So, if you’re not into photo, this post might bore you. Be warned.
Photography gear is what I like to euphemistically refer to “retarded expensive”. Which is why e-bay rules.
I recently got what would normally be a $100 softbox for about $30 or so off e-bay. Now, it needs a different speed ring to fit onto my lighting gear. I can get that ring from Alienbees.com for around $30 and $7 shipping, or I can hit another website that reveals this is really just a Savage speed ring for Balcar flashes, and find that elsewhere for $17 and $10 shipping. Now that’s still too expensive in my book considering that the ring is essentially pot metal, but I’m saving $30% at least.
Recently I’ve also been looking at getting a light weight carbon fiber tripod, and e-bay once again came to the rescue. I got the dynatran CF94 for $135 off e-bay. This tripod is the rough equivalent of a $550 Gitzo mountaineer. Every review of it I have read is highly enthusiastic as well. So we’ll see how it is when it arrives. This should cut about 2 pounds out of my current tripod weight, which will be nice, but this will still be a 5.75 pound setup when I’m done. This is partially a trade off of being a tall guy who doesn’t want to constantly stoop over while shooting.
But I may also buy an ultra light 2.4 pound set of legs that only gets up to around 5 feet at some point in the future.
Now I’m looking at ball heads for the tripod and I’m sorely tempted to get this one from RRS, but $375 for a ball head seems a tad excessive. But on this one I might just save the benjamins and do it right from the start. The L plate for my camera is also $185. Mmmm hemorrhaging money!