Tripod recommendations please!

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shootingstar81

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Dani
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I am looking at buying my first tripod but am having big problems on coming to a decision, as soon as I think I have my mind made up another option crops up!

I currently use a 400d gripped and my heaviest lens is my canon 28-135mm is usm, also have to 550ex flash which I occasionally use. Obviously it needs to be able to support this weight plus I would like the option of it taking a little more for any future upgrades!

Budget is not great, £100 to include a head as well but I don't mind looking at the second hand market if needed.

Any ideas both good and ones to avoid would be appreciated!
 
Another vote for Redsnapper here.
 
I've had a couple of Giottos over the years, never had a problem
 
Thanks for the heads up on the redsnapper discount, didn't know about that! They are definitely amongst my possibilities. I've been looking since christmas and just want to hurry up and make a decision, I'm so indecisive!!
 
shootingstar81 said:
Thanks for the heads up on the redsnapper discount, didn't know about that! They are definitely amongst my possibilities. I've been looking since christmas and just want to hurry up and make a decision, I'm so indecisive!!
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I was the same :lol: Must have took me 2 months to finally get around to parting with the money :'(

That said, I'm extremely happy with my redsnapper tripod and ball head.
 
I'm back again sorry! Am still looking but have a question about the difference between ball heads and a pan and tilt head - what is it?! I'm unsure which to go for and which will give me the most use and be easiest to use. Please help!
 
Hi i have a manfrotto 055c with a nice new redsnapper ball head very impressed with the quality and for the price its a steal.
Also excellent service what more can you ask
 
shootingstar81 said:
I'm back again sorry! Am still looking but have a question about the difference between ball heads and a pan and tilt head - what is it?! I'm unsure which to go for and which will give me the most use and be easiest to use. Please help!
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I have have just upgraded to a ball head from a pan and tilt. i find the ball head very easy to get on with, one thing i would say is get a quick release plate this really makes things a lot quicker.
see my other post with reference to the head
 
shootingstar81 said:
I'm back again sorry! Am still looking but have a question about the difference between ball heads and a pan and tilt head - what is it?! I'm unsure which to go for and which will give me the most use and be easiest to use. Please help!
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Ball heads have a single ball in socket that can rotate and tilt in all directions, just by loosening one knob.
slik_ball_head_800.jpg


Pan/tilt heads have two hinges and a rotational joint (so each swivels on one dimension of rotation), so you have to loosen up to three knobs for moving the head, but you can leave just one or two loose, to allow smoother panning or quick alterations to the direction without having to loosen anything.
tripod_pan-tilt-head.jpg



Ball heads are good all round (quicker to make simple alterations with just one knob to loosen), but pan tilt (also known as 3-way) heads are better for tracking moving subjects.
 
thanks for the info guys, guess I've got some more decisions to make before I finally order my tripod. Will get there eventually, just hope I use it enough after all this!
 
I tried manfrotto and giottos. I bought giottos, seemed like the better product, sturdier and fixtures felt more robust.

Not tried redsnapper, but lots of folks here like them :-)
 
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lensflair said:
The funny thing about tripods is they need to be sturdy enough to do the job but light enough so you will take it with you. My choice for carry around tripod and monitor was manfrotto.

Dependant what you do but a ball head is much quicker to set into different positions than a pan tilt. The latter is more used for video or tracking moving objects, but for video you really need a proper video head that is smooth enough. And a lot of moving subjects need to be handheld. Wildlife/bird shooters often use a different setup all together but now we are talking big money for a good setup.

Manfrotto have a new head out that has a switch to put it from stills to video configuration, again pricey and aimed at people doing the fusion work like weddings when you create a slideshow of stills with snippets of video edited in.

My preference is a ball head, I do portraits, architectural, and landscapes.
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Agreed :) I bought an ally giottos kit in lieu of pricey carbon as I'm a large chap and a few hundred grams means little, but the 3 way head wasn't working for me... added a (giottos) heavy duty ballhead, and now my setup is great - for me! Therein lies the great rub of photography, and the reason why forums like this exist :)
 
I had a similar problem few months ago, after purchasing manfrotto Modo, I decided to go for something more sturdy. I ended up with giottos, and I can't say a single bad word about it. Check out Jessops, as I believe they still have online offers on few.
 
A number of people here mention Redsnapper, but without providing a reason for why this would be good. I'm after a tripod but am not clear what I should expect for my money at various price points, or what consistutes a good tripod over a poor one. Obviously an extremely light and strong carbon fibre tripod is going to command a premium price, but for more modest needs what differentiates them? My current velbon cx540 seem ok and i would be happy with something that does the job as well, but perhaps with a ball head this time. What other factors are important?
 
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