Topic: Monopods... worthwhile?

I am looking into buying a monopod. But, I've read differing reports. Some say they really don't help much with steadying your camera, but others sing their praises, of their compactness and that they can be used where using a tripod would be a no no.

As with all camera equipment prices vary greatly, can anyone recommend a good make? I'm also looking for one that closes to around 40cm.

Thanks.

video or still?

Used one with video a while back. it... really didnt fly well at-tall.

no way does it hold the camera rock solid still. you wont move up and down but you still sway around a good bit.


[antique sigs are us]

Even so, it's still ALOT more stable than holding the camera by hands. It all depends on what you want to do with it.

"Nothin' like a pro-stabbin' from a pro." -Weadah

i use one all the time when shooting high school football at night ... it offers stability .. but still the ability to quickly move without having the obstruction that a tripod has ...

as for if it is something that would be useful to you ... that is up to you and what you are shooting ... i would reccomend getting one with a good thickness to so your hand doesn't cramp while holding onto it ...

I use one every time I use the big telephoto lens at the zoo. Gives me 3 stops over hand-held, I'd guess. Of course, the camera/lens combo is so heavy that using it handheld is extra shaky.

Still photography.

I imagine uses similar to Flea, times when a tripod is not viable, but a few extra stops for, perhaps that indoor shot, would help.

We don't have any real specialist shops here, only an outlet from a chain of stores, Jessops. So I've only really seen cheap plastic ones, for 10 to 15 pounds.

Can anyone recommend a few manufacturers that are worthwhile considering?

http://www.camera-shop.co.uk/acatalog/Manfrotto_Monopods.html

Manfrotto maybe?

Good monopod for the money, ez pod

Frank

Bogen makes some good ones. That's what I've got.

Bogen = Manfrotto

I have a Gitzo microphone fishpole and the quality is excellent. I imagine their monopods would be very similar.

I'm sure Gitzo monopods are as well-made as everything else they make, but they are pretty pricy. The cheapest I can find on B&H is $100.

(Edited by Das on 04-23-2004 19:16)

http://www.bhphotovideo.com/bnh/controller/home?O=productlist&A=details&Q=&sku=5251&is=REG

that is the monopod i currently use .. on my second one ... i can vouch for the durability ... have been hit by 3 football
players at once ... and it barely dented the pod .. i cant say the same about my leg tho ...

if you want, you could get gyros instead! heh.

You can actually buy little pods that attach to the tripod mount, these contain bascially some orthognal rotors which spin at about 6000rpm. The resulting angular momentum gives resistance to movement [not really the most rigorous explanation] about the x and y axes (up-down and left-right).

The company claim that the smallest one gives you about two extra stops at handheld, and they had some photos at 1/30 on a 200mm lens which were sharp [something liek that anyway]. it struck me as a fairly impressive brute force solution to the problem of image stabilisation.