New Giotto YTL Silk Road Tripod System

[Peter De Smidt]

Looks interesting for travel, especially for smaller cameras. The center column attachment to the legs worries me a bit, though, for large cameras. It looks inherently less stable than, say, a Gitzo, due to the extra joint. Hopefully, I'm wrong! ... Looking more carefully, it looks like there are two types, one with a straight up column, and one with a tiltable column. More pictures, specs and details would be nice.

Btw., I just picked up some Giottos LC325 stands. They are a good mid-line stand. I appreciate them because they pack more compactly than standard stands, as the Giottos don't have knobs that stick out of the bottom legs like most stands do.

[adam satushek]

Yeah, the cantilever (tiltable) column is on the Pro, and that appears to be the only difference between the Pro and the Classic. The more I think about it I'm pretty sure I would go with the Classic for this reason.

I have found very few reviews of these online, and one of the only ones I have found said to not buy them because the lock fell apart after a few uses. Of course one bad review doesn't mean much, but that on top of the lack of good reviews makes me nervous.

The triangular center column seems brilliant to me, and would be great for saving space since I will need to stuff it into a backpack for travel. I am used to aluminum Gitzos....and the small size and weight of this is very appealing...as long as the quality is good and it can adequately support a RRS multirow pano package and a Mamiya 7II with up to a 150mmm...

[Tin Can]

We need Bob Solomon, to explain these things again. A lot of bad press occurred with the initial UK release.

I won't put words in Bob's mouth, he has an explanation.

[Bob Salomon]

We need Bob Solomon, to explain these things again. A lot of bad press occurred with the initial UK release.

I won't put words in Bob's mouth, he has an explanation.

Well first of all most of the models sold here are not sold in the UK and most of the ones sold in the UK are not sold in the USA.

We have had very positive reaction to the models that we sell. Of the ones we sell 7 are aluminum and 7 are cargo. And of those 7 4 have the canterleving column and three do not. All are very sturdy and quite strong but this of course depends on what you plan on hanging on it.

If one has specific questions I would be happy to answer them on any of our tripods be they Giottos, Linhof, Berlebach or the Triopod or QuadroPods from Novoflex.

[Tin Can]

I'll try harder to get your name correct.

Well first of all most of the models sold here are not sold in the UK and most of the ones sold in the UK are not sold in the USA.

We have had very positive reaction to the models that we sell. Of the ones we sell 7 are aluminum and 7 are cargo. And of those 7 4 have the canterleving column and three do not. All are very sturdy and quite strong but this of course depends on what you plan on hanging on it.

If one has specific questions I would be happy to answer them on any of our tripods be they Giottos, Linhof, Berlebach or the Triopod or QuadroPods from Novoflex.

[Peter De Smidt]

Model names and specs would be great.

[adam satushek]

Basically, I'm just looking for a compact and fairly light tripod (hopefully less than 20" folded) that will handle a Really Right Stuff multirow pano kit with Mamiya 7II and 150mm lens. I want the tripod to fit into a backpacking backpack, along with clothes and everything else, so I'm drawn to tripods with designs that make them more compact such as the triangular column of the Silk Roads or legs that reverse for storage such as the Gitzo Travelers.

It sounds like the Giottos Classic 8214 would do the trick, as long as the quality is acceptable. The other options I am looking at are Gitzo travelers, but they are more expensive. The fold up smaller but also generally seem to have a lower max height (without column). I love the quality of Gitzos, but not sure they are worth it over something like Giottos.

So would the Giottos Classic 8214 suit my needs?

Are there any other tripods that anyone can recommend that may be preferable?

Thanks,
Adam

[Bob Salomon]

Basically, I'm just looking for a compact and fairly light tripod (hopefully less than 20" folded) that will handle a Really Right Stuff multirow pano kit with Mamiya 7II and 150mm lens. I want the tripod to fit into a backpacking backpack, along with clothes and everything else, so I'm drawn to tripods with designs that make them more compact such as the triangular column of the Silk Roads or legs that reverse for storage such as the Gitzo Travelers.

It sounds like the Giottos Classic 8214 would do the trick, as long as the quality is acceptable. The other options I am looking at are Gitzo travelers, but they are more expensive. The fold up smaller but also generally seem to have a lower max height (without column). I love the quality of Gitzos, but not sure they are worth it over something like Giottos.

So would the Giottos Classic 8214 suit my needs?

Are there any other tripods that anyone can recommend that may be preferable?

Thanks,
Adam

The Giottos VGR series are also reverse fold tripods. I use one with the 5D MKII with lenses up to the Canon 28 to 300mm zoom. One leg also converts, with the center column, into a full size monopod.

[Bob Salomon]

Model names and specs would be great.

They are all up on our web site www.hpmarketingcorp.com although the Novoflex TrioPod might not be up yet.

[Bob Salomon]

I'll try harder to get your name correct.

Thanks