EJK Loc: OK

What a comedy of errors I made trying to get pictures of the medeor shower. I set up in the pasture where it was dark and then a cow come up silently behind me and I nearly jumped out of my skin. I went to the road the trees were to close. I then repacked and moved to the yard. I was looking up trying to find the stars with the trypod cranked up as high as it would go.neck killing me... and then I thought I could sit down. Back to house for the chair & 500 lens. By this time the coyotes started up & sounding to close. After all this I find out there was a lot of movement with my tripod. That is the reason my pictures were not sharp even when I was useing a tripod. What would be a good one for 300.00 or less? Stayed out from 10:00 till 4:00.. I could hear someone from the hog saying set up early...I wish I had

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

Cheap tripods are NEVER a good deal.

PhotoArtsLA Loc: Boynton Beach

Ah, the great Tripod Issue. I have a Manfrotto tripod and Ball Head which set me back over $500 and it has coffee nerves. Unusable even for desert sun daylight super telephoto work.

Waaaay back when, Gitzo made ultra professional tripods. I also have a Gitzo Tele Studex Giant tripod, and it is gloriously stable, even after 100,000 rough handled air miles. This is the tripod the M1 Tank fears. While that tank may crush vehicles in its path, at only 60 or so tons, it would find this Gitzo to be the "tree" that would stop it cold and cause gotta replace it damage. Just kidding of course, but the no longer manufactured Gitzo Tele Studex Giant is a marvel of how to do it right. You can put the lens 12 feet in the air, and .5 inch from the ground, and master almost every weird tripod placement by varying leg lengths.

There might be a fairly low cost solution, in the $600 range from Sachtler, but it is a fluid head, good for tracking moving objects. I plan to get one, and will report results here.

Also, there is a chance Really Right Stuff makes an okay product, and I plan to buy their top of the line unit as well in the future. Will report here. I find carbon fiber manufacture of really variable quality, having to re-glue some things myself of late.

The awful truth is, 90+ percent of all tripods in current manufacture are dilettante devices, sort of looking okay, but having none of the necessary chops when in use. The main problem is "coffee nerves," which is a term coined in the darkrooms of old referring to enlargers which, when tapped, would vibrate "forever," or so it seemed. Blurry prints if you were unaware. Same thing with tripods. My $500 Manfrotto, for example, is bothered by the camera shutter itself, which shakes the tripod. This complete lack of deadening ability makes this tripod not very usable at all. I've tried shooting the moon with it with a 900mm effective focal length on a D7000, and it is RARE to find any sharp image with that configuration. The olde Gitzo works great in that test. The moon, of course, is a daylight exposure, but even at 1/125 or 1/250 shutter speeds, the Manfrotto just shakes too much in general. The olde Gitzo is the Rock of Gibraltar.

I crave good support as well as good movement, as I am also a filmmaker. I know when you spend $3-10K (like buying a recent model used car) you can get good video/film tripods, the industry standard being Sachtler.

EJK Loc: OK

So I found out!

EJK Loc: OK

Thanks Photo Art. I know I'll have to bite the bullet on this one. Thanks for your help. This is a start. The more I read the hog the more I find out What I thought I knew that I don't. EJK

sudzmonn Loc: here , there , everywhere

believe it or not ~ times like that I use a tripod for a telescope. it has 2" legs and I leave the clutches loose so I can even pan such things as cars or animals during the day.
But when I set it up during the nite for my camera I know its snugged down and movement is NOT a problem, You ask how can you get a camera set up on that ~ you just buy a "L" adapter and that screws into the base of your camera . If I get time in the next couple of days I'll post a picture of its set up !

Georgia Peddler Loc: Brunswick, GA

Be on the lookout for a real quality tripod - I was at a yard sale many years ago and there was a Gitzo laying there with one leg with the threads stripped on one adjustment section. I gave $15 dollars for it and took it to a real photo store in Tennessee who sold Gitizo. They sent it back to Gitzo and it was returned with all new hardware, leg section, etc. at $0.00 dollars cost. Gitzo had (I guess still has) a lifetime warranty on their product. I was told that the tripod would sell new at that time for about $600. I have $15 in it. I have since purchased a larger Gitzo that I used with a 4X5 view, it goes 4 sections also lays flat to the ground and is rock solid everywhere.
You do, in fact, get what you pay for sometimes. I lucked out big time.

oldtool2 Loc: South Jersey

I own a couple of these, stable as a rock! Problem is, twice as heavy! Not something I would want to do any back packing with.

Jim D

alf85 Loc: Northumberland, UK.

Hi, instead of getting a stiff neck looking up, buy a rightangle view finder attachment.
Regards, Alf.

JohnCadellPhotography

Gitzo is rock-solid - and with the pricetag and weight to match. Manfrotto makes some good stuff - I use the 055XPROB and the 327RC2 ball head to hold either a D2XS or a D200. Prime 24mm-70mm f2.8 or long glass 70mm-300mm f4.5 (slow but clear) on either body remain quite stable. Make sure you are using a good shutter release cable or wireless. Any time you push on the shutter release directly, you are causing a vibration. When you use your tripod, any tripod, make sure you go with a shutter release too.
The key is to make sure the feet of a tripod are anchored properly. If in the sand, terrific. If you are shooting from on top of a rock (like the Grand Canyon) there's gonna' be a problem. Bring some trash bags with you, and fill them up with rocks and sand where possible to anchor your tripod. If you'd rather not, check out the various weighted bags from B&H or Adorama - but remember, you are paying $$$ to haul more stuff with you, when you can achieve the same results without screwing up the environment. Just a thought.
The other manufacturers - SLIK, Sunpak, etc., they're all fairly similar in both the carbon fiber and steel types. Stability is key to ANY tripod, no matter who's name is on the plate.

bikinkawboy Loc: north central Missouri

This spring I built my own tripod for moon shots and such. I used a tripod made for a dumpy level (instrument for surveying land elevations) along with parts from an old TV sattelite dish. I added iron weights to dampen vibration, but when using a 500mm lens with 2X conveter on my Nikon D40, which would be like 1500mm on a 35mm camera, I can still get a tiny bit of vibration when the reflex mirror flips up. That's when you need a camera that has a delay between the mirror flipping up and the shutter firing. Otherwise, when using the 500mm by itself, even strong spring winds don't faze it. The tripod legs are made to be stepped into the soil, which eliminates any worry about the wind blowing things over. However, it's definately not something I can take along on a motorcycle trip. I guess I could attach a hitch and axle/wheels and tow it.

jackm1943 Loc: Omaha, Nebraska

You will likely want to select the legs and head separately. My advice is always to pick out the one you think is right, then get the next size larger or stronger.

EJK Loc: OK

Thanks I will be waiting. What fun!

EJK Loc: OK

Thanks John. There is a lot to learn and this will help. I am finding its going to cost more than i was thinking . I am tired of soft pictures. I was suprised there was that much movement going on. Thanks for your help

EJK Loc: OK

Thanks jack. That is the story of my life. Always going for more. Something to take in consiteration..