Which Tripod?

[wakarimasen]

Hello Tripod users! I currently have a Velbon Sherpa 200R - a pretty cheap second-hand purchase from eBay. Whilst it serves a purpose, I'm thinking of getting another as:

• the Velbon is limited in how 'low' it can go, as the legs have a maximum opening angle which is not that great
• The weight of the tripod is 2kg, and it's max load weight is 2kg. This does not seem enough with my Canon 1D MarkIV and the 100-400 lens, whose combined weight is almost 3kg, and I definitely see some wobble on occasions
• it doesn't fold down that well for carrying

As far as I can see, like most things, researching a new tripod is an invitation to follow Alice down the rabbit hole - especially when venturing into the murky waters of 'heads.' As such, I'm looking for advice given the following criteria:

• I am brand agnostic - I don't care about the name, just the reliability of the gear
• new or second hand - I don't care
• any material - I don't care about aluminium or carbon fibre - I just want a good weight to stability ratio. If I the tripod adds 2kg to my bag, then so be it
• load capacity should be above 6kg - I'd like to over specify
• capability to 'go low' for macro photography outdoors
• good head stability when flipping the camera to portrait orientation
• budget - up to £200

A friend recommended one of these so now I have another name to thing of. In addition, I saw this referenced recently in a post.

I have struggled with the Canon vs Nikon dilemma for the last five years, so the idea of opening-up another front in the tripod world is very daunting. Help!

 

[redsnappa]

I use the older version of the Vanguard at work and it is reliable and sturdy it would easily exceed your requirements.

 

[wakarimasen]

Thanks for the info - any other advice?