Fluid Head Tripod

J

JoeDonaldson

Member
I would like to purchase a good fluid head tripod, I have been having trouble finding a good setup. Seems like all the sets of sticks and heads are all pretty heavy. Yet to buy sticks and head seperatly it seems over 500 dollars for any set up I have found. If anyone can give me feedback or links to good heads and lightweight sticks it would be very apreciated. Preferable around the 200-300 dollar range.

thanks
-Joe
 
Cameras come and go but microphones and tripods don't. So get something good. At this price it's to find anything that will last. Check out the Miller tripods. Light weight and perfect for all hand held cameras out there. Sorry if wasn't helpful in recommending a tripod in your price range.
 
Joe,
What do you mean by true fluid head? It has a 75mm ball mount and everything.
The next best thing you're going to get is really going to jump the price.

The 503HDV head alone costs $350. With a tripod about $450.
 
pointsofhonesty said:
how is the 501 head not a true fluid head?
Click to expand...

it's not a true fluid head. i don't think the 503 is either actually. well maybe they updated the new hdv model but the old one wasn't. i wouldn't expect the 503 to be much better than the 501. i have owned both. for a true fluid head that you will not regret, try the cartoni focus f100. so much better than the manfrotto stuff.

the big thing is an adjustable counterweight spring. you have no idea how important this is until you work with one. it means being able to tilt the camera to any position back and forth and it will stay put without you holding it. if you have a non-adjustable spring then unless your camera happens to be the perfect weight for that spring, you will either be fighting the spring or fighting the weight of the cam to hold position during tilts. this means jerky shots. a properly adjusted head will hold the cam in place and you can operate it with fingertips for super smooth moves.

i'm not talking about the fluid drag adjustment either. i'm talking about a separate control for the spring. the manfrotto 501, 503, and 516 do not have this control. when i jumped from my 503 to the focus my pans and tilts improved 100% and i wondered what i ever did without it...
 
I used a 503 earlier this week, and it certainly didn't operate like a fluid head. It was really poor, compared to what I'm used to (Vinten Vision 6 head). Buy the best you can get when it comes to the tripod/head combination. You won't regret it.

If I was buying a new tripod/head, I would be looking at Miller and also the Schatler SOOM system (http://www.dv.com/reviews/reviews_item.php?articleId=196604128)
 
The thing with tripods are that they will last along time if you take care of it. My uncle has a very, very old tripod from the early 80's and he still shoots with it has a backup. Spend the money and keep it for as long as possible.
 
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