Travel tripod v regular tripod.

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ian-83

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I have been looking about to find a tripod. Seems most are divided to travel tripods or regular tripods. Besides weight and size where the travel ones pack up smaller and weigh less. Is there any benefits of a regular tripod? Are they more sturdy? Feel less flexible?

Also what would people recommend up to £150?
 
My travel tripod isn't quite as sturdy as the full sized ones but at lower elevations, it stood up well to the wind in Iceland. Not sure the bigger ones would have been much better in that situation TBH and at the windiest, I had it as flat as possible with the centre column down. It is a LOT lighter than the bigger ones as well as being significantly more compact. A bit over your stated budget at £200 or so IIRC. Best bet is to buy from a bricks'n'mortar shop so you can try before you buy.
 
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Yes, tripods!
The travel tripod is somewhat lighter, smaller but offers the same
flexibility than the regular tripod. The travel tripod has a minimum
of 4 and up to 6 segments per legs and this is where the biggest
difference is: one trades "compact" for "stable". I prefer the regular
three legs since I don't hike for miles on mountain tracks. For my
work and my gear, the sturdiest, rock solid is just good enough!
 
I have three tripods, a sturdy manfrotto 055, a red snapper carbon, and a manfrotto befree.
The manfrotto 055 is sturdy, never moves, but isn't really portable, unless you take it out the boot of a car and use it. We tend to use this for video.
The resnapper carbon is perfect for carrying, light, sturdy, but At times I need to weight it down with my camera bag. It's not great for travelling via airlines as is too long, so last year I bought a befree, small and light enough to go Into a suitcase and copes with my camera and lens to about 4-kg.

Basically the difference between all three is weight, size (length and diameter) of legs, and capabilities. I've not found the perfect tripod to cope with everything I do, hence I have three.
 
Unless you spend serious money on a travel tripod it will only ever be a compromise.

However, the old axiom of "the best camera is the one you have on you" is also true of tripods so if you buy something massive and never use it then you may as well not have bothered.

For me it boils down to whether you are the type of person who will use a tripod, there is only one way to find out and lots of people are put off by using cheap/lightweight tripods so I would suggest spending a decent amount on a second hand tripod that you won't lose much on if you decide it's not for you.
 
Cheers for the responses so far. I've looked in my local camera shop and local Jessops and the range on offer is poor! Mostly the small cheap ones only suitable for light cameras.

I like the look of the Redsnapper range. Manfrotto seem nice too but bulky which I think will put me off wanting to take it out.
 
ian-83 said:
Cheers for the responses so far. I've looked in my local camera shop and local Jessops and the range on offer is poor! Mostly the small cheap ones only suitable for light cameras.

I like the look of the Redsnapper range. Manfrotto seem nice too but bulky which I think will put me off wanting to take it out.
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With tripods there really isn't a problem buying a quality used one. Look at the Gitzo's being sold on eBay. I got my G1098 Basalt travel tripod off the 'Bay for far less than a newer far inferior tripod. My main tripod for indoor macro work is a Gitzo G1201 Mk2 aluminium. It's relatively heavy by carbon fibre standards but if you're not going to carry it, it really doesn't matter. I think I paid around £30 for the latter!

If you're looking for ULTRA stable and don't mind spending a fair chunk of change then Sachtler is the way to go. They're made for video pros but several of their models can be used with a standard ball head setup via an adapter plate. My DA-75/2 was 1.2KG and ROCK solid with any DSLR/lens you'd care to mount on it. A friend used the same one with an F5 and 600mm; just didn't move with the right ball head.

Bjorn Rorslett has some info about them here:

http://www.naturfotograf.com/sacht3.html
 
Had a look at tripods last week at the SWPP show, seems most fold up now "traveler" style as in legs folding back encompassing the head.
This cuts down the folded length whilst still enabling a full size tripod to be used, makes I saw were Sirui, Benro and FLM

The latter was in my opinion the nicest both from a function, construction and cosmetic point of view, but there wasn't much in it over the Sirui
(Benro was not as nice, but admittedly cheaper)

I already own an older series 1 Gitzo (G1158) this is light and folds down to a compact size, but is a bit short when not employing the centre column

Ended up getting another Gitzo, this time a GT1532, three leg sections so only folds down to 60cm, but the legs are a decent diameter (25mm,21mm and 18mm) also relatively light at 1.3kg. Height without centre column is 133cm, so with camera and head not too much of a bend down, qualifies for the 70 quid trade in offer too

In case you are interested I have just listed my Gitzo series 3 Systematic in the classifieds, over your budget, but at a reasonable price. Folds down to 55cm, weighs 1.75kg and height is 146cm, so light, strong and fairly cheap
 
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alfbranch said:
What weight does it have to carry and how small does it need to pack?

Answer that and some specific suggestions can be made as we only have budget at the moment.

If 4Kg is enough capacity and 33 cm long is small enough and 1.12 Kg is light enough how about this

https://www.parkcameras.com/p/9379475E/carbon-fibre-tripods/giottos/vitruvian-vgr9225mh5310-630

http://www.giottos.com/pro_view.aspx?nId=8&TypeId=15
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I have a Nikon D7000 and 16-85mm lens so around 1.5kg weight of equipment. As for size around 50cm or less.
 
I use a Giottos Vitruvian under a D750 with a 24-120 (usually). Sturdy enough for 30s + exposures.
 
I've got the Manfrotto 055CXPro4 as my everyday tripod and a Velbon Ultra Rexi L as a travel one.

The Velbon has never let me down. It's small, sturdy, gets down really low and almost as high as the Manfrotto. Velbons customer service was superb when I left a bit of the centre column on a beach somewhere. I've teamed it up with a Manfrotto Xpro Geared Head which makes it a bit lumpy compared to the ballhead I had on it before but it's perfect for my type of photography.

If you can find one it'll be no more than £100 too. Bargain.
 
Gupster said:
I've got the Manfrotto 055CXPro4 as my everyday tripod and a Velbon Ultra Rexi L as a travel one.

The Velbon has never let me down. It's small, sturdy, gets down really low and almost as high as the Manfrotto. Velbons customer service was superb when I left a bit of the centre column on a beach somewhere. I've teamed it up with a Manfrotto Xpro Geared Head which makes it a bit lumpy compared to the ballhead I had on it before but it's perfect for my type of photography.

If you can find one it'll be no more than £100 too. Bargain.
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I do like the look of the Manfrotto 190 series specially the 4 leg section ones. Seem to fold down enough for me.
 
ian-83 said:
I do like the look of the Manfrotto 190 series specially the 4 leg section ones. Seem to fold down enough for me.
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The 190 was my first ever tripod but I think mine was the 3 section. You can't go wrong with that although I would say that the Velbon felt a bit sturdier IIRC.
 
Just found the newer version of the Velbon and it looks good. Not sure what tripod head would be best?
 
ian-83 said:
Just found the newer version of the Velbon and it looks good. Not sure what tripod head would be best?
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I didn't know they had an updated version. Having looked at the photos the only significant difference seems to be the centre column clamp. On mine it's a lever whereas on the new one it looks like a screw type.

Heads are a personal thing. I hate ball heads but I know a lot of the members on here swear by them. They are nice and compact but I found them fiddly to use. Really the only way is to try them out yourself and see which suits your photography style.
 
Well after looking in a couple of local shops I have settled for a Manfrotto 190 xpro and a 3 way head. All the smaller travel type tripods seemed a bit too flimsy for my liking and I didn't like the twist leg locks.
 
ian-83 said:
Well after looking in a couple of local shops I have settled for a Manfrotto 190 xpro and a 3 way head. All the smaller travel type tripods seemed a bit too flimsy for my liking and I didn't like the twist leg locks.
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190 clearly qualifies as "travel" tripod and you'd better not give it any salt water treatment. It's a pretty nice kit apart from being horribly unreliable with frequent use.

I just bought an old Giottos 3 leg section beast. You should see and feel that. It must weigh like 5kg with 410 head and feels dead sturdy and hopefully fairly indestructible. I am obviously somewhat reluctant to take that all the way to some major mountain hike.
 
LongLensPhotography said:
190 clearly qualifies as "travel" tripod and you'd better not give it any salt water treatment. It's a pretty nice kit apart from being horribly unreliable with frequent use.

I just bought an old Giottos 3 leg section beast. You should see and feel that. It must weigh like 5kg with 410 head and feels dead sturdy and hopefully fairly indestructible. I am obviously somewhat reluctant to take that all the way to some major mountain hike.
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I appreciate your comments but I don't think I ever said I was looking for a "travel" tripod? Maybe you need to re-read my original post. I was asking besides the benefits of less weight and packaging up smaller for travel tripods what are the benefits of going for a more regular tripod. Clearly it's something more sturdy and a better height range.

I can clearly see if I want something lightweight I would not have brought the tripod I have, I would of gone for the Be Free option. I am more likely to walk a few miles most with it most.

Well a 10 year guarantee on a new product to me says the manufacturer is pretty confident in their product.

As for salt water use, I am pretty sure taking care of your equipment means it won't suffer. I doubt hosing it down with clean water and drying it thoroughly means it will last.
 
I got a gitzo carbon fibre. It's been with me to Vietnam Portugal luxembourg new York etc. The ball head weighs just as much if or heavier then the legs..
 
Ss s regular beach photographer I have tripod specialy for use on the beach. I nearly ruined a £200 set of legs if though they were washed and dried every time. Thankfully I got replacement parts for free. Only Gitzo make tripods to witbstand salt water starting at £750.
 
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Phiggys said:
I just purchased one of these I wasn't expecting to much for £35.99 inc post from uk trader !
but I'm really impressed 10kg max load full specs in link have just ordered a couple more for friends not carbon fibre but friend has one that set him back over £400 for traveling.:eek:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Pro-Camer...460155?hash=item20ff7ee6bb:g:XZwAAOSwhkRWc6oU
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There is a carbon fibre version of your tripod, bu doesnt look like it has reached the UK distributors yet.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/QZSD-Q999...326339?hash=item25b5873283:g:IM8AAOSwGotWpxV5

alfbranch said:
Ss s regular beach photographer I have tripod specialy for use on the beach. I nearly ruined a £200 set of legs if though they were washed and dried every time. Thankfully I got replacement parts for free. Only Gitzo make tripods to witbstand salt water starting at £750.
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Yes, ruined a couple of tripods myself with beach use. Bought some cheap legs with square section tubes from 7dayshop for £12 to use just on the beach, expecting them to last maybe a year, but 3 years later they are still going strong. No problems with sand jamming them up and minimal maintenance, a quick rinse when I get home and an occasional squirt of WD-40.
Wouldnt want to put too much weight on them though, but they cope fine with my Canon 600D and 70-300mm lens.
 
Steve B said:
Yes, ruined a couple of tripods myself with beach use. Bought some cheap legs with square section tubes from 7dayshop for £12 to use just on the beach, expecting them to last maybe a year, but 3 years later they are still going strong. No problems with sand jamming them up and minimal maintenance, a quick rinse when I get home and an occasional squirt of WD-40.
Wouldnt want to put too much weight on them though, but they cope fine with my Canon 600D and 70-300mm lens.
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I managed to find a a slick 500 DX pro new old stock for £40 I already had a head to fit its a good sturdy tripod
 
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ian-83 said:
I appreciate your comments but I don't think I ever said I was looking for a "travel" tripod? .
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Frankly your original post and thread title hardly seem to reflect what you actually wanted to discuss and it lacked any real information fo anyone to work with.
 
alfbranch said:
Frankly your original post and thread title hardly seem to reflect what you actually wanted to discuss and it lacked any real information fo anyone to work with.
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I struggle to put across in words sometimes what I am thinking. I am not the greatest on a computer.
 
I have a Velbon Ultra RexiL for travelling, which I use with a Manfrotto 3 way head. It's light, portable and gets inside a suitcase. I took it to Canada last summer and it took my 7D with Sigma 150-600 (fair bit of weight) and coped without complaining. I now use it on my birding scope quite regularly. The legs on the Velbon are in 4 (or maybe 5) sections, and they are of the twist grip type.

I also have a Manfrotto 055 aluminium, and a slightly smaller carbon Manfrotto too, which I can strap to my back pack.
 
I've been looking at similar tripods recently and they all seem to offer decent spec, such as vary angle legs, spirit levels, ball heads with pan lock etc. I have been looking at Mefoto, Prima photo and RedSnapper. think the red snapper 284 looks solid for sub £90 and carries a decent weight of 5kg.
 
I use a "Jobby' tripod and its brilliant. Mainly because you can wrap the legs around things and get different angles but also because of the size/weight/cost
 
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