Tripod questions too many choices

ballentphoto

OK I have an $800 budget and I have settled on the Markins M10 head and the the Kirk L-Bracket, so now I have to figure out the legs. Gitzo CF legs are out of the budget, but I am open to just about anything else. This will be my primary legs and needs to support a Nikon D200 and 70-200VR at the top weight for now, and possibly more weight (but not in the near future). Are the Basalt Gitzos as good as the CF flavors? Bogen/Manfrotto any good or Giottos? Help please... I leave in about 2 weeks so I need to order ASAP.

Bodwick

I'd go with the Markins head but not buy an L bracket. Use a plate and the heads ability to swing over for portraits. Buy the L later.

Use the cash to buy a CF tripod as this will save you a lot of weight. Check ebay for second hand as these things really do last for years.

If you want a tripod to carry any distance then weight is the factor to use for those 'shall I take it with me or not' moments.
The further you have to carry it the more important the weight factor is. A solid, heavy tripod is great but carry it a few miles and that extra 1kg+ add's up..

I'd say buy a CF tripod. I carry my Gitzo far further than my Manfrotto.

ballentphoto

Bodwick wrote:

I'd go with the Markins head but not buy an L bracket. Use a plate and the heads ability to swing over for portraits. Buy the L later.

Use the cash to buy a CF tripod as this will save you a lot of weight. Check ebay for second hand as these things really do last for years.

If you want a tripod to carry any distance then weight is the factor to use for those 'shall I take it with me or not' moments.
The further you have to carry it the more important the weight factor is. A solid, heavy tripod is great but carry it a few miles and that extra 1kg+ add's up..

I'd say buy a CF tripod. I carry my Gitzo far further than my Manfrotto.

This is a good idea, but I really like the idea of the L-bracket... Some more to think about. What model Gitzo do you have?

Bodwick

A G1228.

I just looked on ebay and there are quite a few Gitzo's. Also a $15(at the moment) Kirk plate for the D200...

I have a L bracket but also use plates on the lens at times.

ballentphoto

Bodwick wrote:

A G1228.

I just looked on ebay and there are quite a few Gitzo's. Also a $15(at the moment) Kirk plate for the D200...

I have a L bracket but also use plates on the lens at times.

Thanks for the heads up

Manfr3d

A relatively inexpensive L-Bracket can be had from Novoflex
(the blue L). If you are on a budget you should always have
a look at the very good velbon carbon tripods such as the
Sherpa Pro 700 and up, depending on your setup. Personaly
I use the Sherpa Pro 630CF for lightweight travel and its
very ridgit. I dont have a problem with a 70-200/2.8 lens
on it. As a ballhead I use Arcratech UMB V2. Velbon are
95% of what Gitzos are at almost only half the cost. So
I highly recommend it.

Link to Velbon: http://www.velbon-tripod.com/sherpa_pro.htm
Link to Acratech: http://www.acratech.net/
Link to Novoflex @ andromeda: http://www.adorama.com/NVMCVERTIKAL.html

Richard

Bodwick wrote:

I'd go with the Markins head but not buy an L bracket. Use a plate and the heads ability to swing over for portraits. Buy the L later.

Use the cash to buy a CF tripod as this will save you a lot of weight. Check ebay for second hand as these things really do last for years.

If you want a tripod to carry any distance then weight is the factor to use for those 'shall I take it with me or not' moments.
The further you have to carry it the more important the weight factor is. A solid, heavy tripod is great but carry it a few miles and that extra 1kg+ add's up..

I'd say buy a CF tripod. I carry my Gitzo far further than my Manfrotto.

I balked at the price of an L bracket at first. Seemed like an awful lot of money for a simple piece of metal. But I went ahead and bought it and I must say I am glad I did. It really reduces hassle when shooting and saves time.

I got the Manfrotto 055MF3 with a RRS BH40 ball head and L bracket. Came to about 100 over your budget (and mine ), but it is a very solid rig without weighing a ton. I only bought it about a month ago and haven't used it much yet, but so far it seems to be everything I wanted and more.

FWIW.

ian408

Don't forget the search feature of the forum. There've been more than a few
questions about tripods and a lot of really good info.

Gitzo 1257. RRS BH55 and L-brackets.

ballentphoto

Thank you all for your great help so I just bit the bullet and have picked up the Gitzo 1257 (3 section) a Markins M10 ballhead and the Kirk L-bracket for the D200. I will be picking up the legs locally and the rest will be coming from Nikonians later in the week, and hopefully it will be in by the weekend so I can test drive it before the big trip : Will report back on the combination once it's all set up

The wallet is lighter, but it's a lot better to just buy what you will server you out down the road than taking the hit constantly upgrading Thank you all again.

Manfr3d

I've heard that the M10 has problems when its wet, it tends to stick.

ballentphoto

Manfr3d wrote:

I've heard that the M10 has problems when its wet, it tends to stick.

Hmmm... I have not heard that... from my understanding it's pretty good in all conditions... and there are some really picky people that really like it... maybe if you are in freezing conditions and there is water in there it could stick... maybe that is what you heard. But if I run into some problem I will be the first to report it. When you drop that kind of money on a hunk of metal it had better live up to the price. Thanks for the heads up... will investigate further. may even give it a little swim hehehe

Bodwick

Looks like you made a good choice that will last you for years.

I wouldn't worry about a bit of rain. If it rusts solid post a pic here and nobody else will buy one. I'd guess the chances of that happening are zero.

Good luck and enjoy your purchase.


Bod.

jpmac55

ballentphoto wrote:

Thank you all for your great help so I just bit the bullet and have picked up the Gitzo 1257 (3 section) a Markins M10 ballhead and the Kirk L-bracket for the D200. quote]

Mike - congrat's on a great combo! I am curious why you didn't purchase a Markin's bracket.

I am still shopping and thought getting both from the same company was beneficial but guess it doesn't matter, especially if you like one more than the other. Thanks! - John

ballentphoto

jpmac55 wrote:

ballentphoto wrote:

Thank you all for your great help so I just bit the bullet and have picked up the Gitzo 1257 (3 section) a Markins M10 ballhead and the Kirk L-bracket for the D200. quote]

Mike - congrat's on a great combo! I am curious why you didn't purchase a Markin's bracket.

I am still shopping and thought getting both from the same company was beneficial but guess it doesn't matter, especially if you like one more than the other. Thanks! - John

The Markin's bracket only fits on the bottom of the camera so if I want to shoot in portrait mode I would have to "flop" the whole camera to the side of the ball head. With the L-bracket I would just detach camera and retach in protrait mode without having to "flop" the camera. It's mostly so one does not have to re-arrange the framing as much. Here is a pic of what I bought:



It's a pretty slick setup. The bracket and the ballhead are on their way so I'll put in a report when I get the setup. I already picked up the Gitzo