Rugged Tripod Suggustions?

spacefuzz

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Don't see how that's more rugged? Do the legs seal off?What exactly are you breaking anyways? BTW, I think I'ma try to build my own, anyone try this?
 
I have a cheaper carbon fiber Manfrotto ($100 at Costco) I got it to take to the beach, set up it water and drag it in the dirt and its held up great. After I take it to the beach I wash it off with fresh water, then wipe it down with a dry silicone spray. Just don't use WD40 or any other kind of penetrating oil, that'll attract dirt and sand.
 
Yeah $1000 for a tripod is really steep........ but I abuse the hell out of them. I plan to take it mountaineering in the high sierras as well as into waist deep surf at the beach. All my other tripods have jammed up with sand and started corroding. Then all the abuses of the back country. The alternative I was looking at was a nicer tripod in the $500 range, but I would be leery about taking it to the beach. At 3 lbs this also seems nice and light. Hard to spend that much on a tripod thought.....
 
Gitzo is outstanding. I don't know about the particular model you're looking at, but I use the GT3531 and it was worth every penny. Once set up, it doesn't wobble a mm. Really good strength to weight ratio as well. The one I have isn't even designed as one of their super portables, but it's still not a problem to carry around all day in the mountains. CF is great to handle in the winter too, seems like it doesn't even get cold.

If you've already spent (lost? :/ ) $600 on sketchy tripods, then you're one of the few people Gitzo is actually targeted at. $1000 seems like a lot, but you only spend it once, unlike the cheap stuff. It's just like spending $1000 on a lens. Seems like a lot until you own one, and then you see what the fuss is about.
 
You know. Unless you're shooting with circa 1965 8x10 monorail, a $600+ tripod is going to be WAY overkill.

I'm all for over engineering though, so if you've got the cash, go for it. But I'd rather spend my money on a good head than legs rated for a camera that weighs 10x what I'm using.
 
You know. Unless you're shooting with circa 1965 8x10 monorail, a $600+ tripod is going to be WAY overkill.

I don't think this is always true.

Part of what you spend on a tripod goes towards portability, reliability, positioning options, weather protection, ergonomics, etc... Additionally, put a 400mm lens on even the lightest dSLR and the differences between an overspec'd tripod and a mid-range one become clear in a hurry.

It totally depends on what you shoot, and what you expect your tripod to do. (and how much you depend on it)

Also, I believe the tripod the OP is talking about comes with a stainless steel head built to the same weather tolerance specs as the legs...
 
:drool:YOU ARE RICH!!!

I wish I have that much cash to spare.

Folks are passionate about art... I drive a beat up 10 year old car, share an apartment, and I hardly ever eat out, but I do shoot with a $1000 tripod. Gotta have priorities :lmao:
 
Yeah, comparing to thousands or even tens of thousand dolllars investment on gears, $1000 tripod worth it.
 
You know. Unless you're shooting with circa 1965 8x10 monorail, a $600+ tripod is going to be WAY overkill.

I don't think this is always true.

Yeah. I just kind of assumed that these legs were rated at like 50lb too.

I'm not sure what to make of this though. They're only rated at 8.8lb - at $1000, I'd hope that is conservative. I'm sure though the other features are great.
 
I read an article recently, about someone's search for the perfect/ideal tripod.
He mentioned doing a test with a few different tripods and a laser pointer. Basically, with the laser on the camera, he had it pointed to a wall 20' away and observed the spot while triggering the camera on different tripods. Any movement of the camera, caused by mirror and/or shutter actuation, was seen in the movement of the laser spot.

His result showed that truly high quality tripods do indeed make a difference in the stability of the camera...and as we should all know, to obtain maximum sharpness, you want the camera to be as still as possible.

I plan to do my own testing...one of these days.
 

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