graphics_guy's Full Review: Manfrotto 679B Monopod
I'm an avid amateur photographer, with a Sony F717 digital camera, and a bunch of lens attachments.
I take pictures at lots of "events", and in particular the indoor female RollerDerby events have somewhat challenging lighting. It's often necessary to use a somewhat longer shutter speed, and therefore it's very desirable to have a stand to help hold the camera steady.
A tripod is just too big, heavy, and bulky - I like to move around the track & the stands to get lots of different shots from different angles ... I move around a *lot*. Therefore a monopod (ie, a 1-legged tripod) is my stand of choice.
Before I got the Manfrotto, I was using a cheap "Platinum Plus" by Sunpak. It was very lightweight, and 2 of the joints let you twist/lock adjust them, but the smaller two you had to either have them all the way in, or out. And, being lightweight & spindley, it wasn't very steady. Looking back, I don't know *how* I even thought that thing was somewhat acceptable. There's absolutely no going back, now!
This Manfrotto monopod has 3 sections, and you can lock them out to *any* length you want. When fully extended, my camera is right at eye-level (I'm about 5'11").
There is a strap at the top that you can put your wrist through, and then grab the padded top-section, and then apply a little pressure/torque, and get the monopod rock-steady!
The 3229 head is pretty simple - it lets you attach a quick-release plate to the threaded hole in the bottom of your camera, and then you can easily & quickly lock/unlock the plate to the monopod head. This plate is smaller than the one I use with my Bogen/Manfrotto 3047 tripod head (on the Bogen/Manfrotto 3251 tripod) - I like this smaller plate, because I can leave it attached to my camera all the time, and it's not in the way at all. The 3229 head lets you tilt in 1 direction, and doesn't have anything fancy like a bubble-level. It works perfectly well, and it's all I really need with a monopod.
One new/unique thing I've been able to do with this monopod ... since it is so strong & sturdy, and I trust it 100%, I often tilt the head down a little (so my camera is pointing slightly down), and then extend the monopod to it's full height, and then hold it high up in the air -- this way I can get above everyone's head, and take pictures down into the crowd (such as, at the end of the RollerDerby games, when everyone's down on the floor congratulating the teams).
I am 100% satisfied with this Monopod, and I recommend it without hesitation!
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26jul2008 edit:
Since epinions doesn't have a picture of this product, and since I don't see a way to add a picture, I took a quick snapshot of mine and put it up on a webpage ...
Three section Monopod featuring sure rubber grip, wrist carrying strap, quick action lever leg lock system with 45? flip, large 2.3" camera/head platf...More at BuyDig.com
Black anodized three section monopod featuring sure rubber grip, wrist carrying strap, quick action lever leg lock system with 45? flip, large 2.3 cam...More at Buy.com Marketplaces
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