Best advice I got a long time ago was spend money on the right tripod from the beginning and don't waste money on continually upgrading from the cheapest to the best one. You will spend way more money this way.

I use a Gitzo 2540 tripod with a Really Right Stuff BH-40 ballhead for my SLR gear, which used to include a Canon 70-200 f/2.8 IS lens. This combination is awesome for landscape photography especially panoramas since the RRS head gives you angle markers on the head itself making it easy to methodically create a seamless panorama.

The tripod is 3 sections and because it's carbon fiber, it's light as heck. It's not as physically small as other tripods, but great for night photography since it has a spring loaded hook on the center column to hang weights (or something like your camera bag) which helps reduce vibration for long exposures.

The tripod is small enough to fit in a standard carry on size luggage though, when the head is removed.

If your primary goal is to hike with the tripod, I 'd recommend the gitzo 1540, since it's way smaller althought not as sturdy.

Hope this helps.
Source(s):
http://www.gitzo.com/Jahia/site/gitzo/pid/4765?kindOfProductCollectionReque...


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