Feisol Tripod & head. Any feedback?

[pai]

feisol tripod is good value for money. finish not as nice as the benro and gitzo ones, and the leg locks are not as nice to use. but they're sturdy, fairly tall, and if combined with a light ballhead, can be carried for hours almost effortlessly.

as for the ballheads, i think that you'd be better off with another brand like benro or kangrinpoche. i'm not sure i like the way the locking knobs work, and the carbon fibre finish is really quite ah beng...

as for the lack of a spirit level... well, i think it's really pointless. for single shots, you want your camera to be level, so you need the bubble either on your camera or on the quickrelease clamp of your ballhead. if you want your tripod level as well because you're taking a panorama, you're better off with a levelling base. adjusting the tripod legs individually until you get the buble in the centre of the level is going to be a pain.

 

[Leonardo]

till u mention it, i never realise that my Feisol tripod does not ship with a spirit level.
i guess some ppl felt insecure with the lack of that gadgetry. i worry more abt my composition then the spirit level.

close to 2 yrs and only now then i realise... i guess i nvr knw what i missed. :bsmilie:

Be a Man. Do the RIGHT thing.

Hi Cheesecake I got your point. It seems the spirit level is not a must to have. Tks for your point.

Cheers

 

[Leonardo]

Oops. I didn't realise that you posted a reply to my post. I haven't tried using the Feisol close to ground yet actually. But if you want to, you could always remove the central column and mount your head directly to the top of the tripod (although that will involve some screws and allen keys). I'm using a Giottos MH1000 ballhead.

Anyway, for the spirit level, i think it's more important to have it on your camera itself (like those hot-shoe mounted ones) rather than on the tripod. I had the horizontal capability on my old Manfrotto 190ProB but i've only used it once. It's not particularly stable in that configuration even if you hang a counterweight on the other end. I guess it really depends on what sort of stuff you want to shoot with your tripod.

Hi Denosha tks for the feedback.
So, reading you I can conclude that for the spirit level is better to have one to be mounted directly on the camera, instead to look for one embedded in the tripod.

For the horizontal use, I read that is useful for the macro purpose but I have no more info on this.

Cheers

 

[Leonardo]

I've been using the Benro M227n6 Tripod + KJ-1 Ballhead ($605) combi for almost 2 months now. I think its a better build than the Feisol, but of course at a higher price. Performance wise it's really just a little behind Gitzo. I tried hanging myself on the tripod and it managed to take my weight (67kg) pretty well, lol. It also feels much lighter than my old Manfrotto 190pro tripod + mag head.

Hi Splutter is the 605$ related to the tripod only or the combination tripod + head?
Do you mind to provide more details?

Tks. Cheers

 

[Leonardo]

feisol tripod is good value for money. finish not as nice as the benro and gitzo ones, and the leg locks are not as nice to use. but they're sturdy, fairly tall, and if combined with a light ballhead, can be carried for hours almost effortlessly.

as for the ballheads, i think that you'd be better off with another brand like benro or kangrinpoche. i'm not sure i like the way the locking knobs work, and the carbon fibre finish is really quite ah beng...

as for the lack of a spirit level... well, i think it's really pointless. for single shots, you want your camera to be level, so you need the bubble either on your camera or on the quickrelease clamp of your ballhead. if you want your tripod level as well because you're taking a panorama, you're better off with a levelling base. adjusting the tripod legs individually until you get the buble in the centre of the level is going to be a pain.

Hi pai tks for the info.
Can you pls tell me more about the ballhead? I am not sure I got your point.
Which model you are using with the Feisol (do you mind to share the price as well?)

Rgarding the spirit level, tks to all the feedback it seems clear that is not a must. Better to have a different solution.

Tks Cheers

 

[Splutter]

Leonardo, its the price for the combination.
It's not what I would call cheap, but its really a better choice if put to test against Gitzo.

 

[pai]

hey leo...

here's a review another CSer did of the feisol and a markins ballhead. if you read the second post, you'll see what i mean about the operation of the knobs:

http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=187442

basically most other ballheads have one knob that controls the ball and one that controls the panning base. but the feisol links the two, so when you release the ball, you also release the panning base.

oh and i just went back to the feisol site. looks like they changed the appearance of their ballheads. not so beng now

as for me, i'm using a kangrinpoche 3A. this is the smallest model, with a knob based clamp. i don't have any big momma lenses, so this is strong enough for me. incredibly lightweight. it seems to be largely based on the markins m10 design, but scaled down.

can't remember exactly how much i bought it for, but was $400+, from mass order, not shop.

happy hunting!

 

[ericp]

I have a Benro C228 (old model, that looks and works remarkably like a Gitzo G1228 :bsmilie: ), paired with a Kangrinpoche NB-2A ballhead. Works well for me, though I wish it could go lower, I checked with the guy who's bringing in the Benro tripods here but he didn't seem to have brought in the short column.

Having said that, I hardly ever use the tripod at low level anyway, so it's more of an indulgence than anything for me.

And having said that, my style of photography is very "mobile", meaning that I move around a fair bit, and the tripod and ballhead are hardly used. But I guess it's there whenever I need it.

When I travel, I use a lighter setup ... Slik 340DX legs, ISE mini ballhead, and Foba QR clamp. That combination weighs next to nothing, and if I need stability, I just hang a bag with a few heavy objects on it off the tripod.

 

[Leonardo]

Leonardo, its the price for the combination.
It's not what I would call cheap, but its really a better choice if put to test against Gitzo.

Hi Splutter tks for the info.

 

[Leonardo]

hey leo...

here's a review another CSer did of the feisol and a markins ballhead. if you read the second post, you'll see what i mean about the operation of the knobs:

http://forums.clubsnap.org/showthread.php?t=187442

basically most other ballheads have one knob that controls the ball and one that controls the panning base. but the feisol links the two, so when you release the ball, you also release the panning base.

oh and i just went back to the feisol site. looks like they changed the appearance of their ballheads. not so beng now

as for me, i'm using a kangrinpoche 3A. this is the smallest model, with a knob based clamp. i don't have any big momma lenses, so this is strong enough for me. incredibly lightweight. it seems to be largely based on the markins m10 design, but scaled down.

can't remember exactly how much i bought it for, but was $400+, from mass order, not shop.

happy hunting!

Hi pai I got your point.
Tks for the clear feedback.

I saw the kangrinpoche 3A and looks really a nice one. But the price is over 500$ :cry:

Cheers

 

[Leonardo]

I have a Benro C228 (old model, that looks and works remarkably like a Gitzo G1228 :bsmilie: ), paired with a Kangrinpoche NB-2A ballhead. Works well for me, though I wish it could go lower, I checked with the guy who's bringing in the Benro tripods here but he didn't seem to have brought in the short column.

Having said that, I hardly ever use the tripod at low level anyway, so it's more of an indulgence than anything for me.

And having said that, my style of photography is very "mobile", meaning that I move around a fair bit, and the tripod and ballhead are hardly used. But I guess it's there whenever I need it.

When I travel, I use a lighter setup ... Slik 340DX legs, ISE mini ballhead, and Foba QR clamp. That combination weighs next to nothing, and if I need stability, I just hang a bag with a few heavy objects on it off the tripod.

Hi ericp tks for your contribution.
Indeed the tripod start to be a serious concern to me. I realize that I have to spend some money, and is not cheap considering tripod+ bhead, but than not so sure about the real utilization.
Of course all we are concerned about sharp pics and the tripod is helpful on this, but all the time thinking to carry it aroud ... What to do? Not so sure.

By the way thanks for sharing your point.

Cheers

 

[ericp]

You're welcome, signor Da Vinci

Despite a lot of the good advice hanging around in many threads here, I reckon that you probably won't have just one single tripod. I had my Slik earlier, and thought once I got the Benro/Kangrinpoche setup, I'll not need it anymore, but it turned out to be perfect for travel, where mobility is more important than absolute stability.

So if there's a budget constraint, perhaps you can get a Slik tripod first (I'd recommend the 330DX or 340DX, cheap, light and good), use it for a while, then when you need something more and have the funds, get your dream setup.

Mind you, the setup I have is not exactly that cheap, as I'm using Arca-Swiss type plates. The tripod's about $140, I think, and the ballhead (not available anymore) is around $30, but that QR clamp is about $100 also. You can do without the latter 2 items, I just got itchy that's all, because the 3-way panhead that comes with the tripod's pretty good, just a bit heavier than the mini-ballhead with QR clamp.

 

[Leonardo]

You're welcome, signor Da Vinci

Despite a lot of the good advice hanging around in many threads here, I reckon that you probably won't have just one single tripod. I had my Slik earlier, and thought once I got the Benro/Kangrinpoche setup, I'll not need it anymore, but it turned out to be perfect for travel, where mobility is more important than absolute stability.

So if there's a budget constraint, perhaps you can get a Slik tripod first (I'd recommend the 330DX or 340DX, cheap, light and good), use it for a while, then when you need something more and have the funds, get your dream setup.

Mind you, the setup I have is not exactly that cheap, as I'm using Arca-Swiss type plates. The tripod's about $140, I think, and the ballhead (not available anymore) is around $30, but that QR clamp is about $100 also. You can do without the latter 2 items, I just got itchy that's all, because the 3-way panhead that comes with the tripod's pretty good, just a bit heavier than the mini-ballhead with QR clamp.

Hi ericp now you also know my family name :bsmilie:

Thanks for the provided detail & suggestion. Indeed helpful to get a clear picture on this rebus.
One single tripod should be ok for me. This is the reason why I would like to be sure to get the right one that have to be versatile enough for my needs (mainly pano, landscape and in future macro).

Starting to get involved in this hobby I was thinking that the camera is the main issue to think about, but I start to realize that the camera is only the first ring of a long chain. Everything seems to present so many options and for a newbie like me is not easy.

But luckily there is CS. A great virtual place where to meet real good people and get helpful advice. Let me take this opportunity to sincerely thanks all of you.

Cheers