Budget tripod recommendations
- Thread starter ceemuk
- Start date
Be careful of of the mantra "buy cheap, buy twice".
If a tripod is important to you and you have a strict budget then second hand is your best bet. Get something as solid and heavy as you can afford in the price bracket. Steel if preferable to aluminum at that price point but might be harder to find. A friend has an old manfrotto tripod from the mid 90s he got very cheap at an auction. It is very heavy, very solid and well made. The pan-tilt head is a bit cumbersome but works.
Some things to improve tripods that help a lot on the lower models is to get a tripod without a column such that the camera sits directly on top of the tripod apex (triangles are strong and stable, you want the weight to be at the top of a triangle, not on the end of a flag pole). Have less leg sections, 3 sections will be more stable than 4 (and lighter). Hang a heavy bag under the tripod. Keep the tripod as low as possible to achieve the shot (hunching over is preferred to an eye-level setup for stability but wont be comfortable for long periods of use).
Also once you get to lenses like the 70-200mm f/2.8 then it is best to mount the lens to the tripod, not the camera - more stable, less vibrations and better balance.
Don't ignore the budget options - monopod for short exposures and a bean-bag on your backpack/wall/rock for long exposures. You will get better results than the cheapest tripods.
Associate
- Joined
- 22 Aug 2010
- Posts
- 2,212
- Location
- In My Command Center
"redsnapper" £100.. ish build quality is great and will take some punishment 
