Is CF really necessary?

[two_piece]

Hey guys!

 

I'm looking at getting a decent tripod and am having trouble deciding between a Manfrotto 055Xprob or a Gitzo carbon

fibre model. I know this has been discussed to death, but i only ever shoot with a Canon 350d/rebel xt or a 35mm

film camera.

 

The Gitzo tripods seem to be better overall (apart from price) and handle vibrations better, but would this affect

someone with a relatively lightweight camera/lenses?

 

Re: futureproofing, the heaviest gear i can see myself upgrading to further down the line would be a 5D (or

equivalent) and a either a 24-70 or 70-200 2.8L

 

At the moment, the Gitzo seems like a bit of an overkill for my current gear, but i do enjoy long exposures

(landscape long, not astrophotography long) and just want to know if i should get the manfrotto (i am a poor student),

or buy the gitzo and know i'll never feel the need to buy another tripod again.

 

Thanks!

[Matt Laur]

Manfrotto does make a CF (or as they call, it "Mag Fiber") versions of their tripods. I've got a CF version of the 055, with which I am very happy. It does indeed seem to absorb vibration better than the aluminum flavors. Frank's right about not skimping on the head, but ... damn if I'm not perfectly happy so far using Manfrotto's <a href="laurphoto.com/prdr/manfrotto_488rc2" target="_blank"><b>488RC2</b></a>. Using it with a heavier body than yours, and some large-ish lenses, and it's a rock. If I didn't have more glass on my short list, perhaps I'd go twice+ the price on Gitzo and Arca... but I actually can't identify, with my style of work, where I'm finding myself missing anything on that front. I'm very picky, but this rig is comfortably over my threshold of refinement, stability, longevity... and very reasonably priced. Always compromises.

[bennett_richards]

I would go the Arca Swiss AND the Gitzo 2 or 3 Carbon 6X series. It is a tripod you will have forever.

 

Best built. Period.

[mark_in_st._louis]

I started with this tripod <a href="http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/131427-REG/Slik_615_315_700DX_Pro_Tripod.html" >Slik Pro 700DX Tripod with 3-Way Pan/Tilt Head (Quick Release) - Supports 15.00 lb (6.80 kg)</a>. It does not have the cult following of some of the other brands but those that buy it like it. With a light camera and a tripod that is not heavy you have to weight the tripod to avoid being effected by wind and minor vibrations. After a few years I've gone Gitzo but this is still in my collection of toys and is a great tripod.

[ken_yee]

it probably doesn't matter that much. The 055 (aka 3021) is pretty solid as long as you don't extend the thinnest section by more than half way. You can yank the center column to lose 12oz off the weight and then you'll be within 1lb of a Gitzo.

I was pretty happy w/ it until the fliplocks clipped off part of my skin (bled all over the place for a while in the canyons..ugh) and Bogen ignored my email about this design "feature". I have a Gitzo now...really wanted to avoid a Manfrotto product after that but the others (Feisol/Benro) don't seem to be as good...

[craig_gillette]

CF gets you weight reduction and vibration damping. If you go with the CF types from Bogen/Manfrotto, much of the other hardware (other than leg sections) is the same so while you may not get as much weight reduction, you still get vibration benefits. Assuming you don't drive over it with a car or something, the 055 types will likely last longer than you need them as well.

 

I decided not to spend $400 more to get 2 lbs lighter on my last tripod.

[akajohndoe]

I have quite a few tripods, My mainstay these days is a Gitzo GT3530S. My backup is a Bogen 3221.

 

You can probably get a Bogen 3021/3221 for under $100 these days.

[alex_lofquist]

Another virtue of CF is that it is not uncomfortable to handle in the cold weather. That makes a big difference if you do winter photography. Also, it is more quiet if you are trying to maintain stealth.

[Ed_Ingold]

<i>The Gitzo tripods seem to be better overall (apart from price) and handle vibrations better, but would this affect someone with a relatively lightweight camera/lenses? </i>

<p>

Actually, lightweight gear needs all the help it can get from a tripod. Load bearing capacity is seldom an issue with any tripod worth carrying.

<p>

Gitzo tripods are particularly well designed to eliminate vibrations. The geometry of the spider (center section) is very stiff and helps decouple vibrations from the legs. The leg design nearly eliminates any flex at the joints, so that the whole leg acts like a single piece. The tubing is twice as thick as in a comparable Manfrotto tripod, and is hard-drawn for durability and machined on the outside for precision.

<p>

You can save a lot of money (half) by choosing an aluminum tripod instead of CF. CF, on the other hand, is lighter and nearly as stiff as the next size larger tripod in aluminum. In any case, if you decide to save you nickles and dimes, I recommend a series #3 "Sytematic" Gitzo for your first real tripod. The center section can be exchanged for a flat plate, column, video ball or leveling platform. A #3 is stiff enough for a 400mm lens, yet light enough (AL or CF) and small enough to carry everywhere.

<p>

Over the years I find I like the Gitzo collars as they are quiet and completely self-adjusting. The Manfrotto snaps are noisy, continually in need of adjustments and often painful (as noted above). The new G-Force collars and non-rotating legs are the best things ever to come out of Gitzo.

[john tonai]

"but the others (Feisol/Benro) don't seem to be as good..."

 

Ken what do you mean by this. How much shooting have you done with a Feisol? Until last year I was completely sold on Gitzo, having owned them since 1979. Last year I bought a Feisol as a lightweight alternative. Functionally, they are very similar, but the Feisol is much more affordable. Also, the leg attachment is better on the Feisol than the current Gitzos. (They are similar to the older Gitzos)

 

But getting back to the OP, I think that if you intend to buy one tripod as a long term tripod, I would go CF. It dampens vibrations much quicker-especially wind, you will be more likely to bring it without worrying about the weight-less likely to leave it at home because it is too heavy, and is much better in extremely cold temperatures.

 

I know you want to save money, but don't buy a tripod purely based on price. Even though you are a "poor student", the money spent on a good piece of equipment will be much cheaper than having to buy another one because the "great value" ended up being a piece of junk.

[hugh_look]

Just been through this. You have my sympathy.

 

If you are on a budget, you might want to think about how to balance between head & legs. I've just opted to balance mine (after a lot of spending money wrongly) on a good head (Markins) and a cheaper set of legs (Feisol) with a view to upgrading the legs later if the Feisols prove not up to the job. Some context: the heaviest load they have to support is D200/300 with a 70-300 mm zoom that doesn't have a tripod collar.

 

Why this way round? Because it seems that durability is the main problem with cheaper CF legs, and mine probably won't get a very hard life. With the head, on the other hand, I've found that the functionality of a cheap one is usually worse that that of a better one, so it's a problem right from the start. My previous head simply would not stay in the right place and always moved when you tightened it, so it slowed me down and made photography a lot less pleasurable. The Markins (so far - haven't had it long) seems far more precise and is very easy to use because of that. It makes photography more "zipless", to use Erica Jong's expression for something else altogether..

 

It's hard to tell about the legs. The CF Feisol legs I bought are very light, and seem well made and sturdy. I haven't put them to intensive use yet, and I wouldn't say they have the beautifully-engineered feel of Gitzo ones. However, they got enough recommendations across the online forums (as well as some criticism, to be fair) to make me feel that they were a good start.

 

Hope this helps.

[john_hanlon3]

"Is CF really necessary?"

 

No, but yes if you want light and rigid. As Edward rightly points out, load capacity is not the issue, a rigid, vibration free support is vital for sharp pictures regardless of lens size. If you plan on hiking any distance with your gear, the lighter weight of a Gitzo CF pod will make a huge difference. For example, the Manfrotto 055XPROB legs weigh 5lb. For the gear you have, a Gitzo 2530 would be more than adequate and weighs only 3lb. Of course the Gitzo will cost three times as much but only you can decide if it's worth it. As usual there's no free lunch!

[ken_yee]

John Tonai: I haven't shot w/ Feisol but took them out of my decision process because they didn't have ALR legs (Benro did but they were close enough to Gitzo prices that it didn't matter much and Feisol has better customer support). Otherwise, I probably would have taken a more serious look at them because someone on the Fred Miranda forums did a nice review of Feisol's new 3 series legs. Feisol in the past has had a lot of weird breakages from using plastic parts for interconnects (they're now metal mostly I think). At any rate, that's just MHO...

[richard_crowe4]

I use two tripods: Giottos MT-8180 Carbon Fiber and a SLIK 330 Pro which is lightweight for boonie tromping. The

SLIK works pretty well except that I don't like the head that is supplied with this tripod. Instead, I use the MH-1300

Ball head from my Giottos on the 330 Pro. This makes the SLIK a much sturdier platform.

 

I don't raise the center column of either tripod. In fact, I purchased a shorter column for the SLIK which reduces the

weight by an ounce or two.

 

The Giottos is a tall heavy duty tripod which could support any size camera/lens combination. When I use a long

lens such as the 400mm f/5.6L; I will use a Manfrotto Long Lens Support. This support could be used with virtually

any size lens (see the two attached links) and the Giottos MT-8180 can support the Long Lens support with any lens.

 

http://www.nikonians.org/html/resources/non-nikon_articles/manfrotto_393/393_1.html

 

http://www.pbase.com/liquidstone

[two_piece]

Thanks alot for the input everyone.

The price of the Manfrotto had me tempted, but the Gitzo is what I had my heart set on.

I've had a lot of shots of the harbour come out horrible due to wind (and a $50 tripod...), but I think I'll skip the middleman and start saving up =)

[peter_n1664876959]

I used to have a few tripods, now I have one. You can save money by buying used. Get a decent ballhead though,

Markins are excellent but I bought a Linhof for the ergonomics and it is a tremendous ballhead to boot. I bought

a used Gitzo G-1228 tripod from a dealer in Boston for <$300, less than ½ price of new at that time. I read up

on the internet how to maintain them, bought some new sleeves from Gitzo in NJ, took the tripod apart and cleaned

and lubed and fitted the new sleeves. It still looks used but feels like new , they are unbelievably well made.

I'll never need another tripod! :-)