Okay, after buying and returning several cheap tripods, and then seeing my brother-in-law's Bogen 3021, I've decided to bite the bullet and save my pennies and spend hem correctly.

I'm just confused now....I've loked at B&H Photo's website and they have the 3021 and the 3021 pro and this head and that head......

Is there a difference between the 3021 and the Pro? And what's with all of the different heads?

Signed,
Baffled by Bogen in Bel Air

There both good tripods. I have them both, and the only difference is that on the pro you can remove the center post and mount it horizontal. With the horizontal mount you can get very close to the ground, and also it's very good for doing close up work like flower's, etc. You can go to this site for some good descriptions of Bogen products. http://www.bogenphoto.com/

Hi Larry, aka Baffled by Bogen in Bel Air!

Similar to Bill, I have a Bogen 3221 (the difference from the 3021 is that the 3221 is black rather than silver) and a Bogen 3021 Pro. Both are excellent tripod legs.

Next, obviously, comes the dilemma of a tripod head and Bogen gives you a ton of choices! A bewildering and baffling array, no less. On this choice, which Bill didn't mention, he and I disagree. I prefer a pan/tilt head that gives you separate control of all three axes of motion and Bill uses as ball head. I can't comment on the latter but certainly can on the former. Bogen has basically two choices that differ substantially in price. The 3047 is what I would consider the entry level version of the pan/tilt head and the one that I got first. They have cheaper versions but I personally would recommend biting the bullet and saving enough extra pennies to go to the 3047 rather than the lesser counterparts. You can grow into the 3047 if you don't have need of the stability it offers rather than growing out of the less expensive ($55 vs $75 for the 3047) version. The big brother of the 3047 is a substantial step up in $$ and that's the 3039 which is $159 from B&H in New York. I have one of those as well and prefer it over the 3047.

Maybe Bill can throw his nickel into the ring on why he prefers a ball head over a pan/tilt. I can never seem to get the blessed ball head to level out and I find that a sufficient irritation that I wouldn't own a ball head. Others swear by them, so... your choice.

Regardless of which way you opt to go, Larry, I would suggest buying your baffling Bogen for Bel Air from B&H. Before you do that though, you might want to go to a camera store that handles Bogen tripods and play with them to see which you prefer.

Hope that this helps!

Gary

P.S.

Larry, if you want pics to see the difference between the two heads that I have, say so and I'll post some digitals here on the forum for you.

Gary

If you go to the web site for Bogen mentioned above, I think you want to look at the Manfrotto brand choice.

Dave

I used both type of heads over the years, but only switched to the ball heads in the last few years. I have both the 3262QR and ProBall 468. The 3262 is med. wt. for equipment up to about 8 lbs. The proball is for equipment for up to 22 lbs. If you shoot 35mm with longer lens, or med. format., then the proball is prefered. I didn't think I would like the ball heads at first, but after using them for awhile, I would never go back. I have no problem in leveling, but then I use a bubble level that is attached to the hotshoe. I would not say they are better, but just different. But you need to look at both before you decide. And even then It's hard to decide without using one for awhile.

I've had a Bogen 3221 for several years and it is a good piece of gear. Bogen makes a very nice strap that works well with this model and I've found it convenient when lugging the thing around - easy on and off and it doesn't get in your way.

I've tried various pan and tilt heads - go with what you're comfortable with. For me that is an Arca Swiss ball head. Silky smooth to operate - less fidgety than a P&T for me and definitely more robust for larger lenses than most other ballheads. I think the real trick is to try 'em out and don't hesistate to return if the ergonomics are not comfortable to you.

If you find yourself mounting and dismounting the camera on the tripod/head combo you'll be paying close attention to the release mechanism. I never got comfortable with the so called 'quick release' plates of various kinds. Recommend taking a look at the mounting system from Really Right Stuff . Makes it easy to switch between tripod, monopod, and hand held. Excellent quality, simple to use.

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