Tripod Selection

[vamsi_coe]

Hi Guys,

I am not sure if this is the right place to ask... but here it is..

I own an EOS REBEL XS (1000D) camera, I own the standard kit lens + Canon EF-S 55-250mm f/4.0-5.6 IS Telephoto Zoom Lens. All these days I have been trying to shoot in a low light scenario.. late evenings, cloudy sunrise times and really have been disappointed with my performance. This has forced me to think about owning a tripod and another economic lens ( may be ).
I have been searching in Amazon but really, those reviews are confusing and I am not able to decide upon any particular product.

It would be really great if you could suggest any good not so costly tripod and a lens ( for portraiture and low light pics )

Thanks,
Vamsi

[RichardTaylor]

Keep in mind that a tripod, if it is a good one, may be a once in a lifetime purchase.
Do not be supprised at the price you may have to pay for them.

I have a Manfrotto 190 series 3 section aluminium tripod with a 486TCS ball head. I am happy with it for the loads I use on it.

However if in the future you are going to load it up a bit more with larger lense/macro rails/flashguns I would suggest a head with a 12kg load capacity (instead of 6kg) would be be better.

[Krusty79]

I don't have a specific recommendation, but if you go to this page and scroll down to my post, I've collected a bunch of threads about buying tripods - Everything you ever wanted to know about photography! On DPS!

[dvtldav]

The tripod is not the expensive part, the ballhead or panhead or gimbal head or whatever you use to mount the camera on costs as much if not more than the tripod.
I just bought an Induro tripod that I like a lot and it was $150 for just the tripod and I already had tilt pan head. The next cheapest tripod Induro had was around $125. If you can find an Induro compare them to the Bogen, Gitzo's and the Manfrotto and see what you think. You will probably spend $200+ for the entire set up if you get a decent one but as was mentioned earlier it will last a liftime.

Dave

[SwissJon]

I've got a Manfrotto Bogen 190XPROB Tripod with a 322RC2 Grip action ball head. Cost $269 for the whole lot from an ebay seller DHSummer from South Korea. That's about half what I would have paid locally, and the shipping form was marked $60 value, so customs waved it through!

Manfrotto are generally regarded as among the best tripods, and I must say, mine doesn't disappoint. It's solid as a rock, easy to use and very adaptable, worth every cent. Maximum height is my eye height, minimum height is about 1cm..

Before that I spent $30 each on 3 cheap tripods, each of which wobbled. Wish I haddn't, they would have been a complete waste of money if I hadn't converted them so they now hold my flash umbrella's and speed lights.

If you buy cheap, you'll buy twice, if you buy expensive, you'll stick with that.

Bear in mind that Tripods are pretty heavy items.. You might also want to invest in a Gorillapod, they aren't nearly as stable, but they fit easily into a camera bag and are better than holding by hand, and are lighter than beanbags. I fitted the same Manfrotto quick release clamp to it as my main tripod so I can leave the plate attached. And since I shoot film too, I bought a second plate for my film camera, so everything is now interchangeable.. That's one of the advantages of buying a well known make.. You can get spares.

[Biomech]

I second the Manfrotto, I use a Manfrotto 190XPROB with the 802rc2 head - awesomeness and not ridiculously expensive

[milosh]

I have a Velbon Sherpa 600R tripod with their PHD-157Q head. I wanted to buy the Manfrotto 190XProb but I wanted something a bit higher and it was too expensive for me. This Velbon is pretty cheap and I find it solid enough and it's easy to set up and operate. They have newer models now.

[ProPhoto]

Originally Posted by SwissJon

I've got a Manfrotto Bogen 190XPROB Tripod with a 322RC2 Grip action ball head. Cost $269 for the whole lot from an ebay seller DHSummer from South Korea. That's about half what I would have paid locally, and the shipping form was marked $60 value, so customs waved it through!

Manfrotto are generally regarded as among the best tripods, and I must say, mine doesn't disappoint. It's solid as a rock, easy to use and very adaptable, worth every cent. Maximum height is my eye height, minimum height is about 1cm..

Before that I spent $30 each on 3 cheap tripods, each of which wobbled. Wish I haddn't, they would have been a complete waste of money if I hadn't converted them so they now hold my flash umbrella's and speed lights.

If you buy cheap, you'll buy twice, if you buy expensive, you'll stick with that.

Bear in mind that Tripods are pretty heavy items.. You might also want to invest in a Gorillapod, they aren't nearly as stable, but they fit easily into a camera bag and are better than holding by hand, and are lighter than beanbags. I fitted the same Manfrotto quick release clamp to it as my main tripod so I can leave the plate attached. And since I shoot film too, I bought a second plate for my film camera, so everything is now interchangeable.. That's one of the advantages of buying a well known make.. You can get spares.

I couldn't agree more with this assessment -- right on target!