Gitzo Mountaineer Gt2543l Serie 2/4 Secc Stativ

Like many, have been seeking the perfect blend of height/stability/weight. GT2543L is as close as I've seen. Yes you can buy cheaper, yes you can save a bit of weight, yes may be you think you don't need the height, but this Gitzo balances all those conflicting constraints very well indeed. It's the product of decades of development, and it shows. Obviously not ideal for really long telephotos, but that's not it's purpose, that's what Systematics are for.

I have not used this tripod much. But, it is well made and it does the job. I intend to use it for nature photography and spotting scope.

Bought to hold my Nikon d610 with 15-30, filters and holder. Coupled with a manfrotto xpro 3 way head or xpro ballhead. Incredibly stable even at full extension (which is enormous). Probably a bit too weighty if you are planning on taking 15mile hikes and it is too long for baggage, however I take it on an 8 mile hike fairly easily strapped to my bag

best there is. really long legs ideal for shooting from coastal rocks / uneven levels. quick to set up and take down. really well made.

I have five gitzo tripod, namely: GT1542 eXact, GT2543L eXact, GT 2540FL safari, GT3541L 6X Cabon, and GT4552GTS, each one has its own characteristics:personality and applicability, but the common feature is: stable , strong,and texture. But in the balance of these five tripod is: GT2543L eXact, from its 1. rugged enough , 2 Load enough (I put it to frame 8x10 camera), 3 high enough, let me use it can adapt to uneven ground type, and the weight is not too heavy: 1.74kg, such that I can use this stand in any venue, whether it is the scenery, landscape, portrait, sports, news, press conference, or video occasions, can be fully qualified. There are many so-called performance but close to half the price to gitzo tripod, but they are still insufficient,that wasYou get more then what you buy