Tripod head (and tripod) for Landscapes

[Krish]

Good choice buying the Peak Design. Let me suggest a couple of customizations
Swap out the built-in head with a Peak Design Universal head Adapter https://global.peakdesign.com/collections/tripods/products/universal-head-adapter
Screw on a Flex Shooter Pro on this new head https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...r_fs02011_flexshooter_pro_lever_ballhead.html

The whole combo is expensive, but I did exactly that a few months ago and it is fantastic !! Highly recommended. Works with an 800mm PF as well as it does with a 40mm

 

[Winston Churchill (Sir)]

Good choice buying the Peak Design. Let me suggest a couple of customizations
Swap out the built-in head with a Peak Design Universal head Adapter https://global.peakdesign.com/collections/tripods/products/universal-head-adapter
Screw on a Flex Shooter Pro on this new head https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/prod...r_fs02011_flexshooter_pro_lever_ballhead.html

The whole combo is expensive, but I did exactly that a few months ago and it is fantastic !! Highly recommended. Works with an 800mm PF as well as it does with a 40mm

Thank you Krish - it is great to get suggestions and the nice thing is I can refer back to this thread in future

 

[MMoretti]

Thanks to all who commented on this thread. I also need a lightweight travel tripod for landscape and learned a lot. I've also been eyeing the PD carbon. I'm hoping it will work for short tripod work close to the ground for closeups of flowers, but I may need to look at something additional for that.
Elsa, please let us know how you like the PD after you have used it for a while, also the head. I have to admit the tripod folds up smaller than anything else I've seen.

There‘s a seller on FM who just listed two PD CF tripods in ‘8’ condition for $425 each.

 

[AlanB313]

There‘s a seller on FM who just listed two PD CF tripods in ‘8’ condition for $425 each.

Thanks, I'll check it out.

 

[nikonshooter]

I went through many different tripods from various brands over the years (Sirui, Feisol, Slik, Manfrotto, Rollei, etc.) and basically all of them had bigger issues after a while. Also tried the PD one but found it way too flimsy and personally dislike the ball head design that doesn't offer a panning base.

Around two years ago I've found the perfect setup for myself (I'm a landscape shooter): my Gitzo GT1545T-82TQD is perfect for longer hikes, city trips and other occasions when weight is an issue. It can easily support my Z8 plus the 100-400 Z lens, even with a teleconverter attached. It's extremely light and packs down small while offering a great working height and stability. I always take it with my in my hand luggage when travelling by plane.

If I'm travelling to a location where I need something sturdier, I throw my Gitzo GT2543L into my checked-in luggage and put the Gitzo GH3382QD ball head in my hand luggage (saves me some weight in the checked-in baggage). This tripod is a total beast given its comparatively low weight, offers lots of stability, can take spikes, is the highest tripod of the Mountaineer series 2 and also has a centre column that can easily be removed within seconds. The GH3382QD ball head is rock solid, smooth as silk, has large rubberised knobs and friction control. I've used it in arctic conditions, storms, for shooting seascapes at beaches, etc. and have yet to encounter any issues. What I like about the brand is that I can buy spare parts for all their tripods. I always take a set of spare parts with me (especially when travelling to remote locations) that could fail when cleaning the tripod or during normal usage (like the plastic stoppers for the legs and the plastic rings sitting inside the locks).

 

[Winston Churchill (Sir)]

Thank you Nikonshooter! I have had some great input on this thread - and I am sure others too. Your post will be valuable to someone who is still looking.

I was with a group of people the other day - did some seascapes. The guy who invited the lot of us is a Leophoto agent. The first thing he said was -
"I can tell you everything that wring with that Tripod " Well thank you very much - I thought by myself. Like I cant read myself. But of course he was probably not happy that I didnt buy a Leophoto set up Time will tell - it's not a perfect set up - but then there is no such thing.

 

[BertieB]

Guess everyone can buy what best suits him/her. The key is to always be openminded, take it all in and then decide based on your own personal physical "specs" ie height, fitness & age, then your financial position (usefulness, value & need) and finally your style of shooting. I am also looking for a studier travel pod, that will be suitable not only for shorter lenses but take long heavier lenses as well without having the stress it will fall over. I have learned a lot from all the comments and thanks to Elsa the OP, for starting it all off and everyone that contributed.

 

[nikonshooter]

Thank you Nikonshooter! I have had some great input on this thread - and I am sure others too. Your post will be valuable to someone who is still looking.

I was with a group of people the other day - did some seascapes. The guy who invited the lot of us is a Leophoto agent. The first thing he said was -
"I can tell you everything that wring with that Tripod " Well thank you very much - I thought by myself. Like I cant read myself. But of course he was probably not happy that I didnt buy a Leophoto set up Time will tell - it's not a perfect set up - but then there is no such thing.

Definitely, there are always drawbacks and compromises to make, there is simply no such thing as a jack of all trades tripod. The larger it is, the more stable, heavier but also more annoying to hike with it gets and vice versa. That's why I decided to travel with two tripods with each having its own purpose. Like BertieB said, it always depends on physical height, strength, financial position, etc., and it has certainly become more difficult to choose over the years with more and more brands coming onto the market. Enjoy your new tripod, it's definitely a joy to travel with thanks to its small size and weight!

 

[eaj101]

@nikonshooter makes an excellent point - there is probably no single solution. I suspect that, like photo backpacks, we end up collecting a number of solutions for different situations. There's the 'throw in the pack in case I might need it' tripod and the 'carry over the shoulder for the ten pound rig' tripod, and things in between. I have smaller tripods like Leofoto and Benro, more towards the 'just in case' use, and a Gitzo Series 1 and an RRS TVC-34 for more 'dedicated use'. The RRS with a gimbal is my main tripod for big lenses, the Gitzo and a smaller ballhead and a Wimberley Sidekick for smaller rigs. (I find I don't use the RRS as much these days because I don't have as many 8 pound lenses anymore ). I've tended towards an Acratech ballhead for its lightness and a Benro gimbal but also have some smaller ballheads.

General considerations: is is high enough (I'm 5'8") and does it go low enough for my use? Is it high enough to use on a slope when I'm above it?. When I lock it down, is there any sag at all? (I really don't like it when I frame something, lock the head, and it points somewhere else). If I tap the lens is there any vibration? And, of course, am I willing to carry it however far I'm going that day or am I working from a car?

Generally happy with this set of tools, though I wouldn't mind something that serves the purpose of a gimbal and isn't as big (carbon fiber gimbals aren't very heavy anymore) and I'm thinking of a different ballhead since the Acratech I'm using has developed a droop.

I use a tripod less than I used to, but there are situations where one is still mandatory. Landscapes with moving water, bracketing and pixel-shift shooting. Wildlife where you're framed on something waiting for something to happen (I defy anyone to hold a long lens on target for ten minutes without support. You either lower the lens to rest your arms and miss the shot or... just miss the shot).

Enjoy what you're using and keep your eyes open for improvements

 

[Flyboy]

I am looking for a tripod head for landscapes - specifically fitting well into the category of good and light for travel, while being of proper decent. Not a once-off thingie that will frustrate the shyte of my derierre.

I am open to suggestions - but what I have been looking at is:

Leophoto geared head - G3? G4?
Leophoto levelling base
Leophoto carbon fibre tripod to match

We do not have all the brands you have in the USA, so shipping could be an issue if not locally available, but I am still willing to investigate suggestions either-way.

I don't like a ball head - so thats out. Dont even suggest that one. And I don't have $2500 for a tripod head either.

thank you - for whatever you can contribute.

I am probably going to be in the small minority here, but having used ball heads...I can't afford the mega popular brands, but I like 3 way pan/tilt heads best. Faster, more secure and easier to adjust for me. In fact, I will replace the ball head (Very sturdy) on my Carbon Fiber tripod with a pan head. I just find them easier to use. But...doing that, the total weight will be close to what my old Aluminum tripod with 3 way head weighed.
I am at that age when anything more than 150 yards from the car is NOT interesting, but find a smallish hike with attached 'pod will not be excessive!
Good luck!

 

[Winston Churchill (Sir)]

I have now been using the Peak Design Carbon fibre tripod for landscapes for a couple of months now - I swear nothing beats that thing in terms of carrying it around. It is pure pleasure.
It is not perfect - specifically as you have to pull the head "out" a bit on the stalk if you want to have full ability to change shooting angles.
I have used it with the Z9 + 24-70 as well as the Z9 and 70-200 and it is very steady, and that lot is rather heavy. I do not plan to use it with longer lenses.
I previously HATED using a tripod, now I won't leave home without.
Shooting from the the tripod, I spend more time to evaluate my composition, as I use the back TV to set up my shot - and not the viewfinder. This "distance" from the photograph gives a better perspective all round.

 

[StarTracker50]

Peak Design Carbon fibre tripod

Which one Elsa?

 

[AlanB313]

I have now been using the Peak Design Carbon fibre tripod for landscapes for a couple of months now - I swear nothing beats that thing in terms of carrying it around. It is pure pleasure.
It is not perfect - specifically as you have to pull the head "out" a bit on the stalk if you want to have full ability to change shooting angles.
I have used it with the Z9 + 24-70 as well as the Z9 and 70-200 and it is very steady, and that lot is rather heavy. I do not plan to use it with longer lenses.
I previously HATED using a tripod, now I won't leave home without.
Shooting from the the tripod, I spend more time to evaluate my composition, as I use the back TV to set up my shot - and not the viewfinder. This "distance" from the photograph gives a better perspective all round.

Thanks for the update. I have a heavier sirui tripod I like well enough, but I think the carbon PD is something I'd carry in my backpack much more often. I'd use it for landscape as well, but also with a 300mm pf f4 with a tc. Or without. The sirui is just a little much to carry any longer distance.

 

[Winston Churchill (Sir)]

Which one Elsa?

Peak Design Carbon Fibre travel tripod

Travel Tripod

We spent 4 years redesigning the tripod from the ground up, creating a travel tripod that packs down to the diameter of a water bottle—without compromising height, stability, or features. Traditional tripods have always suffered from needless bulk and wasted space, so we made it radically faster...

global.peakdesign.com

 

[Calson]

For travel the weight is primarily in the tripod legs and not the head. The RRS BH-40 weighs 17.1 lb as compared to far superior Arca-Swiss D4 GP that weighs 2.3 lb. A difference of 0.6 lb is trivial in the overall scheme of things.

The best lightweight travel tripod I have owned is the Feisol CT-3441T Traveler that weighs only 2.6 lb. An advantage of this tripod is its ability to collapse to a length of 18.9 inches. It also comes with an excellent travel case unlike the Gitzo and RRS tripods where I needed to spend an additional $100 for one.