choosing tripod and heads

this entry is meant for hobbyist who is into portraiture of all levels, in terms of skill sets. key “takeaways” from this entry is to enable you to make an informed decision to purchase a suitable tripod and heads, based on existing gears you have or might plan to buy. saves you time (because you know where to start to look) and monies (minimised the “uh oh” moments of buying unsuitable gears to match your needs).

manfrotto interactive camera support system configurator | click on image to view site

over at manfrotto’s website, they have this system configurator for camera support which, in my opinion, handy and informative, for you to find out what type of camera support that may suit your needs.

weight calculator menu

what i really like about this configurator, its well designed. one of the data you need to provide is the weight of your existing gears. if you do not know the exact weight of it, there is a menu where you can choose from. however, another question that comes in mind is – what if you use more than 1 camera body? what i’ll do is to choose the heaviest camera (in terms of weight) and the heaviest lens (in terms of weight), so i’ll know that whichever tripod and head i choose will support the other camera and lens combo that i have. for example, if i have a canon 5D MK II, 1D MK II, EF 50mm f1.8 MK II and EF 70-200mm f2.8 L IS USM, i’ll use the weight of 1D MK II and EF 70-200mm f2.8 L IS USM as my weight reference. what if the camera body is not in the list? 5D MK II is not in the list and the list of camera bodies did not take into consideration of external battery grips. if this is the case, make an educated guess =)

manfrotto system configrator

once you determine the weight of your camera, the image above is a screenshot is the menu you will encounter. from the left top screen, your camera weight. in “camera use”, choose the usage of your system – in this example i chose portrait. in “camera type” – choose the type of camera you use. i chose “professional dlsr”. as result of what you choose in the top screen, the system will then suggest to which tripods and heads that may suit your needs. i chose a 3way head with a carbob fibre lightweight tripod. if the combo is suitable, on the bottom left of the screen, it would highlight as “balance system” and there is a link to click on to find out why.

the screenshot above is the product description of the items selected with their combined technical facts. this will enable you to make an informed decision on your next purchase.

gitzo configurator

with the information you gather from the manfrotto’s site, you can use it to choose camera support gears from other manufacturer, like gitzo. although manufacturers would love you to use everything that they have, but in reality, we always mix and match.

in summary, depending of what level you are currently in, do you really need a suitable tripod and heads? in my opinion, for portraiture, there will be a stage in your journey where you will need it. it will become an essential item and its to your advantage to help you achieve what you want, visually.