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Gitzo if you want to go nuts.
I'd hardly call it light but it's not like carrying a boulder around. It is quite sturdy, though. On a recent trip to take some long exposures with a friend (ironically, the same friend who bestowed said tripod upon me), he was using a very nice, lightweight, CF tripod, but it was quite breezy. He was unable to get any good shots due to his tripod being buffeted by the wind. The Alta Pro didn't budge.
For my needs it's very good. I'm unlikely to carry it up a mountain and I like that it's firm even in windy conditions. It's also very agile and can get into positions that would make a porn star blush.
If I didn't have the Alta Pro, I'd probably buy something from Kent & Faith. For my needs anything truly expensive would be a waste of money. K&F seem to make some pretty decent stuff for the price. Other's opinions may differ, however.
There is no 'H' in Aych, you know that don't you? ~ Wife
Turns out there is an H in Haych! ~ Sporky
Bit of trading feedback here.
On the other hand, they are pretty well made and you can buy a Benro, have something break you can't get the part for, throw it away, buy another one, blow £100 on a horse race, and still have spent less than the price of a Gitzo.
I have a top-of-the-range Manfrotto (last model you can buy before stepping up to their expensive brand, which is Gitzo) and a Benro. They both work just fine. Neither one was cheap though. Cheap tripods are a really bad idea. I'd rather use a cheap lens than a cheap tripod.
Genuinely, they are so much nicer to use than any of the regular leg clamp mechanisms and so easy to adjust to the perfect position. I have several tripods for different jobs but all the others make me very frowny. I think I’ve been using this particular set of legs for about 20 years and one insomnia filled night I worked out that each leg has been adjusted around a quarter of a million times. It’s as rock solid today as the day I bought it and there is no play anywhere.
It is great because adjusting the height on the fly is really practical, and you can adjust it a long way. Nothing else is as effective when you are using a big lens (600/4 for me) in thick bush or jungle and trying to get a good angle on the bird.
And it is bad (a) because it is very heavy. Too heavy for my old bones. And (b) because you can't lower it properly. The lowest it can possibly go is about half a metre, so it's pretty much useless for waterbirds, and also in various other situations.
So sometimes I use it, sometimes I use the other one.
Old ones are going to be heavy. What's your camera? I have a vanguard tripod that I picked up off ebay quite cheap, that folds down to tiny but is sturdy enough for a mirror less camera and decent sized lens, or my nikon D700 (which is a huge tank) and a smaller prime lens. It also let's you invert the centre post to hang the camera below - very stable and good for macro and other interesting viewpoints.
https://www.vanguardworld.com/products/veo-2-s-235ab
That is also available in carbon fibre. Typically, carbon will be more fragile but much lighter. The fragile thing only matters if you don't take care of it, so carbon is basically just more likely to come out with you because it's easier to carry.
Wide-angle close up landscape you'll probably be fine, even with a fairly heavy prime. The weight is more centralised and the tripod should be okay unless it's windy. Again, so much depends on what you need. I don't mind if my D700 and 50mm 1.8 blow over because the lens is mega cheap and the body is probably one of the toughest ever built.
Having read through the comments it seems the general consensus is: the lighter the better. Since I don't drive it makes even more sense to get a carbon fibre one. The one you suggested certainly ticks the boxes and has now been shortlisted – there are just so many to choose from!
Thanks again for everyone's advice. It's definitely saved me from buying a hunk of old heavy metal!
Oh. A young chap named "Tannin".
Someone bump this thread just after Christmas, I'll probably write the same posts a third time.
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk
Thanks, although I've always leaned toward the Blue/Green depth that Superia 200 (and other Fuji stocks) had.
I've noticed Cinestill 400D looks like a good contender. If I'm going to spend ££ then I'd like to support a small firm
Rift Amplification
Brackley, Northamptonshire
www.riftamps.co.uk