Tripod purchase whichone Manfrotto Aluminium befree travel

Smiffster

Smiffster

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hi folks, I have just bought a nikon 7200 and have a 28-300 nikon lens as my main use. I dont have a lot of funds and struggle to carry anything heavy, so have looked at this tripod and seems a pretty good choice for a general carry round tripod for my little days out, or weekend melees.

I haven't donelandscape much, but want to give it a go, can anyone let me know if they have any experience with this, or suggest a similar one? I like the sound of the carbon fibre, but for me the price is out of the question. £100 £120 is enough to pay.
 
I've got a befree. It works fine. I wouldn't use it with a heavy setup. The head is ok and quick to use but awkward to position precisely. And I've got sand in the leg mechanism so it makes a grating noise now.

If I used a tripod more often I'd want something better but it's fine for my occasional use (for portraiture and product stuff).
 
are you looking for legs or a complete setup with pan-head...?

i have a Giottos pan-head in the Classifieds but
also have a Manfrotto 290 Pro series TRIPOD which I'm considering to sell too

its a solid pro combination

if you're interested i'll put up some pics/DETAILS in the Sales tomorrow

 
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Hello.I am looking for something light compact but sturdy enough for my nikon7200 and 28-300 lens. I have a small mobility issue and can't carry much. But all in one. I am only a now and again user.
 
Smiffster said:
Hello.I am looking for something light compact but sturdy enough for my nikon7200 and 28-300 lens. I have a small mobility issue and can't carry much. But all in one. I am only a now and again user.
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Hi , I bought a nest tripod for about £120 at last years photography show as for the money it seemed more sturdy than the Be Free which was on offer at the time and also the three legged thing which was far more expensive. The added bonus was a decent ball head plus one of the legs converts to a monopod ( red snapper do a similar one) nice and compact and not too heavy as I wanted it to fit in Motorbike panniers plus a rucsack.

I have a carbon fibre manfrotto but seem to use the nest one more - I think it can cope with up to 8 kg weight so should suit your set up fine.

It was an impulse purchase but no regrets and friends have bought nest since.

Haven't got the model number as its at my caravan but let me know if you need it
 
Smiffster said:
Hello.I am looking for something light compact but sturdy enough for my nikon7200 and 28-300 lens. I have a small mobility issue and can't carry much. But all in one. I am only a now and again user.
Click to expand...

i would have thought you'd need a quality tripod with the 28-300 [800g] overhanging.?

the Manfrotto legs weigh 1.72Kg
and have a wide shoulder carry-strap which screws into a wee boss at the top and an adjustable loop at the bottom round the feet - very very useful

the Giottos pan-head for sale weighs 0.89Kg
however a ball head would be lighter [and less clumbersome] - - my Manfrotto 496RC2 = 430G

RedSnapper do a Combo on Special at £60 - - weighs 2.340Kg
 
The common advice is: light, stable, cheap, pick two. And also that buying a cheap tripod is false economy as you will nearly always end up with a more expensive one when you realise it isn't up to the job (lots of people here have a wardrobe full of tripods, myself included). However, there are instances where other circumstances need to be factored in an if mobility is a problem then it is still perfectly possible for a decent travel tripod to do a good enough job.

I recently spent ages looking at travel tripods and ended up finding an end of line carbon fibre bargain which I am more than happy with. However, during the search I looked at the Befree and decided the Mefoto travel tripods would probably be a better option.

Or, if you're anywhere near Hampshire I have a cheap, lightish, small-ish Manfrotto tripod you can have for a token amount (bottle of wine?). I took it to NZ and up Kilimanjaro and it worked fine for a Nikon D700 and 16-35 lens (which is much more front heavy than the 28-300), it was on the limits of the head's ability though.
 
Thanks Nawty, am hours and hours away. but thank you for the offer. am going shopping this weekend to try some out. many thanks all. decided to leave the Befree where it is and go for something more stable.
 
New to the forum , this just to says thanks to the contributors in this thread; I'm looking to buy a tripod for our family holiday and you guys have given me a great place to start.
 
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