carbon tripod

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hi all. thought i'd combine my 'hello from a noob greeting' with a question.

I got a jessops carbon tripod for xmas. should i return it and put the extra towards a red snapper one?

thanks
 
thanks for the reply. i'm just not a huge fan of 'own makes' and also i'm not convinced by the general quality. not sure if its a good reason but i just don't feel like i trust it fully to give me a long life of service. things like lower than the competition load bearing weight, plasticy fittings etc
 
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I just did the opposite, recently bought a carbon fiber tripod to replace my redsnapper for the long walks and travels. You can have a go at the redsnapper if you live around Manchester to see if you like it :)
 
Arent the jessops ones made by Giotos or similar?
 
Hey, welcome to TP! :wave:

I'd stick with the Jessops one and get a good head for it personally.

The leg release/lock mechanism on the Jessops one looks better than the RedSnapper as that's what broke on mine.

You're never really going to need 5kg anytime soon. Unless you have a 1D/D3 with a long fast glass in your bag and as it was a gift I'd keep it. It's not like Jessops make the tripod, they just throw there name on there it probably is a Giottos tripod as Tom said above.
 
What puzzles me is why does everyone want a super light carbon fibre tripod, then advocate hanging a dirty great weight on it to keep it steady :lol:
 
martyp said:
Hey, welcome to TP! :wave:

I'd stick with the Jessops one and get a good head for it personally.

The leg release/lock mechanism on the Jessops one looks better than the RedSnapper as that's what broke on mine.

You're never really going to need 5kg anytime soon. Unless you have a 1D/D3 with a long fast glass in your bag and as it was a gift I'd keep it. It's not like Jessops make the tripod, they just throw there name on there it probably is a Giottos tripod as Tom said above.
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This is the best bet. Chances are the legs on the jessops one are good but the head is a bit shonky. Spend a bit on a decent head and you'll have a good setup.

I too don't get on with the leg locks on redsnapper. Found them quite unreliable.

artyman said:
What puzzles me is why does everyone want a super light carbon fibre tripod, then advocate hanging a dirty great weight on it to keep it steady :lol:
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To save weight walking to where you are going :shrug:
 
I see the Jesopps major has £50 off, making it £79, is this good value?
 
martyp said:
Hey, welcome to TP! :wave:

I'd stick with the Jessops one and get a good head for it personally.

The leg release/lock mechanism on the Jessops one looks better than the RedSnapper as that's what broke on mine.

You're never really going to need 5kg anytime soon. Unless you have a 1D/D3 with a long fast glass in your bag and as it was a gift I'd keep it. It's not like Jessops make the tripod, they just throw there name on there it probably is a Giottos tripod as Tom said above.
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Just done exactly that, got a Jessops carbon tripod for my birthday and have swapped the head for a Manfrotto 804RC2.

Paul
 
artyman said:
What puzzles me is why does everyone want a super light carbon fibre tripod, then advocate hanging a dirty great weight on it to keep it steady :lol:
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Because I'd rather carry a lightweight tripod rather than a heavy one.. The red snapper carbon has a hook on the bottom of the centre tripod which if you need added stability you can hang your camera bag on it. Not need to do that yet and I've used mine with a 50D 100-400 lens and 2 x tc.

I've never had a problem with the legs on mine. What's the issues with the locks? You just twist, move and twist to lock again.
 
Thanks for all the replies. I reckon I'll go with the head swapping idea. Its a great suggestion. Now here's a real noob question. Do I want a want a pan/tilt head or a ball head? I'd assumed that a ball head would be better (not sure why). I have a Canon 550D.
 
I'd highly recommend a ball head.

Pan and tilt heads are fine but just aren't as fast or flexible to use as the ball. Maybe go into Jessops and try one out first, but I think you'll prefer it.

I use the Redsnapper BH-12 (IIRC) on my new Manfrotto tripod and its great value for money. I needed a head that had ° markings on it for doing 360° panos and its perfect.

Hope that helps, although it is all down to personal preference.
 
I've just started to work for Jessops again after two years away and the tripod is pretty good, I would personally go for a ball head something like the 494rc2 by manfrotto (or the slightly more manly 496rc2, it's bigger :D).

ball heads are smaller in physical size so things like tripod bags are easier to use (I personally don't like the bags) and also are quicker for making adjustments. one downfall is that if you want to do panoramics you generally don't have the degree marks on the head and keeping horizontal is unlikely.
 
artyman said:
What puzzles me is why does everyone want a super light carbon fibre tripod, then advocate hanging a dirty great weight on it to keep it steady :lol:
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To be honest, the carbon fibre tripods aren't that light compared to the standard aluminium ones, often most of them have an aluminium centre coloumn (at least manfrottos do),

they surely make the pockets lighter!
 
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