Reader's Comments - Index of - Free

Tripods
"A good photo may make the landscape look beautiful, but a good laugh makes the
world look beautiful."
-- Cian Perez, September 29, 2000
Velbon 530 and its ball head PH-263 is almost the perfect lightweight tripod + head
combo. The combo is extremely light, even lighter than the Gitzo 1227 alone
without head. And the combo is also surprisingly sturdy! The PH-263 is also
feather light and more than sufficient to support my EOS 3 with 70-200L! Breaking
up the center column, you can go right down to the ground. And when raised, it is
well above 6 feet! Without raising the center column its height is just nice for my
1.8m build. I've been pondering over the Gitzo and Manfrotto carbon fiber tripod
for years. Though considered light by many, their weight still put me off. The Slik
is light but not sturdy. The Velbon is really a beauty, especially if you combine
with the ballhead. This combo is sturdy enough and the extra sturdiness of the
Velbon 630 or Gitzo or Manfrotto is not going to give me extra benefit. But the
saving in weight will greatly relieve my burden of carrying a tripod around. I
understand that it is not currently available in US. But if u come across it, grab it!
See here for more info.
-- Wee Keng_Hor, November 9, 2000
I found some of the comments regarding Benbo tripods in the original text to be
slightly negative. Sure, if you have an extremely heavy camera, or an extremely
heavy lens, then you are already placing demands on your tripod that neccessitate
specialist support. From my perspective, Benbos are great when using "normal"
gear, (I 35mm and 6x4.5) in unusual situations. They're great for going from the
general landscape view down to the floor without removing, reversing or changing
anything. If the mood takes you, just unlock everything, and let the camera find it's
natural position, then tighten the locks. It also allows medium format users to look
down into the focussing screen, rather than lie on their backs to look up into an
inverted column mounted Hasselblad or whatever. No macro rail? Just set the
column horizontal, and slide it in or out to focus. Drawbacks? Well, I've got a multiangle
head by Benbo, and that's like having a four axis pan/tilt head without the
levers, just little locking tabs for each axis. It's OK, but I think I might get a ball
head soon for general use (the Benbo standard model with pan is fine), as the multi
angle head takes a little too long to set up, although it's good for macro work. Nigel
Whitaker.
-- Nigel Whitaker, November 23, 2000
I just purchased a Bogen 3221 (black version of 3021) legset and a Bogen 3410 3-
http://www.photo.net/equipment/tripods/philg (44 of 53)7/3/2005 2:21:13 AM