Questions about Tripod + Ballhead

[rendrat]

Hi .. i am a newbie in photography, and I am thinking of getting a tripod for group portraits.
My budget is limited, so I am thinking of getting a Benro or a used Manfrotto.
My questions :

- The Manfrotto 190 series has max height of 146cm. For those who has experience with this tripod, is this considered too short ? I ask this because it need to extend the centre column all the way up to reach that high, and some people say better don't raise the centre column to the maximum.

- For Benro, does anyone have any experience or problem with A500EX + BH-1 ballhead ? Some people say dont buy Benro ballhead, but I am not clear what is the reason.

- My current max weight of camera, lens and flash combinations is about 2.5KG, is a ballhead with max 4kg load enough or should choose higher max load for safety ?

 

[SeAnCoLd]

Depends on the purpose of your tripod.

Personally, I bought an A350EX+the KB-0A ballhead for use when I'm travelling. It's max load is 4kg, but its compact. I don't think my camera will weight more than 4kg when i'm holidaying

For local use, I have a Velbon tripod. Not sure about the model though. Its a fixed pan tilt head. Cheap, but sturdy and built like a tank - which means its heavy. But with all my gear on, i guess i can deal with the weight.

 

[daredevil123]

The Manfrotto 190 series has max height of 146cm. For those who has experience with this tripod, is this considered too short ? I ask this because it need to extend the centre column all the way up to reach that high, and some people say better don't raise the centre column to the maximum.

I am using the 190xprob with 488rc2 ball head. I am 1.78m tall and I only need to raise the column less than half way to get the camera to my eye level.

My eye is around 12 cm from the top of my head, so eye level height is 166cm. And when a person lean forward to look through a viewfinder at a comfortable posture will decrease that height by another 15cm or so. So optimal eye level is 150cm

The tripod with center column down is 122cm. my ballhead is around 11cm tall. There is another 10cm from the bottom of the camera to the viewfinder. Total is already 134cm. So I only need to raise it by another 15-18cm or so.

My current max weight of camera, lens and flash combinations is about 2.5KG, is a ballhead with max 4kg load enough or should choose higher max load for safety ?

Should be no problem.

Hope this helps.

 

[Headshotzx]

I'm 165cm, eye level about 12cm below my height, so about 153cm.

My 190xprob + 486RC2 is 122cm + 10cm = 132cm. With a battery gripped camera, add about 14cm to viewfinder. That's 144cm.

I don't extend the tripod legs to get maximum stability. Instead, I just bend down by 10cm and it's fine.

If you extend your tripod column up high, your tripod really becomes a monopod resting on a tripod. Not stable at all.

 

[rendrat]

Thanks for all answers. Those answer are really helpful.

 

[ZerocoolAstra]

the world usually looks better when viewed from a different perspective than eye-level anyway!
Shooting portraits from a slightly lowered position is more flattering, in my opinion.