Stupid question... why would I want a 8' tall tripod?

[TheOtherBob]

Dont some of these "real" tripods also allow you to lay the legs flat?

Say you had a large gap you wanted to span you would lay your 10ft legs across and get 20ft of span. I would think that would be a good reason. you could use it as a bridge lol.

Also, if you ever find yourself conscripted into an ancient Greek phalanx, all you have to do is take off the ball head, fit on your "spear head," and extend the tripod.

SPARTA!!!!



(Man I need sleep.)

 

[Alfred D.]

Got a tripod to span this?
http://web.mala.bc.ca/earle/arizona/photos/glen-canyon-view07.jpg

 

[TamiyaGuy]

I tell you, some of the ideas in this thread... :lmao:

But on a serious note, an 8ft tripod can be very useful for group shots where you want to be above all the action. It's also good for town photos, as you can get above the swarms of people barging past each other.

 

[Helen B]

I'll follow the crowd and say that I use tall tripods in conjunction with a short stepladder most often for group shots when using large format. For small format the stepladder is often all that is required. You can buy or rig a camera mount on a stepladder.

I've also found tall tripods useful when in a boat in shallow-ish water - the tall tripod can rest on the bottom while you are in the boat. I used to have an open-channel tripod for just that purpose. Wooden tripods are good, but there can be a flotation problem that needs to be remedied with a weight hung from the head (the tripod head, not your head).

One of the selling points for Benbo (not Benro) tripods is that the tubular legs are upside-down, so water stays out of the lower leg if the joint is above the water line (it's always good to keep the joint above water, or so I have heard) but you still might have a buoyancy problem - I don't know, I've never used a Benbo in water.

Best,
Helen

 

[WDodd]

My tripod is only 6'...does that make me less manly?

 

[randerson07]

My tripod is only 6'...does that make me less manly?

YES

 

[Josh66]

I've also found tall tripods useful when in a boat in shallow-ish water - the tall tripod can rest on the bottom while you are in the boat. I used to have an open-channel tripod for just that purpose. Wooden tripods are good, but there can be a flotation problem that needs to be remedied with a weight hung from the head (the tripod head, not your head).

I never thought of putting my tripod in the water. There have been a few times where that would have helped me a lot, the thought just never crossed my mind.

Helen, you always have great advice. Thanks.

 

[table1349]

I'm looking at "real" tripods now and I see some of them go up pretty high. Being the geek gadget monger that I am, I see bigger numbers and I think to myself "well, damn, I gotta get the BIG ONE", but then I start to think... you know, I'm only 5' 8"... eye level for me is like 5' 2"... I can't really use an 8' tall tripod unless I carry around a 3' step stool.

So... what's the point?

My fear is that if I get a smaller one that I might later stumble on the situation where I need it and go "Ohhhh THAT'S why I wanted the big one" and then kick myself for having a small (cough) tripod.

Thoughts?

Thanks!

When I was a yonker working on my granddaddy's farm one hot July day I asked him why he always wore long shirts. He looked at me in my t-shirt with a little smile and told me, "Boy I can always make this a short sleeve short buy rolling these sleeves up. You ain't never gonna make a long sleeve shirt out of that thing you're wearing."

Kinda like that shirt. You can make a short tripod out of a tall one but you will play hell making a tall tripod out of a short one.

 

[Marco]

Handy for on the side of the hill, when one leg extends down a lot further than the others.

 

[Jon0807]

I just came from a funeral and the videographer had what looked like an 8' tripod which he used to look over the crowd.

 

[manaheim]

Also, if you ever find yourself conscripted into an ancient Greek phalanx, all you have to do is take off the ball head, fit on your "spear head," and extend the tripod.

SPARTA!!!!



(Man I need sleep.)

:lmao:

Well, this idea aside, I saw several good reasons why you'd want one higher than your head (even without carrying a stool)... I think Jerry mention stairs. Good point.

In addition, yeah, I think I should really carry a stool around more. I was actually up on a ladder the other day in a parking lot... THAT was handy, But it's a little impractical and doesn't fit in my R32 (volkswagen Golf thing)... so a step stool would be a great "just in case".

Thanks, all.

I think I'm going to pickup the Manfrotto 055XPROB and the RC2 3-way head.

 

[dadCameraGuy]

i use my monopod to take photos of people over their heads... set it on auto-timer and hold it up... takes some practice getting the right angle, but can get some very interesting results in a non-standard way.

 

[Overread]

:lmao:
I think I'm going to pickup the Manfrotto 055XPROB and the RC2 3-way head.

do you intend to use it at its lowest height setting (ie right at ground level) a lot? If so then you might think about getting a right angle adaptor (code 553 part on manfrotto website) as when its is at ground level the centre column is set to the horizontal and is not removable, so your head and camera will not be at the vertical

 

[manaheim]

do you intend to use it at its lowest height setting (ie right at ground level) a lot? If so then you might think about getting a right angle adaptor (code 553 part on manfrotto website) as when its is at ground level the centre column is set to the horizontal and is not removable, so your head and camera will not be at the vertical

By ground level, I assume you mean like literally down near the ground? If so, generally not... I usually use it around eye level. However, I intend to bop down to the local camera shop sometime this week and check it out, so I'll ask about it to see.

Thanks for the tip. :thumbup:

 

[croomaniac]

use it for WL flash!~