More specific tripod questions

Phil U.

Hey guys - I had already been considering that it was time to move up in the tripod world when I saw this thread. I have a very el' cheapo tripod that I have used for the past 2.5 years. Based entirely on the suggestions in that thread, I decided that I would go all-out and get a tripod that I wouldn't need to replace any time soon. Based almost entirely on that same thread, I decided to buy a RRS BH-55 LR along with their Pano Elements Package (I wanted to go all out and get the whole setup to do the grid panos but that's for another day).

The order for those items went in this morning. Thanks for the reccomendations - I have a feeling I'm going to be very happy with the purchase.

Now my issue comes in the selection of the tripod legs. I was drawn to the Gitzo G1227LVL. It suits my requirements for weight/height/load capacity. I was intriguied by the "leveling column". The question is does anyone think that the leveling column will really be a useful feature when combined with the ball head or is it going to be an extra hassle having to level the center column and then level the ball head? Should I save a couple hundred bucks and get the same set of legs without the leveling column feature? Gitzo G1227 Or is there a different set that comes to mind? Here's a few notes about what I'm looking for:

I'm a tall guy - I want/need a tall tripod. I have a bad back so I'd like to keep the weight down as much as possible (a few pounds might make a difference on a long day). The $650 I'm seeing the 1227lvl for is about the limit to what I'd want to spend, but I could go a little higher if I saw a good reason to. I mostly do landscape / citiscapes. I want to be able to do some serious panorama work. At some point I will make the jump into DSLR and will want to have the weight bearing capacity to hold some heavy glass with plenty of room to spare (for stability and safety's sake).

In the end, if anyone can give me a good argument for spending the extra for the LVL option, I'll go for it. I just don't want to spend extra if it'll only be an extra hassle.

Thanks guys,

Harryb

IMHO you can do w/o the center post. I think you are going the right way by getting a good tripod now. Its a piece of equipment that will last loner than your camera bodies.

Here's a link to an excellent article on tripods.

http://bythom.com/support.htm

patch29

If you are going to hike with it the 1228 packs shorter. I know it picked by a lot of the landscape photographers.

I have a friend who bought a 1327 CF two months ago and I am not very happy with him, because after working with his, I really want a CF tripod. the 1327 has been awesome so far, it just does not pack down very short.

I think you can get by easily without the leveling attachment. You should be able to get the tripod roughly level most of the time and the ball head and pano attachment will make it easy. I also want that head and pano attachment.

I thought they were unavailable? Did they give you a shipping date?

Phil U.

Harryb wrote:

IMHO you can do w/o the center post. I think you are going the right way by getting a good tripod now. Its a piece of equipment that will last loner than your camera bodies.

Here's a link to an excellent article on tripods.

http://bythom.com/support.htm

Are you saying no center post at all or just not the leveling center? The more I think about it I do think i'll scratch the leveling option.

Thanks, I had seen that article as a link from the RRS website. It was a good read.

Thanks Harry,

Phil U.

patch29 wrote:

If you are going to hike with it the 1228 packs shorter. I know it picked by a lot of the landscape photographers.

Yea, that's a good point. The shorter folded length might be useful.

patch29 wrote:

I have a friend who bought a 1327 CF two months ago and I am not very happy with him, because after working with his, I really want a CF tripod. the 1327 has been awesome so far, it just does not pack down very short.

Hmmm... the 1327 looks interesting, but then like you say, it doesn't get very short... If they had a 4-segment version (like the 1228) that would probably be the winner.

patch29 wrote:

I thought they were unavailable? Did they give you a shipping date?

The website told me that the head and pano elements kit were both in stock. The vertical kit was out of stock and it wouldn't even let me add it to my cart. As of 7:40pm eastern I have a tracking number so I'd say it's ready to ship

Thanks for your help!

ian408

You'll be pleased with the head. It's a thing of beauty.

Ditch the leveling stuff. The ball head will give you what you need.

There's a Gitzo 4 section CF tripod. I forget the model number. Then there's another
Gittos (spelling?) that people have said some nice things about too. The difference
in price is significant enough to consider the later.

ian

Phil U.

Hmmmm.... Ok, so ruling out the center column, perhaps the 1348 might be the way to go. There's the option of adding a center column later if I decide I really need it. It only packs down to 24" but it still only weighs 4.75lbs. Since it doesn't have the column, it can go down to 4.5" minimum height (for those times we lay on the ground to look up )

That might work.

Phil U.

ian408 wrote:

You'll be pleased with the head. It's a thing of beauty.

Ditch the leveling stuff. The ball head will give you what you need.

Yea, that's the conclusion I've come to.

ian408 wrote:

Gittos (spelling?) that people have said some nice things about too. The difference
in price is significant enough to consider the later.

ian

Considered - decided I didn't want to cut myself short on this one. I'm willing to spend the extra now so as to not spend again before I should have to.

Thanks Ian!

pathfinder

ian408 wrote:

You'll be pleased with the head. It's a thing of beauty.

Ditch the leveling stuff. The ball head will give you what you need.

There's a Gitzo 4 section CF tripod. I forget the model number. Then there's another
Gittos (spelling?) that people have said some nice things about too. The difference
in price is significant enough to consider the later.

ian

I agree with Ian, that the RRS Ball head is superb. It has completely replaced my Arca-Swiss head for me on my 1227 legs. But I disagree about the levelling base. I use Gitzo 1325 legs with a levelling base and a large Arca Swiss head with a Wimberly Sidekick, and thinki it is a great combination for panning with telephoto lenses. The levelling base allows you to pan via the panning feature of the AS head,with the ball locked down, and that can be very handy. But the 1325 Legs set is not nearly as light as a 1227 for regular DSLR work.
There is a levelling bubble on the base of the 1227 legs, but it is not nearly as fast to level as the levelling base on the 1325 setup. For carrying very far the 1227 is nicer to carry.
You will also love the panning clamp set up from RRS as well. Sounds like you are willing to purchase excellent equipment. A good tripod and clam set up is a joy to use. A bad tripod is a PITA. Buy a L-bracket for your camera body from RRS also.

There is a very good article with pictures about these tripods here http://www.outbackphoto.com/the_bag/uwes_tripods/essay.html

Phil U.

pathfinder wrote:

But I disagree about the levelling base. I use Gitzo 1325 legs with a levelling base and a large Arca Swiss head with a Wimberly Sidekick, and thinki it is a great combination for panning with telephoto lenses. The levelling base allows you to pan via the panning feature of the AS head,with the ball locked down, and that can be very handy.

Ah, I do see a possible good use for it in that case. In my browsing I had seen the Sidekick and thought it looked interesting. In that configuration it would definitely be worthwhile to have an easy way to level the base...

pathfinder wrote:

There is a very good article with pictures about these tripods here http://www.outbackphoto.com/the_bag/uwes_tripods/essay.html

Yes, another good article.

Thanks Pathfinder!

MrBook2

Seriously, where does it end?!
You guys are killing me here. My bank account can only take so much punishment. I buy a D70 and I start drooling over glass. I know my tripod is cheap and woefully inadequate, but I didn't realize I was going to have to drop quite so much cash to get a good one.

Oh well. It isn't like I enjoyed having money.

--Aaron

pathfinder

MrBook2 wrote:

You guys are killing me here. My bank account can only take so much punishment. I buy a D70 and I start drooling over glass. I know my tripod is cheap and woefully inadequate, but I didn't realize I was going to have to drop quite so much cash to get a good one.

Oh well. It isn't like I enjoyed having money.

--Aaron

You know Aaron, I had the same exact feeling when I first went to RRS and looked at the prices of Gitzo tripods and the assorted gadgets that RRS makes for cameras and tripods. WOW!! Swallow hard.:D

So I bought a cheaper tripod from my local dealer - but I never really used it very often - heavy, unstable, hard to set up, very little joy of onwership, but better than nothing. I still use that cheap tripod to hold an electronic flash as a background light at times. Ane I then went out and bought a good tripod - what a difference. I wished I had done that in the first place.
Good tripods are not inexpensive - but they can be a joy to use - and a good tripod will allow you to capture the optical quality that is built into your camera and lenses. Almost nothing will increase the optical quality of your images - and the composition as well - as a really good tripod that is used regularly.
I like the Gitzo so well that I now own more than one. A lighter one for field use and heavier one for long telephoto use. One thought that really helped me abut the cost - a good tripod should last forever - long after the current generation fo DSLRs is ancient history. They will also hold 2 1/4 sq cameras, 4x5, 8x10 - lots of stuff.

Angelo

Phil - you seem to have a clear idea of the direction you're heading in but if it's any help, I just purchased a new tripod and was pleasantly surprised to find this at Best Buy for only $79.99. It's sturdy, not heavy, has many features, two level bobs and a tilt, pan head.

After purchasing the tripod I went to Samy's Camera and compared it to all the pro models priced at $200 and above and saw little if any difference.

This model does not have the ball head that everyone seems to like but I believe you can add one if you look here.

Phil U.

Angelo wrote:

Phil - you seem to have a clear idea of the direction you're heading in but if it's any help, I just purchased a new tripod and was pleasantly surprised to find this at Best Buy for only $79.99. It's sturdy, not heavy, has many features, two level bobs and a tilt, pan head.

After purchasing the tripod I went to Samy's Camera and compared it to all the pro models priced at $200 and above and saw little if any difference.

This model does not have the ball head that everyone seems to like but I believe you can add one if you look here.

Thanks Angelo. I have this model Sunpak tripod right now and am not happy with it (I know it'll only get worse when I do move on to heavier equipment). Maybe I'm just hell-bent on spending a wad of cash... I'm looking forward to something better.

Right now I think I've decided on the Gitzo 1348 as it allows me the ability to choose a diferent center piece (column, leveling base, etc.) at a future date if I decide to change it up. I'll probably put in the order Friday (expecting a nice "bonus" check to come in). My opinion may change (or be changed by someone making a good point) more than once before then of course.

Angelo

Phil U. wrote:

Thanks Angelo. I have this model Sunpak tripod right now and am not happy with it (I know it'll only get worse when I do move on to heavier equipment). Maybe I'm just hell-bent on spending a wad of cash... I'm looking forward to something better.

Right now I think I've decided on the Gitzo 1348 as it allows me the ability to choose a diferent center piece (column, leveling base, etc.) at a future date if I decide to change it up. I'll probably put in the order Friday (expecting a nice "bonus" check to come in). My opinion may change (or be changed by someone making a good point) more than once before then of course.

Just curious, what don't you like about that model. (My Sunpak is a better model)

Phil U.

Angelo wrote:

Just curious, what don't you like about that model. (My Sunpak is a better model)

The whole thing just feels loose and unsteady. It's difficult to keep it consistent from shot to shot (I like to do multiple exposures for dynamic range). With the column extended it gets even more wobbly. I want something that will lock in place where I want it without a whole bunch of hassle.

Angelo

Phil U. wrote:

The whole thing just feels loose and unsteady. It's difficult to keep it consistent from shot to shot (I like to do multiple exposures for dynamic range). With the column extended it gets even more wobbly. I want something that will lock in place where I want it without a whole bunch of hassle.

you must have a really inferior model. The unit I just purchased is solid as a rock. (7500 Pro)

Phil U.

Thanks for your help everyone. I recieved the RRS stuff last night. WOW, I am very impressed by how this stuff is put together. The attention to detail and the quality of the manufacturing is amazing. :wow I can't wait to put it into service.

I just put in the order for the Gitzo 1348 through B&H's website. I expect it won't take long to get from NY to VA.

WOOHOO - new toys!