Union Pacific 7767 West - 5 locomotives, 144 cars

[M10000]

I am looking at this one at Adorama.  http://www.adorama.com/DOAX680B001.html  Customer reviews say it is strong (my cameras are lightweight but I can see getting a heavier one in the future).  It is a Dolica with ball head.

[Overmod]

tpatrick

You will also need a ball head for your tripod.

I think for pans he might want a 'fluid head' more.  About the last thing in the world he needs is ease of freehand tilt, particularly lateral tilt, or a head that has to be loosened in all axes (in a potentially high-vibration environment!) in order to pivot in just one.

I also would recommend that he install some fast way to get the tripod level in the field.  This can be as easy as a circular level, or as cheap as a homemade 'plumb bob' on a piece of string hooked under the center of the head.

Would definitely concur on the pistol-grip style for the ball head, and would also recommend that he look into some form of counterweighting to balance the weight of his camera directly above the head of the ball.  Otherwise his first trip to the field with his new tripod may become a two-handed game of vertical Twister...  ;-}

[tpatrick]

You will also need a ball head for your tripod. The tripod alone will stabilize your camera, but a ball head will allow you to pan smoothly, or make other adjustments. I recommend a pistol grip style head, but there are so many possibilities you should shop and compare before you buy. Adorama is a good and reliable source for all things photographic and their website is excellent. Equally good is B and H Photovideo. Both are New York City based.

As you shop, your jaw will likely drop at some of the prices for good tripods. But you don't have to hock the family jewels to find one that works for you. Mine is an inexpensive Dynatran, made in Russia by Amvona. It works fine for me, although I don't do movies, only stills.

Tim

[M10000]

Thanks for the tip.  A good tripod is a piece of equipment I am presently lacking - though acting on this advice I bought a gorilla octopus flexible tripod on eBay today for $6.50 shipped.  These videos are made with a Canon S100 compact digital camera (shooting 1080P) and I also have a Canon M30.  I would be glad to receive any recommendations for a regular tripod as well as a suction cup car mount for window glass that will allow for pacing videos.

I caught Union Pacific 7767 on the west end of Bonner Springs and, after the run by shot near De Soto, tried to follow it in to Lawrence, Kansas.  It got tied up somewhere in Lawrence and I gave up on chasing it further and continued to Topeka.  As I approached Topeka, I saw the eastbound seen in the meet with 7767.  I chased the eastbound to a roadside park east of Grantville and was in the process of filming it when to my surprise 7767 came roaring by.

[shunter]

Buy yourself a tripod - a good one for your next shoot please

[M10000]

watch?v=wipyr26P9hI