tripod and light kit advice/opinions « Videomaker Community Forums

nolo
Member

i am looking into purchasing a good tripod and inexpensive light kit. i have been browsing online and found a few peices of equiptment i like and that seem appropriate for my needs. since i have never had the opportunity to use the exact items i am considering purchasing it would be greatly appreciated if someone can give me some advice or opinions on the items i am looking into.

first i will start with the tripod. i am looking at the bogen 745b legs and 501 head. i like this set up because it has a leveling head and you can get it to sit very close to the ground. does anyone have experience with this tripod? do you like dislike it? is there anything else available that is compareable but at a lower price?

the light kit i found is made by impact and is a three light kit totaling 1250 watts. it comes with two 12" reflectors one 5" reflector, bulbs, case, umbellas, and light stands. for the price it seems to me like a good kit, but i have never used lights like this. the only kits i have used are some lowell kits i take out from my school and they are much different from this kit in construction. i think the kit i am looking at is called a photoflood kit. has anyone used these types of lights, and how well do they work? i would assume that you would not have as much controll over the light because they do not have any sort of barn doors. also do you have to reflect these lights off of a wall or the umbrellas included in the kit or can you point them directly at the subject?

any other input or things to consider would be greatly appreciated. following are the links to the two pieces of equiptment i am considering.

tripod
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=5137&A=details&Q=&sku=359546&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

light kit
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=2247&A=details&Q=&sku=298604&is=REG&addedTroughType=categoryNavigation

thanks in advance for any help, it is greatly appreciated.

Posted 5 years ago #
paulears
Member

The head worries me - I actually have two of them - one branded manfrotto and the other Vinten badged. They are 'ok' but the construction is quite basic. The drag, for example, just compresses the two mating surfaces, and works, but does result in a slightly jerky start and stop. One of my heads was a little sloppy, and I overtightened the adjuster and snapped the internal threaded rod. The head also has no counterbalance, meaning heavy cameras have a tendency to fall forward or backwards. The 503 head has a spring to help with this problem.

For the same sort of money you can get a Libec which I also have. This is a little better in the head department, and the legs are pretty resistant to wind up.

Lighting wise, most video users don't use umbrellas that much - a red head or dedolight kit is smaller, lighter and less prone to damage. If the umbrellas are cheap enough, then worth it - as long as one can be used as a key. My barn doors spend most of their time just holding diffuser.

Posted 5 years ago #
compusolver
Member

Good advice! I can vouch for the Manfrotto 503 tripod head.

There are several things you want to look for in a head. If you use multiple cameras, its a good idea for all to use heads that will accept the same tripod mounting plate. Quick release sliding plates with safety catches are a must for event videographers!

You want a head that will allow you to balance the camera. Otherwise, front-heavy cams like the VX2100 will "droop" nose-down unless you tighten your tilt adjustment to the point where you won't get smooth tilts.

Speaking of smooth moves, there is a lot of confusion when it comes to tripod heads. You have "friction" heads, "fluid" heads and "true-fluid" heads. I think it is fair to say that they are all "friction" heads but only the "true-fluid" does not use a hard, physical object to provide the friction. Only a "true-fluid" head is likely to give you smooth pans and tilts from start to finish.

It's a bit of a marketing ploy to call a head "fluid" when in fact, it is using plates (and fluid) to provide the friction.

Heads that are spring-counterbalanced for your camera's weight will help a lot. Continuous control for pans and tilts, separate locks for each and 3/8 standard mounting threads are requirements for any heads that I purchase.

When buying a tripod or head, keep in mind that good ones last a lifetime. You may go through many cameras, but will likely always have the same tripod/head. So that means this is no place to scrimp.

I once had to go all the way back to Biloxi, MS to reshoot a slow pan across the bay, of the devastation from Hurricane Katrina because my cheap ($150 for the set, legs/head) tripod head refused to give a satisfactorily smooth pan. I returned with a $750 set with the 503 head, but decided that too much rebuilding had been done, so we scrapped the whole documentary - all because of a tripod head!

Reminds me of the saying, "A horse, a horse! My kingdom for a horse!"

Posted 5 years ago #
nolo
Member

thank you both for your input.

from what was said and after reviewing the specs on the 503 head it seems like it will be worth the extra money to go that route insead of the 501. also considering that this peice of equiptment will last a long time it seems appropriate to spend the extra money and get something i will be satisfied with, and not wanting to upgrade shortly down the road. what about the legs i mentioned, 745b, are thoes good or is there another set that would be better?

paulears, can you clarify what the other light kits you are talking about, i am not familiar with the terms or kits you mentioned.

the kit i was looking at only costs $200 so i was thinking for the money it may be decent, but i could be wrong. like i said the lights i have expierience using are way out of my price range so i am pretty clueless as to what is available for someone on a lower budget. any other opinions on this light kit or suggestions would be very helpful.

Posted 5 years ago #
RB
Member

Check this one out....
http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?A=details&Q=&is=REG&O=productlist&sku=387808

Posted 5 years ago #
paulears
Member

If the head is a 503 - good, if a 501 not so good.

Posted 5 years ago #
nolo
Member

which set of legs would be better and why, 351 or 745?

Posted 5 years ago #
compusolver
Member

Forgive me for not wanting to take the time to check out those two models, but I can answer in general terms -

The job of tripod legs is to support your camera. The most important aspect to that support is stability. If you search around the Net, you'll find that 99% of tripod leg advice is "get a lightweight, easy-to-carry tripod". I'm in the one percent that says "Hooey!" to that advice.

I've seen lightweight tripods shake in the wind. I've seen then continually vibrate when placed on a wooden floor where people are walking. I've seen them let a camera vibrate just because you touched the camera to focus, etc. I've had them tip or otherwise move when trying to do a pan or tilt.

I own a heavy, very heavy and solid set of tripod legs. I'm an event and wedding videographer, so my tripod extends and collapses very rapidly. One control works all three legs. I use a ball leveller so that I can quickly level my camera with just one control. My legs have rubber feet that quickly move up out of the way to expose the spikes that dig into turf when shooting outdoors. And lastly, my legs are black so they don't stick out if I get in another camera's shot.

Posted 5 years ago #
nolo
Member

thanks for the advice compsolver.

Posted 5 years ago #