thomas_a_ferko Posted August 3, 1998 Share Posted August 3, 1998 Excluding the Gitzo 410 and the expensive carbon fiber tripods- who manufactures a LIGHT&TALL tripod that is suitable for field use with a medium format camera. I am 6' 5'' tall. I have a Gitzo 410 and it meets the height requirement I need without bending down to view through the camera. It does not have a center columb. I adjust only the legs for height and without the center columb I gain on stability. The downside is- for a long walk in the woods it soon becomes very heavy. Can someone recommend a lighter tripod that will go up near as high as the Gitzo 410 without extending a center columb? It should be able to collapse near to ground level also. Metal or wood makes no difference. Is such a tripod made? I will appreciate any input. Contact : talltandj@aol.com Tom Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brian_c._miller Posted August 3, 1998 Share Posted August 3, 1998 Have you thought about Benbo tripods? The Trekker is not great for medium format with the center pole fully extended, but they have one which has 48-in. legs, extensible to about 90-in. <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo">BH Photo Video</a> sells the tallest one for about $225. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tapas_maiti Posted August 4, 1998 Share Posted August 4, 1998 Thomas <p> I have a benbo 2 tripod - it is huge, I think it extends to over 2.5m but it is not light (3.6kg) and fully folded only goes down to 1.1m (benbos are two section tripods). Functionally it does everything you want - twists into any position, down to ground level etc. Fully extended I wouldn't recommend it for a pentax 67 but it wouldn't be a problem for any leaf shutter camera. Can't think of anything that's 6ft 5 inches tall and light ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin_campbell Posted August 4, 1998 Share Posted August 4, 1998 I'm in the Benbo camp here! It is rather heavy, but completely unstoppable in the field - goes high, goes low and does it in streams, on rocks and in mud. Previous post says he can only get his down to 1.1m, I'm confused by this as if you splay the legs and column I can get it down to about 2cm-3cm. I've found the lighter tripods not to be worth the effort, as they are too unstable in use - ESPECIALLY if you use them fully extended with a heavy camera. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tapas_maiti2 Posted August 5, 1998 Share Posted August 5, 1998 When I said that the benbo goes down to about 1.1.m, I was referring to the folded down length for packing/tavelling. For use, the benbo does indeed work down to ground level. <p> I have owned and used the benbo trekker, mark 1 and mark 2, I am a great fan of the trekker and mark1 but the benbo 2 (the one which fulfills Thomas height criteria) is a complete pain, it is much harder to work with at ground level because of its size. The tubing is the same size as the mark one but the extra length makes it unsteady for a pentax 67. <p> Personally the larger benbo tripods (mark 2 & 5) aren't field tripods unless you intead to use a jeep. <p> An alternative to the gitzo might me the manfrotto 55c (I don't know the american name). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tony_doucet Posted August 6, 1998 Share Posted August 6, 1998 I don't think that the Manfrotto 55c will be suitable for someone as tall as you are. I don't remember the specs for this tripod, but I am pretty sure that its height is less than 6 feet with centre column fully extended. I am, comparitively speaking, vertically challenged at 5 ft 8 in and this particular 'pod is comfortable for me to use with legs extended and centre column retracted. BTW: Manfrotto has a web page at www.manfrotto.com Maybe they have some tall merchandise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bob___10 Posted August 7, 1998 Share Posted August 7, 1998 marry a tall girl!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ellis_vener_photography Posted August 8, 1998 Share Posted August 8, 1998 I too am a little over 6'5" and when not having to haul my Gitz 410 I use a Gitzo 320 series or a 340. No center column. I top the legs with an Arca Swiss B1. No bending over, or slight enough to be unnoticable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kinesisphotogear Posted September 19, 1998 Share Posted September 19, 1998 I would suggest the Slik Professional Model 4. I bought mine from Calumet about two years for $430 including a nice head. It goes to about 7 feet or so. The legs adjust out so you can shoot low. It is very heavy (stable) which is what I need when using my top heavy 4x5 Sinar P. It is unlike the consumer model Slik tripods that are lightweight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michael___6 Posted October 19, 1998 Share Posted October 19, 1998 Buy a surveyor tripod!I bought a used surveyor tripod for 50 SEK (6US$) at a swap meet.It is labelled 'Kerns Austria', is made of some aluminum alloy, weighs 3.8 kg, and extends from about 1 meter to 1.9 meter, but the legs can be adjusted so you get the camera at ground level.The tripod was easily modified so I could fit a Manfrotto 268 ball head on it. This combination weighs roughly 5.5kg and is absolutely rock steady, even fully extended! I use it with a Pentax 67 and must say it is definitely better than the Manfrotto 055 tripod (2.7 kg and quite wobbly when fully extended) I used before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now