Legs for Sinar Norma

[William Whitaker]

I dug around in the dark recesses of my computer and found a couple of photos. The first is my Norma 5x7 on a Gitzo G1548 Mk2. It's an earlier Gitzo carbon fiber, but an excellent tripod. And it will support the Norma in the 8x10 configuration.



The second photo, below, is of the Norma 8x10 on a twin-shank Linhof with studio dolly.



Exquisite setup unless you plan to travel. Since the photo was taken I've added the double clamp base plate on a Kardan Pan/Tilt Mount II head (the double strut version) for even more stability. It really is a studio rig. But, oh, it's a sweet rig!

Those are a couple of ideas. The Gitzo is very transportable. The Linhof obviously isn't. I haven't used either configuration in a while and had almost forgotten how nice they are. Thanks for reminding me!

[rdenney]

I did see a little video once from Photokina (can't recall the year) with Feisol's top HD tripod, at full extension (no center column) with a little seat affixed where the head should go and a cute little model perched atop! And I mean sitting there, not wobbling around, fearful for her life and limb! I'm sure she had to weigh at least 90lbs and probably a little more. Publicity stunt? Yep. Interesting demonstration of the potential capacity and stability of the Feisol? Yep too.

If that demonstration was convincing, then you want a Bogen. This was the ad that persuaded me to buy a Bogen 3046 (Manfrotto 028) right after Lester Bogen persuaded Lino Manfrotto to create a company to make tripods.



(From an article on the site "takegreatpictures.com")

I use 3036 legs for my 4x5 cameras. I actually agree with Frank that they are not as well-made as Gitzo, but they do lock down tight and they do not ring like a bell when I tap them with a fingernail. They are not, as the OP has pointed out, winners of the weight efficiency category, but then when it comes to damping vibration, mass counts. And I can get 3036 legs on the used market for a hundred bucks, and have a different one for each head, which is convenient. If I wanted to carry an affordable large-format tripod a long distance, I'd be looking for wood.

Rick "'Before Lester Bogen put his name on this tripod, he put Lester Bogen on it.'" Denney

[andreios]

Thank you guys for all kinds of suggestions!
As for linhof - I saw one of those twin shank things on german ebay recently - but I really thought it rather as a studio tripod. And for indoor / garden / near-the-boot-of-my-volvo shooting I plan to keep my 085/3036 manfotto as I really like it.

Will, thanks for those pictures! I think what I need is exactly something like the G1548 - if I could find one - an alternative to the heavy and bulky manfrotto for the days when I feel like walking...

(And thanks to Ari about the induro experience - I am also considering the aluminium version - the CF is price-wise too close to Gitzo - if I could find a "local" seller - e.g. somewhere in central europe :-) )

[Frank Petronio]

I feel like Lester quarterly.

(The American tax schedule.)

[rdenney]

Thanks for all the help.
It dawned on me that one of the main questions for me would be the leg angles. The manfotto 075 that I use now and which was my first tripod has leg angles completely adgustable. With the aluminium giottos it was my fist encounter with locked positions - and it is quite awkward. Does anyone know where to find complete information about gitzo (and induro) tripods including leg angles? Their websites were of little use - gitzo shows the angles only with some models - and I think with none of the systematic series.. Any clues?
Feisol has this information on their website - and e.g. for the 3371 the angles are 25°, 75°, und 90° - which I think is rather odd - either too narrow or too wide.. Or am I completely wrong?

That is my beef with the Gitzo design, too. In practice, it must not be much of a problem, because people who have done real work still praise them. But I do love the way the adjustible-length locakable center braces on the Bogen 3036 legs lock at any leg angle, and make it a snap to plumb the center column by loosening the braces, moving one leg in any direction, and then locking them down.

We have a Manfrotto CF tripod of smaller size for digital cameras, and I can't say that its lack of leg position options (and locking center braces) has prevented me from doing what I wanted with it. But I've never put a top-heavy view camera on it, either. I did lose a camera once on a tripod without locakable (or fixed-length) center braces because another guy I was with kicked a tripod leg by accident. With locked or fixed-length center braces, the tripod becomes a stiff truss and can only put the camera on the ground if the whole thing tips over as a unit. My 3036's are all rickety as hell, but when I lock them down, they become stiff as a unit. It's a design I respect, but it does require a center column to give those braces something to attach to.

The Ries tripods have a different means of adjusting leg angle that I'm curious about, but I can't tell how it works from the pictures and I've never handled one (unfortunately, or fortunately, depending on whether my checkbook has a say in the matter). If I was going to upgrade just as a luxury, that's the direction I'd go.

Rick "who, as an engineer, is into triangulation" Denney

[Frank Petronio]

Considering Gitzos were originally French machine gun mounts, their designs emphasized being able to quickly fold them up and run away over stability....

[rdenney]

I feel like Lester quarterly.

(The American tax schedule.)

I still think the only reason they made the "slide projector platform" for the tripods was to give old Lester something to sit on.

Rick "thinking Gitzo prices--not to mention RRS prices--cause a similar, um, discomfort" Denney

[rdenney]

Considering Gitzos were originally French machine gun mounts, their designs emphasized being able to quickly fold them up and run away over stability....

Rick " " Denney

[Rolfe Tessem]

I'm about to pull the trigger on an Induro CT214, which looks like it will handle everything through 4x5. These look like an improvement over the Gitzos -- does anyone have any thoughts on this particular model?

[andreios]

Hey guys,
still haven't bought anything - but the more I think about it the more I am verging towards an ALUMINIUM Gitzo. However, I have heard rumours fom a local vendor that the aluminium line of Gitzo tripods is to be discontinued - I don't know whether it is true - has anyone heard about it?