Feisol is awesome. I have their oversized CB70d ball head. Their carbon fiber tripod are very good I hear. How about a light, but sturdy monopod? Ever considered the usefulness of those?
I use a Gitzo Traveler and it's ideal for small primes and zooms and fits in my carry-on. I've also used it with my 300 4L and was fine for daytime shooting. It is much more steady than I can hand hold but is like using a monopod, adding a couple stops of slower shutter speed to the rig. Not for long exposures or windy days. However if you spread the legs all the way out and sit on the ground it is much more stable. But, yeah, not a good choice if you do regular long lens shooting. You need something more heavy duty.
Thanks all. This really helps, because I do want to start experimenting with longer exposures, etc... (not with the 100-400, but still). I'll continue the research!
I've shot lots of 1 to 5 second exposures with my Gitzo Traveler and 5D2/24-105L and they're very sharp (save for the moving water of course). I don't think I could hike very far if I used my big tripod...
Sharona wrote:
Hey, thanks everyone. I'm glad I asked. That's a lot of money to spend on a tripod that won't support the 100-400, although I wouldn't be using it with that lens without holding on to it. I'll look into the Feisol pods. Anyone use the Induro tripods or have experience with them?
Thanks again!
I have a Benro Travel Angel bought from eBay because that wasn't available in US yet, and I have an Induro top of the line model bought via student discount from B&H. I have nothing bad to say about either of these, the Induro especially is a remarkable piece of gear
The only Gitzo Traveler to avoid is the GT1550T. It comes bundled with a G1077M head which is too small for anything beyond M4/3 (albeit Gitzo claims otherwise).
Yet another happy user of a Feisol CT3442 here. I also use the Feisol CB-40 ball head, which works well for a pretty low cost. I got a Kirk camera plate, and the whole system is rock solid, but I don't have anything longer than 200mm to shoot with.
Folding backward for travel was the final decision point for me, I wanted something that folded up nice and compact; try to get a ball head that is compatible with this - all of Feisol's are, as well as some by other manufacturers. Compared to my previous (compact but still decent quality Slik 330) aluminum tripod, the CT3443 folds up shorter, extends taller without using the center column, is MUCH more stable, and weighs a little less.
