theorist Posted May 30, 2003 Share Posted May 30, 2003 My sister is looking for a lightweight (something she can walk around with all day), tall (she's 5'9") tripod made by a reputable company, preferably for under $150 (without a head). Does such a tripod exist? She is a writer/editor for a magazine and she gets sent places to write articles. She figures that she should be taking pics, too. Her subjects are mainly flowers and landscapes. I've been looking around for her, and haven't come up with much. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joey Posted May 30, 2003 Share Posted May 30, 2003 Check out the Bogen 3021 Pro. Sturdy, reasonably light, and great for macro work. I'm 5'8", and when the legs are fully extended, it's just a little too tall for me--so it should be perfect for her. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lex_jenkins Posted May 30, 2003 Share Posted May 30, 2003 Either the Bogen/Manfrotto 3021 legset or Slik 700DX (legset with pretty good tilt/panhead) should do the trick for a tallish person. Between the two I prefer the Slik by a small margin: the telescoping leg sections are slightly more rigid; the leg locks are significantly smoother operating while still locking positively; the bigger rubbery feet provide good grip on most surfaces. But, honestly, there's little enough difference that either would do fine. The Slik is affordable enough that even if she decides not to use the included tilt/panhead she won't feel like she bought an unnecessary appendage. But she may actually like the included head. I'm 5'11" and have the smaller Bogen/Manfrotto 3001 legset with 3028 Super 3D head and Slik 300DX legset (with Velbon PH273 magnesium ballhead) and hafta elevate the center column for comfortable standing use with either 'pod. I can't stoop or crane my neck comfortably anymore without resorting to elevating the center columns so by gosh I'm gonna use every inch of aluminum tubing I got coming to me. It'd be better to get a taller tripod and put up with the little bit of extra weight. I look at tripods ever dang time I visit a camera shop and still haven't seen anything better in a tallish tripod for $150 or less than these two models. And both will get low enough for macro and flower pix too. I keep trying to find an affordable Gitzo I can like. No luck so far. Looked again yesterday. It was the 1220, 2220, something like that. Cost around $200. Well made, sure, with a nifty pivoting extension column and a bubble level. And I like the twist leg locks for the leg sections. But I still don't like those vise-grip type locks for the leg angles, tho' the infinitely adjustable leg angle feature is nice. I have strong hands but those weird angle locks are difficult to manage. And, a smaller nit, the dial type knob locks for the column elevation and pivot angle aren't my idea of ergonomic design either. They'd be fussy to handle with wet or cold hands or gloves. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theorist Posted May 30, 2003 Author Share Posted May 30, 2003 I have the 3021Pro myself, and I think it's more weight than she wants to carry. When you add on the weight of a head and the camera/lens, you're talking 6-7 pounds. Judging from your responses, the tripod I described does not exist, which is what I suspected! :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theorist Posted May 30, 2003 Author Share Posted May 30, 2003 Should she perhaps look into getting a monopod instead? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimstrutz Posted May 30, 2003 Share Posted May 30, 2003 I think she should look at the Velbon 343E Maxi. It's 2 pounds & shrinks to 18 inches with it's included ball head, and still gets up to 61 inches. It sets up fast for a four segment leg unit. It's spindly for sure, and shakes in the wind if you have a long lens on it, but it's probably the best two pound, full height tripod made. Depending on the length of lenses used it with, it can be more than adequate. It's usually priced less than $100. A monopod will not really take the place of a tripod, but it can gain about two stops of stability over hand holding. I find that with a monopod, sturdiness is unimportant to steadiness. So you can get a real flimsy, light weight one & it will still do the job. That is unless you want to use it as a walking stick too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mark_sirota1 Posted May 30, 2003 Share Posted May 30, 2003 Manfrotto/Bogen just announced a new line of lightweight tripods:<p><a href="http://www.bogenphoto.com/feature/rightscreen_one.php3?fileback=home&newsid=46">http://www.bogenphoto.com/feature/rightscreen_one.php3?fileback=home&newsid=46</a><p>Don't know exactly how tall they are. But if she's shooting with a lightweight camera, she probably doesn't need a 3021... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Ridgeway www.Scott Posted May 30, 2003 Share Posted May 30, 2003 Velbon EFL-3 or EFL-4. Best bang for the buck full size tripod. Just a tad over three pounds. Scott Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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