What budget tripod would you guys and gals recommend in the $50 to $70 range? I've been looking on Amazon and B&H, there are a lot of choices out there.

I want a ball mount, and the ability to reverse the center column for macros.

pre-thanks.

Tripod & Head

This one may be worth a look, I've got no experience with it but it looks like it gets decent reviews.

I own this one. It's one sturdy mother but it's heavy. Legs reverse so you can shoot under the tripod. I love it other than the weight. tripod

That is a small budget to start and even a small budget for a ball head. Add macro to that and you are really pushing it. But, you did manage to find a $15 tripod... I think you will post again stating "I made a mistake and bought a $70 tripod and ballhead."

Inexpensive bullheads tend to have rough or stuttering movements rather than buttery smooth movements and they tend to drift once locked down which can be very maddening when doing macro photography.

If you can't increase the budget, then consider a used tripod, maybe something like this:

Used Oben

If you could increase the budget to what I would consider the low end of gear you would be happy with, then:


Sirui Ball Head

Induro Tripod

increased my budget. thoughts?

keep in mind my lumix bridge weighs under 1.5 lbs.

Jerold, I asked the seller of that used oben if it had a reversing center column, have not got an answer yet. do you know if it does?

I don't think it is reversible. Here is a review:

Oben Tripod Review

If you have a small camera like that, my friends have had good luck with MePHOTO. The head is a little rough around the edges but it works OK and is Arca Swiss compatible:

MePHOTO Roadtrip

If you sneak in on this auction you might get a very good deal. I have one of these tripods. They are very good travel tripods. Fits in a carry on and also fits inside my camera backpack. Retail is much higher although they I don't think they make this particular model anymore.

3LT Brian

Having two tripods with the twist locks I think my next one will have the flip locks. I somehow always manage to turn the damn things in the wrong direction, and I'm a mechanic so I'm pretty familiar with the whole "righty tighty, lefty loosey" thing and I still do it wrong. :) Also a fan of the arca swiss plates and L-brackets if they happen to make one for your camera. Just more stuff to think about.

I have a ball head that I bought at Best Buy...I can't remember what I paid...it has twist locks, and carbon fiber legs to reduce weight.
the legs spread out wide so I can get the camera down to about 10"
I too will buy one with flip locks next time

Just to be a contrarian: flip locks are a pain. On good tripods like Manfrotto they are rather stiff to open and you have as many as 12 every time you open and close the thing. Then you have to press them shut so it gets old fast. With cold old hands, it can feel like hitting a baseball with cold hands.

With my tripods with twist locks, Feisol and 3LT, I can twist more than one lock at once with gloves on and it goes much faster.

technology...

why would I want to choose a ballhead over a pan/tilt?

why would I want to choose a pan/tilt over a ballhead?

please teach me.

Believe me, you want a ball head. There is a lot less time fiddling with the tripod trying to get a level horizon etc. they're also a little more compact for travel. I have a markins ball head and an acratech GV2 ball head and I definitely prefer the acratech. Back in the day I had some cheapie sticks with a pan tilt that was just frustrating to use, but maybe a better pan tilt would be different but I'm a ball head guy now.

I have two pan tilts for my Nikon DSLR. I like them. Never tried a Ballhead.

Pan tilt heads are usually lower end heads for regular sized cameras. the movements are not very smooth, they are bulky, and they have multiple handles which can slow you down. The pan-tilt heads are bulkier and heavy, more difficult to travel with. However, they are great for large cameras like view cameras. I used a large Gitzo pan-tilt head with my 8x10 field camera and it was rock solid and much better than a ball head for that application.

But for mirrorless and DSLR cameras, a good ball head is much more ergonomic, packable, better for panoramas and stitching, quicker to use.

There are also some geared pan-tilt heads which are nice but heavy. Some hybrid type heads are cubes which are based on a goniometer like the Arca Swiss cube. They are very expensive but those who own them love them.

I have had a variety of heads: crappy Slik pan-tilt, crappy Bogen ball head, Arca Swiss Z1 ball head, Arca Swiss P0 ball head, Gitzo large format Pan-Tilt, Acratech Ultimate bullhead, Acratech GP-ss ball head, and have used others like the MePhoto ballhead.

On the other hand, comparing a crappy ball head to a crappy pan tilt head is more difficult. The pan-tilt is probably more solid.

I started with a pan-tilt head, but I got tired of the fiddly nature of the thing and missed shots that required more rapid response. Pan-tilts are ok for macro work and landscape, as long as you have time to work before the light changes. Ball heads can be simple with just one knob or more complicated. The one-knob type is not good for panoramas or panning; those methods go much more smoothly if the ball head has a separate panning lock that doesn't release the ball. I also prefer a ball head with a separate friction control so that I can adjust the ball's movement for different lenses, etc. I have both types of ball heads: a simple head for a monopod and a 3-control ball head for my tripod. For your bridge camera you will not need a large ball, but you should get one that is rated for at least twice the weight of your camera or it may tend to slip/drift when the camera is tilted from the horizontal.

its down to two...

this

or this

which would you choose? because my camera isn't very heavy im leaning towards the 1321 because of one less leg section, not the price difference. should be more stable, right?

Were it me, I would get the Oben AC-1441 4-Section Aluminum Tripod with BA-111 Ball Head, the more expensive one. It weighs ~6 oz more which is not good, but it supports twice the rated weight, has a more robust ball head, and packs down 2 inches shorter so it is more packable. Plus it is on sale so you will feel like you got a bargain.

FYI, it comes with annoying, proprietary mounting plates. So make sure that you buy at least one spare plus one for each body you plan to use.

quote jeroldharter: "Were it me, I would get the Oben AC-1441 4-Section Aluminum Tripod with BA-111 Ball Head, the more expensive one. It weighs ~6 oz more which is not good, but it supports twice the rated weight, has a more robust ball head, and packs down 2 inches shorter so it is more packable. Plus it is on sale so you will feel like you got a bargain.


FYI, it comes with annoying, proprietary mounting plates. So make sure that you buy at least one spare plus one for each body you plan to use."

look, I realize ill never be to your level as far as photography goes but some of us have different priorities. I just want something semi-quality. please talk TO me, not DOWN TO me, ok?

Do you mean the on sale comment? I meant no offense - I meant that is how I sometimes justify going over budget. Did not mean to be snarky - sorry.

quote jeroldharter: "Do you mean the on sale comment? I meant no offense - I meant that is how I sometimes justify going over budget. Did not mean to be snarky - sorry."

text never comes across clean, this is another example. sorry I took you wrong.

No problem. I hope you enjoy the tripod. Looks like it does have the reversible center column.

Merry Christmas to you. :)

Looks like either will be a fine choice, which one did you go with?

im still poking around the internet, there are so many options.

thoughts?

You could go down this road and get THESE LEGS (which happen to be the same as one of your above choices) and add THIS HEAD and you'll have a decent rig with standard arca swiss plate (no proprietary traps) and separate knob for panning plus stay in the $150 ball park. Its always hard to imagine all the things you'll want a tripod to do until you find the thing it can't do, then its time for a new tripod but I would think this would make a nice piece of kit.

quote kanoes: "im still poking around the internet, there are so many options.

thoughts?

"

My friend has one of these. It is a knockoff of the MePHOTO which is kind of a knockoff of the 3-Legged_Thing.

It is remarkably well built and it is a great travel tripod for a small camera. His folds down small enough that it fits under the lid of his Lowe-Pro shoulder bag. It easily fits in carry on bags.

It's weak link is the head, although it is compatible with Arca Swiss style plates and includes 2 I think. The head could be smoother and it tends to droop with heavier lenses. For example, he uses a Sony NEX-7 mirrorless camera with an 18-200 mm zoom lens. It takes some fiddling to look that down without drifting too much and it is not rock solid. But with more standard size lenses it is fine. Beware that it is not very tall without extending the center column (which is best avoided). I would definitely get this one over the Oben for a small camera.

quote redoleary: "You could go down this road and get THESE LEGS (which happen to be the same as one of your above choices) and add THIS HEAD and you'll have a decent rig with standard arca swiss plate (no proprietary traps) and separate knob for panning plus stay in the $150 ball park. Its always hard to imagine all the things you'll want a tripod to do until you find the thing it can't do, then its time for a new tripod but I would think this would make a nice piece of kit."

That would be a bit heavier setup than the other, a bit more expensive, but with a better ball head.

Here is a review of an Oben ball head:

Ben BE-117 Ball Head Review

thanks for all the insight, I really appreciate it. would this be a better bare tripod than the oben? induro

im 5'10" and the screen on my lumix articulates, I think the shorter (column not extended) height would be ok for me.

because my cam only weighs a pound and a half im looking at the 108 head and some set of legs. but then, I suspect the 117 would be worth the extra 5 bucks. it can drive you crazy when you have a budget.

ok, im set on that 117 head, now I just need to decide on the legs.

My bias is for the Induro legs. I prefer the twist locks. Weight is reasonable. minimum/packing length is good. Brand is well regarded. And it is on sale for a great price.

Too bad we don't have a lot of stores around so that we could compare alternatives in person. But if you were able to compare the 117 head with the Induro legs to the initial option I bet you would be impressed by the difference.

If you ever get to NYC, a visit to B&H is well worth a half day or more just to see everything. It is like a photo toy store.

just ordered the 117 and the induro. thanks again. funny how a budget can more than double when you start researching a bit. thanks so much for spending my money for me. ;-)

It is almost like building a house - decide what you can afford and then triple it. Let us know what you think of the gear. I think you will be pleased.

quote jeroldharter: "Let us know what you think of the gear."

for sure I will. I'm excited to get them.

Congratulations, I'm sure you'll be pleased with your decision.

Today all 3 came...tripod, head, and monopod.

I have no reference for comparison but I can say that they are all solid, quality items...especially the oben head, super smooth. I'm going to be very happy with these. Thanks again for your input.

Have fun playing with your new toys. I'm looking forward to your photos as I always have in the past.

That's great. If you can, post some gear photos too.

One quirk I already found...when collapsing the legs you have to work from the bottom up. If ya don't the lower sections won't lock. Upper twist locks when locked in don't allow the lower ones to tighten.