Any Manfrotto 685 monopod users here?

[2mnycars]

Found one, but the price is very high here.

Do you have one? How do you like it?

Regards,
DaveL
Ontario

Michael at Luminous Landscape tried one...
http://www.luminous-landscape.com/reviews/accessories/monopod.shtml

[crn3371]

Too high a price to pay for the convenience of no leg locks.

[nardes]

I just purchased one over the weekend but haven’t yet used it for its intended purpose, macro photography with a Canon 40D, 100mm F2.8 macro and MR-14EX ring flash.

The 40D, 100mm lens and MR-14EX combo can become quite heavy after an hour or two so I have been using a ball head on an older Manfrotto monopod as support, where I would have to release and lock one of the legs to change height. The mechanism was a screw clamp with a large knob and this worked quite well.

But, I found that sometimes I overshot the correct height or fumbled with the lock knob and missed the shot. When I saw the Manfrotto 685B Monopod review on Luminous Landscape by Michael Reichmann, with a video review at the bottom of the page, it looked promising so I went out and purchased one.

http://luminous-landscape.com/reviews/accessories/monopod.shtml

Indoor trials look promising thus far. Lengthening the monopod requires me to stand on the foot brace and simply pull, with the telescoping effect appearing to be smooth and predictable.

Shortening the monopod requires the little finger on my left hand to release and hold the safety catch whilst the remaining fingers squeeze the trigger and push down. With practice, this should become second nature.

Early misgivings are the fold-out foot clamp – it is made of plastic and looks a little fragile. However, should it break, I also practiced lengthening the monopod by just standing on the rubber foot and this was sufficient to hold the base in place whilst I pulled on the head to lengthen the monopod.

These notes are based on a couple of indoor practice sessions only and therefore are constrained by those limitations. I have yet to try it in the field (rain, rain and more rain!). I am using the PhotoClam 36N ball head with the Canon lens mount ring B which allows me to balance the DSLR/lens/flash combo nicely.

Cheers

Dennis

[troypiggo]

I had one, but sold it. It's pretty long in its collapsed position. I thought the trigger extension would be a convenience, but didn't find it so. It's also heavy.

These may not be issues for you, but I've now got a carbon fibre one that compacts down very small and is much better for me.

[lannes]

I had a look at one, but it was not compact enough, settled for a 680B, which is cheaper ,heavier more compact ,more stable, stability is also improved if you add the fold out legs (manfrotto universal folding base) http://www.manfrotto.com/Jahia/site/manfrotto/pid/2429?livid=107&lsf=107&child=1

[ianmarsh]

Yes they are longer and heavier than competing models but they are great for quick work when rapid height adjustments are needed. I use one for my portrait work. Dropping from a shot taken at eye level to one from chest height then back up to one taken from above the eye-line is quick and easy and you don't lose contact with the model while fiddling with catches. If you are using a heavy camera/lens I find it much easier to adjust than the conventional sort. But for sports shooting when the height is pretty much unchanging I prefer a standard monopod.

[2mnycars]

Thanks everyone for your responses.

I feel like I've had an opportunity to try one!

You're great.

DaveL

ps Just lost out on a Gitzo carbon fiber monopod on ebay. I haven't bought yet.