Sturdy travel tripod with smooth pan for documentary work
- Thread starter Regnis
- Start date
Fourth Line
Active member
I'm a big fan of my Miller DS20 and Solo Carbon Fiber legs. Super light weight, sturdy, relatively compact and smooth as silk.
keylight
Veteran
So... Cost IS a limitation then?
Forth gave you a great suggestion. I was about to give you another based on your original question, but then I saw your response. So.....
What you want (according to what your title says) is incongruous with what you're willing to spend.
I would suggest you consider editing your original post to provide more accurate information, namely that you're only wanting to spend $300-$400 (Australian I assume, so that's about $270-$360 USD). You'll end up getting a lot of cheap sticks with Manfrotto head suggestions at that price range though - not very stable and not very smooth.
Oh, would also help to know what kind of camera you're going to put on it. (Is it the Canon in your sig?) And you might check out the Support Gear section where there are lots of posts on tripods.
Mark Williams
Veteran
Benro S-6 is fairly light at 6.9 lbs. http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/896849-REG/Benro_a2573fs6_A2573F_SERS_2_AL.html
It was reviewed at http://provideocoalition.com/awilt/story/review_benro_video_tripod_kits/
It was reviewed at http://provideocoalition.com/awilt/story/review_benro_video_tripod_kits/
Andrew Stone
Veteran
The Miller DS20 with the Solo carbon fiber legs are considered by many to be the go to field tripod and for good reason in my view. Given your cost limitation though it sure looks like Mark has found a good recommendation. The review leads me to believe you should opt for the higher end version of the Benro, the S6 with carbon fiber legs. The metal hook under the centrer post will be an important tool to weight down your tripod, so your legs don't jump around.
Bruce Watson
Veteran
About the bottom end of the range for tripods that qualify as "Sturdy travel tripod with smooth pan" is going to be something like the Sachtler Ace. The Ace M has a decent head, but the legs are subject to some wind up and therefore you can get some kick back on pans if you aren't careful. Weight limit is something like 4 kg, so heavy rigs are out. Cost is around $600 USD.
Next step up might be the Sachtler Ace L, which has carbon fiber legs (saves you about 0.5 kg) and has a higher weight limit (IIRC about 6 kg). And it has a lighted bubble level (don't sell this short; it can be a quite valuable feature). But now you're up around $1k USD.
Both the Sachtler Ace models can handle very lightweight camera rigs, down to nearly 0 kg. They have the lightest weight capability of any of the reasonable entry level tripods AFAIK.
Next step up might be a Vinten Vision Blue, but it only works well with weight range of 2.1-5 kg, which is fairly restrictive. And it costs around $1.2k USD. But people love it.
That's my summary of the low cost end of the tripod market. There are of course numerous options in the sub-$600 USD range, but none of them work all that well as far as I can tell, especially with really light weight cameras. In this way, this question is similar to the ubiquitous "less than $500 USD radio mic" question. The answer is, none of the less than $500 USD radio mics work very well. The first decent performance level is over $600 USD. Just like tripods. I'm just sayin'.
Next step up might be the Sachtler Ace L, which has carbon fiber legs (saves you about 0.5 kg) and has a higher weight limit (IIRC about 6 kg). And it has a lighted bubble level (don't sell this short; it can be a quite valuable feature). But now you're up around $1k USD.
Both the Sachtler Ace models can handle very lightweight camera rigs, down to nearly 0 kg. They have the lightest weight capability of any of the reasonable entry level tripods AFAIK.
Next step up might be a Vinten Vision Blue, but it only works well with weight range of 2.1-5 kg, which is fairly restrictive. And it costs around $1.2k USD. But people love it.
That's my summary of the low cost end of the tripod market. There are of course numerous options in the sub-$600 USD range, but none of them work all that well as far as I can tell, especially with really light weight cameras. In this way, this question is similar to the ubiquitous "less than $500 USD radio mic" question. The answer is, none of the less than $500 USD radio mics work very well. The first decent performance level is over $600 USD. Just like tripods. I'm just sayin'.
Regnis
Active member
Hey guys thank you very much for the recommendations.
Yeah, sorry about the confusion in the posts. Since the original post I have bought a lot of equipment and am therefore now looking for something in the $300-400 range (aussie dollar). Just checked out a number of reviews on the S6 Benro and it looks great for the price - thank you very much for the recommendation/reviews Mark! This is a good detailed review but is very long... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-74M4w_GSo
We will be using 5Dmk3 and 6D's for documentary work in Brazil next year. Lenses used will be those in my sig (except for the 100-400) as I will probably sell that before I leave. Looking at maybe also investing in a Lilliput monitor, not sure.
I have used the Berno Travel Angel tripod for my photography work for the past 6 years and it has been really good.
In regards to the Benro Video Tripod S6 I really don't see anything that justifies the price difference between the Aluminium and Carbon Fibre models. I think I will probably go ahead and purchase the Aluminium S6. I am also interested in the new Benro video monopod...http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=OfcVdan3Dvo
Yeah, sorry about the confusion in the posts. Since the original post I have bought a lot of equipment and am therefore now looking for something in the $300-400 range (aussie dollar). Just checked out a number of reviews on the S6 Benro and it looks great for the price - thank you very much for the recommendation/reviews Mark! This is a good detailed review but is very long... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-74M4w_GSo
We will be using 5Dmk3 and 6D's for documentary work in Brazil next year. Lenses used will be those in my sig (except for the 100-400) as I will probably sell that before I leave. Looking at maybe also investing in a Lilliput monitor, not sure.
I have used the Berno Travel Angel tripod for my photography work for the past 6 years and it has been really good.
In regards to the Benro Video Tripod S6 I really don't see anything that justifies the price difference between the Aluminium and Carbon Fibre models. I think I will probably go ahead and purchase the Aluminium S6. I am also interested in the new Benro video monopod...http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=OfcVdan3Dvo