Decent Tripod

I am clueless when it comes to tripods. All I have are the ones from Best Buy but now since I have a PRO1, 20D and 30D, It's time for a real tripod.

I'm looking to spend NO more then $400 for a tripod. And the ball (or whatever it's called that attaches to the top of it) above limit is $150.

Can you people give me suggestions on which to get? I'll mainly be taking long exposures at night in the desert and also using a 70-200mm lense on the 30D.

Thanks for any help.

We bought this carbon fibre one:

http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …ghType=category​Navigation

It's within your budget and it's pretty good. We've got an incredibly heavy SLIK PRO 1 too but almost always use this one. It's sturdy, can hold up to 25lbs and lightweight enough to haul on all day hikes. And you don't have to mortgage your house for it.

If I had to do it over again, I'd get teh Gitzo Bassalt series, with a decent ball head. what's the biggest lens you forsee using?

Your budget is fine but I'd spend more on the head than the legs. solid (if heavy) legs are available way below $400 but a good head will cost!

My standard recommendation for an affordable, sturdy, extremely versatile tripod/head combination is the Bogen/Manfrotto 3021BPro with their 488RC2 head. Here is the rig at B&H: http://www.bhphotovide​o.com …EG&addedTroughT​ype=search

Biggest one I see using is a 70-200mm IS L lense. The telephoto or super tp, or at most a 400/600mm... That's it.

Why are the heads more expensive? (Yeah, I'm clueless to the tripod world) I'd think it would be the other way around.

Thanks all for the comments. Keep them coming so I can narrow it down to what I can get.

If I have to spend $250 on a ball head, that's the most I wanna spend.