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Author Topic: Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business  (Read 13239 times)

timhurst

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« on: November 10, 2007, 12:22:08 pm »

Hello,

I'm getting consistently bad results from my Manfrotto 055 CLB tripod when shooting with a 1ds2 + 70-200 2.8 IS mounted on an RRS BH-55 (mirror lock up etc). A recent dawn shoot was a complete right off from camera shake. When it has this much kit on it you can see it start shaking in a slight breeze. Stick a grad filter on the front and it's even worse as it catches the wind.

The question is would plunking a pile of cash down on one of the larger Gitzos get me rock solid sharpness? Is it possible to get perfectly sharp pics in a moderate breeze/light wind with a long lens 100% of the time or am I expecting too much?.

Greatly appreciated if any one has any experience/advice to share.

Cheers

Tim

Just to clarify...... for shooting landscape work at longish exposures
« Last Edit: November 10, 2007, 07:00:01 pm by timhurst »
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jerryrock

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #1 on: November 11, 2007, 03:59:32 pm »

I have the Manfotto 055CL/NG17, which is basically the same tripod with rounded aluminum legs. I have a Manfrotto 468MGRC2 ballhead mounted on it and shoot with a 1Ds & 70-200 2.8 IS.  

I have used the combination outdoors, but never with a very strong wind. The tripod is rated for over 25 lbs and the RRS ballhead for 50lbs. It seems that you do have the right equipment. Have you tried stabilizing by hanging weight from the center. Do you leave the stabilizer turned on in mode 1?
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Gerald J Skrocki

timhurst

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #2 on: November 11, 2007, 05:37:19 pm »

Quote
Have you tried stabilizing by hanging weight from the center. Do you leave the stabilizer turned on in mode 1?

I've always switched it off in the past as it degrades quality slightly when tripod mounted. I may start using it though as ever so slightly softer is better than a smudgy mess that goes straight in the bin.

I've tried hanging my bag off it to help stabilise but it didn't help. I know the tripod is rated for a few kilos over what this kit weighs and as such works fine indoors. Outdoors is another story though and it appears that under load it is very susceptible to vibration from the wind.

Would a carbon fibre help in this respect? I understand they have better vibration damping properties compared to aluminium. I am looking at the Gitzo GT3540LS or GT3540XLS which are rated for about 18kg but cost a small fortune and I don't know if they would make the problem go away.

Any ideas?
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sojournerphoto

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #3 on: November 11, 2007, 06:14:06 pm »

Quote
I've always switched it off in the past as it degrades quality slightly when tripod mounted. I may start using it though as ever so slightly softer is better than a smudgy mess that goes straight in the bin.

I've tried hanging my bag off it to help stabilise but it didn't help. I know the tripod is rated for a few kilos over what this kit weighs and as such works fine indoors. Outdoors is another story though and it appears that under load it is very susceptible to vibration from the wind.

Would a carbon fibre help in this respect? I understand they have better vibration damping properties compared to aluminium. I am looking at the Gitzo GT3540LS or GT3540XLS which are rated for about 18kg but cost a small fortune and I don't know if they would make the problem go away.

Any ideas?
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=152008\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

I leave IS on on my old slik!! the later lenses are supposed to detect the tripod if you hold the half press position on the shutter release for long enough - and then change theoperation to a more appropriate form.

Funnily I once left IS on for a 30 second exposure at night, and that wasn't very nice.

Mike
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Morgan_Moore

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #4 on: November 11, 2007, 06:56:00 pm »

You could try standing upwind of the tripod

S
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Sam Morgan Moore Bristol UK

timhurst

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #5 on: November 12, 2007, 01:26:26 pm »

"the later lenses are supposed to detect the tripod if you hold the half press position on the shutter release for long enough"

I'll give that a shot. I wasn't aware a long half press did anything.

"You could try standing upwind of the tripod"

Tried it ... the lack of a third leg means optimal sheltering is impossible to achieve!!
« Last Edit: June 11, 2008, 05:57:04 pm by timhurst »
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Morgan_Moore

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #6 on: November 12, 2007, 01:49:22 pm »

Quote
Tried it ... the lack of a third leg means optimal sheltering is impossible to achieve. But hey maybe a third leg is cheaper than a Gitzo!!
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=152155\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

You saying youve only got two legs  

Try a golf brolly

To be fair I dont know how puny this pod is

I have a frotto with braces onto the legs (and a gitzo 1963 specia which looks like it was made from scaffoldingl)

S
« Last Edit: November 12, 2007, 01:50:18 pm by Morgan_Moore »
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Sam Morgan Moore Bristol UK

Diapositivo

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #7 on: November 12, 2007, 06:02:52 pm »

Quote
I've tried hanging my bag off it to help stabilise but it didn't help. I know the tripod is rated for a few kilos over what this kit weighs and as such works fine indoors. Outdoors is another story though and it appears that under load it is very susceptible to vibration from the wind.

[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=152008\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

Well, I have to say this:
If the tripod works well indoor, but is not stable outdoor when there is breeze, maybe the blur you obtain is your subject (grass, tree leaves, water surface etc.) which sligtly moves because of the wind and so appears blurred. In this case the only thing that would help is using a shorter shutter time. No matter how much you stabilise your tripod, if the wind moves your subject and the shutter time is slow enough, your subject will be blurred.

I can hardly think of a tripod which is stabilized with a weight and yet suffers from a bit of breeze, but it is stable when it is used indoor.

Just a suggestion
Cheers
Fabrizio
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timhurst

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #8 on: November 13, 2007, 03:35:35 am »

Quote
Well, I have to say this:
If the tripod works well indoor, but is not stable outdoor when there is breeze, maybe the blur you obtain is your subject (grass, tree leaves, water surface etc.) which sligtly moves because of the wind and so appears blurred. In this case the only thing that would help is using a shorter shutter time. No matter how much you stabilise your tripod, if the wind moves your subject and the shutter time is slow enough, your subject will be blurred.

I can hardly think of a tripod which is stabilized with a weight and yet suffers from a bit of breeze, but it is stable when it is used indoor.

Just a suggestion
Cheers
Fabrizio
[a href=\"index.php?act=findpost&pid=152249\"][{POST_SNAPBACK}][/a]

The problem is one of vibration and no it's not the subject moving. But thanks!
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Diapositivo

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #9 on: November 13, 2007, 06:20:38 am »

In this case I have two suggestions:

as already said, staying upwind of the tripod, I suggest the variation: with your coat open, shielding with it the tripod/camera (just imagine you are a sexual maniac and your tripod is a beautiful girl, ya know, open your raincoat wide    )

I would enquiry on any thing you do differently indoor and outdoor. As a suggestion: indoor maybe you never use a long tele, outdoor you do. Some long tele have a "tripod mount"  (a collar where you can screw the tripod plate) which if not properly made makes a very bad job of stabilising the lens, and some telelenses seem to be infamous for this.  Sometimes it is better to mount the tripod directly on the camera even if the lens has got a tripod mount.

Besides, if the system on the tripod is perfectly balanced (the tripod is screwed on the real baricenter, the vibration comes from an extremity of the system, with maximum leverage) the vibration problem might be worse. It seems that with very long focal lenses a perfect "baricentering" of the system does thing worse.

Another advice I can give when outdoor is to place the tripod on the ground with the steel points rather than with the rubber feet (your Manfrotto tripod probably has both, you "screw in" the rubber and the steel point comes out).
When you are indoor the tripod rests on solid ground, when you are outdoor if the tripod rests on grass, leaves etc. that is not solid ground and could be the source of your problem.

If you use long telelenses, a solution might be to use two tripods (the heavier one screwed to the camera bottom and the smaller sustaining your telelens with interposition of a rice bag). As an alternative to the two tripod solution, Manfrotto makes an extension arm which sustains the extremity of your tele (with the old same rice bag) and discharges the weight diagonally on a leg of the tripod (you use only one tripod but the camera/lens system is held in two points, making it much more vibration resistant).

Hope this helps
Fabrizio
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timhurst

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #10 on: November 14, 2007, 11:51:44 am »

Fabrizio

Thank you, good suggestions one and all - except the one about being downwind 'cos that's where my shot was!! ;-).

What I'm really looking for though is if anyone has experience of both a mid range manfrotto and a large gitzo and how they differ in performance. The question being is the cost worth it for the assumed increase in performance?
« Last Edit: June 11, 2008, 05:56:05 pm by timhurst »
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panoak

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Manfrotto 055CLB not doing the business
« Reply #11 on: November 17, 2007, 10:37:37 pm »

This one comes from the "weird idea" category, but sometimes it works.  In any home improvement place, you can find 3/8" studs that have a standard 3/8 x 16 thread on one side, and a lag bolt on the other end, in various lengths.  When nothing else works, you dig this little guy out of your bag, along with your 6" vice grips, and screw it into the nearest available heavy wooden thing.  Thread your tripod head onto that, and presto!  You can get creative, and use a lock nut and fender washer under the head, to make it solid without bottoming out on the threads.  The lag bolt side is available in lengths up to around 6", so that allows for a horizontal screw position with room to move the camera to either horiz. or vertical.
     I used to use this set-up on hikes in the Uinta Mtns. in Utah, with good success.
You just think different, from the tripod perspective to the "available anchor" perspective.  This also works well if you want to return to the exact shooting position later on, because these studs are cheap enough to just leave in place.
     Look around, next time you're "out there", and notice that there are often numerous heavy fence posts, tree stumps, and convenient shapes in the trees where this would work very well.
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