Nice video and images!. So many tripods and camera mounts to think about in this game!! Many people say carbon fibre because it is strong and light and yet that makes it a problem when it is breezy and you're on soft ground!! My main tripod is an old Manfrotto aluminium design with twist lock wing nut type levers and it is a bit heavy but stands up to 8' feet high and is very solid!! Perfect for camera loading and targeting DSO's at eye level (I'm 6' foot) without having to bend your back or getting your knees sore!! I also use a pan and tilt ball head but for tracked Milky Way panoramas an Alyn Wallace Z-wedge in conjunction with MSM Nomad tracker +/- ball head is my preference.
@@gr-astro great knowledge there! I agree with the carbon fiber is just a bit too light and wobbly, definitely think heavy ball heads need to be huge to withstand large lenses which astrophotography sometimes creates
Nice one mate, hope you had a lovely Christmas (I’ve been floored since the 16th, fingers crossed all clear in the new year). Got the same setup myself plus a few other sticks kicking around
I have two Big Boy tripods. One is a Manftotto that is well over 25 years old and bombproof. My other is a Benro Tortoise and both tripods have self levelling bases. Levelling Heads are worth their weight in gold for getting a level platform for my cameras either for video or astro. The Benro will go flush to the ground. However the best thing that I have invested in this year for my tripods is a Vanguard SB-100 Universal Stone Bag for tripods. You can fill it with rocks to ensure that your tripod never moves. Or you can buy some sandbags, if weight is not a problem working out of the back of a van. I bought a couple of bright orange bags so that I could spot them easily in the dark. As for your tiny tripods, I bought one off Amazon but sent it back immediately because I refused to pay £50 for something so small. I went for a SMALLRIG 72" Aluminum Camera Tripod, Lightweight Tripod & Monopod with Ball Head and Quick Release Plate for £59. Match the Smallrig up with a Stone Bag and you have a Travel Tripod as steady as your "Big Boy" Manfrotto.
@@frankinblackpool love a tripod that’s close to the ground! Just feels so secure and more safe if something happens with the camera falling 😂 nice to hear about stone bags, not heard a lot of people talking about them
@@scotlandsnightsky With a Stone Bag, your top heavy tripod is no longer a top heavy tripod. The stone bag lowers the centre of gravity and strengthens the actual structure by pulling the legs into a more stable position. Most tripods come with a small hook to attach weights but they can sway in the wind and cause micro jitters. Micro jitters be gone, with a Stone bag. My two orange sand bags are 2kg each and that gives me a lot of stability for what ever is resting on top of the tripod.
@@LawrenceConnolly oooh nice! I’ll have a look, I like the low down tripods but agree that it’s handy to have a tall option as sometimes have to photograph over a wall or bush
Nice images, Andrew. I use Manfrotto MT055 carbon fibre tripods, but honestly wouldn’t recommend them - a bit too fiddly for Astro and the quality isn’t quite what I’d hoped, especially for a premium brand. I recently started using the Neewer all-metal 54mm ball heads. They’re built like a brick **** house and a fraction of the cost of main brand variants, although they are really heavy. I find that astro is really tough on gear - the dew, ice and cold, together with cold clumsy hands, means my gear gets a pasting every time I take it out!
@@nightscapejournals great to know! I agree how astrophotography is very tough on tripods, definitely puts them through a lot of conditions, I’ll look into Neewer tripods!
Lovely shots there. Hope you had a good Christmas and wishing you clear skies for 2025!
@@sjbastro you too! Thanks for enjoying the content!
so jealous of how clear the skies are where you are, im in ayrshire and its been clouds galore! doing my head right in!
@@cobro2626 definitely been about a week of cloud here now
@ depression setting in, just got an 8” Newtonian. I want images 😪
Nice video and images!. So many tripods and camera mounts to think about in this game!! Many people say carbon fibre because it is strong and light and yet that makes it a problem when it is breezy and you're on soft ground!! My main tripod is an old Manfrotto aluminium design with twist lock wing nut type levers and it is a bit heavy but stands up to 8' feet high and is very solid!! Perfect for camera loading and targeting DSO's at eye level (I'm 6' foot) without having to bend your back or getting your knees sore!! I also use a pan and tilt ball head but for tracked Milky Way panoramas an Alyn Wallace Z-wedge in conjunction with MSM Nomad tracker +/- ball head is my preference.
@@gr-astro great knowledge there! I agree with the carbon fiber is just a bit too light and wobbly, definitely think heavy ball heads need to be huge to withstand large lenses which astrophotography sometimes creates
Sea stack is called Deil’s Heid.
@@colinlamond sure is! Love the name of it!
Nice one mate, hope you had a lovely Christmas (I’ve been floored since the 16th, fingers crossed all clear in the new year). Got the same setup myself plus a few other sticks kicking around
@@amacmedia3221 nice! Hope Santa was good to you too, weather not been great past few weeks but kinda glad to enjoy the festive period
@ got a new intervelometer for some moon time lapse, I had to explain what it was lol, so hopefully some moon time lapse in the future
I have two Big Boy tripods. One is a Manftotto that is well over 25 years old and bombproof. My other is a Benro Tortoise and both tripods have self levelling bases. Levelling Heads are worth their weight in gold for getting a level platform for my cameras either for video or astro. The Benro will go flush to the ground.
However the best thing that I have invested in this year for my tripods is a Vanguard SB-100 Universal Stone Bag for tripods. You can fill it with rocks to ensure that your tripod never moves. Or you can buy some sandbags, if weight is not a problem working out of the back of a van. I bought a couple of bright orange bags so that I could spot them easily in the dark.
As for your tiny tripods, I bought one off Amazon but sent it back immediately because I refused to pay £50 for something so small. I went for a SMALLRIG 72" Aluminum Camera Tripod, Lightweight Tripod & Monopod with Ball Head and Quick Release Plate for £59. Match the Smallrig up with a Stone Bag and you have a Travel Tripod as steady as your "Big Boy" Manfrotto.
@@frankinblackpool love a tripod that’s close to the ground! Just feels so secure and more safe if something happens with the camera falling 😂 nice to hear about stone bags, not heard a lot of people talking about them
@@scotlandsnightsky With a Stone Bag, your top heavy tripod is no longer a top heavy tripod. The stone bag lowers the centre of gravity and strengthens the actual structure by pulling the legs into a more stable position. Most tripods come with a small hook to attach weights but they can sway in the wind and cause micro jitters. Micro jitters be gone, with a Stone bag. My two orange sand bags are 2kg each and that gives me a lot of stability for what ever is resting on top of the tripod.
Nice work. Newest tripod for me is a SIRUI AM-324 definitely sturdy, wish it were a bit taller.
@@LawrenceConnolly oooh nice! I’ll have a look, I like the low down tripods but agree that it’s handy to have a tall option as sometimes have to photograph over a wall or bush
@ my problem is I’m too tall 😂 cheers, happy holidays
my newest tripod is sunwayfoto tm2840ck. also i've the leofoto Ls365c...very solid tripod and great price/ratio.
@@illsdom6055 ah that’s great! Not heard of them but will look at them now!
Nice images, Andrew. I use Manfrotto MT055 carbon fibre tripods, but honestly wouldn’t recommend them - a bit too fiddly for Astro and the quality isn’t quite what I’d hoped, especially for a premium brand. I recently started using the Neewer all-metal 54mm ball heads. They’re built like a brick **** house and a fraction of the cost of main brand variants, although they are really heavy. I find that astro is really tough on gear - the dew, ice and cold, together with cold clumsy hands, means my gear gets a pasting every time I take it out!
@@nightscapejournals great to know! I agree how astrophotography is very tough on tripods, definitely puts them through a lot of conditions, I’ll look into Neewer tripods!