"Tripods"

[jonny_redhorse]

anyone familiar with the bogen-manfrotto 728b?...I hope it's a decent set up because it's on order ...not the cheapest but not the most expensive(actually hardly)...will handle almost 8 pound capacity....ball head and also a "quick release"...I know there's a dozen brands out there and kinda tough wondering if this particular tripod will "do the job"...I'm looking for "rock solid steady" ...hope this one does just that ...and the ability to pan fluidly.....What do you think Steve?..

[Steve Foss]

Jonny, I use the 724B, which is essentially the same thing you ordered, except mine has a ballhead, not a pan/tilt head. It's rated just below eight pounds, and I've shot up to seven pounds of gear on it and it's still rock solid. Should do you fine.

[jonny_redhorse]

yes Steve !...I see the 728 is a pan and tilt....not a ball head...should still be ok for what I need it for...hopefully better then the ambico $19.00 special I had from Wallyworld years ago! ....

[Ufatz]

I will second the 724B. Nice piece of gear for the weight and the price. And pretty dependable too.

[jonny_redhorse]

both are nice from reading up on em....ball has less knobs to turn ,unlock and retighten but after looking at reviews ....almost the same....reviews pros and cons both ways......both very good ratings...main thing is the solidness and are put together well...mine should be here by wednesday....maybe ....this tripod thing is new to me...never used one before.... ......(I looked in the closet for my old, cheapy,$19.00 blue light special....my wife said.."don't you remember,you threw it away 2 years ago!")...looking forward to my new manfrotto

[Steve Foss]

Jonny, for your use, a pan/tilt head probably actually is better. Most birders with spotting scopes prefer them. Ballhead works really well for me with macro when I need to get into cramped hilly situations because I don't have to level the tripod to get a "level" horizon, and it allows me to be a bit lazy when setting up for landscape or wildlife work for the same reason.

But I think this is a case where digiscoping, coming from the birding world and using birding spotting scopes, will work great from a pan/tilt.

At some point you'll also want to look into a window mount for the scope. With that kind of power, I expect you'll be able to shoot from the car pretty frequently (of course, gotta turn the engine off to eliminate any vibration).

[jonny_redhorse]

"it's in the mail"!...bogen window mount that is...hopefully get here by mid-week..bogen 3292/with tripod head...don't want to keep takng the other one off each time...will it be here by the bog trip...not sure

[Big_show]

slight hijack....just so there isnt another tripod thread...I received a Rebel XT for xmas. Any ideas for a general purpose tripod for a person on a budget? I predominately do alot of long exposures, looking to do more wildlife, scenery, and documenting my woodworking and timberframes.

thanks for any suggestions....

thanks...

[Steve Foss]

Hey Big Show, welcome to FM. Great to have you here!

The answer to your question is in this very thread. The aforementioned Manfrotto 725B (ballhead) or 728B (pan/tilt head), is a great tripod that'll support nearly 8 pounds and be rock solid. About $115.

[Big_show]

yeah i looked into that tripod...but I wasnt considering $115 to be for the 'differently budget disabled' person such as myself. Know of any decent lesser cost alternatives?

[Paul]

Big SHow,

I will throw my comment into the ring for you. I orginally bought a lessor tripod, only to be so disgusted with itI returned it and ordered up the bogen. THere are some ok $70.00 pods out there made my companies like sunpak, and quantaray, but they are bulky and heavy were the bogen is light and packable, while being extremly ridgid. I realized that I was much better off spending and extra $60.00 over my original cheap-o big box store garden variety tripod. I have not so much as even looked back since buying my bogen manfrotto 700 series with ball head. I even went one step further and bought the bogen manfrotto monopod to mach my tripod as well.

[bigshow]

Paul,

your experience between lesser and better is helpful. I use a tripod from a toy telescope on my point and shoot that has some manual controls - and its done what i needed it to. But, i do know...that now that i have a 300mm lens - that camera shake in low light is a huge issue and i'll need stability...oh to have IS. But, I think I'll need to go get some hands-on on some tripods and keep the one recommended in this thread in consideration if i dont find one that i think will work in the local photography store. Thanks for the recommendations and anecdotes.