Sturdy tripod for night

[peabrain]

Hi guys
I am looking for a tripod for my night time landscape, street and astro photography.
(also the occasional wildlife with up to 600mm tele)
Currently i have a cheap amazon Tycka "carbon" tripod, for my daylight shooting it is decent when i go light and the wind is low.
When i go out for some astro photography total load under 5kg ish, and there is a slight wind it will shake very easily.
what are my main needs.

1. very sturdy and stability
2. compact enough for me to have it on my shoulder while on motorcycle (only means of transport)
3. no to price that i have to harvest my neighbors organs to buy it

the height is not the main concern but would be nice not to have to bend over to much.
and i do mind i not having a head included since i will look for a good head or heads later.

 

[Mike Buckley]

If you indicate your budget, you'll likely get more helpful responses.

 

[Keithj34]

I use KandF concepts tripod nice n sturdy but not overbearing weight wise

 

[peabrain]

my budget would max out at 200-250$ atm

 

[Keithj34]

my budget would max out at 200-250$ atm

think i paid 125-150

 

[Randy]

Maybe a used one
I had a baby Gitzo years ago that was $900 new
Small and sturdy is pricey

 

[gchappel]

Sturdy, light, cheap. Pick 2.
From my experience, especially with big glass like a 600mm, in the $250 I would be looking used. My gitzo's and RRS tripods were 4-5x your budget.
Good luck with your search, let us know what you find.
gary

 

[gnagel]

I think it's time again to share Thom Hogan's "Tripod 101" article.
https://www.dslrbodies.com/accessories/camera-accessories/tripod-101.html

"...the premise I present is still true and will remain true: you'll save money if you just get the right support in the first place."

Like many people, I learned this the hard way. I purchased and sold a couple of tripods before taking Thom's advice. A tripod must be stable...or it is basically useless. And if it is light, it is expensive.

Glenn

 

[Pa]

I think it's time again to share Thom Hogan's "Tripod 101" article.
https://www.dslrbodies.com/accessories/camera-accessories/tripod-101.html

"...the premise I present is still true and will remain true: you'll save money if you just get the right support in the first place."

Like many people, I learned this the hard way. I purchased and sold a couple of tripods before taking Thom's advice. A tripod must be stable...or it is basically useless. And if it is light, it is expensive.

Glenn

Yep. I was about to look that up and post the link.

I have two tripods: a sturdy one and a light one. Neither was cheap.

 

[Replytoken]

Hi guys
I am looking for a tripod for my night time landscape, street and astro photography.
(also the occasional wildlife with up to 600mm tele)
Currently i have a cheap amazon Tycka "carbon" tripod, for my daylight shooting it is decent when i go light and the wind is low.
When i go out for some astro photography total load under 5kg ish, and there is a slight wind it will shake very easily.
what are my main needs.

1. very sturdy and stability
2. compact enough for me to have it on my shoulder while on motorcycle (only means of transport)
3. no to price that i have to harvest my neighbors organs to buy it

the height is not the main concern but would be nice not to have to bend over to much.
and i do mind i not having a head included since i will look for a good head or heads later.

I hate to make your search more challenging, but do you have a good ballhead or do you need to budget for that as well?

--Ken

 

[peabrain]

Thx for the info guys
my current ball head is ok for now but will swap it out at a later date.

but can see the consensus is that i should save up way more before looking further into a stronger tripod.

 

[gchappel]

Wise to go slow here. Watch the for sale forums, with the camera improvements many are using their tripods less and less- so they sell them. I have seen some decent gitzo legs go for less than $500.
It is hard to believe you have to spend $1000+ (new) just to hold a camera still on a couple of sticks.
But you do. (At least in my experience.)
gary

 

[peabrain]

That is getting more and more real for me.
especially as i tend to want to be near water and the ocean where the wind blows a little more, and i have had my fair amount of shots where the stars look like frog eggs because of that.

 

[rick_reno]

thanks for posting that Thom article. i went looking for it a few months ago and couldn’t find it. i did exactly as he described in the article, I spent wads of cash on tripods and heads that didn’t work.

 

[peabrain]

currently looking at a few options on some recommended ones, but will put it on the lower part of my list.
current planning to purchase a used Z7 to give a full spectrum mod, and in a couple of months get the Z7II for my day stuff.
during this i plan to sell my Z50 and my DX lenses, to help pay for a Z 24mm and a sigma 60-600 sport.