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Sigma DP1

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Few cameras are announced a full two years before they hit the shelves in your local camera shop. But the Sigma DP1 was destined for a long and difficult birth.

Very few compact cameras, apart from Leica's M8 and Epson's R-D1, have taken a large image sensor and squeezed it into a compact body.

The most eagerly anticipated compact camera

Heat, battery and miniaturisation issue are only half the problem; the other stumbling block is the perceived lack of demand for a high-end compact camera that's priced on a par with a DSLR.

Perhaps the low potential sales of such a concept have reduced the amount of R&D dollars companies are willing to invest in such a camera. These problems, along with the use of an innovative image sensor, in part explain the reason for the DP1's delay.

Sigma has gone out on a bit of a limb to produce the DP1 because it could be an expensive flop. For starters, it uses the quirky Foveon X3 sensor, a Direct Image chip that uses red, green and blue photosites rather than the conventional monochrome type overlaid with a bayer filter of coloured dyes.

The Foveon offers stunning colour reproduction without any of the guesswork required with traditional sensors where colour is guesstimated. The absence of a bayer filter does make the images look sharp and the dynamic range produced by the chip is awesome.

Impressive pixel count

Strictly speaking, the megapixel count of the DP1 is an unimpressive 4.6MP, but multiply that by the three colours and you arrive at a figure of around 14MP.

There's no way that the DP1 offers a resolution of a conventional 14MP sensor but it's plenty good enough for A3 prints or A4 with plenty of cropping - and you'll probably need to crop because the DP1 has a fixed 28mm lens with a maximum aperture of f/4.

Add in a fairly basic set of functions and you have a camera that's been designed to appeal to the budding Henri Cartier-Bressons of this world who want DSLR image quality but in a very compact form.

Naturally you'd expect a camera that costs almost £600 to be well built -and it is. All the DP1's switchgear is of high quality but the body could definitely benefit from a rubber grip for a more ergonomic hold.

Also, the screen can be very difficult to see properly in bright daylight situations, so it's just as well that a clip-on viewfinder is available.

Sleek and solid

Because the DP1 uses a fixed wide-angle lens, it's not especially good for portraiture or macro photography and is perhaps more suited to landscape work, reportage and interior shots.

The autofocus isn't as snappy as the type of mechanisms used in DSLRs, but once the shutter's been depressed halfway, the response of the camera is acceptable, although you may miss some critical action shots.

On the DP1's top-plate is a power switch, a shutter release button and a mode dial that offers P, A, S, M modes as well as video, sound recording and a fully automatic setting. A small and rather underpowered flash pops up stylishly from the top-plate and smacks a little of Leica.

To the back of the DP1 there's a 2.5-inch LCD screen with 230,000 pixels, and next to that a small navipad is used to navigate around the menus. Apart from this Spartan collection of controls, the DP1 is clean, sleek and solid.

In addition to the basic bundle of the DP1 and the hotshoe-mounted optical viewfinder, Sigma is also selling a lens hood and filter holder kit and a TTL mini flashgun to replace the rather puny built-in unit.

For gadget and function freaks, there's no image stabilisation or face detection, but for serious photographers that's probably not a drawback.

Hit and miss performance

So how does the DP1 perform? Well, to be honest there's a noticeable shutter lag that can really get in the way when you're taking quick-action shots.

Not only that, but the metering can be a bit hit-or-miss - you may well end up getting frustrated and switching over to manual metering for more consistent results.

As far as image quality goes, there's something very special about the Foveon X3 sensor... so long as you shoot in RAW mode and use Sigma's own Photo Pro RAW converter. The DP1's images have an analogue quality that really does seem to bring colour to life.

Even the noise levels are good. In our tests we were very happy with noise at ISO 400 and even ISO 800 was more than acceptable. We did find that the dynamic range was excellent and there was no sign of chromatic aberration, thanks to the fixed 28mm lens.

As good as a DSLR?

Perhaps the one thing most potential buyers will want to know is: "Will the DP1 take pictures that are as good as the ones from my DSLR?"

Well, yes... and no. The resolution of the sensor, although not up to 14MP standards, could easily match a decent 8MP DSLR without any trouble. And if you only print up to A4 you wouldn't notice a lack of resolution compared with a higher resolution camera.

However, you couldn't really replace your trusty DSLR with the DP1 because of its handling and the limited angle of view. However, DP1's images are an important indicator of where the high-end compact market is heading and shows the improvements we can expect to see in the future.

Excellent lens

The next question we ought to deal with is whether the DP1 could replace other high-end compact cameras such as Nikon's Coolpix P5100 or Canon's PowerShot G9. Sadly the answer is no.

Now, although the DP1 is capable of beating both those cameras in terms of pure image quality and glorious colour, the lack of functions, zoom range and other features just make it too limited for most compact users.

The 28mm lens, although excellent, is simply too limiting for a generation of photographers spoiled by the flexibility of zoom lenses.

Worth the wait?

So there you have it. At last the Sigma DP1, with its Foveon X3 sensor, limited feature set and the beguiling colour has made it to market.

Sadly, it's not the perfect replacement for a DSLR but it is perhaps a tantalising glimpse into the future of high-end compacts and a pretty good indicator of where technology may be heading over the next couple of years or so.

We liked the DP1 enormously but the slightly sluggish shutter and fixed lens did become a little frustrating after a while.

But apart from those two issues, this is one seriously good camera that well and truly opened our eyes to the potential of what a well-designed deluxe compact could be able to deliver if only more manufacturers took risks.

Sony A350

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On the face of it, this new Digital SLR from Sony is positively groaning with extra features and some very clever functions.

But just like a bargain car that comes with electric windows, alloy wheels, CD player and air-conditioning, those extras don't necessarily make it enjoyable to use or even good value.

A camera is so much more than mere specifications; if it feels clumsy and cheap to use, then it won't be a pleasure to own. And it's this 'pile-'em-high' trap that the company is in danger of falling into with the Sony A350.

Appealing price from Sony

Compared with its nearest competitor - the Pentax K20D - the A350 seems like a bit of a bargain at almost half the price.

However, where the Pentax is an extremely well-built camera with large quantities of metal and excellent environmental seals from dust and moisture, the A350 is more of a low-budget, plastic-feeling affair.

The switchgear and quality of the materials just don't match what the Pentax has to offer, although when it comes to sheer number of features and functions, the A350 can hold its own.

A multitude of features

For starters there's a new breed of Live View and a tilting 2.7-inch LCD screen. The A350's Live View boasts an autofocus speed that's every bit as fast and snappy as when it's not in Live View mode.

The secret to this innovation is a secondary sensor in the pentamirror that's used to feed the Live View image to the A350's screen. It's for this reason that the colours look slightly 'off' in Live View and why the live image only shows 90% of what the camera is recording. Still, the ultra-fast Live View autofocus is so quick you'll soon forgive the slightly dodgy live image and framing.

Moving on to the image sensor, the A350 has a 14.2MP CCD chip that also incorporates Sony's Super SteadyShot image stabilisation technology. This means that any Sony Alpha-mount or Konica Minolta A-bayonet lens will benefit from image stabilisation.

The technology works well and enables up to 2.5 to 3.5 extra steps of exposure without blur. The sensor also has a special anti-static, indium-tin coating and a sensor shift dust-busting mechanism to keep the sensor free of dust.

The image processing is carried out by Sony's oddly named Bionz processor and includes a very effective D-Range Optimiser function. This handy setting boosts shadow details without burning out an image's highlights.

Nikon pioneered a similar system, called D-Lighting, which is much the same. Once you've used this setting you'll wonder how you managed without it. It's perfect for high-contrast conditions, such as keeping the detail in skies while bringing out more detail in the shadow areas of an image.

Confusing to handle

At the rear there are switches all over. The Power switch is an unpleasant slider on the left that feels like it should be on the right, near the shutter button for those 'decisive moment' shots.

There are four buttons beneath the On switch for playback controls. To the right of the screen is a rather cheap-feeling navipad and a function button that offers quick access to flash mode, metering, focus, AF area, white balance and the D-Range Optimiser settings.

It's not quite as fast as using dedicated buttons, but it works well enough. Above the navipad sits an EV compensation button, AEL lock and a frame expansion button. Beneath the navipad is another sliding switch to turn the image stabilisation on and off.

On the A350's top plate is a large exposure mode dial, a sliding Live View switch, a drive button and an ISO selector. In total, there are nearly 20 switches, knobs, dials and sliders, which can make you wish you were an octopus in order to keep on top of this feature-laden beast.

Overall, though, the usability of the camera is a bit confusing and it takes a while to get used to the layout.

Tilt without swivel

Finally, at the back of the A350 is a 2.7-inch LCD screen that tilts upwards and 20-degrees downwards for when you're using Live View. It's not as good as a proper tilt-and-swivel screen but it's handy for candid or low-level shots.

The anti-glare coating of the screen does seem prone to smearing and clouding whenever a smidgen of nose grease gets deposited on it. Above the screen is the slightly dim optical viewfinder; its dark and pokey nature may be to do with the incorporation of the Live View sensor.

Two small detectors located under the viewfinder can sense when you're looking through the viewfinder and will then wake things up and turn the autofocus system on. It's nice but you can turn it off if you don't want to use it.

In use, the A350's shutter sounds a bit tinny and suffers from a slight recoil. The mirror needs more damping to make it sound more expensive and little less like a cheap car door shutting. Thankfully, the shutter noise can't detract from the quality of the A350's images, which are extremely good.

Poor lens performance

Okay, so maybe there's a tendency for the A350 to underexpose by up to half a stop, and the auto white balance can, occasionally, veer slightly towards yellow, but in terms of image resolution it's an extremely good performer.

The ISO noise levels are very low and the amount of sharpening applied to JPEGs is on the conservative side, which is fine as you can always add your own sharpening during post processing.

However, we do have one major complaint with the A350, and that's the performance of the 18-70mmm Sony kit lens. It simply isn't good enough for the sensor it's working with.

The cheap-feeling lens is no match for Sony's excellent 14.2MP chip and you'd be well advised to shell out some extra cash for one of Sony's superb Carl Zeiss zooms.

However, If you do choose to do that, then the good value offered by the A350 begins to melt away as the cost starts to creep up or even exceed the far-better-built Pentax K20D - so it might be an idea to think very carefully before you go down that route.

A clumsy Digital SLR

With the A350, Sony has managed to produce a camera that's relatively inexpensive and yet capable of producing some truly excellent quality images.

However, the downsides are the rather clumsy controls and a cheap level of build quality with low-grade plastic, which means it feels, well... a little bit cheap.

But if you can find it within yourself to live with the plasticky body, the flapping shutter noise and the slightly cack-handed controls, then you're likely to be rewarded with a camera that, in the right hands, can shoot some great images.

Ricoh GR II

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The 28mm equivalent wide-angle lens on the Ricoh GR Digital II is great for landscapes, interiors, architecture and 'street' photography, but hopeless for portraits, long-range sports photography and all but the tamest wildlife.

This is a camera you'd choose for certain jobs only.

A specialised compact camera

The Ricoh is specialised, then, but it does what it does exceptionally well. At the start we sang the praises of fixed focal length lenses, and this is a prime (sorry!) example.

At f/2.4 it's a tad faster than the average zoom, but better than that it has no significant barrel distortion or chromatic aberration. In these respects it beats a zoom hands down.

The autofocus system is no faster or slower than those on other compacts, but you can also switch to Infinity Focus, Snap Focus (fixed at 2.5m) or Manual Focus. And this is where the Ricoh's depth of field control comes in.

In Manual Focus mode, the up/down buttons adjust the focus point on a vertical distance scale on the left of the LCD. But if you're in Aperture Priority or Manual Exposure mode, a green bar shows you the extent of the depth field both in front of and behind the focused distance.

As you change the focus distance or the lens aperture, the position and the length of the green bar updates. It's a simple matter, for example, to choose an aperture and a focus distance that gives you images that are sharp from 1m to infinity!

Smart features

Like many compacts, the Ricoh can display a live histogram, which you can use alongside the EV compensation control. It's not that the Ricoh is doing something other cameras don't, but that it's making it so quick and accessible.

There are many other smart features, which set this apart as a camera for the cognoscenti rather than the casual snapper. Images can be saved as RAW files as well as JPEGs, and there's a choice of aspect ratios including the standard 4:3 ratio of digital compacts, the 3:2 ratio of digital SLRs and even the old 1:1 square ratio of 6x6 medium-format cameras.

Of course, you can crop any digital image to these ratios in your image editor (and in-camera with the Ricoh, too), but that's not the point.

It's only when you're working with these aspect ratios 'live' that you'll really learn to exploit their compositional potential.

More inventive photography

It's the same with black and white photography - it's easier to visualise and shoot 'live' in mono than it is to shoot in colour with the vague notion of converting your shots later (although you'll admittedly have more control).

It's all too easy to view the Ricoh GR Digital II in terms of its limitations rather than its strengths.

Yes, working with a 28mm lens is restrictive and demanding, but it also forces you to approach your subjects in new and more inventive ways.

Sony PMW-EX1

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If Sony is looking for a heavyweight contender in the battle for semi-pro camcorder supremacy then the EX1 might well be it.

Well, it would be if the battle could be won at the weigh-in. You see the first thing we noticed when removing this new cam from the box was its weight. At 2.8kg it is a bit of a back-breaker but further investigation revealed some nifty innovations that go some way to compensate.

Sony's heavyweight camcorder

The EX1 is slightly larger and 400 grams heavier than its forbearer, the Sony Z1 HDV cam. One giant difference between the Z1 and EX1 is that the latter has no tape mechanism. The video is recorded on to Sony’s brand-new solid-state format, the SxS memory card.

The EX1 captures video images via three 1/2-inch CMOS sensors and processes this information into a variety of video formats but they are all HD. If you require standard- definition video then all you have to do is down convert when you play out from the camera to your capture device.

Well designed cam

Our first impressions of the cam were positive. It looks and feels well built and the hefty Fujinon HD lens is a massive improvement on the Z1’s inferior lens.

Sony has retained the excellent lens hood with built-in barn door shutters but the new lens has a manual focus ring with end-stops so you know when you have reached infinity or minimum focus.

Without end-stops focusing has always been a very vague procedure as the focus ring will keep turning indefinitely. The addition of stops helps distinguish pro-kit from consumer camcorders.

The lens also has a proper iris ring which is a fantastic improvement on the Z1. We found setting both exposure and focus was precise, fast and comfortable unlike most other cameras in the semi-pro range.

New lens design

With practise we were able to adjust the focus and iris and maintain constant support under the camera with only one hand. The ability to keep the camera steady while adjusting the lens is crucial for recording wobble free and level footage.

The camera has a 14x optical zoom and the lens is initially quite a bit wider than the Z1 but zooms to the same focal length at the telephoto end. This wider lens is an advantage in many situations such as filming handheld or in confined spaces like car interiors.

The weight of the PMW-EX1 is frequently an issue. Bear in mind that the main support point is the zoom demand grip so your right wrist will need to carry most of the weight.

The new lens design means that your left hand can help and still make adjustments but its near-3kg will soon put a considerable strain on your right wrist and make handheld coverage very uncomfortable.

Easy to control

This would be a disaster if not for Sony’s new innovation of an adjustable zoom demand grip. The angle of the grip can be adjusted by 90 degrees and this feature allowed us to operate the camera at chest height.

We were still using the eyepiece but with the zoom grip set at 45 degrees most of the weight was transferred to the palm of the left hand without sacrificing any zoom control.

This is good as you don’t want to be shooting from hip level and up your subject’s nose which is often what happens during the filming of observational documentaries. It will also stop you from filming via the flip-out LCD screen which is never a good idea as you lose a point of contact with the camera making it less stable.

Therefore it is essential to be able to hold the camera easily at about your subject’s eye level and the adjustable grip allows you to do this.

Fun filming effects

When it comes to actual filming, we found many of the usual features you would expect such as two levels of neutral density (ND) for shooting in bright conditions, three levels of gain, white balance presets and two memory settings, A and B.

Position B can also be assigned as auto-white which is a boon. The shutter speeds range from 1/16th to 1/2000th of a second and the EX1 also has a panic button which gives you full auto.

Some other features available include selectable gamma curves, a Slow and Quick Motion feature, and a histogram function for assessing video levels.

During filming we were able to control the most commonly required functions with a switch rather than via a menu, which really sped up camera operation.

An impressive viewfinder

The EX1 has an excellent eyepiece viewfinder with accurate colours and a noise free, high- resolution picture. Assessing exposure is easy but we found that the camera has such a massive depth of field that, when wide, the image never seems to go out of focus.

For this reason we would advise you to always zoom in to check focus. Surrounding the viewfinder image is loads of additional data including record format, white balance, ƒ number, audio levels, battery life and more.

The viewfinder also has the zebra patterning facility to help you set exposure. Professionals commonly set it to 76 per cent which gives the correct exposure on skin if the zebra pattern was just about to appear.

A camcorder with some excellent features

One viewfinder setting displays the distances between which objects are in focus. This makes up for the inadequate peaking function, designed to increase the highlights in the viewfinder image and thus aid focusing.

It does not work well on this camera, which is a shame because it works really well on the Z1. The 3.5-inch high-res LCD screen which stows very neatly below the VCR (media) controls is big, bright and sharp, excellent for playing back footage.

As well as a built-in stereo mic the EX1 has two XLR audio inputs. These can be set to line or mic level with 48 volts. A clamp is provided to secure a gun mic and the level controls are located at the rear of the camera.

It’s a doddle to adjust the audio levels during filming with very little disturbance to your shots.

Video transfer options

The EX1 has i-LINK and SDI sockets for transfer of media. Those new to solid-state cams will be delighted to find the camera capable of instant recording in total silence.

One of the greatest irritations in life is listening to an old Digibeta slowly winding its self up to record and missing great shots in the three seconds this takes. But before you even consider pressing record which format would you like?

The PAL choices are: HQ 1920 x 1080 HD at 25 progressive or 50 interlaced frames (35Mbps); SP 1440 x 1080 HD, interlaced only (HDV compatible bit rate of 25 mbps); and HQ 1280 x 720 HD at 25 or 50 progressive frames (35Mbps).

In all of the above formats the picture quality is stunning for what is basically a small, semi-pro camcorder. HQ 1280 x 720 at 50 progressive frames per second (50p) looks best. Unlike 25p which flickers during panning shots, 50p is smooth, sharp, full of detail and very realistic.

Simple to store

All of this data is silently deposited on to one of the two memory cards and when one becomes full the camera automatically switches to the other card without a break in the recorded video.

Every time you press record a new clip is created and nearly 600 clips can be recorded on one card. To fill an 8GB card we recorded 25 minutes of HQ 1280 x 720 at 50p (35Mbps). So the 16GB card can hold 50 minutes of HQ video or 70 minutes of SP video.

If you use two 16GB cards it is possible to continuously record 100 minutes of HD material.

Having often shot up to five 32-minute Digibeta tapes a day when filming for TV productions we would guess you would need at least five 16GB memory cards to be on the safe side.

A costly option

This also means you have to transfer the card data to another storage device every night before shooting can begin again. Either that or buy more cards but we have been quoted £566 inc VAT per 16GB card rather than £5 per DV tape.

In other words, when using memory card camcorders we will need to change the way we work (daily data transfer) or Sony needs to reduce the price of cards so we can use them like tapes.

It is also a concerns that stored footage needs to be backed-up before the cards are reused. For the pro user, is their time for all this transferring? With tapes at least you know the footage is safe.

Of course, it’s possible that operators will use the supplied card reader to dump data from one card while shooting on another but this is something Sony needs to address before the future of filmmaking can be SxS based.

Sony A200

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The Sony A200 is the least expensive model in the company's digital SLR range, and replaces the A100, Sony's first digital SLR.

The A100 was, in fact, a development of Konica Minolta's Dynax 5D, which Sony bought up when Konica Minolta decided to exit the SLR market.

And while the A200 is now a further generation removed, there are still echoes of the Dynax in the design and handling.

Inside Sony's latest Digital SLR

The most obvious example is the power switch, which is still at the back of the camera and the top left, and which still prompts an odd cacophony of mechanical shunting noises that seems to accompany the power-up process.

This mechanical noise is no doubt connected with Sony's anti-dust and anti-shake (Super SteadyShot) hardware. This uses a CCD-shift system to counter camera shake at slow shutter speeds, as opposed to the lens-based stabilisation favoured by Canon and Nikon.

This system has been enhanced in the A200, and Sony now claims that it offers a 2.5 to 3.5 shutter speed advantage.

Where you might expect to see camera shake appearing at, say, 1/30 (depending on the focal length you're shooting at), you should now be able to shoot safely at 1/8 or even 1/4 of a second.

Systems like these aren't foolproof, but the Sony's does seem to work very well.

Minor improvements

Like the A100, the A200 features a 10-megapixel CCD and at first sight the differences between this camera and its predecessor look fairly minor. It's more of an evolutionary development than a big step forward.

Sony says that improved noise reduction has allowed a new maximum ISO of 3200, and the battery performance is impressive for an 'amateur' SLR at 750 shots.

The A200 normally ships with the Sony 18-70mm kit lens used on the A100. This offers a good focal range but pretty poor performance, with a drop in definition towards the edges of the frame and some fairly strong chromatic aberration.

However, we tested the A200 with Sony's more expensive 16-80mm Zeiss-badged optic.

Bulky camera

The A200 is a bit bulky compared with the likes of Nikon's new D60 and the diminutive Olympus E-410. The body panels are plastic, as you'd rightly expect at this price level, and they do create a slightly cheap feel.

The grip on the right of the camera is only tall enough for about three normal-width fingers, and it does leave your fingernails scraping the lens flange.

The main controls are easy enough to get to, but they're all in different places, which means it'll take a little longer to learn where they're positioned. For example, the ISO is adjusted using a button on the top plate, as is the drive mode.

On the back is a button for EV compensation. But the other controls are split between the menus and an Fn button on the back.

This calls up this model's new Camera Function Display, a grid of six buttons for accessing the flash mode, metering mode, AF mode, AF area, white balance and dynamic range optimiser.

Strange control layout

To change the image size or quality, though you have to press the Menu button, as you do if you want to swap between the camera's different Creative Styles, which include Standard, Vivid, Portrait, Landscape, Night, Sunset, B/W and Adobe RGB.

Why have these controls spread across three different locations - buttons on the camera, the function screen and the menus?

This, combined with the slightly plasticky feel and the rather awkward body shape, leaves the A200 feeling unpolished compared to its rivals.

On the plus side, the LCD screen is good, and the data display is very clear. It does tend to get swamped a little in bright light, however.

There's not much wrong with the Sony's picture quality. Definition is good, though not exceptional - it might be possible to squeeze out just a little more sharpness by shooting RAW files and processing them with the bundled Image Data Converter application.

Vibrant pictures

The colour is very good, and the Vivid mode produces strong, saturated but realistic-looking hues. The multi-segment metering favours darker areas in some scenes a little too heavily, and this can lead to badly 'blown' skies.

Switching to centre-weighted metering will sort this out though, since this cruder system is more readily influenced by highlights, which often works better.

The high ISO/noise performance is disappointing. At ISO 400, quality is very good, but at ISO 800 there's a noticeable deterioration, with reduced sharpness and more noise.

The quality becomes fairly objectionable by ISO 1600, and at ISO 3200 it has deteriorated to the point where you wonder if Sony was wise to include this setting.

Images are soft, with a coarse, 'blotchy' noise that's visible even when the picture is scaled to fit a computer screen. It's not helped by the camera's noise reduction system, which produces a strong smudging effect.

Having seen the difference between the Nikon D300 and Sony Alpha 700 at high ISOs (and these cameras share the same sensor design), it appears as if high ISO performance is one of Sony's weaker areas at the moment.

Great value from Sony?

So how does it rate compared to other entry-level SLRs? The A200 appears pretty good value. £450 for a new 10-megapixel DSLR with anti-shake and anti-dust isn't to be sneezed at.

But that price includes the distinctly inferior 18-70mm kit lens, and if you want the kind of quality this camera's capable of achieving, you need a more expensive lens - and that will pitch the A200 against some much tougher competition.

Overall, the A200 is a good camera, but one that's spoilt by too many rough edges. The standard lens isn't good enough, the control layout's not quite straightforward enough, and the finish isn't quite elegant enough.

It's the sort of camera you might buy on price, but it's not necessarily the sort of camera you could fall in love with.

Uniloc System 1700 with 30 ball head

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Uniloc tripods use a curved centre bolt to link both their legs and their centre column.

The legs and the column can move independently, and much more rapidly than conventional tripods.

Until you get used to it, though, it's like trying to wrestle with a robotic octopus, but once you master it there's a good chance you'll never use a conventional tripod again.

Unique design

The design means you can use the centre column as a horizontal or diagonal boom at any angle, and it takes just moments to set up.

The 'System' version has a multi-section column that can be assembled and reassembled using inset grub screws and an allen key. You can have a short column, a long column, an extra-long 'hinged' column.

Disadvantages? The two-section legs are long when folded and don't give the same height as the others when extended.

National Geographic Expedition NGET1 with NGEH1 head

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The NGET1 is actually 'engineered' by Manfrotto for National Geographic.

It doesn't take too much detective work to spot the similiarities between this tripod and Manfrotto's 458B tripod and 468MG hydrostatic ball head.

Interesting design

Some leg-warmers and articulated 'cup' feet have been added, along with protective rubber bellows around the shaft of the head.

The leg-warmers are too loose to grip the tripod properly, and the cup feet are better suited to polished floors. The bellows feel thin and delicate.

Underneath, though, this is a very interesting tripod. There are no leg catches. Instead, an internal clutch mechanism enables you to pull the leg out but locks it rigidly in the new position so it won't push back in. The legs are released by a button right at the top.

It's very clever and a fast tripod to set up. The centre column splits and reassembles as a boom.

Manfrotto 055XB with 804 head

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The Manfrotto 055XB doesn't have the rotating column which can be found on the 190XPROB. If you want this, you'll have to pay £15 more for the 055XPROB.

This version is cheaper and lighter than the 'rotating' version, which could be important because this is a more substantial tripod, with thicker, longer legs that give a higher and stiffer platform to shoot from. However, it's only 600g heavier.

A sturdier tripod

The extra size and sturdiness make a big difference. Whereas the 190 doesn't always feel up to the job, the 055 does. It's not much larger when folded, either.

Low-angle shots are easy because the 055 enables you to remove the centre column completely, and it goes high enough without the centre column to make this practical for outdoor photography.

The 804 head is a trifle 'sticky', but the weight and stability of the 055 make this less of an issue.

Manfrotto 190XPROB with 804 head

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The 190XPROB is a straightforward mid-range tripod from Manfrotto, but with a neat twist.

It has a unique column clamp design which means that if you release the column and pull it up to its full height, then press in a sprung catch in the base, you can rotate it through 90 degrees and use it as a horizontal boom.

Versatile tripod

This doesn't have the flexibility of some of its rivals because the column can only be vertical or horizontal, but it's useful for overhead shots or low/awkward angles. It's quick to do, too, and the column can be rotated and clamped in 15 seconds.

The tripod is good without being great. The leg catches are quite stiff (stiff catches are painful when you've got cold hands) and it's not as rigid at full height as some other tripods.

Manfrotto's 804 three-way head is quite compact, thanks to its short handles, but a little 'sticky' in its movements.

Gitzo GT2330/G2272M 3-way head

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Gitzos are the Rolls-Royce of tripods, and the GT2330 is expensive for an aluminium one, but surprisingly light.

Gitzo claims to use standard-thickness aluminium to maintain strength, but to have saved weight elsewhere in the castings and by using a basalt centre column. The legs are fixed using twist locks, which are a bit quicker than flip-catches, less likely to trap your fingers or break your nails.

Excellent engineering

At full height, it's the most rigid of all the tripods on test. However, it's also one of the least flexible for close-ups because the column can't be turned into a horizontal boom.

You can entirely remove the column and mount the head directly on the baseplate. This makes it easy to take low-angle shots and, unless you need the extra height offered by the column, it's probably an ideal configuration for general use.

Simple and comparatively limiting, but the engineering is superb.