Need advice for a sturdy tripod and head

cayenne

CR Pro
Mar 28, 2012
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The RRS would be on the top of my list if I live in USA. But I am in Australia and the taxes and shipping costs make the RRS way over my budget.

I like tripods with a centre column. I know most of you prefer one without for extra stability. But I like the flexibility of the centre column when I need that little extra height.


I have to admin, I do wish I had a center column on my RRS set up...especially when setting up to take close up "product" like shots, or even macro stuff.

C
 
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Deleted member 91053

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Hi Chz.
Have you considered Sirui, I have a Sirui carbon fibre monopod which I find excellent, I also just bought a Sirui tilt head to replace the Manfrotto POS that I bought first. If their ball heads are as well built as the tilt head I can’t see you being disappointed.
Anyone have any knowledge about the Sirui ball heads?

Cheers, Graham.

I also have a Sirui mono pod (P424) and it is an excellent piece of kit, unfortunately I have not been able to get any of their "Systematic" style (R series?) tripods at good money hence my Gitzo tripods. I have played with a few Sirui tripods and they are pretty good. As to their K--x series ball heads - I am an owner and fan.
 
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Deleted member 91053

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Wow! AUD$682 for a brand new GT4542L? The T4543LS is AUD$1430 with 25% discount.

I did have a play with a few superteles. Love them but they are over $10,000 a piece. I am not a pro and I don’t shoot sports or wildlife, so don’t have a use case and certainly cannot justify one :).

The question now is which ball head and plates I should get.

It was on "Sale" at the time but I buy when the price is right. Remember this is, currently, my most expensive Gitzo.

A fair while back I picked up a G1318 carbon centre column for systematic tripods for £100 (Aud 182) which I thought was pretty good. The trouble was that it came with a G1329 Mk2 (carbon 3 series tripod) attached and that was from a high street camera shop.

In some ways we have it better over here, but you wouldn't like Welsh weather:mad:
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
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For what it is worth, I've had really good results with RRS and Kirk plates. As far as heads are concerned, a lot of friends swear by RRS ball-heads and I've gotten good results and durability from my Markins heads.

Yes, it appears the RRS and Kirk plates are vowed by many here.

I heard good things about the Markins. Are they on the same quality as the RRS, Acratech and Arca-Swiss heads?
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
96
It was on "Sale" at the time but I buy when the price is right. Remember this is, currently, my most expensive Gitzo.

A fair while back I picked up a G1318 carbon centre column for systematic tripods for £100 (Aud 182) which I thought was pretty good. The trouble was that it came with a G1329 Mk2 (carbon 3 series tripod) attached and that was from a high street camera shop.

In some ways we have it better over here, but you wouldn't like Welsh weather:mad:

Yeah, everything seems to be overpriced down under. I think we are being ripped off lol.
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
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I bought into the Really Right Stuff tripod, L bracket and ball head system, and have
Cbeen quite happy with it so far....a little $$ but quality seems high and I believe it is all still made in the USA?

C

Do you notice the extra weight with L bracket attached to the camera?

I will need to compare the RRS, Acratech and Arca Swiss heads.
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
96
Hi Chz.
Have you considered Sirui, I have a Sirui carbon fibre monopod which I find excellent, I also just bought a Sirui tilt head to replace the Manfrotto POS that I bought first. If their ball heads are as well built as the tilt head I can’t see you being disappointed.
Anyone have any knowledge about the Sirui ball heads?
I would think the Sirui legs would be a good solution too.

I have lots of Manfrotto gear and the tilt head is the only bit that I could describe as a POS as it is sloppy and cannot be tightened to stop a lens crushing a finger. The rest of the Manfrotto that I have is good to excellent although I have swapped out all the RC2 clamp plates for Arca Swiss style generic items for compatibility reasons, :unsure: hard to put an RC2 clamp on a gimbal! ;)

Cheers, Graham.

Hi Graeme, I have heard about the Sirui tripods but not sure how they compare to the top in class such as the RRS and Gitzo.

I am looking for one that can hold my fullframe cameras and 100-400 lens plus extender in windy conditions, reasonably light weight and will last for years.

My current Manfrotto 190 and Xpro ball head can't wait come with even moderate winds.

Cheers,
Chanh
 
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cayenne

CR Pro
Mar 28, 2012
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Do you notice the extra weight with L bracket attached to the camera?

I will need to compare the RRS, Acratech and Arca Swiss heads.

Honestly, I do not notice it...I leave it on all the time, I've had it on while shooting concert series like Jazzfest for 4 days in a row, often with the 70-200 2.8 L lens and I have no problems with it.

I have the RRS arca swiss connectors on my RRS ball head of course, but I also got connectors from RRS and attached them to my old Manfrotto monopod and video tripod with fluid video head on it...the adapter screws onto the manfrotto plates and I just leave in there. So, now I can just move my 5D3 from any setup I want...monopod, video tripod, stills tripod an I even set it up to work with the Kessler Crane motion control slider I've piddled with....LBracket works just great fo rme, and easy to go from landscape to portrait and back quickly.

HTH,

C
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
96
Honestly, I do not notice it...I leave it on all the time, I've had it on while shooting concert series like Jazzfest for 4 days in a row, often with the 70-200 2.8 L lens and I have no problems with it.

I have the RRS arca swiss connectors on my RRS ball head of course, but I also got connectors from RRS and attached them to my old Manfrotto monopod and video tripod with fluid video head on it...the adapter screws onto the manfrotto plates and I just leave in there. So, now I can just move my 5D3 from any setup I want...monopod, video tripod, stills tripod an I even set it up to work with the Kessler Crane motion control slider I've piddled with....LBracket works just great fo rme, and easy to go from landscape to portrait and back quickly.

HTH,

C

I have a 5D III as well and recently bought the R. I probably will get an L plate for the R. Just not sure which brand.
 
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jmeyer

http://www.jeremymeyer.photography
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Dec 11, 2014
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jeremymeyer.photography
I was going to buy an RRS tripod this spring, but a few things didn't work out and I didn't have the extra money. Innorel RT-90C tripod, which I found on Amazon and read a bunch of reviews about it. I was reluctant to purchase and put 8k worth of enjoyment on it. I made the purchase anyway and when I got it, I was surprised at how awesome it was. I've been using it for over a month now and it's amazing. My friend that has an RRS was pleasantly surprised by the quality as well. So if you haven't purchased yet, consider this one.


Jeremy
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
96
I was going to buy an RRS tripod this spring, but a few things didn't work out and I didn't have the extra money. Innorel RT-90C tripod, which I found on Amazon and read a bunch of reviews about it. I was reluctant to purchase and put 8k worth of enjoyment on it. I made the purchase anyway and when I got it, I was surprised at how awesome it was. I've been using it for over a month now and it's amazing. My friend that has an RRS was pleasantly surprised by the quality as well. So if you haven't purchased yet, consider this one.


Jeremy

Thanks for the suggestion Jeremy. That's very good value. I will take a closer look.

Chanh
 
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JPAZ

If only I knew what I was doing.....
CR Pro
Sep 8, 2012
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I heard good things about the Markins. Are they on the same quality as the RRS, Acratech and Arca-Swiss heads?

FWIW, I have tried a friend's RRS head and it is great. My tripods are all RRS and I do appreciate the quality there, as well. But, have a 2 Markins heads (Q10 on my big tripod and Q3 on my travel). I've been very pleased. They are rock solid stable and have no trouble holding a 5D4 with plate and a 100-400 + 2x for example. They have seemed quite durable and the quality of construction is top-notch.

I guess it all comes down to what you like, what you can afford, and what is available where you live. If Markins is an option for you and it works, I'd not hesitate to get one.
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
96
FWIW, I have tried a friend's RRS head and it is great. My tripods are all RRS and I do appreciate the quality there, as well. But, have a 2 Markins heads (Q10 on my big tripod and Q3 on my travel). I've been very pleased. They are rock solid stable and have no trouble holding a 5D4 with plate and a 100-400 + 2x for example. They have seemed quite durable and the quality of construction is top-notch.

I guess it all comes down to what you like, what you can afford, and what is available where you live. If Markins is an option for you and it works, I'd not hesitate to get one.
Thanks.

Given your tripods are RRS, I am curious that you favour the Markins's ball heads over the RRS. Is it because they are cheaper and better quality?
 
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scottkinfw

Wildlife photography is my passion
CR Pro
I Agree with Neuro- RRS makes excellent quality tripods, heads and accessories, so prepare to pay a premium. If you can wait until December and want to take a risk, Peak Design is putting out a tripod/head on Kickstarter that looks interesting for travel. I signed up for one (I have RRS and love it, however the tripod is rather large and heavy. The ball head is awesome!).
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
96
I Agree with Neuro- RRS makes excellent quality tripods, heads and accessories, so prepare to pay a premium. If you can wait until December and want to take a risk, Peak Design is putting out a tripod/head on Kickstarter that looks interesting for travel. I signed up for one (I have RRS and love it, however the tripod is rather large and heavy. The ball head is awesome!).

I have a travel tripod and looking to upgrade my general purpose tripod. I've shortlisted to RRS and Gitzo tripod. I pick the Gitzo over RRS as I can get it locally and cheaper.

I am tossing between the RRS BH-40 and Acratech GP ball heads.
 
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JPAZ

If only I knew what I was doing.....
CR Pro
Sep 8, 2012
1,164
641
Southwest USA
Thanks.

Given your tripods are RRS, I am curious that you favour the Markins's ball heads over the RRS. Is it because they are cheaper and better quality?

I had a Markin head before I had any RRS legs (classic "tried cheap tripod adventure" then got better legs. My original Tripod now serves as a light stand :) ). Only other "benefit" for me is the Markins Q-Ball is a little taller than the RRS heads putting the OVF a little higher than it would sit on a RRS ballhead. The point is that I use my Markins head with up to a 5Div (with plate) and a 300 f/2.8 with 2x converter or a 100-400 mkii with no issue. I don't think this is a better or worse scenario. I am just saying that if Markins is an option you might want to look at them.
 
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CvH

CR Pro
Nov 19, 2014
199
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I had a Markin head before I had any RRS legs (classic "tried cheap tripod adventure" then got better legs. My original Tripod now serves as a light stand :) ). Only other "benefit" for me is the Markins Q-Ball is a little taller than the RRS heads putting the OVF a little higher than it would sit on a RRS ballhead. The point is that I use my Markins head with up to a 5Div (with plate) and a 300 f/2.8 with 2x converter or a 100-400 mkii with no issue. I don't think this is a better or worse scenario. I am just saying that if Markins is an option you might want to look at them.

Thanks fort the clarification .
 
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