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Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 02, 2013 8:41 pm
by Marshall Harrington
Been thinking about what I'm going to use for camera support for the BMCC. Thinking I want to rig with an Arri style dove plate so that transitioning between sticks and shoulder is really fast. But that does not take into account just leaving the camera set up as simply as possible, another consideration. With all that in mid I'll likely end up fully rigged a great deal of the time. That means follow focus, monitor or evf or both, batteries on some sort of distribution plate, some type of sound device like a juicedlink, a reference mic, a mattebox when it's necessary, etc. It adds up.

For my DSLR setup I currently have a variety of Manfrotto's and they are sticky. You get what you pay for so I'm planning to replace to replace these. Been looking at used Sachtlers, possibly Cartoni's, and Miller's. I love the Oconnor 1030 but it's more than I can afford.

What are you using or planning on using? Did you buy new or used?

Re: Survey on camera support

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 1:07 am
by Peter J. DeCrescenzo
Hi Marshall: There's already a >7 page thread about rigs & setups:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2579


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Re: Survey on camera support

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 2:41 am
by Marshall Harrington
Peter J. DeCrescenzo wrote:Hi Marshall: There's already a >7 page thread about rigs & setups:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2579


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Thanks Peter, saw that. This question is specific to tripods and heads, not rigs. I want to hear what people are using or planing to use so I can benefit from their experience.

So lets hear it.

Re: Survey on camera support

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 3:13 am
by rick.lang
MarshallHarrington wrote:
Peter J. DeCrescenzo wrote:Hi Marshall: There's already a >7 page thread about rigs & setups:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2579


-

Thanks Peter, saw that. This question is specific to tripods and heads, not rigs. I want to hear what people are using or planing to use so I can benefit from their experience.

So lets hear it.


If you can edit the topic title to "sticks" or "tripods", it might help distinguish this thread from the rigs etc.

I'm hoping my Manfotto 701HDV head will suffice if I keep my weight down but I fear I may have buyers remorse for not getting a heavier head when I bought the 701 (head only rated for 4kg which was fine for my camcorder; tripod rated for 15kg).

Edit: corrected the head I have which likely won't be good enough after all.

Rick Lang
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 5:47 pm
by Marshall Harrington
OK guys made the change in the title as suggested. What tripods are you using or planning to use and why. How much did they cost or what do you expect to pay for them.

I've been using a 504 head with the 546B sticks. Leaves a lot to be desired. The head is sticky on any long lens pans and the tripod locks are constantly a problem so the legs slip from time to time. Don't get me wrong, that they are a great deal but when you don't get the shot the low price is a mute point.

I usually begin my shot set up on a tripod fully rigged. That means rig, follow-focus, monitor, evf, or both, battery, sound device like a juiced link, mic, matte-box when needed. My plan is to have this arrangement set on on a dove plate to quickly transition to a shoulder rig. My point in mentioning this rig information is as reference to the weight. Likely around 20+ pounds often. Don't get me wrong. I understand being as stripped down as possible is great it's just in a the situations I often find myself once the scene is happening I need to be quick to transition between types of shots, and stripped down does not give me enough flexibility.

So what are your thoughts on the tripods and heads?

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 9:11 pm
by Frank Glencairn
I have the universal cage from Bebop. Comes with a dovetail plate and it became my standard workhorse setup for the BMC.

Re: AW: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 9:13 pm
by tilllt
The only tripods I have used - but this is probably also due to the fact that i am in germany - are sachtler and manfrotto. They both do what the price difference suggests: sachtler is great and super expensive, manfrotto is by a thin line above the rest of the cheap tripods you may find. If you want to do a super smooth slow pan with a heavy camera... Forget the manfrotto. Rather rent a sachtler for the day... Btw I am talking about heads here. For the legs: don't care, the real difference is about how smooth you can move the camera.

tapatanexus

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 9:24 pm
by Marshall Harrington
Frank Glencairn wrote:I have the universal cage from Bebop. Comes with a dovetail plate and it became my standard workhorse setup for the BMC.


Frank, I've seen your rig when you posted previously. It looks really good and is one of the possibilities that I'll choose from. I'm going to wait until I've got my camera. But what head are you putting the rig on and what sticks?

Re: AW: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 9:35 pm
by Marshall Harrington
tilllt wrote:The only tripods I have used - but this is probably also due to the fact that i am in germany - are sachtler and manfrotto. They both do what the price difference suggests: sachtler is great and super expensive, manfrotto is by a thin line above the rest of the cheap tripods you may find. If you want to do a super smooth slow pan with a heavy camera... Forget the manfrotto. Rather rent a sachtler for the day... Btw I am talking about heads here. For the legs: don't care, the real difference is about how smooth you can move the camera.

tapatanexus


You round it up pretty well on the Manfrotto. Which Sachtlers should I be looking at. I figure about 20-25 lbs fully rigged not including any large lenses.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 9:55 pm
by Frank Glencairn
MarshallHarrington wrote:
Frank, I've seen your rig when you posted previously. It looks really good and is one of the possibilities that I'll choose from. I'm going to wait until I've got my camera. But what head are you putting the rig on and what sticks?


My favorite setup is heavy duty 150mm bowl Vinten sticks and head (I'm a die hard Vinten fan boy), but the head alone weights 16 lbs, so I only use that in controlled environments (narrative set, commercials), where I can go with my truck and have some helping hands around.

For every situation, where I can only have a backpack and carry it myself, I have el-cheapo light wight travel sticks from Bilora (but the come with a lot of different brand stickers)

http://www.fotokoch.de/Bilora-Stativ-Vi ... startseite

They can carry up to 14 lbs and are surprisingly good for the money. I dumped the head and swapped it out for a Manfrotto 504HD, that I had laying around. I hate that head, but it's halfway decent for this kind of "on and off the road" work.

Re: AW: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Feb 03, 2013 9:57 pm
by tilllt
Probably you need the "vídeo 15" head minimum...

tapatanexus

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon Feb 04, 2013 3:05 am
by Elliott Balsley
I tried the Miller DS-10 this week after reading great reviews. It was very smooth with my FS700, but I didn't like the drag adjustment range. Even at minimum, there is quite a bit of drag. With a lightweight BMCC, I think it would be more of a problem.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon Feb 04, 2013 9:32 am
by Frank Glencairn
What makes you think the BMC is lightwight?
It's about the same as a FS100 with a big battery.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon Feb 04, 2013 2:25 pm
by Elliott Balsley
Oops, my mistake. I've never actually held one, I just assumed the BMCC would be tiny. I guess they're both around 3.3 pounds.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon Feb 04, 2013 9:04 pm
by Peter J. DeCrescenzo
Elliott Balsley wrote:Oops, my mistake. I've never actually held one, I just assumed the BMCC would be tiny. I guess they're both around 3.3 pounds.


No need to guess. The BMCC's specs are readily available:
http://www.blackmagicdesign.com/product ... techspecs/

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon Feb 04, 2013 10:56 pm
by Seaborn
I use an old oconnor 1030 head
I try vinten and sachtler, really good head too but
My favorite still the 1030!

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 12:37 am
by Eric Santiago
I tested a few tripods since October.
The Manfrotto 509HD is not bad but found a few problems with the test ones.
Loose parts major turn-off.
We have a Sachtler V15SB and S20 at work, major drool factor there but the cost way up there.
I tested these Sacthler knock-offs from SECCED.
They were not too bad and has some back story that the tech is from older Sachtler.
A decent one that holds 27lbs was 2300 USD last time I checked.
Currently using a really old Miller 25 with al-sticks.
Its free to use I cant complain :)
When I had the BMCC in my scopes, I was going to get the Sachtler FSB8T but that only holds 20lbs.
Now Im hearing you need more than that if your are a serious Cinema user.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 1:33 am
by Marshall Harrington
I got to use an Oconnor 1030HD with the 25L sticks for a three week project. Spoiled me. Especially after the 504/546B package.

Looking at the Vintens after the suggestions pointing that way. They look really nice but like the Oconnor very expensive.

Wondering which model of both Vintens and Sachtlers compare to the 1030/25L combo?

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon May 13, 2013 3:20 pm
by Thomas Schumacher
Can anyone please share his opinion on that combo for a rigged BMC: : Vinten Vision 5 LF head on a Vinten ProTouch PT350 (350V IA29) tripod. I could get it used for 385,- EUR but can't find any info as it seems to be some older models. Should be capable of holding 10kg.

Thanks a lot!

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2013 8:54 pm
by jpilgry
I've used the BMCC plus a modest rig (follow focus only really) on a Manfrotto 504HD with more than acceptable results. It's not a DSLR, but I certainly wouldn't consider it heavy.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2013 10:05 pm
by simonkn
I concur with the above poster. I run the Scarlet at about 18lbs fully rigged and this doesn't trouble my Manfrotto 501HDV head. And like someone else said, its sat on "cheapy" legs. They came with a useless "fluid" head. But they were ultra sturdy legs with a spreader and had a 65mm bowl attachment. Bought a 75mm Manfrotto bowl/flat-top adaptor and alls well that ends well.

Image
DSC_0030 by Mediahound_Films, on Flickr

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue May 14, 2013 11:34 pm
by Tobias Castorph
Recently I found an old o'Connor Model 50, it is a head from the 70s, looks a bit oldfashioned but works smooth even with heavier cameras up to 25kg. Since it was so cheap I just wanted to give it a try. It just convinced me.
Feels like (the much more expensive) Sachtler Video 25 and you could get one in good shape for around 500$

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Wed May 15, 2013 7:42 pm
by Owen Davies
I'm used to Vinten and Sachtler, but have used the big O'Connor and Ronford rigs. I really like Ronford legs, they are built like tanks, but tend to come as Mitchell and would be overkill for most rigs these days. My go to tends to be Sachtler video 18 with (battered) Alu sticks.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Thu May 16, 2013 6:18 am
by Jason R. Johnston
Sachtler has a few very nice sub $2000 head/stick kits at B&H and elsewhere.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Thu Jun 06, 2013 1:58 pm
by Ross Chevalier
Hello friends,

For what it is worth, the folks at Really Right Stuff showed a new leg set and new head system at NAB and according to their executive, they should be shipping in August 2013. I saw both kits in April in Orlando and was very impressed with the quality and smoothness of the head. RRS Carbon Fibre leg sets are superb with excellent capacity and proven vibration dampening. There's a bit of info so far on their site in case anyone is interested.

Ross

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Thu Jun 13, 2013 9:31 pm
by Marshall Harrington
When I wrote this original post I was having problems with my Manfrotto 504. I couldn't pan and it was driving me crazy. As with many other items on this blog, I've asked a lot of questions. Frank, Peter, the folks at Blackmagic (when you ask them directly), and many others have unselfishly provided a wealth of knowledge which I appreciate immensely.

In the case of my question about tripods Frank mentioned Vinten. I was really stuck on Oconnor or Sachtler but Frank and Peter's information about equipment in other posts was so spot on that I started looking at Vinten. I knew that I did not want a 150mm bowl for my personal kit. To big and heavy. My BMCC when currently rigged weighs in at 26.5 lbs.

I wanted a tripod/head whose sweet spot was centered on that number. Sachtler, Oconnor, Cartoni, Miller. . . they all make great gear. But I wasn't familiar with Vinten . Boy was I in for an education.

I started looking at Vinten 11's, finally finding a used Vision 100 on carbon Pozi-Loc sticks with mid level spreaders. I've got to tell you what a relief it is to finally be able to pan. So simple but essential.

I'm now looking for something small and super-light for a stripped down version of the BMCC that will also work with the Pocket. 75mm bowl for sure. Likely a small Sachtler, maybe a Vinten. I really like the Miller carbon Solo sticks but am open minded there. Just the camera, lens, maybe an EVF. A setup so easy and light that it's easy to have it with you and set it up or carry it around. Coming from photography we had 8X10's and lots of 4X5's but also had Leica's at the ready for when something was coming down fast and you just need to reach for it.

So the point of my post is thanks for all the help. Especially Frank, Peter, and John B. My work is better for hanging around here and asking questions. I've got a long way to go so I hope you'll continue to be patient with my questions.

Cheers!

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Jun 16, 2013 9:33 am
by Iain Anderson
I'm using a Manfrotto EDIT: 502 on Vanguard legs. It works well for me, but I don't have much except the camera mounted on it. Nice smooth motion at a variety of drag friction settings. Maybe worth stripping it back and seeing if your luck improves?

The only time I have issues with it, incidentally, is when it's not tightened sufficiently to the base. Lock it down and it's good.

EDITED: Previously said 504 instead of 502. Sorry!

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sun Jun 16, 2013 5:07 pm
by Marshall Harrington
When shooting with the 504 also using just the body and a lens I could not achieve glass smooth pans no matter what settings were attempted. I tried repeatedly with the same result. Tilts were better. Free movement was predictably jerky. Never thought the base or the tripod was contributing as it's always tight.

Right away with the Vinten, pans are smooth. Oddly to me (it should come as no surprise as that is what it's design for) it prefers the heavier weight.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Mon Jun 17, 2013 12:02 am
by Christian Schmeer
I am trying to decide between the Manfrotto 502 and the new 500 head. Has anyone tried both of them and could comment on smoothness? :)

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 9:05 pm
by Margus Voll
So you guys think Manfrotto 504HD Pro head + Manfrotto 545B Pro legs would not work smoothly in combination ?

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Tue Jun 25, 2013 10:15 pm
by Ryan Jones
Good choice on the Vinten. I've got a Vision Blue head and legs that travels with me and its great.

My only wish with hindsight is that I got something carbon, its very heavy dragging around airports with a Pelican case and suitcase.

Maybe you could look into Miller DS5/DS10 for your portable setup, maybe with carbon legs?

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 10:36 am
by Robert Niessner
I have to say that I am using the Manfrotto 509HD and this is the first Manfrotto Head I am really happy with. It works beautifully with my fully rigged BMCC, panning is very nice.
As for the tripod - someone here complained about the 564B that it is not holding the weight.
You can adjust the screws of the legs so they hold tighter. The 546B is ok for it's price, but I don't really like it, the locking mechanism is clumsy and its not easy to change the heights.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 3:16 pm
by Marshall Harrington
Margus - Don't get me wrong, I'm not trying to say anything bad about Manfrotto. I own a ton of Manfrotto gear. Light stands, grip dear, tripods, on and on.... Great gear for the money. Just to be clear I have the 504 head that sits on the 546B sticks. The head is definitely sticky when panning regardless of weight. It gets worse with more weight. The sticks work fine, although you get what you pay for. The locks are nylon or some sort of flexible plastic. When you lock them they some times are not properly seated therefore have a tendency to slip. After that happening a few times during a shot I learned to double and triple check each lock with each setup. Honestly I'm used to better gear but again you get what you pay for.

Robert - I had heard good things about the 509 and was looking at that as well before I got the Vinten. I looked at Sachtler, Oconnor, as well. I made lots of call and got a bunch of great advice from all the company reps. The piece of advice that stuck was to weight my setup fully rigged and target that number as the center of the suggested payload range of my intended head and go from there. That allowed me to narrow down my choices a great deal.

So now I'm starting to look for a tiny ultralight head with ultralight sticks in anticipation of the Pocket Camera as well as the BMCC stripped down to a body with a lens. Been checking out the Vinten 3 and the small Sachtlers. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 3:25 pm
by Margus Voll
So the Vision blue5 should be reasonable for regular BMC setup?

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 3:55 pm
by Marshall Harrington
Margus Voll wrote:So the Vision blue5 should be reasonable for regular BMC setup?


Two thoughts:

First, what is the weight of a regular BMC setup. 12-26 pounds is what they say that head is rated for. The center of that is 19 pounds. Weigh your rig or your intended rig. Is it at the center of the target rating?

Second, the size of the bowl matters. I'm still listening to Franks advice on the 150mm bowl. Can't remember exactly which head he was speaking of but my experience with larger gear is its much, much smoother. That being said I decided for my personal kit, when I'm not renting, that I'd need 100mm. Small enough to carry without a large team, but big enough to handle the center of my rig which is currently 26.5 lbs.

Note: I do not use my camera rigged up all the time. Far from it. Stripped down has it's place. Moving quick means either being light or having a bigger team. In my case I often work alone or with one assistant. Also like to travel and shoot. That's just a different need and will mean a second head and sticks. 75mm bowl and carbon sticks for sure. Probably looking at payload of 7-8 lbs max, mostly lighter.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Wed Jun 26, 2013 4:55 pm
by sean mclennan
To give people an idea of the weight of their camera and accessories...here's the breakdown I've come up with after some research. Weights are rounded slightly. So 3.8 lbs would be 4 lbs. 3.3lbs would be 3lbs.

Bare BMCC EF - 4lbs
Small lens - 1 to 2 lbs
CF matte box - 3 to 5 lbs
Follow focus - 1lb
Camera mount w/12 inch 15mm Aluminum rails - 3 to 4 lbs
Shotgun mic with shock mount - 1 lb
2 or 3 channel preamp/mixer w/batteries - 1.5lbs
Battery mount plate with 100wh battery - 3lbs
7" monitor with DV battery and magic arm - 3lbs
SSD plus a few cables - 1lb

You can easily get your rig up to 26lbs...short of running the camera with just a small lens and tripod mount, It would be hard to keep your load under 8lbs. I would suggest "budgeting" for roughly 15 lbs if you plan to use a matte box and some sort of rail mount and/or battery.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Thu Jun 27, 2013 9:30 pm
by rick.lang
sean mclennan wrote:...You can easily get your rig up to 26lbs...short of running the camera with just a small lens and tripod mount, It would be hard to keep your load under 8lbs. I would suggest "budgeting" for roughly 15 lbs if you plan to use a matte box and some sort of rail mount and/or battery.


That is very useful. Combined with the advice to select a tripod/ head where that weight ideally is the mid-point of the recommended weight range means a head that can carry at least 35 pounds, maybe a head rated for 12 to 38 pounds. Definitely larger than I had anticipated. I was thinking Sachtler FS8 but back to the drawing board!

Rick Lang
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Thu Jun 27, 2013 9:42 pm
by sean mclennan
rick.lang wrote:
sean mclennan wrote:...You can easily get your rig up to 26lbs...short of running the camera with just a small lens and tripod mount, It would be hard to keep your load under 8lbs. I would suggest "budgeting" for roughly 15 lbs if you plan to use a matte box and some sort of rail mount and/or battery.


That is very useful. Combined with the advice to select a tripod/ head where that weight ideally is the mid-point of the recommended weight range means a head that can carry at least 35 pounds, maybe a head rated for 12 to 38 pounds. Definitely larger than I had anticipated. I was thinking Sachtler FS8 but back to the drawing board!

Rick Lang
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD


Yeah, I'm sure you could get away with slightly less, but I'm sure it's more than many people thought. Also remember some heads have a minimum rating as well. So 8-26lbs...middle ground would be 21, not 13. I've seen several people who just "half" the max rating. Doesn't work that way!

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Jun 29, 2013 4:08 am
by rick.lang
sean mclennan wrote:... Also remember some heads have a minimum rating as well. So 8-26lbs...middle ground would be 21, not 13. I've seen several people who just "half" the max rating. Doesn't work that way!


Maybe a typo there. I think you meant to say if the rated range of the head was, for example, 16-26 lbs, the middle ground would be 21 lbs.

Bon voyage!

Rick Lang
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Jun 29, 2013 5:50 am
by aesnakes
I use a Giottos 6 layer carbon fiber tripod MT8360 with one of their fluid heads and then for travel I have one of there really small carbon fiber tripods that I can put that fluid head on...Looks weird on the really small one but it works and is so small and light. For third point of contact I use the small pocket rig from Edelkrone.

The MT8360 is light for its size as well and pretty sturdy. I like the twist locking legs and how low to the ground this tripod can go. I actually bought it specifically for some really low macro work but anyways. I use this tripod with my D800 setup and I used it with the BMCC with large lenses.

Its not a super cheap setup but it's not crazy expensive and my kit is very light which is most important when Im trying to go places no one else would. Also I always try to think if I wont take it with me because its bulky, heavy or whatever then I'll never use it.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Jun 29, 2013 5:51 am
by aesnakes
Oh and Ive heard at least here in canada that Giottos have had some issues with having local suppliers so I was able to buy my tripods in the stores but the fluid head I had to get off a store on ebay.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Thu Jul 04, 2013 1:14 pm
by Anthony Vescio
I've been thinking about just going with the Kessler tripod and Hercules head, especially since I use a slider a lot, but it most certainly is not travel friendly.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Fri Jan 31, 2014 1:46 pm
by tilllt
Does anyone have hands-on experience with the Sachtler ACE Series?

I can't spend 1000€ on a tripod right now, but all the ones i have personally used where much more expensive, except for the Manfrottos, which i do not consider usable when it comes to smooth panning. I know people in this thread seem to think different, but every single Manfrotto head i used was absolutely crap compared to a regular sachter Video x / FSB x head...

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 9:06 am
by Nikolay Smirnov
What can anyone say about Libec's RS-450?

My full setup is around 23lbs (11kg) and I like that the head has continuous counterbalance, that is great depending on reviews. Although I hate that it is only 75mm.
I have a chance to buy SACHTLER ENG2D legs and add Libec RHP75 head later which is 100mm bowl.

Is those Libec heads really good as told they are?

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 10:38 am
by Jason R. Johnston
tilllt wrote:every single Manfrotto head i used was absolutely crap compared to a regular sachtler head


Yeah, that's true. I personally own manfrotto stuff since im poor but ive used sachtler head/sticks for years and years at the tv stations ive worked and i always tend to rent the sachtler fluid heads over o'conner ones. I just really like the layout and control.

I cant personally vouch for ace, but its sachtler so im sure its just fine compared to similar kits

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 12:31 pm
by Aleksandar Bogdanov
Very useful thread! Could someone recommend a head for more based setup?

As I do mostly doc field work in small communities, I need to keep my setup at minimum in terms of size and weight. I have the BMCC in wooden camera cage, a battery and a small monitor (still considering), which is within the 4-5 kg range (9-11lb). The thing is I really like the flat base heads on photo sticks, as I need to be portable and rarely shoot at more than a meter from the ground. I was looking for a manfrotto 502AH head, but your feedback here make me reconsider as I want smooth pans, which my current 500AH struggles to do... Any recommendations are welcome!

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 3:23 pm
by Soeren Mueller
Jason R. Johnston wrote:Yeah, that's true. I personally own manfrotto stuff since im poor ...


Hehe.. Jason I'm poor too! But still, saving up the money to finally get a Sachtler FSB 8 instead of the Manfrotto heads.. was the best decision ever! (funny enough I use it with the Manfrotto legs, didn't like the Sachtler legs - at least the cheaper ones - at all)

And the FSB 8 is absolutely fine even with a fully kitted out BMCC...

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 3:41 pm
by Goran Alimpic
Nikolay Smirnov wrote:What can anyone say about Libec's RS-450?


I just bought Libec RS-450RM... my rig tops at around 12kg and the tripod/head handle it without any problem, staying smooth and sturdy. I only tested it in the house, though.

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 4:23 pm
by Jason R. Johnston
Soeren Mueller wrote:
Jason R. Johnston wrote:Yeah, that's true. I personally own manfrotto stuff since im poor ...


Hehe.. Jason I'm poor too! But still, saving up the money to finally get a Sachtler FSB 8 instead of the Manfrotto heads.. was the best decision ever! (funny enough I use it with the Manfrotto legs, didn't like the Sachtler legs - at least the cheaper ones - at all)

And the FSB 8 is absolutely fine even with a fully kitted out BMCC...


I agree, but I'd be more interested in a Video 20 or 18 (100mm bowl) with 150mm bowl sticks. Eventually, I'll need to go Mitchell...but, I'll get there...

Re: Survey on tripods and heads

PostPosted: Sat Feb 01, 2014 4:27 pm
by Soeren Mueller
Jason R. Johnston wrote:I agree, but I'd be more interested in a Video 20 or 18 (100mm bowl) with 150mm bowl sticks. Eventually, I'll need to go Mitchell...but, I'll get there...


The Video 20 head is really fantastic! I owned one for some time, but for most of the corporate stuff with cameras like the DVX100 / HVX and later DSLR and now BMCC it was just oversized...

From time to time you can get really good deals over here on "old" (but serviced) Video 20 and similar heads, don't know if that happens in the states as well...
Absolutely don't mind some "battle scars" on the equipment as long as it works.