3 new (and well overdue) purchases

[icanon]

A ring in exchange for gear is a fair deal, lol


What bracket are you using to hold your flash?

[William]

How much did it all add up to?


You can nominate a lens of equivalent value if you

[Daniel Browning]

How much did it all add up to?

It's a amazing what such a tiny piece of metal can cost. But RRS sure scores well in the "fit and finish" category. Don't tell anyone this, but sometimes I like to take all my RRS plates, clamps, rails, ball heads, etc. and play with them.

[William]

It's a amazing what such a tiny piece of metal can cost.

Sorry I didn't mean the ring, just the camera gear. Yes you are strange, nobody else does that. [:$]





(Nearly all of us do).

[btaylor]

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Unless, of course, you just want to give me your new tripod. That would certainly make my dilema easier to digest.[img]/emoticons/emotion-2.gif[/img]

Hmmm let me see... HELL NO!!! []

A ring in exchange for gear is a fair deal, lol


What bracket are you using to hold your flash?

That's not actually me in that picture (I wish I had the 500mm f/4L!). It's just an example of the tripod from another site. So I can't answer that for you unfortunately.
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How much did it all add up to?

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All up it was around $1,250 Australian (so around $5 million US at the moment [:P])


Really Right Stuff BH55 + Lever release clamp = $455


BG-E6 Camera plate = $55


70-200mm lens plate = $55


Shipping $66


Induro CT414 tripod $616 (inc shipping).


So for the price of a Gitzo tripod I got myself a top notch ballhead and a tripod I believe will do a great job for me for a very long time.



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Daniel - I can see myself doing that, don't worry you're not alone.

[bob williams]

Ben, Congrats on the engagement and the new gear. I also own the BH 55 and love it--it is rock solid and holds with minimal tightening--I am confident that you will love it as well. That tripod also looks like a good one--I am not familiar with the Induro's, but as you pointed out, I haven't heard anything negative about your model. I was the one that posted the article you spoke about and that is what encouraged me to spend the big bucs on support---I have never regretted it. One thing you might also think about with tha big lens is a gimble head. I chose to go with the Wimberley sidekick because I didn't want to continuously change heads on my one solid tripod. The BH 55/Sidkick combo work flawlessly together and really makes it a joy to use the large lenses on--The sidekick is half the price of a full siz gimbal and easily mounts and dismounts.


Congrats again,


Bob


Edit: Oops, I guess I should have read all of the comments---I thought that was you with the 500---but.....My suggestion about the sidekick still applies when the time comes.

[Kayaker72]

Ben....a promotion, an engagement and new gear! What a hat trick....Congrats on all three.

[btaylor]

Hehe indeed, thanks!

[btaylor]

Well unfortunately my order on the Induro CT414 fell through - the supplier can

[Richard Lane]

Ben,


I have the Gitzo 3541 LS and I would highly recommend it. It's a nice compromise between heavy duty and compact because it has 4 legs. It's compact for travel, its folded length is 55cm (21.6in.)


It's good that you're thinking about the exact height that you will need at eye level (great for studio work), but keep in mind that this height will only be perfect for shooting straight ahead. There are some advantages of getting a taller tripod than you need.


1) If you're shooting at something in the sky, like a bird or the moon, or fireworks, or using a wimberely head, then you will be tilting the lens upwards which will move the viewfinder downward. If you go too short with the tripod then you will have to bend down to look through the viewfinder, which will cause a backache after a while.


2) If you're standing on a hill, large rock or uneven ground (or stairs for example), then it's nice to have a taller tripod to extend the front leg all the way down to the ground (or down the hill) while the other legs can be shortened to remain on the higher ground that you're standing on.


3) Also consider that sometimes you will be shooting downward like for flowers or macro and in these cases the exact viewfinder height wont matter either.


You could always shorten the legs by not extending them fully, although it is a pain sometimes (I have marked mine with a line on each leg that is ideal for straight ahead shooting). If you do this than don't fully extend the smallest leg since it's the thinnest and weakest, unless you're in mud or sand, because you don't want to have the bottom twisting leg collar too close to the dirt.


Rich