Luminous Landscape Forum
Equipment & Techniques => Medium Format / Film / Digital Backs – and Large Sensor Photography => Topic started by: henrikfoto on February 22, 2012, 09:45:41 am
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I am looking to buy the best travel-tripod for MF
I have a good Gitzo, but it is strong and heavy.
I would like a light-weight tripod that is steady enough to hold a MF camera with little vibrations.
Any good ideas? I have seen the Benro Travel angel. Looks good, but I have never used Benro..
Any good?
Henrik
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My lighter weight travel tripod for MF digital is a RRS TVC-24. Absolutely love it. Just added the RRS leveling base for the TVC.
RRS just came out with a smaller "1 series" tripod, TQC-14, but it still has quite respectable specs. It's worth a look. http://reallyrightstuff.com/Items.aspx?code=TripodsRRS&key=cat
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Not very helpful, but if having a tripod matters, take the one that you use and like best, weight shouldn't really matter unless its an extreme case. That said I have CF Gitzo's so they are pretty light as is...I have the 3series and it is completely manageable.
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I am not sure it helps, but I use a Manfrotto Carbon One 441 three section carbon fiber tripod with a short center column and an Arca Swiss P0 ball head. I use this with a Pentax 645D and lenses up to 300mm.
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The RRS tripods have nice big nonslip feet on them. Having several Gitzos and a couple of RRS units, I find that I generally reach for the RRS. For light weight, packability, good height and quick operation I'd be inclined to try the new RRS series 1 unit with an Arca P0 head...
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I use a Gitzo GT1541 with a RRS BH-40 head. It has been a wonderful tripod for travel with my Alpa Max and Nikon D700 with primes and zooms. It folds into a suitcase or a small backpack well. It is super lightweight yet very sturdy and dependable. I would definitely buy it again.
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I'm still travelling with my Manfrotto 055 legs and #115 head. Heavy but absolutely reliable for everything from 35mm, DSLR, 6x7 and 4x5. I've had it for 20 years with travel throughout Europe, Africa, and North America including flying, driving, canoeing and backpacking and have not had reason to even consider anything else. Sure I might save some weight here and there, but I couldn't better what I have for less than $500 (and then I'd still have a perfectly usable tripod collecting dust!), so it's not worth it to give up this old workhorse. Maybe when it wears out... :D
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You could look at the Feisol tripods, especially the Rapid ones. They feature anti rotation legs just like the Gitzo range.
Here is the UK site as i find it easier to navigate around
http://www.feisoluk.com/Tripods-Rapid-Tripods/c24_52/index.html
And a review by Jack
http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/gear-garage/35096-feisol-carbon-fiber-tripods.html
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You could look at the Feisol tripods, especially the Rapid ones. They feature anti rotation legs just like the Gitzo range.
Here is the UK site as i find it easier to navigate around
http://www.feisoluk.com/Tripods-Rapid-Tripods/c24_52/index.html
And a review by Jack
http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/gear-garage/35096-feisol-carbon-fiber-tripods.html
I just got a Feisol tripod and completely agree with Jack's review. Great quality at a better price than a comparable Gitzo. Having owned a Gitzo before I looked at them closely, but in the end saw no reason not to go with the Feisol.
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You could look at the Feisol tripods, especially the Rapid ones. They feature anti rotation legs just like the Gitzo range.
Here is the UK site as i find it easier to navigate around
http://www.feisoluk.com/Tripods-Rapid-Tripods/c24_52/index.html
And a review by Jack
http://forum.getdpi.com/forum/gear-garage/35096-feisol-carbon-fiber-tripods.html
I'm puzzled by Feisol's "tournament grade tripods". What do they think people use tripods for - horseback jousting? ;D (I think adding an extensible centre column would give an unfair reach advantage...and I don't want to think of the damage those optional foot spikes would do).
They look like good tripods though. I'd seriously consider one if I had to have a lighter, more compact tripod.
For now though, much like luxborealis, I'm happy with my Manfrotto 028 (Triman). It does the job, whether with my MF cameras or my widefield telescopes. Love that geared, non roll-back centre column - I use it constantly to position the eyepiece comfortably - and the absolutely rigidity of the triangular, twin-shank leg design. I went for the older version with 2 leg sections rather than 3; fewer extensible sections equals even more rigidity. At 4.15 kg, the weight ain't that bad.
Ray
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I like heavy tripods.
I have a pretty light Bogen carbon fiber, and hang my backpack on it for weight and stability.
On the other hand, I also shoot with a Bogen 3052 and it's lovely when I have an assistant to carry it for me.
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I have a bunch of tripods for various purposes; mostly Gitzo including 3 CF ones. My largest Gitzo is an older Geant that I bought in the early 80's for taking shots with 4x5's and 8x10's of architectural subjects in cities above cars and such. It goes up to 11ft. but it doesn't travel far from the car.
My most used tripods at present are a first gen Gitzo 1228 CF and a Gitzo 3541XL. The latter handles most things that I do digitally (no 600/4 lenses!).
If I was buying a good tripod right now, I'd seriously consider the RRS line. Another definite jump up in price from the Gitzos, but truly superior quality.
And NEVER cheap out on the head!
Henning
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The 2012 Gitzo systematics have some nice improvements. Certainly worth a look. I have the 3541XLS for my medium format gear, and it's terrific combination of not too heavy but very sturdy. I'll probably upgrade to the 2012 version.
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I suggest (and myself use) the Gitzo 3541LS, with a Burzynski head which is designed to fit in the collar on the top of the tripod, making the combination very sturdy and compact at the same time. I also recommend the Berlebach wooden tripods (I use the Report 8003 model) which are quite lightweight, very sturdy and quicker to deploy and pack than the Gitzos, which is a consideration for me during travel.
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Do not buy this tripod for traveling ;)
(http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7186/6981635145_d3c3f21455_z.jpg)
/D
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I would like a light-weight tripod that is steady enough to hold a MF camera with little vibrations.
Any good ideas? I have seen the Benro Travel angel. Looks good, but I have never used Benro..
Any good?
It's really hard to say, because any tripod is a compromise, when weight and size matter .
There is a whole bunch of 'travel' tripods - the ones with the legs folding over - and I would even trust my cheap Horusbennu CF legs with Markins Q3T to hold my Mamiya RZ .
I'd still stay close, just in case ... ;)
The Benro Travel Angels are highly regarded, so are some Feisol models , and then there is also a strong-ish 2-Series Gitzo traveller (avoid the Gitzo ballhead).
In general, I'd avoid any 5 section legs, never use the center column with a 4+lbs camera with any of those travel tripods and use mirror lock-up whenever possible .
To be safe, I think a compact Gitzo 2-series or similar is the way to go with an MF camera; their weight and folded length is not very different from the more sturdy 'travel' legs .
A good place to find more information is here (http://photography-on-the.net/forum/forumdisplay.php?f=34) .
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Benro Travel Angel
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A rather odd alternative:
I was just traveling with family to the rain forest in Ecuador, for some hiking in the jungle. Took a MF camera and back, and was going to take a traveling tripod, but at the last minute, borrowed someone's monopod instead, as faster, simpler and lighter. It was a Manfrotto alum one, 682B, longish, 3 section only (sorry -returned it and didn't get the model number). Found out it had a small set of tripod legs tucked in the bottom, 9" long that unscrew from inside the monopod. Turns out there wasn't enough light in the jungle for monopod use at ISO 200
Its not small, nor light, but its remarkable in another way: with a solid ball head on it (RRS), its heavy weight and long sections allow use as an in-fleld tripod far more usefully than one might imagine. The alum sections dampen vibration very nicely: with MLU, and a 16 second shutter delay, and no extension (resulting in a camera height about 3' above the ground), and no wind, even an 8 second exposure was possible. Truly. And that was just on earth. With about 10" more extension, about 1-2 second exposures, etc. Wobble in cantilevers increases (I think) by length cubed (things one thinks about while waiting for shutter release), so you tune height to desired shutter speed. Surprisingly, shooting at iso 100 in a darkish jungle was possible, with an oh-so gentle shutter release, and the long delay, but it did work. Its an alternative to tripod travel. Goes nicely over the shoulder as well, and can work as a monopod too. Its likely the carbon fiber one wouldn't dampen out wobble so nicely.
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In my opinion the ideal tripod for moving about weighs two to three lb (like the Gitzo travelers). I also found that the best way to further reduce weight is to use a leveling base as the actual head. A sturdy head weighs at least one lb whereas a leveling base can be much lighter. The 15 degrees a leveling base lets you adjust is more than plenty for most situations.
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I use a four-section Hakuba which will fit in an airplane carryon. I do have to remove the ball head, though.