They're here! More Muvipix.com Guides by Steve Grisetti!
The Muvipix.com Guides to Premiere & Photoshop Elements 2024
As well as The Muvipix.com Guide to CyberLink PowerDirector 21
Because there are stories to tell
muvipix.com

New User - Tripod ideas?

A place to introduce and tell a little about yourself.

New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby stregachess » Tue Jan 19, 2010 3:56 pm

Greetings!

Saw introductions section and figured I'd get my first post out of the way.

Short intro purchased the Premiere Elements 7 Guide so that's how I found this site.

Longer story...

I'm 50 years old, married. Work for a huge company that's always out sourcing folks, products and what not and that part of my life is starting to suck.

I have two sets of kids a 22 year old son and 18 year old daugther, first marriage.
Now second time around I have a 3 year old daughter, so I'm dealing with MiniDV now and converting over old VHS from the first go around. Would love to learn more about film and try to tweak my creative side.

For now most of my creative stuff gets scratched by doing some web stuff like my chess site.
You'd have to google "chess master coach", or something and you'd find me (or just add the 3w's and the end).. Can't post a link as newbie status but if you want to get a feel that's sort of what I do...

Guess I'll toss this into my first post any recomendation on a tripod?
Would like to use it to put the camera in the room and just capture the little one playing, also have a Nikon D40 that I might use it for some still shots, however mostly for video.

I saw something on eBay called a Alzo 66" 3 way pan head tripod, but for $42 I assume it's just as likely to be junk as good. What's a realistic price range for something that will "meet the requirements" and not be disposable.

OK did I mention that I ramble?

R,

Paul


We
stregachess
New User
New User
 
Posts: 11
Joined: Tue Jan 19, 2010 3:38 pm

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby George Tyndall » Tue Jan 19, 2010 5:21 pm

stregachess wrote:Guess I'll toss this into my first post any recomendation on a tripod? Would like to use it to put the camera in the room and just capture the little one playing, also have a Nikon D40 that I might use it for some still shots, however mostly for video. I.... What's a realistic price range for something that will "meet the requirements" and not be disposable.


Like most of the 49 reviewers, I am very happy with the $64.99 model at the top of the list.

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/search?Ntt=tripod+velbon&N=0&InitialSearch=yes
HP h8-1360t Win7 Home Premium 64-bit/Intel i7-3770@3.40GHz/8GB RAM/NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050/LG BH10LS30 Blu-ray RW+SD DVD/CD RW+LightScribe/52" Samsung LCD HDTV (ancient 1080p)/PRE & PSE & ORGANIZER 2018/CS 5.1 & 5.5 (rare use) ::wav::
User avatar
George Tyndall
Super Contributor
Super Contributor
 
Posts: 2570
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 12:50 am
Location: Los Angeles, California

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby Chuck Engels » Tue Jan 19, 2010 5:26 pm

Hi Paul, Welcome to Muvipix :meet:

:wel2:

No one here will ever shoot you down for rambling, its a character trait of many members ::wav::

We are about the same age and my oldest is 26, youngest 8, with two more in between.
14 years between the youngest and his next oldest sister.

If you just want something to stick a camera on there are tons to choose from.
I paid $8 for a Samsonite tripod a few years ago. It isn't anything special but if the camera is going to be unmanned and remain still it is perfect.

Now for a tripod that you might actually move, and want a nice fluid movement, you will need something more.
Can't imagine finding a very useful tripod for under $100 but maybe somebody else, like George posted above, has better experience.

Here is a couple of good tripod topics from awhile back
viewtopic.php?p=17326#p17326
viewtopic.php?p=2545#p2545
1. Thinkpad W530 Laptop, Core i7-3820QM Processor 8M Cache 3.70 GHz, 16 GB DDR3, NVIDIA Quadro K1000M 2GB Memory.

2. Cybertron PC - Liquid Cooled AMD FX6300, 6 cores, 3.50ghz - 32GB DDR3 - MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G, 4GB Video Ram, 1024 Cuda Cores.
User avatar
Chuck Engels
Super Moderator
Super Moderator
 
Posts: 18152
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:58 pm
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby Peru » Tue Jan 19, 2010 8:16 pm

Hi, Paul. :)

You may want to make sure it has a quick release plate so that you can remove or attach it quickly if necessary.
User avatar
Peru
Moderator
Moderator
 
Posts: 3687
Joined: Wed Oct 17, 2007 12:34 pm
Location: Peru, NY, USA

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby John 'twosheds' McDonald » Wed Jan 20, 2010 3:27 am

You could always start with a good but basic tripod and add a pro fluid head later.

Relatively speaking, I do not use my tripod so much that a 'pro' fluid head is necessary - the 'standard' head that came with it is fine for my needs. I bought a Libec 650 which comes with a neat and useful carry/storeage bag. Link to a description here:

http://www.videogear.co.uk/index.php?ac ... oductId=14
AMD Ryzen 3900x 12C/24T, ASUS x570 mobo, Arctic Liquid Freezer ll 280, Win11 64 bit, 64GB RAM, Radeon RX 570 graphics, Samsung 500GB NVMe 980 PRO (C:), Samsung 970 Evo SSD (D:), Dell U2717D Monitor, Synology DS412+ 8TB NAS, Adobe CS6.
User avatar
John 'twosheds' McDonald
Moderator
Moderator
 
Posts: 4236
Joined: Mon Feb 19, 2007 11:57 am
Location: Cheshire, UK

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby chooks » Wed Jan 20, 2010 4:25 am

I consider a quality tripod a good investment. If you get something like a manfrotto with a fluid head, it would have a good resale value and be very sturdy. This would also be a good idea if you want to take it outdoors, and they can take a fair bit of punishing (will last a lifetime).
User avatar
chooks
Frequent Contributor
Frequent Contributor
 
Posts: 118
Joined: Sun Apr 20, 2008 11:44 pm
Location: Downunder

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby Shrimpfarmer » Wed Jan 20, 2010 4:29 am

I think you probably just want to mount the camera and have it steady maybe whilst you play with the little one, clearly for that the tripod is king, however, if your budget will allow, give the humble monopod a try as well they are fantastic for getting really steady shots, but so much more flexible than a tripod and much quicker to move and shoot, tilt down and pan etc. The other bonus is you can hold the camera up high to look over crowds and all sorts of crazy angles for kids and pets etc. I only recently tried one and I wish I had bought one years ago. Not much good though if you want to leave the camera unattended.
User avatar
Shrimpfarmer
Senior Contributor
Senior Contributor
 
Posts: 327
Joined: Sat Aug 29, 2009 10:14 am
Location: Haywards Heath, West Sussex, UK

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby George Tyndall » Wed Jan 20, 2010 10:04 am

Chuck Engels wrote:Can't imagine finding a very useful tripod for under $100 but maybe somebody else, like George posted above, has better experience.


Chuck, I went to a local photo store (which I'll leave unnamed so as not to get the clerk in trouble), and all he had in stock were tripods costing hundreds of dollars--NOT including the tripod head.

He said,

"We also sell a very good tripod for under $100 that comes with a fluid head, but they always sell out as soon as they arrive. They're Velbon 607s, and they come with a fluid head, quick-release mount and a carrying bag. And the unit is not even much heavier than those that sell for hundreds."

Based on that conversation, I ordered one from B&H, and I am very pleased with the result. The leg adjusters are the quick-release type rather than those that must be screwed tightly--open them up and the legs drop to the floor without having to pull them out. And I find the bubble leveler to be VERY useful. With the fluid head, my pans and tilts are VERY smooth.

When used with my Canon HV30, it seems very sturdy, however, some of the reviewers on B&H thought that it would not be appropriate for a larger and heavier camera. That may be true, however, my experience is that, when not being used for panning and zooming, the unit secures the camera VERY tightly.
HP h8-1360t Win7 Home Premium 64-bit/Intel i7-3770@3.40GHz/8GB RAM/NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050/LG BH10LS30 Blu-ray RW+SD DVD/CD RW+LightScribe/52" Samsung LCD HDTV (ancient 1080p)/PRE & PSE & ORGANIZER 2018/CS 5.1 & 5.5 (rare use) ::wav::
User avatar
George Tyndall
Super Contributor
Super Contributor
 
Posts: 2570
Joined: Thu May 29, 2008 12:50 am
Location: Los Angeles, California

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby Chuck Engels » Wed Jan 20, 2010 10:19 am

You sold me George :)
1. Thinkpad W530 Laptop, Core i7-3820QM Processor 8M Cache 3.70 GHz, 16 GB DDR3, NVIDIA Quadro K1000M 2GB Memory.

2. Cybertron PC - Liquid Cooled AMD FX6300, 6 cores, 3.50ghz - 32GB DDR3 - MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G, 4GB Video Ram, 1024 Cuda Cores.
User avatar
Chuck Engels
Super Moderator
Super Moderator
 
Posts: 18152
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:58 pm
Location: Atlanta, GA

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby stregachess » Wed Jan 20, 2010 2:18 pm

Thanks for the suggestions, several folks jumped in with the Velbon 607s suggestion and given the fact that I'm a newbie figured it would be a good start. Now I just have to sit down and spend some time learning the software and burning hours of film to DVD so I can actually see how the little one has grown...

R,

Paul
stregachess
New User
New User
 
Posts: 11
Joined: Tue Jan 19, 2010 3:38 pm

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby Paul LS » Wed Jan 20, 2010 3:45 pm

I have the Velbon DV-7000, nice and smooth movement. The Velbon products are good for the price.
Paul LS
Super Contributor
Super Contributor
 
Posts: 3064
Joined: Sat Feb 10, 2007 11:21 am
Location: Southampton, UK

Re: New User - Tripod ideas?

Postby Chuck Engels » Wed Jan 20, 2010 4:26 pm

So what are you using to convert the VHS tapes to editable video files Paul?
1. Thinkpad W530 Laptop, Core i7-3820QM Processor 8M Cache 3.70 GHz, 16 GB DDR3, NVIDIA Quadro K1000M 2GB Memory.

2. Cybertron PC - Liquid Cooled AMD FX6300, 6 cores, 3.50ghz - 32GB DDR3 - MSI GeForce GTX 960 Gaming 4G, 4GB Video Ram, 1024 Cuda Cores.
User avatar
Chuck Engels
Super Moderator
Super Moderator
 
Posts: 18152
Joined: Sun Feb 11, 2007 10:58 pm
Location: Atlanta, GA


Return to Introductions 


Similar topics


Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 2 guests