe you need to save up some more before buying something that will not give the results you seek.

Best,
Todd Ferguson

A.J.R. Loc: Devon, UK

As most have said it certainly isn't worth buying a cheap tripod. I have a Gitzo aluminum, but very rarely use it for landscape work. In most landscape lighting conditions a carefully hand held camera will give excellent results. Also a lot of cameras/lenses have image stabilization now, so a tripod might not be necessary.

williejoha

Whatever you do, don't go cheap. Use the weight of your camera and the heaviest lens you own and multiply by 2. At least you have a little room to expand.
WJH

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

Bad advice. You can do exactly that and still come up short on stability. Better to look at top tube diameter - much more reliable.