mathbias
TPF Noob!
- Joined
- Nov 28, 2021
- Messages
- 67
- Reaction score
- 6
- Can others edit my Photos
- Photos OK to edit
I need a much better tripod, but I'm not sure of how much better, and I don't know which feature names fit the solutions to my existing issues.
Most of my issues are in smooth adjustment.
I have a Sunpack 6630LX tripod. It weighs just over 2 pounds. Light weight is great, but I expect I can't get decent features without going way up in weight, and I'd prefer function to light weight.
This one goes up to 66 inches. A few inches higher would be nice.
The overwhelming issue is adjustment. In each of three dimensions, fine adjustment is nearly impossible. Locking down the adjustment enough that it doesn't move on its own takes a fair amount of force, especially for the tilt (portrait vs. landscape dimension) and shooting angle up or down. But after loosening (for any of the three motions) actually adjusting is still pretty sticky and very hard to adjust a little. The whole structure flexes a bit elastically during adjustment. There is no practical way to release your firm grip before tightening in the new position, then as you let go, the amount it elastically returns can be a surprise. For the basic aim, unless I'm on very uneven ground, I find it easier to move the whole tripod than to adjust it.
5 seconds is plenty to damp out all motion when I let go after pressing the shutter, and it holds quite steady even in a moderate breeze. It is such a flimsy structure, I'm actually impressed it holds so well. But I need to have much less frustration in changing the exact direction in which it holds.
With my only point of reference this cheap and flimsy, I don't know how to compare features, such as ball joint vs. two separate hinge directions. What parts need to be metal and how do you tell online which parts are metal?
Most of my issues are in smooth adjustment.
I have a Sunpack 6630LX tripod. It weighs just over 2 pounds. Light weight is great, but I expect I can't get decent features without going way up in weight, and I'd prefer function to light weight.
This one goes up to 66 inches. A few inches higher would be nice.
The overwhelming issue is adjustment. In each of three dimensions, fine adjustment is nearly impossible. Locking down the adjustment enough that it doesn't move on its own takes a fair amount of force, especially for the tilt (portrait vs. landscape dimension) and shooting angle up or down. But after loosening (for any of the three motions) actually adjusting is still pretty sticky and very hard to adjust a little. The whole structure flexes a bit elastically during adjustment. There is no practical way to release your firm grip before tightening in the new position, then as you let go, the amount it elastically returns can be a surprise. For the basic aim, unless I'm on very uneven ground, I find it easier to move the whole tripod than to adjust it.
5 seconds is plenty to damp out all motion when I let go after pressing the shutter, and it holds quite steady even in a moderate breeze. It is such a flimsy structure, I'm actually impressed it holds so well. But I need to have much less frustration in changing the exact direction in which it holds.
With my only point of reference this cheap and flimsy, I don't know how to compare features, such as ball joint vs. two separate hinge directions. What parts need to be metal and how do you tell online which parts are metal?