it is the ability for the legset to support a photographic rig and be able to produce an image of acceptable sharpness and visual quality in a still air condition.
Load ratings only serve as a relative thing, because there are no published standards that can be followed to do independent testing. And even for a given manufacturer, they may not follow the same rating method as their product line evolves. There is always going to be a chance that the marketing department gets their input on load ratings to try to keep up with the other guys.
And the ability to keep a camera supported well is going to vary with many factors, including the focal length of the lens being supported, how well balanced the camera is on the support, how much vibration is induced at the time of exposure, your shooting technique including if you are resting your hand on the lens to help damp vibration, how stiff and how well clamped the ball head is, how good the lens collar is and how well it is clamped down, how much wind area the lens presents, and how windy it actually is at the moment of exposure. The focal length guide lines that Gitzo has given in the past are a good starting point, but as they say, your mileage will vary. But load rating is almost never approached in real life, and perhaps you should divide the load rating by about 2 or 3 as another starting point if you want critically sharp images in a wide variety of conditions.
And of course most tripods are strong enough to support much more weight before breaking than the camera load rating that is given for it. If you look near the end of the following video, you will see a fairly small tripod support a big expensive camera plus a bunch of extra weight. Watch for the little smile on his face once the demonstration is over. And do not try this at home boys and girls.
Ruahrc wrote:
Series 2 systematic tripods look great. I wonder how stable the Series 5 6-section tripod is... look how short each section is . Or the S5 giant... that's the hiker's dream. Bring that and a tarp and you won't need to carry a tent .
3.6kg for an S5 giant? Yeah, a great hiker's dream... if you are into sweating and nightmares
Anyone noticed the thorough Gitzo marketing and the typo IN THE URL? Syatematic?
Interesting stuff, some minor changes which perhaps create a price hike rationale as well.
I am quite happy with my old GT 5541LS. It sure can hold one heck of a weight, but what is more relevant to me is that when I mount 800L + 1.4xTC on it (via Wimberley II), the setup is solid and steady enough, as verified by the the image jiggle when using magnified live view.
Unfortunately, the combined tripod/head weight is a bit tiresome.
RRS, if only for their customer service, but with supplies always seemingly limited, you'd perhaps have a short wait for replacement parts, if needed.
BTW, anyone notice Markins now sells a replacement spider (they call it a hub) for the previous generation 2- and 3-series Gitzo's? Machined billet, rather than a casting, but it's only offered in "natural green", which matches neither the Gitzo nor their ballheads' colors.
johnip wrote:
So now that the prices are really close, which would you go for? Gitzo or RRS?
In 99% of the countries here. The prices are not similar or close. A normal price for a TVC-33 or TVC-24L in Europe is $ 1300-1400. And all the countries that don't have any shop selling it, but have to order it from RRS website. It will probably be even more expensive in most of those
dcains wrote:
RRS, if only for their customer service, but with supplies always seemingly limited, you'd perhaps have a short wait for replacement parts, if needed.
BTW, anyone notice Markins now sells a replacement spider (they call it a hub) for the previous generation 2- and 3-series Gitzo's? Machined billet, rather than a casting, but it's only offered in "natural green", which matches neither the Gitzo nor their ballheads' colors.
Info on the Gitzo site is a bit vague but it sounds like the aluminum Systematics are discontinued; for certain there aren't new versions of them. The new CF Series 4 has this statement on its pages "NOTE: Carbon fiber is now used on all Systematic Series 4 tripods, replacing previous aluminum versions."
So the GT3320BS "baby" tabletop tripod may be gone witout a replacement.
Feb 18, 2012 at 03:34 PM
Lars Johnsson Offline • • • • • • • Upload & Sell: Off
rmc1 wrote:
Info on the Gitzo site is a bit vague but it sounds like the aluminum Systematics are discontinued; for certain there aren't new versions of them. The new CF Series 4 has this statement on its pages "NOTE: Carbon fiber is now used on all Systematic Series 4 tripods, replacing previous aluminum versions."
So the GT3320BS "baby" tabletop tripod may be gone witout a replacement.
The info say that all Series 4 tripods now use CF. But it also say that all previous Alu tripods will be replaced with CF models.
But I would guess that tripods is so special that it belongs in the table or mini tripods group. And not in the Systematic tripod group.
johnip wrote:
So now that the prices are really close, which would you go for? Gitzo or RRS?
If they're close, they won't stay like that for long. By the end of the year Gitzos will be down to near the recent holiday sale prices again. I bought a 3541LS for about half the price of the RRS TVC-33, the Gitzo was even cheaper than the equivalent Benro! With these high-end products there are diminishing returns as you put more dollars in, but twice the price was a fairly large difference. That and you can't try a RRS tripod out in a regular store, I need to be able to use a tripod before buying one.
