Tripod Recomendations

[Dweller]

I am considering a new tripod. I will be using it for some hiking, some nightime long exposure stuff and occasionally for indoor portraits or still life.

I have a "video" tripod now that although very stable is also pretty heavy when your packing it through the woods all day so I want to get something that will fit my needs a little better.

What do you use now? What brand? What style of head? What material for the legs? How many segments? What would you suggest for my needs?

 

[JohnMF]

ones with quick release head come in handy i think

 

[Lol999]

Depends upon how strong you are and what load you want to put on it. My Velbon Sherpa 450R weighs 2Kg and suypports 3.5Kg. Some people have called it heavy but I don't have a problem carrying it around. It has a quick release plate and, a nice touch, a single handle to control pan and tilt.

Cheers, Lol

 

[Dweller]

I should have mentioned this will be with a D70s and at most a 70-300mm lens. I dont see going anywhere beyond that.

 

[sobolik]

For a travel pod I love these at 1 1/4 lb.

If you want to get one off ebay then consider my previously posted recommendation...

Vintage Bilora Biloret's bought from ebay. I use Nikon FM2 and FE2 with Sigma 28-300 and 18-35 lenses. They are HEAVY and I have no stability complaints with the Biloret's. I sought diligently for the mother of all practical tripods and found it (them) in the vintage German Bilora Biloret tripods. And quality construction! They have the space saving ball head compared to the pan tilt. I do not need a panning handle. I bought the 3 I have on ebay at less than $20.00 with shipping for each. The 3 cover every need I have. For the ultimate in a light weight pocket model, the aluminum 1007K. About 1/2 lb. Flat-ish with legs all in a row when "folded" to 10" long. Or similar Biloret aluminum model. Maybe not the most durable for the very heavy handed like me but very light. For standard tripod photos I use the awesome 2037 brass beauty with out notches. About 1 1/4 lb. This is 11" tube shape folded and what I would take with out concerns on an African safaris or other once in a life time trip. If I carry my close up bellows setup I use the 2037 model with notches. Apparently the 2037 came with and with out. The one with notches allows the legs to be literally horizontal with the camera only 4" or so off the ground. Or any other height. With a close up bellows you can see how this could be an advantage. Also it is handy to do on the roof of a car or similar. I found only one modern day equivalent at only one place in my searches. It was at Circuit City and not prominently displayed. Rather the 3 were just sitting on top shelf of the racks. They were about $20.00. What good is a big tripod that you find excuses for not taking along? I do not hesitate with these.

 

[matdjj]

For a D70 with the 70-300 I dont think you will need anything that is very heavy. Maybe consider a sunpak and then just decide what features you want on it (levels, crank, etc). You can get [ame="http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00009UT28/sr=8-5/qid=1139801185/ref=pd_bbs_5/002-8576676-6124014?%5Fencoding=UTF8"]this [/ame]one for about $15 on amazon.