Tripod Wars: Sachtler Flowtech FSB6 vs. Cartoni SDS 8

For those of you who remember the review of the Cartoni SDS 8, it currently holds the blog's record for fastest set-up and take down times. However, Sachtler released the Flowtech tripod series, which also promises light-weight and fast operating speed.

So, if both tripods are in the same price range, and they both promise a light-weight tripod with a quick operating speed, how do they actually compare? It's time to strap in for a battle of the Tripods. 

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Secced Reach Plus 1 Tripod: Inspired by German Company Sachtler, Priced by Chinese Capitalism - But No One's Sitting Still

The Reach Plus 1 is a Sachtler-inspired tripod kit from Chinese manufacturer Secced. It also competes against my own Cartoni Focus HD -- even though the Cartoni has much higher payload maximums -- because it demands to be taken seriously and my A-cam is the light weight Sony a6300. How well does it succeed (geddit)? Read on.

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Sachtler Video 18 S2 Fluid Head: Crazy Good, Crazy Expensive

At just about $5,000 for a fluid head alone, Sachtler's Video 18 S2 costs more than the cameras owned by most people who read this blog (and just about five times my daily shooter, the Sony a6300). But if you want to know why it costs so much -- or how good it is (spoiler alert: incredible) and when it makes sense -- read on.

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Sachtler vs. Zacuto vs. FOTGA -- or Why the HECK Would Someone Spend Five to Ten Times as Much on a Freakin' Baseplate When You Can Get a Perfectly Usable One for $60? THIS is Why.

This is why it makes sense to find the optimal compromise between price and performance for the core components of your gear (camera and lenses): you're going to need a pile more dough for everything else. But "pile" is a relative term. Welcome to episode 2 of what I'm now calling our Goldilocks series, where this time we look at baseplates - a category I used to think was beyond mundane. I was wrong.

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