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ndwgolf

ndwgolf

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Neil Williams
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I saw a YouTube that popped up on my feed with this amazing looking Camera stand, I instantly though I need one of these and jumped over to B&H to see if they have them WTF.........there selling for £3200
The name of it is the Studio Titan Camera Stand.
View: https://youtu.be/ZBQEzO11CuQ?si=M9fc_ZBwgBYQRs__

Is there something else out there that is sturdy tried and tested and doesn't cost an arm and a leg, or just stick the camera on a tripod?
Thanks

Neil

​

 
Gav. said:
Manfrotto 806 Mini Salon 190 ..??

Still costly.
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Yes I saw that one this morning on B&H. They also had another one that looked fantastic with great reviews, but with shipping and import tax/duties it was going to still be over a £1000 quid. I'm just doing this as a hobby so im thinking tripod will be good enough
Screenshot 2026-06-10 at 12.33.04.png
 
If you really wanted a stand, you could build something with a plasterboard prop, a magic arm and a good tripod head for a couple of hundred quid.
 
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ndwgolf said:
Whats a plasterboard prop Phil?
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One of these
www.toolstation.com

Ceiling Support

Working with larger boards on your own? Using this ceiling support prop is invaluable when carrying out one-person installation jobs on ceilings and inclined areas.The telescopic prop can be adjusted from 1.6m to 2.9m and is strong enough to support loads of up to 30kg. A simple pump mechanism...
www.toolstation.com www.toolstation.com
Obviously ToolStation probably don’t deliver to Thailand but you might find one on Ali Express
 
Phil V said:
One of these
www.toolstation.com

Ceiling Support

Working with larger boards on your own? Using this ceiling support prop is invaluable when carrying out one-person installation jobs on ceilings and inclined areas.The telescopic prop can be adjusted from 1.6m to 2.9m and is strong enough to support loads of up to 30kg. A simple pump mechanism...
www.toolstation.com www.toolstation.com
Obviously ToolStation probably don’t deliver to Thailand but you might find one on Ali Express
Click to expand...
Also the plasterboard prop will come in handy to hold up the plasterboard you're using to mend the hole you punched in your ceiling with the plasterboard prop! :banana:
 
I can't help you because of the shipping cost to Thailand, but I have one that I really ought to sell now that I'm retired.

It's old but much more substantial, it goes from about 6" to 10'.
I saw the same model on eBay a couple of years ago, they were asking £1000 and I think that was way too much, perhaps £600 would be a realistic price, so I think the one you listed is far too much.

But, those are the negatives; the positives are that they are incredibly quick to use and adjust, they are far safer than a tripod, simply because when the camera has to be used at height with a stepladder or similar, there are no legs to get in the way. From memory, the minimum height is about 6" inches, but flip over the bit that the camera sits on and the camera can be used upside-down from floor level.
 
ndwgolf said:
Whats a plasterboard prop Phil?
Click to expand...
Okay they have many here in Thailand from £50 up. I haven’t had a good look yet but I’m sure I can get one. I quickly looked at the magic arm and Small Rig have them here also £50 up. When I get home I will delve in deeper and try and get something that will work well together.
 
Garry Edwards said:
But, those are the negatives; the positives are that they are incredibly quick to use and adjust, they are far safer than a tripod, simply because when the camera has to be used at height with a stepladder or similar, there are no legs to get in the way. From memory, the minimum height is about 6" inches, but flip over the bit that the camera sits on and the camera can be used upside-down from floor level.
Click to expand...
After reading this Gary. I will definitely get a camera stand and not use the tripod. Thanks
 
Garry Edwards said:
I can't help you because of the shipping cost to Thailand, but I have one that I really ought to sell now that I'm retired.

It's old but much more substantial, it goes from about 6" to 10'.
I saw the same model on eBay a couple of years ago, they were asking £1000 and I think that was way too much, perhaps £600 would be a realistic price, so I think the one you listed is far too much.

But, those are the negatives; the positives are that they are incredibly quick to use and adjust, they are far safer than a tripod, simply because when the camera has to be used at height with a stepladder or similar, there are no legs to get in the way. From memory, the minimum height is about 6" inches, but flip over the bit that the camera sits on and the camera can be used upside-down from floor level.
Click to expand...
Tempting!! I've long wanted one but really can't justify the expense :(
 
juggler said:
Tempting!! I've long wanted one but really can't justify the expense :(
Click to expand...
Much more "professional" and far better than any tripod, but not for everyone because of the cost, weight, height and the space required.
Not the subject of this old video, but appearing in it, maybe worth watching if you turn the sound off:)

This was an event that I hosted for the TP membership, some of the people there are still with us
 
Garry Edwards said:
Much more "professional" and far better than any tripod, but not for everyone because of the cost, weight, height and the space required.
Not the subject of this old video, but appearing in it, maybe worth watching if you turn the sound off:)

This was an event that I hosted for the TP membership, some of the people there are still with us
Click to expand...
Space is the issue for me.

I've hours wrestling with tripods which are *nearly* accurate & sturdy enough to do the job. My current compromise is a bodged combination of gimbal, nodal rail & L bracket.
 
ndwgolf said:
What about one of these £100
s.lazada.co.th

Neewer Ua018 Magic Arm 21" with Super Clamp Tripod Stand, Camera Arm, Rotatable 360" Studio Light Monitor

s.lazada.co.th s.lazada.co.th
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Not very heavy duty I have 3 Small Rig ones, there's a third make as well, K&F Concept. Fine for lightweight items like a flash gum, or compact camera, no good for a DSLR with a heavy lens. Great for reflectors, etc.

I have one of the Manfrotto Magic arm with 2 clamps, they can carry up to 115kg, safely, New they are over £150 with 2 clamps.

Also, I have two Tripod extension arms, one Calumet - actually Manfrotto, and another Vanguard, both can be used with one of the Manfrotto clamps. Gives quite a bit of flexibility.

Ian
 
I bought two 6'6" camera stands a couple of years ago from Facebook Marketplace. They are quite old, maybe 30-40 years old. Both came from different places that were about 100 miles apart, but both were made by Regalite, which seems to be a long out of business photography manufacturer here in the USA. Both needed significant cleaning, lubrication, and the black base and other painted pieces re-painted, but both are now in use in my home studio and working well for me. I paid $40 for one and $60 for the other, and neither came with a camera mount. For my most used "still life" camera stand I added a K&F Concept CD3W geared head that has been working well for me. This type of head is ideal for giving you precise camera positioning needed for this kind of shot and works well with the camera stands. I've been doing "Still Life" and "Macro" shoots in my studio more often in these last few years, so having these camera stands has helped considerably for their smaller floor foot print (reduced trip hazard from tripod legs) and super steady camera positioning, which really helps when the shoot requires multiple nearly identical shots for a layered photo in editing.

This shoot did not require multiple layering. Once everything was positioned and adjusted, it only required one final shot. The photos attached show one of my camera stands in use (silver column on right of camera, orange wire is my tether cable running up and to my ceiling lighting support grid, then to my computer) . Not the best view of my camera stand, but the best that I found quickly. I'll find and post one later. For this "Still Life" shoot I used a single 32" square soft box with a Godox SK300 light from behind the table and aimed directly at the camera, but with a black background piece in front of it to produce the black background seen by the camera. The light that reaches the flowers comes around the sides and top of the black background. White cards were placed to each side of the camera view and angled to reflect some of the soft box light back onto the facing side of the flowers, so both front and back sides of the flowers were lit from same light source. The black foam core panel with the hole in it prevents lens flare by keeping the light from the soft box from directly hitting the camera lens. When I need a small table, the wooden stools are frequently used. This time with the plastic bed risers under it to get the top comfortably high enough for her photo shoot.

Edit -

I found this last shot of my (adult) grand daughter doing a simple shoot of some items to add to her website, and it shows all but the very top of one of my camera stands. Both of my camera stands are 6' tall (actually 6'6" and nearly identical). The handle that she is holding lifts to unlock the vertical movement of the camera arm. Once set, the tripod head in use allows for the fine adjustments. You can see the wheel lock levers, for use to lock the stand on a floor position.

Charley
 

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I recently switched to using an Ifootage RB-A400. I have a Leofoto HC-28 tilting column on it because I do a lot of semi-overhead type shots. And a 15 lb olympic bumper weight on it to help stabilize it on my padded/carpeted floor (no other counter weight needed).

It's not as stable as a pillar stand; nor nearly as big/heavy/expensive. Total cost for one stand with arm and weight is around $250 now. It's plenty stable enough for my needs and would be much more stable on a hard floor (I don't actually need a ton of stability when using flash).

I've also switched to using this Benro geared ballhead.

Untitled-1.jpg

sk66

Thread 'Quick review of iFootage RB-A400 stands'

My studio space/storage/catchall is small, and it's going to become even smaller when I move it to another room. With everything I have in there plus the boom stand, giant Benbo Classic 2 tripod, and my laptop stand, it was pretty tricky getting around; so I decided to try the A400 stands.

I've always wanted a column stand, but never had the budget/space for one. So I am using one of these as a camera stand like the Cambo Solo ($1k), it has similar specs; or maybe more like a Cambo Mono ($2.5k) as I installed my Leofoto tilting column on it.
I have a grip arm from one of my...
  • Like

sk66

Thread 'My new favorite tripod head- Benro GD36PT'

The current count for tripod heads on hand is 17; unless I missed a couple. And that doesn't include the ones that have gone to new homes over the years. The point being, I've owned/used a lot of different tripod heads over the years; to include some pretty unusual ones.

Well, for the last couple of weeks I've been using this new Benro GD36PT which is pretty unique as well. It is an inverted ballhead with 2 way geared head on top, and a top panning clamp.

Untitled.jpg

1. is the quick throw ballhead release... it's 1/2 turn.
2. is the ballhead friction. They call it the drag setting, but...
  • Like
 
Last edited:
sk66 said:
I recently switched to using an Ifootage RB-A400. I have a Leofoto HC-28 tilting column on it because I do a lot of semi-overhead type shots. And a 15 lb olympic bumper weight on it to help stabilize it on my padded/carpeted floor (no other counter weight needed).

It's not as stable as a pillar stand; nor nearly as big/heavy/expensive. Total cost for one stand with arm and weight is around $250 now. It's plenty stable enough for my needs and would be much more stable on a hard floor (I don't actually need a ton of stability when using flash).

I've also switched to using this Benro geared ballhead.

View attachment 484760

sk66

Thread 'Quick review of iFootage RB-A400 stands'

My studio space/storage/catchall is small, and it's going to become even smaller when I move it to another room. With everything I have in there plus the boom stand, giant Benbo Classic 2 tripod, and my laptop stand, it was pretty tricky getting around; so I decided to try the A400 stands.

I've always wanted a column stand, but never had the budget/space for one. So I am using one of these as a camera stand like the Cambo Solo ($1k), it has similar specs; or maybe more like a Cambo Mono ($2.5k) as I installed my Leofoto tilting column on it.
I have a grip arm from one of my...
  • Like

sk66

Thread 'My new favorite tripod head- Benro GD36PT'

The current count for tripod heads on hand is 17; unless I missed a couple. And that doesn't include the ones that have gone to new homes over the years. The point being, I've owned/used a lot of different tripod heads over the years; to include some pretty unusual ones.

Well, for the last couple of weeks I've been using this new Benro GD36PT which is pretty unique as well. It is an inverted ballhead with 2 way geared head on top, and a top panning clamp.

Untitled.jpg

1. is the quick throw ballhead release... it's 1/2 turn.
2. is the ballhead friction. They call it the drag setting, but...
  • Like
Click to expand...
I plan to use my LeoFoto G4 gear head with the new stand
 
Camera stand arrived today, absolutely love it. Super sturdy, (weighs bloody 59 kilos) but can move around with just a couple of fingers, the built in counter balance is super smooth and very easy to move up and down. It came with its own gimbal head but I decided to use my own gear head instead.

IMG_1381.jpegIMG_1383.jpegIMG_1382.jpeg
 
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