camera-dept New Tripod

[sfoster]

I'm using this really awful $120 tripod from amazon

Amazon.com

When I try to dolly and pan at the same time it looks all janky


On the reddit group for my a7siii camera there were a couple recommendations

This $330 manfrotto

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1071811-REG/manfrotto_mk190x3_2w_3_section_tripod_with.html

Or this 75mm bowl tripod that would be about $1,0000 with the head

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1335993-REG/benro_a673tm_dual_stage_75mm.html

Anyone have suggestions or input?
I don't need something super heavy duty since its just a camera and a lens - but i do want it to be smooth and high quality...
need something better than the amateur junk ive been using

 

[Nate North]

The Manfrotto brand is quality, never had any problems with them. If you're looking for smoothness on a tripod, you're going to have to invest in a a good head.

My suggestion would be to forgo all of it, and invest in a small gimbal. You can always hang them on something and point them, for tripod type shots.

For outdoor filming, you can do a lot worse these days than to just invest in a higher end drone. It will set you back a few thousand, buy you can hover them in place for tripod shots. IDK why people never think of this, but I commonly used a drone hovering at just normal tripod height. They can be very stable with modern tech.

I'll show you an experiment I did to test the stability of a DJI Phantom 4 pro.

It's timelapse photography from a drone. Anyway, they are safe to use as long as everyone is careful, and they come with a gimbal and the ability to change camera tilt remotely.

 

[sfoster]

Small gimbals do not work with long lenses. I love to do dolly shots on my 135mm

 

[Nate North]

I would not say any cheap gimbal works with big lenses. It's all about your priorities and budget. I have a good tripod and some long lenses, but working with very little crew, I've found self mobilizing cameras to be a lifesaver. Another thing you might consider is shooting high resolution, like 4k if available, taking a static tripod shot, doing dolly and slide moves in post, and then using AI superresolution to restore full frame resolution from a partial frame. You can get fantastic results that way, and preserve camera movement control into the post stage. I found it very useful for difficult shots like tracking live animals.

To clarify, shoot a static 4k frame, go into after effects, davinchi, etc. Then move a 2-3 k window around in post, render out that footage, and then normalize it all into a fixed 8k with the AI post.

 

[directorik]

I really like this one:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1443769-REG/magnus_vt_5000_2_stage_videotripod_with.html

 

[sfoster]

I really like this one:

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1443769-REG/magnus_vt_5000_2_stage_videotripod_with.html

Thanks its nice to get an opinion from a professional instead of random guy on reddit.
I ordered the tripod and its nice, I can do smooth panning with my 135mm on it. Good rec.

Question --- I still can't dolly and pan at the same time smoothly. Is there a trick to that operation?
Seems like I would need to mount my gimbal on the dolly and use the motorized panning if i want it really smooth or maybe i just need more practice idk

 

[directorik]

A little late but it's been busy for me towards the end of the year.

Thanks its nice to get an opinion from a professional instead of random guy on reddit.
I ordered the tripod and its nice, I can do smooth panning with my 135mm on it. Good rec.

Question --- I still can't dolly and pan at the same time smoothly. Is there a trick to that operation?
Seems like I would need to mount my gimbal on the dolly and use the motorized panning if i want it really smooth or maybe i just need more practice idk

Glad you're liking this recommendation. It's been my go-to sticks for a while
now. Easy to transport and solid.

I think it's mostly about practice. A 135 can be difficult to even pan with. But with
the camera (and subject?) moving that's gonna take some time to get used to. It
also really depends on the dolly. Those sticks on a dolly is not going to be very stable
no matter what you do. Any set on a doorway dolly (even on tracks) isn't as stable
as a standard dolly with the head attached.

But it can be done.