lct Posted January 7, 2010 Share #1 Posted January 7, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) I'm planning to order the following stuff for Canon 5D + 180 & 280 Leica-R lenses + 1.4x extender to shoot mostly slow-moving remote subjects: Induro 8X CT314 Tripod Induro BHD3 Ballhead Weight is not of paramount importance. Aside from Arca-Swi$$, would you have better ideas? Thanks in advance. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
Advertisement Posted January 7, 2010 Posted January 7, 2010 Hi lct, Take a look here Advice on Tripod & Ball Head. I'm sure you'll find what you were looking for!
cliffp Posted January 7, 2010 Share #2 Posted January 7, 2010 I really like Gitzo carbon fibre mountaineer tripods (I have the 1228) and Really Right Stuff ballheads (BH-55 or BH-40) Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
pgk Posted January 7, 2010 Share #3 Posted January 7, 2010 I'll second the Gitzo and RRS combination. I've used Gitzos for 30 years (still have/use the original 'Reporter' I bought used in 1980 and aside from one tight leg, due to a dent which is wearing in and slackening now, it still operates fine) and have an RRS BH-55 and 25 which are well made heads. I don't know the Induro so I can't compare to it with Gitzo, but I used to have an Arca Ballhead and I much prefer the RRS. FWIW you can interchange many Gitzo leg parts so adding height later is possible - I have 4 Gitzos out of which I have 2 fully operational tripods - one 7' tall, the other very light. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_n Posted January 7, 2010 Share #4 Posted January 7, 2010 I'm sure you've done your online research and have probably gone into stores and tried tripods for yourself. I found it really useful to try as many different tripods as I could and I spent several weekends haunting the camera stores in and around Boston setting them up and fitting my camera on when I was buying. At that time the 3rd party CF models like Feisol and Velbon were becoming popular so there was a lot of comparing to do. I spent hours at it! Boringly enough, I ended up just like Cliff with a G-1228 but mine was used and I think cost about $300. I got replacement sleeves from Gitzo in NJ and followed some very simple online instructions to service it, put spikes on the feet and replaced the center column with a Markins baseplate. Have been very happy. The first issue is the center column on this Induro and the rig you have on it. Your longest focal length is around 400mm with a heavy(ish) body and you are shooting remote subjects. If you extend the center column your results may not be the sharpest. Have you tried your longest camera/lens combo on the tripod? I didn't and ended up replacing the center column with a base plate (see pic below) that solved the problem completely so I suggest you try before you buy. Don't know if you can get a baseplate for the Induro. The second and more general issue is the quality. I haven't been reading about tripods since I bought my own but it seems the Benro/Induro tripods are well thought of after some earlier issues with quality. While the tripods are Gitzo knock-offs they improved the design by using "stronger" CF (multi-layered I think) and collets that don't bind when they're wet. I think they're too new for long-term evaluations but if I were buying now I'd seriously consider trying one, that's for sure. My dealer told me recently that used Gitzos are still good value but the new basalt models are not that great (whatever that means - maybe lower markup...). I'd still probably buy the Gitzo though especially after my own experience with 3+ years of use with mine. They are indestructible. Is there a reason why you're buying a four-section leg model, like traveling with it? If not the three-section (if they make one) would be more rigid. The ballhead though I'm not so sure about. I've only used one ballhead-related Benro product and that was an Arca/Swiss type camera plate, and it was very poor quality. It was also very cheap. No doubt you've read the "tear-down" review that's a couple of years old now. Pretty bad, a sample of one but nevertheless I'm glad I didn't get one of those things. If I were buying a ballhead now I'd look at the Markins (beautifully engineered products - I use their A/S QR clamps & plates) and the Arca Swiss Z1. The Markins Q3 has a load rating of 65lbs and costs $270 from the manufacturer or eBay, the M10 (90lbs) costs around $315 I think. If you're investing in an A/S quick release type system I'd steer clear of the flip-lock clamps and stay with the screw clamps. Also be careful of the RRS clamps and plates, slightly different dovetail clamp angle & plates mean they need to be used together, somewhat defeating what is supposedly a standard system design. A pity because the RRS build quality is excellent. OK lunchtime over and I have to get back to work. Sorry for the long rambly post. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/108921-advice-on-tripod-ball-head/?do=findComment&comment=1178341'>More sharing options...
lct Posted January 7, 2010 Author Share #5 Posted January 7, 2010 Wow thanks for all those tips folks. As you might suspect it i'm more or less a newbie in this matter, my current tripod is a 20+ yo Gitzo if memory serves and i know nothing about current stuff, ball heads specially. I'll study your responses very carefully. Thank you for taking the time to enlighten me. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
farnz Posted January 7, 2010 Share #6 Posted January 7, 2010 LCT, I use a 5DII with 80-200 f/4 Vario-Elmar-R and I also use a Gitzo but with a Novoflex Magic Ball head. Your 280 f4 APO-Telyt-R will be slightly heavier than my lens but the Magic Ball will cope with it without a problem. The Magic Ball is (like all Novoflex products) beautifully constructed and finished and is the best ball head I've ever used because it is so simple to operate. With other ball heads I find myself having to manhandle the camera with one hand to get it into the right position and fiddle with a knob or a lever to lock it into place with the other hand; and moving a camera from landscape to portrait position means finding the 'notch', which always seems to be in the wrong place and requires further fiddling about. The Magic Ball uses a panhandle with a knurled surface to quickly lock the camera in position and the collar allows the tension on the panhandle to be preset. Moving from landscape to portrait is simple and the camera can be dropped down to portrait from any landscape position because the camera fastens to the bridge, which rotates around the ball. There are 3 sizes of Magic Ball but for your intended use I would advise going for the largest. Pete. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
marknorton Posted January 7, 2010 Share #7 Posted January 7, 2010 Advertisement (gone after registration) I wouldn't recommend using a ball head with a heavy long lens. Ball heads are fundamentally unstable and a heavy camera/lens can make the thing topple and hit the deck which will seriously ruin your day. Instead, I use a gimbal bracket which suspends the lens from above instead of supporting it from below. I use the Custom Brackets version, shown here with my D3x and Nikon's 200-400 zoom. The thing is balanced which makes using as long lens much easier. Welcome, dear visitor! As registered member you'd see an image here… Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! As regards tripods, I don't much like legs where each clamp has to be locked/released separately. Take a look at Manfrotto's Neotec tripod where you just pull out a leg as far as you want and it locks automatically. Link to post Share on other sites Simply register for free here – We are always happy to welcome new members! As regards tripods, I don't much like legs where each clamp has to be locked/released separately. Take a look at Manfrotto's Neotec tripod where you just pull out a leg as far as you want and it locks automatically. ' data-webShareUrl='https://www.l-camera-forum.com/topic/108921-advice-on-tripod-ball-head/?do=findComment&comment=1178481'>More sharing options...
Angora Posted January 8, 2010 Share #8 Posted January 8, 2010 [...] Also be careful of the RRS clamps and plates, slightly different dovetail clamp angle & plates mean they need to be used together, somewhat defeating what is supposedly a standard system design. A pity because the RRS build quality is excellent. OK lunchtime over and I have to get back to work. Sorry for the long rambly post. Never apologise for a long and well-written post like yours, Peter, that's what enriches this forum! Now for my part, I'd just point out that I have a RRS plate that matches well with my Markins Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_n Posted January 8, 2010 Share #9 Posted January 8, 2010 Thanks for the comment Angora! Also for the tip about RRS and Markins - I understand that there are several niggly little differences among the various A/S type manufacturers. I use an RRS L-plate on my dSLR and it works well with my Markins clamp but it is not a perfect fit, there are very slight differences in the dovetail angles. One other recommendation I forgot to slip in above is for a universal plate; the Wimberley P-5 is by far the best one I've used - a really well made product that works very well. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted January 8, 2010 Author Share #10 Posted January 8, 2010 The gimbal concept is tempting indeed but i'm impressed about Matt Sallis' comparison with the Manfrotto 136 fluid video head on photo.net. I can have a new copy for a mere 139 EUR here so i could well give it a try with my old tripod to begin with. Any contraindication? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
marknorton Posted January 8, 2010 Share #11 Posted January 8, 2010 Sounds worth trying to me... Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter_n Posted January 8, 2010 Share #12 Posted January 8, 2010 Yes it does but do you really need it? I mean you're shooting "slow-moving remote subjects" so given that they're almost dead why not just lock the mirror & fire the cam with a remote wireless device? Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
perb Posted January 9, 2010 Share #13 Posted January 9, 2010 Leica M8 Experience Regards Per Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
sunil Posted January 9, 2010 Share #14 Posted January 9, 2010 I'm planning to order the following stuff for Canon 5D + 180 & 280 Leica-R lenses + 1.4x extender to shoot mostly slow-moving remote subjects:Induro 8X CT314 Tripod Induro BHD3 Ballhead Weight is not of paramount importance. Aside from Arca-Swi$$, would you have better ideas? Thanks in advance. I agree with many of the responders that the Gitzo and Really Right Stuff make a great combination. RRS website even has excellent suggestions on what to look for in a tripod and head for the kind of pictures one takes. Clearly, unless you travel a lot where size and weight are paramount, you'd want a more sturdy tripod with less sections etc. etc. I have a Gitzo Traveller and a tabletop, both with RRS heads. So far they have more than met my expectations. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
lct Posted January 9, 2010 Author Share #15 Posted January 9, 2010 Yes it does but do you really need it? I mean you're shooting "slow-moving remote subjects" so given that they're almost dead why not just lock the mirror & fire the cam with a remote wireless device?... Hehe almost dead... Did not think of that. No no just slow-moving like this. Link to post Share on other sites More sharing options...
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