Tripod suggestions - special reason

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MikeJ

MikeJ

Well-known member
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I am looking for suggestions for a tripod for a special reason. For as deep as I am into photography (obsessed, my wife would say), my son never really caught the bug (probably good!) until recently. For the past few years he's borrowed my D300 and joined me as I head up far north to try to get away from light pollution to capture the Milky Way. He recently got a job in a major city, and his apartment is right downtown. Part of the move was giving him the D300, as well as a Tokina 11-16 and a Nikon 16-85. (Truth be told, I'd rather gift it to him than sell it for what little I'd get. It's a pity, IMO it's still a darn good camera!)

While I was there helping him move, we took a break and were standing out on his 26th floor balcony, commenting on the city lights at night. He said he wanted to do some long exposure night photos, but he needs a tripod. I have an old aluminum Bogen 3221, which I could give him...I'd just like to give him something a little nicer as that one was my main tripod for ~30 years and it's a little battle scarred.

Criteria:
He's 6'2" so taller is better
Would love to keep this sub-$200, though I know that's probably a dream
Ballhead would be nice
Arca-Swiss as the D300 has an A-S L-bracket
Center column not necessary unless it inverts for ground level shooting
Able to go to near ground level
Preferably carbon fiber but not critical

I'm not looking for this as a Christmas gift, more like an apartment-warming. And if I order from B&H I can ship it right to him with no tax, thanks to the Payboo card. Yes I know I could go on B&H's site and probably narrow it down, but I'd like some real-world experience and I trust you all here on BCG. (I wish this site existed when I was looking for MY travel tripod!)

Thanks in advance!

Mike
 
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MikeJ said:
I am looking for suggestions for a tripod for a special reason. For as deep as I am into photography (obsessed, my wife would say), my son never really caught the bug (probably good!) until recently. For the past few years he's borrowed my D300 and joined me as I head up far north to try to get away from light pollution to capture the Milky Way. He recently got a job in a major city, and his apartment is right downtown. Part of the move was giving him the D300, as well as a Tokina 11-16 and a Nikon 16-85. (Truth be told, I'd rather gift it to him than sell it for what little I'd get. It's a pity, IMO it's still a darn good camera!)

While I was there helping him move, we took a break and were standing out on his 26th floor balcony, commenting on the city lights at night. He said he wanted to do some long exposure night photos, but he needs a tripod. I have an old aluminum Bogen 3221, which I could give him...I'd just like to give him something a little nicer as that one was my main tripod for ~30 years and it's a little battle scarred.

Criteria:
He's 6'2" so taller is better
Would love to keep this sub-$200, though I know that's probably a dream
Ballhead would be nice
Arca-Swiss as the D300 has an A-S L-bracket
Center column not necessary unless it inverts for ground level shooting
Able to go to near ground level
Preferably carbon fiber but not critical

I'm not looking for this as a Christmas gift, more like an apartment-warming. And if I order from B&H I can ship it right to him with no tax, thanks to the Payboo card. Yes I know I could go on B&H's site and probably narrow it down, but I'd like some real-world experience and I trust you all here on BCG. (I wish this site existed when I was looking for MY travel tripod!)

Thanks in advance!

Mike
Click to expand...
Don’t know about your son of course, but if he were one of my kids, I’d just gift him the Bogen and see if his interest continues. I could easily afford to fly around the world forever, first class, with the amount I’ve spent over the years trying to encourage various interests. Just sayin’ 😎
 
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Thanks, Clark! I suppose that's a good idea. I know one of the times he joined me for MW photos, he stayed behind a day after and drove down the North Shore taking photos. He's got a good eye, too. But I don't think he's as passionate about photography as I am. At least not yet.
 
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