Which budget tripod with the clever column?

JohnN

JohnN

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Hi,

I'm thinking of upgrading my redsnapper to something that will go lower, upside down, all over the place like a Manfrotto 055XPROB.

What other options are there out there and what would you guys recommend.

Ta..
 
The giottos has more flexibility in the centre column than the manfrotto (I have the 190xprob), being able to lock at any angle.
But when I tried it I found it slower and clunky to operate, whereas the 190 is very quick to adjust.
If I was looking for maximum flexibility I would have gone with the giottos, they are both well made and well designed tripods.

I also tried a vanguard, which was superb, it could lock in at any angle but was much quicker to operate than the giottos, but sadly it was out of my budget.
If you can find/afford one, have a serious look at a vanguard as well.
 
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Thanks guys - thats opened up another option, for some unknown reason I thought it was only manfrotto that did the clever stuff :)
 
If you want "clever stuff" haver a look for a Benbo tripod.
It's a bit like fighting with a set of bagpipes but they can be set in some quite amazing positions!
 
haha, fighting with bagpipes :)

Can you name a specific model? I've not heard of Benro before.

I think my main use (apart from the usual stuff) would be for birds in flight, not that it may make a difference.
 
JohnN said:
lol, cheers Mr Sarcastic ;)

I actually thought it was a typo
Click to expand...

Sorry - it was said as tongue in cheek but couldn't resist it....
 
hehe, no probs, I deserve it!

Having looked them up there aren't many and the cheap ones look like they're for macro work and short and the normal size expensive and from what I've read very hard to work with (hence the bagpipes comment)

I think I'll skip those - thank for the suggestion though.
 
Another vote for Giottos.

The aforementioned lack of speed and clunkiness isn't an issue once you get used to handling it.
 
So, I'm starting to get the feeling the Giottos MTL9361B (and have flagged it on my wish list :)) could be a good one, now what to do for a head for Birds in Flight!
 
JohnN said:
Thanks guys - thats opened up another option, for some unknown reason I thought it was only manfrotto that did the clever stuff :)
Click to expand...

Feh, most tripods can invert their central column, some just need a little more 'coaxing' than others...

My first tripod was a cheap £15 jessops tripod that I bought back in 1985, it had a rubber bung on the bottom of the column, simply to avoid it being an open tube. I 'carefully' trimmed the bung down to be flush with the tube itself, and presto, I had an invertable central column at the price of not being able to "hold the tripod upside down with the column unlocked and have the column not fall out".

In the end, I think I only used it with the column inverted twice, so it was really a waste of time :D

(I ended up replacing the tripod a year or two later, for something that was ostensibly more sturdy (a low end Slik I believe), except that the column lock arm broke off the first time I used it - that particular tripod had the central column invertible as a 'design feature' though, and sure enough, I never used it even once)
 
JohnN said:
So, I'm starting to get the feeling the Giottos MTL9361B (and have flagged it on my wish list :)) could be a good one, now what to do for a head for Birds in Flight!
Click to expand...

You can get away with a decent ballhead, or else you need to drop £££ on a gimbal.
 
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