Topic: What tripod do you use? (and is it good?)
I'm looking into compiling an article for this site about tripod recommendations, and I wondered what y'all have worked with and what your experiences have been.
After using a very cheap, largely plastic velbon tripod that could not execute smooth pans and tilts for over a decade, I recently bought a couple of new pieces of gear in this department: a Q-666c Tripod, which I got for $125 on eBay (I see AliExpress has some lower prices on it but I've heard mixed-to-terrible things about buying from that site) and a Manfrotto 410 tripod head to replace the cheap ball head that comes with it. I picked one up used for $200 on B&H, though it appears to me deals like that are somewhat rare.
The Q-666c I bought because I needed something I could travel in Europe with for the documentary. It is made of carbon fiber and collapses down to a very small size, so it's great for travel. There might be better or at least cheaper options for a brickfilmer.
The Manfrotto 410, though expensive, is the best tripod head ever for brickfilming. You can rotate the years on it to precisely execute tilts and pans, perfect for stop motion.
I've used the Ravelli AVT quite a bit, as well; it seems adequate and the weight and build quality are pretty good. I find it difficult to execute good pans on this tripod and the head cannot be replaced, so those are limiting factors I've encountered.
Of course, it could be argued that you don't even need a tripod for brickfilming. It is my understanding that some professional stop motion animators use wooden posts with a screw mount attached to the top. This lets you attach a Manfrotto 410 or other nice head to the post, but because it is a post (with some kind of base), it doesn't have three sprawling legs to get in your way while animating, and it is not going to fall over so easily. Presumably you'd have to make different heights, or construct something that can raise up and down. I'd be interested in hearing about non-tripod approaches people have taken.