Budget Tripod?

[Dan_1981]

I know I know - really should spend more etc etc.

Is it plausible to get a decent tripod for circa £50?

Have seen this one (below) which does seem to get positive reviews but I know at this price point i'm not going to be getting the best.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Hama-Traveller-Compact-Pro...

[tenohfive]

You'll easily get a good quality second hand Manfrotto or similar on eBay at that price. Think I paid £40 for mine a couple of years ago. It's heavy, bulky and I can feel every gram when I'm dragging it up a mountain for a wild camp somewhere - but it's reliable and bullet proof. I wouldn't think twice about getting one second hand again.

[zcacogp]

Red Snapper are meant to be OK and are very well priced.

http://www.redsnapperuk.com/camera-accessories/Tri...


Oli.

[Pints]

You can get a Manfrotto from Currys for £50.

[andburg]

Costco currently have a manfrotto MKC3-H01 for around £25 iirc....dont have my receipt from when i bought mine

[andrewcliffe]

With tripods, you can get two of the three statements, but getting all three is difficult.

CHEAP / STURDY / LIGHTWEIGHT

You can get cheap, light tripods, but they're not sturdy
You can get cheap and sturdy tripods, but they're heavy
You can get sturdy and light tripods, but they're expensive.

[GuyW]

I think they're just shifting old stock now as they're being phased out but if you're quick (and have access to a Costco!) they're knocking out the manfrotto 190xb & 804rc2 head combo.
£60.

Can't beat that.

[ecsrobin]

Buy cheap buy twice.

That's certainly my experience, I thought £40 was a good price for a tripod then soon realised after a couple of months of use that it was not adequate for use.

So I then had to spend £160 on a giottos tripod and have been happy ever since.

[steveatesh]

ecsrobin said:

Buy cheap buy twice.

That's certainly my experience, I thought £40 was a good price for a tripod then soon realised after a couple of months of use that it was not adequate for use.

So I then had to spend £160 on a giottos tripod and have been happy ever since.

Plus 1.
I bought a cheap tripod and after 12 months replaced it with the Manfrotto 055XPROB because I was sick of long exposures being ruined by a passing car or wasp.
Really heavy to lug around, but I reframe that to say it's saving me on gym membership

[Simpo Two]

steveatesh said:

I bought a cheap tripod and after 12 months replaced it with the Manfrotto 055XPROB because I was sick of long exposures being ruined by a passing car or wasp.
Really heavy to lug around, but I reframe that to say it's saving me on gym membership

Plus you can pretend you're carrying a small Gatling gun for extra man points.

(fellow 055ProB owner here)

[SlidingSideways]

zcacogp said:

Red Snapper are meant to be OK and are very well priced.

http://www.redsnapperuk.com/camera-accessories/Tri...


Oli.

For the handful of outings it gets a year, I've been very pleased with mine. I did go for the more expensive 3-way head (ooh-err!) rather than the cheap bundled one based on what others had said about the step up in quality.
It's not exactly light, but not so heavy that you can't lug it around on a days hiking.

[Malx]

I also bought a cheap tripod and soon found it to be useless. I spent about £80 on a RedSnapper RSF-284 & RSH-61 Ball Head which i think is brilliant for my uses. It's sturdy enough to not shake and light enough to carry around. One leg also detaches so i have a handy monopod if needed.

The head did break but RedSnapper were brilliant and sent a replacement out quickly, no questions asked.

Although the tripod is far from top of the range It'll do for a long time before it needs upgrading.

[marctwo]

If you want something small and light you can get this Carbon Fibre one from Amazon for £55:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/AmazonBasics-Lightweight-T...

[Golaboots]

Old pro stuff is the way to go IMHO. Cheap, heavy, sturdy.
It's comparatively against younger models but that just means it's better in the wind/sea/river.

[Dan_1981]

Taken a punt on the Redsnapper - reviews and feedback seem good.

My previous one was nothing particularly expensive and has given me a fair few years service.