Bought new carbon fibre tripod

[Tobers]

Following the debacle this morning with my old crap tripod which caused me to miss a shed-load of pictures, I chucked it and bought a Giottos Innovator MT8160 with MH7001-550 head from Speed Graphic near Alton, Hampshire, for a very reasonable £169.95. I think this tripod is normally £200 for the legs alone.

Lovely bit of kit. Haven't managed to sneak it into the house just yet, but it's solid, about the same weight as the smaller and less solid Manfrotto 190XPROB (which they had as well with a standard ball head for about £130 altogether), and with twiddly legs instead of lever-release ones.

Very impressed. Look out for some super-sharp long exposure shots from me soon!

 

[Liquid101]

Lovely bit of kit.

I tried one of these out at Focus, where they had it on a show deal for £119! I remember thinking i'd pick one up online sometime soon. Then I saw the full retail price. Damn!

I just couldn't face paying full whack so i've just picked up a 190CL - which isn't as nice as the Giottos, but is very nice indeed and does the job.

I'm jealous now though.

 

[denno75uk]

Looks superb. A new tripod has been identified as a (sort of) priority and I figure a carbon one would be the lightest. True?

I have a Velbon at the mo which sounds a bit like the one you've just ditched. If a hadn't bought the 30D and the 70-200 then it might have been something I'd persist with but it just can't handle the weight. Taking the eclipse shots a while back was a real pain as I had to screw everything extremely tight to stop it slipping. Plus, just the shutter going highlights its instability.

I've looked at the stats of your Giottos but I'm wondering what the folded down size and weight mean in the real world. How are you finding it? Does it feel like something you'll want to carry around along with your other kit? For an afternoon, say?

 

[Tobers]

Well, it's just a tad heavier than the less robust Manfrotto 190XPROB, and about the same height folded (depends on the head used, but I looked at both side to side with a simple ball head). It is much more substantial than the Manfrotto though, and I guess if it wasn't carbon fibre it would be quite a lot heavier.

It also comes with a carrying strap and a shoulder bag which the Manfrotto doesnt, so I guess I'll just sling it on my shoulder and that's that.

It is certainly heavier than the crappy Velbon one I had, but that is offset by the weight of embarrasment I carried on my shoulders whenever I had my old 'pod with me

 

[Tobers]

Just sneaked it into the house and had a play. What a superb bit of kit. Really really robust but not hugely heavy. I actually read the instructions for once and found out what the small knob labelled "free/lock" does.

Adjustment & setup is pretty quick (turny leg releases not levers), and everything is smooth & well made. Legs can be splayed almost flat, and the centre column can go horizontal or upsidedown quite easily.

There's a carrying strap and bag included, and a little tool kit for twiddling with all the bits I haven't twiddled with yet.

And the best thing - Mrs Tobers didn't notice it was new Result!!

 

[stevegreen]

at you sneaking it into the house. Brilliant!

I was seriously considering a tripod as my next purchase, but, last time I was on holiday I found that I would have only used it once or twice so it's been put on the back burner for now.

Yours looks like a nice one though!

 

[Tobers]

at you sneaking it into the house. Brilliant!

I put it down my trousers - she never noticed the difference

 

[baldrick]

Having just shelled out £500 on 2 lenses I'm going to have to make do with my current Velbon for some time yet!!!

 

[cedmondson]

Thanks for the heads up about Speed Graphic. I popped down there @ lunchtime today to pick up some ND grad filters (which I wish I'd had on Sunday for the Dawn Raid ).
I had no idea this place existed but it's just 10 mins from me and pretty competitive for some (but not all) stuff.