Is a Gitzo GT5531s overkill?

[pjtn]

I'm doing long exposure landscape photos of around 3-5 minutes and my current tripod is not nearly sturdy enough. I'm upgrading to a medium format digital soon too which will be heavier. Would a Gitzo GT5531s be overkill for this? It looks like a nice and sturdy tripod but I'm worried it might be going too far.

[stpf8]

I'd certainly rather go too far than not far enough.  Looks like a great tripod (3 sections, no center column, series 5) for stability.

[pjtn]

Yes that is a good point. This tripod seems the next best thing to a couple tons of cement slab :-)

[marcmccalmont]

I find it a bit too large for traveling with, but great for "shooting from the back of your car" stuff
the 3 series is a better compromise if you are going to travel with it. I have a Burzynski ball head on the 5 series, rock solid, and a RRS BH55 on the 3 series, good enough
Go for the 3 series w/RRS for general purpose use
Marc

[BernardLanguillier]

I have been using one for a few years, to my eyes it is the most stable tripod money can buy.

The extra weight does add stability compared to the high end RRS in my book.

Cheers,
Bernard

[Ellis Vener]

I use an even heavier aluminum legged Gitzo (I've had it since 1987) with a cranked center column. I don't hike with it but I will walk short distances (up to a  mile or so) with it.
So no I don't think the 5532s will be overkill. Hanging your backpack shoulder bag from the center column helps stability.

What is the weight difference between a 5531s and a Gitzo GT4330LS Series 4 Aluminum Systematic 3 Section Tripod with G-Lock and what is the price difference?

Which head will you be using?

[pjtn]

The GT5531s is 2.7kg whereas the GT4330LS is 3.4kg. The price between these is much the same, I can get the GT5531s for a very decent price.

I've considered getting spikes for the feet too if that will make it more sturdy.

The head will be the next choice to make. I very much like the look of the Arca Swiss Z1, however ball heads can be a little problematic when trying to fine tune a composition. The Arca Swiss D4 looks tempting too but is very expensive. I know Gitzo and Manfrotto make pan and tilt heads but I can't imagine they're up to the standards of an Arca Swiss.

[Scott O.]

I don't think you can have overkill with a tripod. But I do see the need to have 2 of them, one a rock solid beast and another which is better suited to travel/carrying/hiking etc. I am currently shooting in Zion, and gave up on hiking with the beast so am doing a bunch of hand-held stuff, which I generally avoid.

[Ellis Vener]

The Arca-Swiss B1 and Z1 heads are far better than most ball heads at precisely setting compositions - little to no creep and the aspherical ball shape works well to have the ball very slightly  a little loose to fine tune composition and prevent smashed/pinched fingers. There are a lot of heads that externally resemble the B1 and Z1 but none have A-S's aspherical ball. I like the RRS clamps over Arca-Swiss' these days so get one of the A-S ball heads with their clamp and then immediately remove it and replace with one of Really Right Stuff's clamps.

In medium weight rational ( double tilt movements plus pan) heads you should look at the Manfrotto 405 and 410 heads as they are geared. The Induro PHQ3 is also very good as it has a panning mechanism on both the bottom of the head and on the camera platform. All three lock down tight.
For a heavyweight rational head the Foba ASMIA head is terrific and used ones show on eBay from time to time at reasonable prices. They have a larger range of tilt movements on both axis than any other head I've ever used, incredibly smooth motion and were designed and built with  Sinar P 8x10 large format cameras in mind but they are large and heavy.  I use one regularly  and my lightweight head is an Arca-Swiss B1. Both are topped with an RRS PCL-1 panning clamp.

[leuallen]

I have the Induro PHQ 3 and I would not recommend it. When unloosening to make a minor adjustment, it takes a lot of force. It seems to 'stick'. When it finally loosens the adjustment is thrown way off kilter and there goes your minor adjustment. Minor adjustment - a couple of degrees to the horizon for example. Probably spoiled by using a geared head. (410 which I love but is heavy)

The head does not tilt upward near enough. If you have to shoot up, you must reverse the camera so that the up-down handle is in front instead of back so that you can use the down movement for up. This is aggravating and time consuming if in a hurry.

The collapsible handles do not stay tight, they wobble and rattle. It annoys me. Fix: tighten down with wrench but then no longer collapsible in the field.

The upper rotating panning mechanism is no big deal if you use a leveling base which I do on all my tripods. The first thing I do is level the head which I have gotten pretty quick at. Then if I need to pan a significant amount, the horizon is not thrown off kilter by the pan, requiring another adjustment. So it is quicker to level first and make one adjustment rather than not level and make two adjustment from then on.

Larry

[Colorado David]

What's overkill?  Would your equipment be too stable?

All kidding aside, I have an old aluminum Gitzo that is simply too heavy to carry to the field.  But other than that, I'm a big fan of a good solid Gitzo.  I once bought a lesser tripod for a specific trip that would involve a lot of backcountry travel.  My colleague and I did a side-by-side comparison between his Gitzo and my comparable (sized) other brand tripod,  There was no comparison, the Gitzo of the same size and weight, although much older and beat-up was far superior.