[tsk1979]

Originally Posted by mail4ajo

What are the pros and cons of a monopod part from that it cant stand on its own? Havent used or seen one being used. What shooting suitations will it work best in? Any good brands to consider?

A monopod will give you 2-3 stops advantage.

[Hellcat]

How To Use The Monopod.

How To Use A Monopod & Multi-Purpose Tripod

[Torqy]

Originally Posted by mail4ajo

What are the pros and cons of a monopod part from that it cant stand on its own? Havent used or seen one being used. What shooting suitations will it work best in? Any good brands to consider?

Apart from being easy to carry around, it works well for panning shots.
E.g. Motor Sports.
(I'm yet to get one though.)

Manfrotto is a good brand. There are even more expensive ones....varies with the material / and the head.

-- Torqy

[Samurai]

Monopod is for specialised needs, for general needs tripod is better.

Some user comparisons:

E3 vs 5D: Two weeks with my E-3, and couldn't be happier . . . . [Page 1]: Olympus SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review
E3 vs D300: Tried the D300, 40D, Pentax 10D, and E-3 yesterday ...: Olympus SLR Talk Forum: Digital Photography Review

[tsk1979]

Happy users indeed.
I have seen that depending on the forums the "happy camera" changes.
On Olympus forum, E3 is the second coming, and on the Canon Forums 40D is the return of Eden.
What these guys don't realize that neither E3 nor the D40 can make coffee. For that you need nescafe coffee machine

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

What these guys don't realize that neither E3 nor the D40 can make coffee. For that you need nescafe coffee machine

If you want to go that way, monopod is better than tripod. The monopod can be used as a weapon (stick) for self defence purposes, where as tripod is awkward in the respect.

[condor]

May be some one will design a monopod with a mini-tripod as bottom piece. This mini-tripod can be unlocked using a foot-operated lever, and will allow simultaneous adjustment of all three tripod feet. Once user has the correct position, he can release the foot-operated lever to lock the tripod legs in place. Stability will be through holding this monopod. The function of the mini-tripod part will be more do provide a level base.

Or is there anything like this in the market today ?

[Samurai]

Originally Posted by condor

May be some one will design a monopod with a mini-tripod as bottom piece.

That won't work condor. As you know the center pole of most tripod can be raised, like in the image below.



But this contributes to more vibrations, and is actually discouraged. You can get maximum stability in a given tripod if the tripod head is resting one the 3 legs than raised one the solitary pole. Then comes the sturdiness of the tripod itself, recently my manfrotto 190DB tripod failed to provide the amount of support needed by Rudra's 400mm lens resulting in vibrations.

Therefore, a monopod on 3 tiny legs is not really useful. May be slightly better than monopod, but no closer to a real tripod.

[navin]

Originally Posted by tsk1979

,,,neither E3 nor the D40 can make coffee. For that you need nescafe coffee machine

Ugh! sacriliage! why nescafe? even the stuff sold at "Philips" coffe house (it tastes like it is 35%+ chicory) is better. Atleast it tastes like coffee. Nescafe is synthetic.

[condor]

Not as a substitute for a monopod. More an enhancement to increase stability of a monopod a little. Thing is, a monopod is still vulnerable to shakes (not jerks). Having a little support at the bottom can help reduce the shakes.

An alternate to this tri-pod bottom piece can be a ball-head. Just a means to provide a larger contact area where the monopod rests on the ground, while retaining the manoeuverability of a monopod. Either way, when using a monopod, the weight of the camera is supported by the user by holding the monopod.

[jkdas]

how much for EOS 400D

can someone pm me if you have contacts to buy one.

[rsjaurr]

Finally i received my favourite Canon S5 digicam along with this bag and 8GB SDHC memory card. I'm lo..ving it...so far

BTW plz suggest the way to take pictures of my kid,mostly indoor who moves too much and i am getting blurred pics.I know there is plenty of knowledge available online but dont have enough time to dig too deep

[extreme_torque]

Originally Posted by rsjaurr

Finally i received my favourite Canon S5 digicam along with this bag and 8GB SDHC memory card. I'm lo..ving it...so far

BTW plz suggest the way to take pictures of my kid,mostly indoor who moves too much and i am getting blurred pics.I know there is plenty of knowledge available online but dont have enough time to dig too deep

Click in aperture priority mode (Av on the dial) with the flash raised. It will give you a shutter speed of around 1/60 which is good enough to freeze your moving son. Happy Clicking and do post the pics here while you are at it.

[condor]

doc, can you track a subject with this camera ?

[mail4ajo]

Which would be the best value for money choice among these three similar spec lenses:

1. Canon EF 70-300mm III USM
2. Tamron 70-300mm Di LD
3. Sigma 70-300mm APO Macro

I cant afford and my use do not require the L series which I know is quality glass.

I personally want the Canon EF 70-300mm IS USM, but way expensive than the above mentioned lenses closer in quality and price to the 70-200mm F4 L series. Any user feedback will be great. Want to buy in March 08.