Note to Forum:

[dEARlEADER]

hehe sorry
but I do agree - let me guess one fault -- can't get low enough ?
or is it worse?

Trying to take a picture of a glowing tube on the back of my guitar amp...

-Can't get down low enough.... that's fine... phone books under the amp
-Need portraiture of the tube.... I extend the 105 to 1:1 and the screw thread unwinds and the camera swings to six o'clock... the end of the extended lens smacks off the leg.... yay!
-I retighten.. again... but the frame is off center.. I hold the camera... loosen the knob... adjust the frame... tighten the knob..let go of the camera.. and it moves back off center.... yay! Did I mention it's hot in the room?
-I hold the camera.. loosen the knob.. overcompensate the adjustment.... tighten the knob.... let go of the camera and it doesn't move..... Grrrrr
-I reposition the tripod to get a different angle... I loosen the pan handle to pan up.... I tighten.... start to focus...the screw clips unwinds again and the camera drops to six again.... another whack off the leg....

ho hum..

 

[BuZzZeRkEr]

How to turn a $30 tripod into a 3,000 tripod?

Mount a D200 with a 17-55 f/2.8 lens on it.

Instead of the intial cost..... 100 bucks for a tripod made to support the weight, your $30 tripod just cost you $3,000 bucks!

 

[Rachelsne]

oh common....

firstly the nature of the thread is humor

secondly i am one of the poor schmucks you mention.... this is why I have a Walmart Sansomite Tripod

thirdly i would ask if you have tried macro work with your tripod?

fourthly tomorrow i'm taking my credit card to buy a Manfrotto.. and if you asked me last month I would have told you that I'd never spend more than $30 on a tripod

I cant afford a macro lens

i want one of those fancy tripods that allow the head to be down near the ground, if I buy that though there is no way i could afford the macro lens!

I was in a serious mood as I was in a grumpy mood sorry:hugs: so I read your your initial post as a kinda nasty one. good job i didnt start a fight:hail:

 

[Battou]

Well its not walmart, but its still cheap end
My tripod:

on the left you see a tripod, lightweight and easy to carry around, rapid led deployment, though very plasticy with the head.
Now to the right is the handle that used to control the tilt of the head - I was shooting wilfowl and my position meant that the handle was getting in my way and I was using it with no friction on, so I unscrewed it and put it to one side. After that the nut inside the head fell out of its holding - I now have no tilt lock
end result - much better than no tripod - but no way near as good as the proper thing!

I have damn nere (if not the same tripod), Had it for about a year now, Got it at Wall-Mart, Mine is a MX 2000 - 61inch, I use it for Macro all the time, with a SRL and Bellows.

I beat the the living piss out of my tripods, I have well exceeded the weight capasity of all three of my tripods (I put my SLR on a digital inovations 9 inch pocket tripod, 400mm lens and flim SLR on Targus - 48 inch Travel tripod and of course the bellows with many different lenses on the MX). As long as you use them in properly they will hold for the most part.

*EDIT*
Results

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v371/battousaiofnphiles/Photos/296957_011_2_2.jpg

 

[Overread16 4]

see using a belows is just cheating but it gives a very fine shot!
and I would think you would need a fibre optical lens like a hose to get a shot of inside a bluebell (without of course picking the bluebell)
As for weight I reckon you can exceed the limits on most tripods and heads and provided that you are a little gentle in your handeling they won't break, but start getting rough (or doing it way to often) things might start --- bending