Bill_de Loc: US

I think that carbon fiber anything might be over priced. A replacement lens hood for Nikon's new 180-400mm lens is $579, and for the 800mm it's $1,000. I was watching a review on YouTube where the guy was raving about these hoods. No electronics and 1 screw. :SM01:

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Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

A good tripod will last a lifetime. A good camera will last the life time of most UHH members since the average age is about 78!

As Scott McNealy (founder and ex CEO of Sun Microsystems) said, "Technology has the shelf life of a banana!"

I have many more tripods than I have cameras, and I still have my Zenit E from around 1971. I have a fine ~$100 tripod which is good for many things, except when it isn't. When I tried a moon shot from an APS-C camera with a 500mm lens (angle of view equivalent 800mm) the vibration was significant, it was like a lump of jello being attacked by a great white shark. I did get one semi-decent image.

Then I bought a used GITZO GT5541LS Carbon Systematic 6X Tripod on ebay, it cost as much as my camera did new. However, it is a solid as a rock, and will outlive the camera by decades. It will not go obsolete as electronics do. I've already upgraded my camera, although the older one works just fine...

I'm the kind of person that buys and keeps things, so I'm looking forward to my oldest vehicle's 20th birthday in a couple of years, but she's still lots of fun to drive, and I keep getting offers to buy her. No way, she has legs, and she knows how to use them!

Peterff Loc: O'er The Hills and Far Away, in Themyscira.

A single screw, without electronics, can cost a lot more than $1,000. However, political comments are best placed in the attic!

pendennis

Bingo!!

The most expensive tripods are measured in terms of a few thousand produced. Cameras, on the other hand, are measured in tens of thousands. Lots of units to spread out costs.

Gitzo's and the timeless Tilt-All's are very much precision instruments in castings, forgings, and parts fit. If you have a view camera, weight equals stability. No substitute for it. In fact you can occasionally see a photographer add weight to the center column both as a dampener and additional stability. Even a small gust of wind can ruin an exposure measured in seconds.

And, as others mentioned, we're in a hobby/profession/art, which is microscopic in terms of the rest of the economy. We've never enjoyed real economy of scale.

davidrb Loc: Half way there on the 45th Parallel

Your knowledge of the subject is very limited and you need more information to fully understand tripods. Something does not need be an electronic gadget to be "sophisticated." The amount you feel reasonable for a camera is what someone else thinks is reasonable for a tripod. You might start your research at the ReallyRightStuff web site. It offers a very good explanation of the designs and construction of tripods. Reading their information will help broaden your position. Someday you may be thinking of buying one of the tripods you now can't understand. There is also much information here on the Hog. There are sad stories, and there are glad stories. Tripods can be expensive, and they can be cheap. The more tripods you have to buy, the more you have to spend. Good luck in your search, your camera depends on it.

johneccles Loc: Leyland UK

They're not that dear really, PC World have a very good range, here's the one I bought a few months ago, it's well made and does the job for me.

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/cameras-and-camcorders/photography-accessories/camera-stands/velbon-ef-41-tripod-10090426-pdt.html

bull drink water Loc: pontiac mi.

a simple answer, the high priced tripods are for pros who live off their equipment. a small group. for the rest of us many moderate priced models will do.

J-SPEIGHT Loc: Akron, Ohio

Just bought an Induro alloy tripod with removable mount for $150.00

chrisg-optical Loc: New York, NY

Well, depending on what and where you are shooting you don't necessarily need a $500+ tripod ($100-200 will do for a quality one), unless you want carbon fibre loaded with features or very heavy support. Personally I hate tripods and fortunately VR/IS made handheld photography possible is many more situations. Sometimes, however, the tripod/monopod is absolutely necessary. I recently got a Manfrotto tripod in Best Buy for $170 on sale....very lightweight and compact when folded. I've also been happy with an older Slik tripod $(89 when new) but it's bulkier and heavier.

sb Loc: Florida's East Coast

I don't understand the vibration issue. Vibration from what? I generally use a tripod to take multiple photos for HDR processing. All it has to do is reliably hold my camera with lens pointing at the same scene as I take the photos with my cable release. My $45 aluminum tripod seems to work just fine, and it is no heavier than most of the carbon-fiber tripods.

wagaboo Loc: Spokane Valley, Wa.

I just bought the Sirui W2004 and couldn't be happier and it's waterproof as well for a little under $200 USD. It's rated for 39.7lbs.

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1156936-REG/sirui_bsrw2004_w_series_waterproof_tripod.html

Grnway Loc: Manchester, NH

I'm waiting for Gene51 to weigh in on this, but you have to ask yourself why you want the tripod. Is it simply to hold a camera so you can be in the picture, and you're shooting in relative calm at a higher shutter speed with light equipment, or are you doing long exposure photography, shooting in outdoor windy conditions, or shooting at long focal length with a heavy lens?

If you're just looking for the former, then the cheap tripod will do, as long as it will safely hold your equipment. If you're doing long exposures, both indoors and outdoors, or shooting a very long focal lengths, where vibration damping is a major concern, then the better constructed tripods are of much more importance, both in terms of weight capacity and vibration dampening. Vibration damping is of the utmost importance and that's what the more expensive tripods (Gitzo, ReallyRightStuff, etc.) excel at. The premium to be paid is for vibration damping in a small, lightweight, and easily portable package.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Not so young Jedi. May I suggest Ebay. There you can get a really good, strong tripod for a very good price. Unlike camera's and lenses, good tripods usually stay in great shape through the years.
FYI, you can get a good new tripod at reasonable prices too, I am sure many here will give you good advice about them. Manfroto for example make excellent tripods starting at $230.00.

travisdeland Loc: deland, FL

Be glad they don't say "marine" on the side-that would easily add another 50% to the cost!

delottphoto

I have an expensive old Bogen tripod that I bought 35 years ago that weighs a "ton." I am using it this morning for corporate head shots on location to hold my D7200 with a 85mm lens. Saturday, I am using it for HDR, 7 exposures, real estate photography. Yep, it was expensive. I could divide the cost by 35 and it will seem like a yearly "bargain."