tripods
May 17, 2012 15:15:43 #
debi r
Loc: washington state
Hello from Washington State am looking for advice on buying a tripod for a Nikon D5000 need one to use outdoors thank you
May 17, 2012 15:37:57 #
debi r wrote:
Hello from Washington State am looking for advice on buying a tripod for a Nikon D5000 need one to use outdoors thank you
Hello debi: Welcome to the forum from another Washingtonian. I think you will find the most highly recommended brand of tripod to be Bogen and Manfrotto with ball head mounts. Also if weight is a factor the carbon fiber is a great choice. I'm sure others will chime in with model recommendations etc. Again welcome to the forum.
May 17, 2012 15:40:12 #
May 17, 2012 15:52:37 #
debi r wrote:
Hello from Washington State am looking for advice on buying a tripod for a Nikon D5000 need one to use outdoors thank you
You need to consider the lens you will be using on it a lot more than the camera body. Lenses can get heavy, so make sure whatever you get is heavy enough to carry at least double the amount you ever expect to mount on it. That will give you a stability factor for wind and well as give you room to grow into larger bodies and longer lenses over time. I am a big Bogen/Manfrotto fan also, they definitely give you the best gear for the price consistantly.
May 18, 2012 06:09:05 #
May 18, 2012 06:32:00 #
stevelew47
Loc: Edmonds, WA
I use tripods when shooting macro of bugs and flowers since you're so close to the subject any movement of the camera will make the image out of focus so the tripod really keeps the camera still. When shooting with a long lens, over 300mm a tripod is useful here also. You will need a solid tripod with a good ball head. I also use Bogen tripod with a bogen head. A ball head could set you back more than the tripod itself. I then use a L bracket to switch from horizontal to vertical quickly. Check out Really Right Stuff for heads and stuff.
May 18, 2012 08:36:21 #
Roger Hicks
Loc: Aquitaine
Only the smallest, cheapest or flimsiest of tripods are likely not to be strong enough to handle the weight of the D5000 and any lens you are likely to put on it. A far more important criterion is 'deadness', the ability of a tripod (and head) to absorb vibration quickly. 'Deadness' is at least as great an advantage of carbon fibre as reduced weight.
Cheers,
R.
Cheers,
R.
May 18, 2012 09:44:46 #
debi r wrote:
Hello from Washington State am looking for advice on buying a tripod for a Nikon D5000 need one to use outdoors thank you
The biggest and heaviest you can carry! I use Manfrotto and am very pleased with it.
May 19, 2012 17:34:06 #
Some of us old foggies still love our Holywood Jr's and directors. These old aluminum rigs are solid as shooting off a boulder and arn't as heavy as a wood tripod. They are heaver than plastic and carbon fiber but I find that is a plus when in gusty of stiffer wind. All in all I reccomend you look at all the different makes and styles you can and get the best you can afford that you believe will fit your needs for the future. (I only use a ball head for the window mount I made. I prefer the old flip if you get a solid machined aluminum head)
May 19, 2012 17:49:43 #
debi r wrote:
Hello from Washington State am looking for advice on buying a tripod for a Nikon D5000 need one to use outdoors thank you
I can recommend:
http://reallyrightstuff.com/Items.aspx?code=TripodsRRS&key=cat
and all things Gitzo.
I have spent north of $350 on Manfrotto to find coffee nervous tripods unfit for most work.
My 30+ year old Gitzo Tele Studex Giant is still my favorite. Very heavy and very stable, even when lofting a camera 12 feet into the air. No coffee nerves, like most tripods today. You sort of have to drive an Abrams Tank into it to ruin a shot. You can also do pull-ups with it. I have flown that tripod to France and Panama with no ill effects, put it in the ocean... all types of abuse, and it just keeps on working.
Sachtler makes good video tripods, by the way. Good fluid heads too.
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