Survey tripods for LF??greenspun.com : LUSENET : Large format photography : One Thread |
Hey, I've heard of some people using survey tripods for bigger cameras, with some work to adapt a head. Seems possible. Is it cheap and is it solid as well as somewhat light in wt. ? Anybody?
-- Tad Cornwell (tadc@jcdi.com), October 06, 1997
The tripod that you see on the picture of me in yellowstone is a Zone VI. See my review. It is basically a surveyor's tripod with a modification to take the photographer's pan-tilt head. If you buy it from Zone VI it is quite expensive, but I have heard that you can get the same for a fraction of the price in surveying supplies. Then you'll have to do the modif. It is nothing but lightweight !
-- Quang-Tuan Luong (luong@ai.sri.com), October 15, 1997.
Question: do these survey tripods have the same type of male thread used for cameras? I don't want the ajustable head but need the flexible legs.
-- Rich Lahrson (tripspud@hooked.net), January 29, 1998.
Survey tripods (called "legs" by surveyors) use a huge, 5/8" I think, hollow bolt -- not a normal tripod mount. It's easy to replace the bolt though. I ran the survey dept. for a large civil engineering firm many years ago and we had a dozen sets of worn out legs just sitting in the store-room gathering dust. I would have gladly given some to a photographer who wanted to restore them. Might be worth checking with your local surveyor.Chris
-- Chris Kulczycki (chris@clcinc.com), February 13, 1998.
Calumet is closing out the Zone Light weight tripods for $100 if anyone is interested. They told me that they only have a handful left.
-- unknown (unknown @dontknow.com), December 18, 1998.
What ever happened to U. N. Owen and his co-hort Anon Y. Mouse?
-- Sean yates (yatescats@yahoo.com), December 18, 1998.