Good upper-level budget tripod
Tripods are a tricky beast, especially if you haven't owned many. You have to have experience with many to know what you like and what you don't like. I will start by saying my main purpose for a tripod is for landscape photography. I have only owned one other carbon fiber tripod (Benro Adventure TAD18C). This is a pretty small tripod, with a smallish footprint when unfolded. But I was looking for something a bit taller and sturdy. HEIGHT. I am 5'10" and was a little worried about 57" not being tall enough. When the tripod has a ballhead and my camera attached, the viewfinder is just about eye-level, maybe a hair under. So from that respect I am pretty happy. However, once I get to any uneven surfaces I will have to crouch over. I did actually measure the height and I did get 57". The nice thing is theoretically you could fold in the legs a smidge, still have a stable platform (in a pinch) and gain a few more inches. Folded up is just get pretty short at 21" (no head) which is pretty good. WEIGHT. I was a little concerned about weight as I would like to use the tripod sometimes when hiking. Coming from 2.6 pounds to 4 pounds (actual weight as I measured) isn't a great leap but it's noticeable when holding the tripods side-by-side. Still, for what you get the weight is pretty good. This is the weight using the normal plate, not the bowl. The bowl adds a little more weight. OTHER INNOREL. Why did I go with this tripod over the comparable INNOREL AS80C or INNOREL RT90C? First, I actually had ordered the RT90C but they delivered it to the wrong person. Probably a blessing because I think that tripod would have been overkill. The height would have been nice but still, the increased bulk and weight would have been tough to hike with. The AS80C has rubber leg locks, which I have found can come loose and not lock tightly. Also it has a smaller 65mm bowl and my research found 75mm is a more common size in case you want to switch it out for something else. Again the 63" height would have been nice but I'm okay with 57". One last thing with the AS80C, it has 8x carbon fiber layers whereas the LT324C has 10x carbon fiber layers. FEATURES. The main things that drew me to the LT324C were: * Metal twisting legs locks * Max height / folded height / size ratio * 10x carbon fiber layer * 75mm bowl size (though I may not even use it but who knows) * No center column * Price QUALITY. Overall, the tripod is about what you'd expect from a tripod priced at $500 or less. The fast that this tripod is priced at $230 makes it quite a deal. The overall feel of the tripod is really good but don't expect RRS or Gitzo quality. The twist locks work good but I wish they were quarter turn instead of full turn. The legs slide in and out nicely but again don't expect RRS/Gitzo quality. The leg angle locks are decent but there's a good amount of grease in them. I worry about the top plate having holes and the bowl not having any holes so I may drill a hole near the bottom of the bowl to let water drain if I use the tripod in rain. This is all nit-picky stuff. The tripod is a bargain and I have a feeling the 80C and 90C would be very similar. So would I buy it again? YES. My initial impressions are really good but only time will tell how it stands up to the rigors of landscape photography. Read more
