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Manfrotto 190CXPRO4 Carbon Fibre Tripod with 804RC2 Head and 80mm Opticron Scope.
Last week I experienced yet another problem with my (third) Velbon Sherpa 750R tripod whilst out digiscoping, putting an early end to one of the few decent days we've had around here for several months now. I was so incensed that I finally decided to bite the bullet and shell out for a quality piece of kit! The two essential requirements were that the replacement had to be no heavier than the 750R and that it should still fit into my (Vango Trail 45) rucksack along with the rest of my digiscoping kit. The Manfrotto 190CXPRO4 seemed to fit the bill for the tripod legs, but I couldn't decide on a head unit. However, Wex Photographic were selling the Manfrotto 190CXPRO4 with a free Manfrotto 804RC2 head for £200. I'm usually pretty cynical about such "free" offers, but surprisingly I couldn't find a UK retailer selling the legs alone at a lower price - and so in this case free really did seem to mean free!
The tripod weighs in at 1.34kg and the head at 0.77kg, giving a total weight of 2.11kg, which is about 0.1kg less that the 750R.
My original idea was to keep the 804RC2 head as a spare and order a more sophisticated video head as my main unit, as recommended by most experienced digiscopers. However, after a couple of field trips I'm pretty happy with the 804RC2, and so as I have a strong aversion to spending money I think I'll stick with it for now (however, see comments below).
14 January 13
COMMENTS
Full specifications and comprehensive reviews for this tripod and head can no doubt be found elsewhere on the internet. These are merely a few notes based on my experience of using this kit for digiscoping with my Opticron 80mm scope and point-and-shoot digital camera over the past month or so (involving 16 field trips).
The only tripod I've used before is the relatively cheap Velbon Sherpa 750R (which comes with the PH-157Q head), and so this is my only point of comparison.
MANFROTTO 190CXPRO4 TRIPOD
The main problem I experienced with the Velbon tripod was the flimsy leg locks which were prone to shearing. The locks on the Manfrotto are considerably more substantial, and although more force is needed to close them, on balance, I think they should be prove to be more reliable. Replacement locks can in any case be bought for a tolerable price (currently £6.30 each), and presumably can be DIY fitted. My other relatively minor bugbear with the Velbon was the rubber feet which were frequently left behind in muddy terrain. The Manfrotto feet appear to be more securely fitted - they've certainly survived several lengthy sessions on sludgy Solway shores! Again, replacements can if necessary be bought at an acceptable price (currently £7 for a set of three - but see note added 22 May 13).
There are, however, two design features of the Manfrotto tripod that I'm not particularly happy with. Firstly, although the legs can be set at four different angles, in practice only the most acute angle is usable when in a standing position (unless the centre column is extended, which rather defeats the object) - and this angle is noticeably sharper than on the Velbon, which makes the tripod feel less stable. There's a hook near the top of the tripod to allow a weight to be suspended to increase stability under windy conditions. I gave this a go using a carrier bag holding a boulder weighing about 5kg, but there was no discernible improvement.
Secondly, unlike the Velbon, the centre column cannot be split, and the lowest practical position that can readily be achieved for digiscoping is about 38cm, as opposed to 16cm on the Velbon. Although it's possible to reduce the height further by rotating the tripod centre column horizontally (see photo 2 of 2) this involves a lot of fiddling about with both the scope and tripod and I don't think it's something I'd be happy to do in the field. A simpler option - where possible - would be to keep the centre column vertical and just dig a hole underneath it! (Incidentally, I found Manfrotto's instruction on how to return the centre column from the horizontal to the vertical position unfathomable, and I ended up just reversing the original procedure - which apparently you're not supposed to do for health and safety reasons!)
As I don't believe that either of the above "deficiencies" would have a significant effect on the quality of my digiscoped photos, I'm happy enough with this tripod.
MANFROTTO 804RC2 TRIPOD HEAD
As noted earlier, this 3-way photo-head came free with the tripod. It's certainly not the type of design favoured by most digiscopers; in fact the phrase "avoid like the plague" was used by one reviewer! However, as can be seen from my photostream from 12 January to 8 February, it's certainly feasible to use this head for digiscoping, and over this period I don't think I've missed a single photo-opportunity due to its limitations - touch wood! Having said that though, it does have some obvious and significant deficiencies, which should be borne in mind if anyone is thinking of buying this head for digiscoping purposes.
On the positive side, the ability to lock pan and tilt movements independently is a major improvement on my previous tripod head (Velbon PH-157Q). In practice, this means that in many circumstances there's no need to lock either function immediately prior to taking a shot. For example, if trying to photograph a wader making its way along the shoreline, the tilt can be locked at an appropriate angle (with periodic adjustments) and the bird followed just by panning; shots can then be taken without needing to lock the pan, as there's sufficient stiction to keep the scope steady enough for photos. (This will be obvious to more knowledgeable digiscopers, but it was a revelation to me!)
Another good feature is that the head can be locked solidly enough to carry the scope and tripod over the shoulder without the scope flopping down, as sometimes used to happen with the Velbon. Over the past month or so I must have carried my kit this way for several kilometres in total without any problems.
Now the bad news...
There are a number of irritating - but not critical - design features which I think are worth mentioning:
1 The roll function, which allows a camera to be rotated from landscape to portrait mode is redundant for digiscoping, but adds several cm to the length and several hundred grams to the weight of the head. Also, the design is such that the associated control lever must be kept in place to keep the top of the head level and so it can't be removed to save weight.
2 The head is an extremely awkward shape for carrying in a rucksack. Although all three levers can be unscrewed to make it easier to pack, this is not a practicable option for a digiscoper on the move. The best that can be done is to swap around the short pan and longer roll levers (as shown in the photo), and then perhaps dispense with the pan lever altogether, to save weight and bulk.
3 The QRP has to be fitted across the line of the scope as opposed to along the line, which reduces the area of contact, and so increases the chance of it unscrewing from the base of the scope.
4 The upward tilt angle is limited to 30 degrees. If a higher angle is needed then the QRP must be rotated through 180 degrees and the scope fitted to the head backwards.
5 The pan and and tilt levers are not long enough to allow fine control over the movement of the scope, which is more easily done via the scope eyepiece.
But by far the biggest problem is that there is so much stiction on the tilt movement, even when the control lever is fully unscrewed, that it can be very difficult to frame a shot at high magnification. Although I had a similar problem with the Velbon, it's even worse with the Manfrotto. For this reason, I've just upgraded to a Manfrotto 701HDV Video Head which I'm hoping will be more digiscoper-friendly:
www.flickr.com/photos/8453647@N05/8465667815/in/photostream
9 February 13
Note added 22 May 13: I lost my first rubber foot from the tripod today in a muddy field. Adding VAT and the cheapest P&P option the cost for a set of three replacements items from manfrottospares.com was £12.60.
A trip around the Fylde 3 locations in 3 hours.
1 Camera - Olympus OM-D E-M1 MKII
1 Lens - Olympus 12-40mm f/2.8 pro
1 Tripod - Manfrotto MT055CXPRO3
1 Set of Lee Sev5n Filters
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Nikon D80 connected to the Sigma 50-500 in turn connected to the very sturdy Bogen-Manfrotto 322RC2 head and 3021BPRO tripod legs. D80 shutter triggered with the Nikon ML-L3 wireless remote.
This shot was taken with a Nikon Coolpix 3700.
Another photo taken on Elgol during my stay on the Isle of Skye for the photo shooting meeting with the colleagues from Minolta/ Sony club. Photo taken with Sony DSLR-A700 and Sony Zeiss 24-70/2,8 lens mounted on a Manfrotto 190V with 232RC2 with the use of gradual ND and coffee Cokin P filter. Later on the photo has been modified in Adobe Lightroom. Check other photos from this series and of course check the big size ... it's much more interesting
Indeed it was not meant to happen - as they say " Came 'orf in me 'and guv , honest !! " .
Somewhat disappointed to say the least , not that old , but old enough to be out of warranty ! Cannot see any way of fixing it and if I could - how long before any of the other legs go ! Mostly used indoors and no rough treatment .
Have to save it for when going up the side of a steep mountain now !
Sorry for the cluttered room, but you really can make just about any space “studio” space. This is a three light shot with a reflector for fill. It was set up “on location” in the living room. Just to see if I could, I set it up without moving any furniture…
From left to right:
--Main Light: Sony HVL-F42AM flash in a Photoflex LiteDome XS softbox. It uses the Photoflex Adjustable Shoe Mount Hardware (AC-B222SM) that has been modified to allow attachment of the Sony MS-1 flash mini stand to the bracket so the Sony/Minolta flash units slip right in (see here for how it’s used with a shoe flash).
--Wescott “Desert Scape” 10 X 12 backdrop on a Savage Port-A-Stand
--Background Light: Minolta 3600HSD flash in a Wescott Mico Apollo Light Modifier on a short stand
--PhotoVision 14" Pocket One-Shot Digital Calibration Target
--Hair Light: Minolta 3600HSD flash in a Wescott Mico Apollo Light Modifier on a tall stand (reflected off the white ceiling to cut back on it’s power—remember the 3600’s are manual flash units when used in wireless mode)
--Fill reflector: Photoflex LitePanel 39"x72" reflector with simi-silver fabric
…And a Manfrotto tripod to hold the camera. I also use a Minolta RC-1000L remote cord to fire the camera—I like the steps of focus, then hold for expression, then fire. The image here was exposed using only the three flash units used in the configuration. Sample shots are here and here...
Nikon D70, Nikon 28mm f/2.8 lens, Hoya +1 & +2 close up lenses, Manfrotto 055PROB tripod and focus rack. Some manual fill in flash from Nikon SB-24. Foil windscreen sun protector, two pins and Hama pocket blower to clear wee bugs from the backing paper.
Lens, focussed manually, was stopped down to smallest aperture to give an exposure of around 2.5 seconds for the maximum depth of field. As the natural light wasn't too strong I dug out the reflector and manually triggered the flash gun midway through the exposure for some fill light.
The Manfrotto 055PROB and the Chinese made focus rack really helped with this shot.
The pins were to hold the stem of the bisected mushrooms off the paper so they would lay flat to the page and not give harsh shadows. The windscreen sun propector makes a great reflector and I really should sort out a dedicated area for this sort of work (though with the amount of bugs crawling out of the fungi it was handy I was outside).
Photo taken with a Sharp 902 mobile phone.
This is the end result.
Mounting this rig on the manfrotto tripod was painful. I had to use an off shoe flash cable, angle eye piece, remote trigger, Flash angle bracket and some sweat and tears. The Bellows shape does not allow it to be directly mounted on the tripod and the Flash bracket was mounted backwards to accommodate this.
The flash is taken off and held close to the subject when taking the photo. The bracket is just to temporarily hold the flash and the camera to the tripod whilst composing the shot.
I have a Gary Fong CloudSphere diffuser. After looking into macro photography I saw online how to make your own Coke can diffuser (By Lord V) that works well for Macro Photography. I am using it with a 150 mm Bellows, Canon EX550, Canon 30D ISO 200 and shutter speed 200, Flash set to ettl. I am still playing however it seems to work well. I still need a real Macro lens however my experimentation has been fun.
Here's the Lord V thread.
www.flickr.com/groups/macroviewers/discuss/72157594312315...
2010
IMG_7189
Lumix GF1
Live Viewfinder
1960s Canon FL 135mm f2.5
1980s Canon FD 50mm 1.8
Panasonic 20mm f1.7 pancake
Panasonic 14-42mm f3.5
Manfrotto tpod
A friend gave me this nice Manfrotto Professional 079B monopod he inherited of his late grandfather. It came with a nice addon: a wooden walking stick knob. Cool :)
As far as I know the Manfrotto 679B is it's successor.
Great support of Manfrotto: all parts can still be ordered: www.manfrottospares.com/079b-parts.html
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Photo by Olympus E-M5II E-M5 MarkII + 60mm f/2.8 marco 微距鏡
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© Alan Armbruster
Photo submitted via email by Alan Armbruster to the 190CX Operation Museum competition.
"The Evolution of my D200 / Manfrotto 486RC/190 Tripod Setup:
1) I bought my Nikon D200 as an upgrade for my Nikon D70. To protect my investment while on a trip to Costa Rica, I purchased a Kata Rain Cover. I quickly found to fundamental flaws in the design of the cover. 1) You could not put a strap on the camera without the rain running down the strap to the camera itself. 2) If you chose to simply carry the camera with your hand in the cover, condensation would build up inside the camera leaving the cover foggy, and the camera moist.
2) My next step was to build a frame that I could put the camera on, have a strap, and still keep it free from rain. This worked perfectly. I then found that if I wanted to take a picture using my tripod, I would have to take the camera off the frame and put a plate on. I chose to get a Manfrotto 3299 Quick Change Adapter, and mount it onto the frame. The plate goes on the bottom, to secure the frame onto the tripod, and, the quick release goes on the top, to secure the camera. Now I was able to quickly place the camera on the frame, as well as place the frame onto my 190 without having to worry about screws.
3) I kept the original strap on the camera while it is on this setup because 1) it was difficult to take off and put on. I could disassemble the rain gear in less than a minute, So, to have it ready to go, at all times, I just leave it on.
4) I did, however, add two Velcro straps to the frame for securing the straps. 2) This also doubles as a safety strap should the camera fall.
5) I did find that in some cases, rain would get on my lens. I added a T-section to my camera frame and was able to find an umbrella with the same threads.
6) My next challenge was the flash. Taking macro shots in the rain required extension tubes that required lots of light. That was something that was always lacking when it rained in the bush. My Nikon SB-800 is not waterproof, nor is the internal flash strong enough for most macro applications I had. I added a flash holder made from left over PVC pipe, which neatly screws into the T-section on my frame in place of the umbrella. A Ziplock bag completed the flash rain-proofing. The SB-800 is connected with an SC-29 cable, to my D200.
7) Taking pictures at night, in the dark, had a few near misses. I found that it was difficult to see my camera / tripod in the dark. Reflective tape on the legs of the tripod remedied this. Since I always carry a small flashlight, this worked out perfectly
8) During the winter, a tripod can get very cold. With bare moist hands tending to stick to the cold exposed metal of the tripod, I added pipe insulation to the top part of the legs on the tripod. This made the tripod much easier to carry in the winter with no gloves on, and, gave it a better, more secure grip.
9) Spring in British Columbia brings with it the re-emergence of bears, after their winter hibernation. While concentrating on my subject matter, I was left vulnerable to bears. Although I carried Bear Spray (a pepper based substance that can be sprayed as far as 8 meters) it was much more convenient to have it mounted on one of the tripod legs using a Velcro strap, that also doubles as a strap for keeping the legs together while transporting through the bushes.
10) I also found that the inside of the center of the tripod made an excellent place to store my extra bear bangers and a first aid kit (bandaids and ointment).
11) When I have to switch lenses or remove or replace my flash more than once, cases are fastened to the legs of the tripod, making them easily accessible.
12) My remote, instead of dangling all over is neatly velcroed to one of the legs.
13) Fom time to time, I also place a double ended clamp with a diffuser plate, on the setup to either place my GPS or take notes on the surroundings.
I can’t see this being the end of the evolution for my setup. It has endless possibilities."
Shot on a Pentax K-1 with the Pentax D-FA 24-70mm f/2.8 DC WR at Manfrotto's UK headquarters during a Manfrotto Brand Champions training day. Lighting was done using SMDV Flashwave manual transmitters on Canon Speedlites or Manfrotto Lykos constant LED panels.
Make-up by Sarah at The London Body Painting Co., model Abbie Latham.
Manfrotto Monopod 479-4B
Length Collapsed: 50cm
Length fuly extended: 153cm
Weight 810g
Four Sections
© Dirk HR Spennemann 2009
All Rights Reserved
The Manfrotto ProLight Redbee photo backpack in action with my Pentax K-1 and SMC Pentax-D FA 150-450mm DC AW lens and a Manfrotto 055 XPRO3 tripod with three way head. Photo for the Manfrotto Brand Champion training day at Richmond Park.
This device, once aligned with the celestial north pole (not exactly at Polaris), automatically rotates at the same rate as the Earth, so stars will stay in the same relative location to the camera.
It is mounted on a Manfrotto 410 Geared Head, so that by just twisting a couple knobs, the head can be precisely aligned. It will hold its alignment without slipping.
The camera sits on a Manfrotto 496-RC2 Ball Head, which rotates with the AstroTrac so that no matter where the camera is pointed, the stars should remain stationary in frame.
Shooting in the wood along Yzeron river
Dancer Loreena
Instagram loreena_pez
www.facebook.com/ Loreena Lopez-Haro
Lighting/Strobist: Godox AD600pro in TTL mode in Broncolor beautybox mounted on Manfrotto lightstand
Tripod hook useful to lower its centre of mass. A feature on most high-end tripods I easily added to my Manfrotto. I removed the rubber cap at the end of the center column and added a nut and a bolt with washers and some heat shrink tube to act as a sort of rubber cushion. In this way nut and bolt can be easily undone for column reversing otherwise being well in place.
#audi #rs6 #a6 #competition #avant #quattro #daytonagrey #nardogrey #matte #manfrotto #photoshop #instacar #instacars #instagood #car #carporn #auto #carsofinstagram #picoftheday #photooftheday #SnabshodPhotography #automotive #danielboeswald #snabshod #automobil #transportation #vehicle #ingolstadt www.snabshod.com - www.fb.com/snabshod
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Z07-7 filaire Manfrotto est version améliorée basé sur modèle Z07-7
Pas besoin bluetooth, pas besoin de charge
Caractéristiques:
1. Pas besoin de se connecter bluetooth, en utilisant...
telephone.pascherenchine.com/products/z07-7-2-en-1-wired-...
Pix taken with my little point and shoot Nikon S4. Auto everything.
Y'all know that I like Sunrises. I also like long exposures. Those two reasons alone mean tripod. Good tripod. I guess I am like a lot of other amateurs. I bought a cheap tripod to start with. Well, that was something I was able to change, so say Hello to my new tripod. Nope, I did not get carried away (pun intended) and buy a Gitzo carbon legs and 20 function ball head for a thousand smackers, but I did get what I hope will be a great deal on $300 Manfrotto. Legs are O55xPROB with a 496RC2 ball head.
What do y'all think, should I haven't have cheaped out and bought the Gitzo, or did I done did good and with the savings you expect a donation?
Now if I could change and sleep in some mornings and not pester y'all with these pix ;-)
Have y'all seen Drew Litton?