goatee wrote in post #3381682
Thanks, yes, it does me fine. To be honest, I really don't use it much, and the 484 can just about cope with my camera as is - I'm getting the 70-200 f/4 this summer, and if I need to use that on the tripod, then I'll probably get a new head, but I figured for a 'starter' kit, it was fairly sound.
The horizontal centre column is a great feature - although you can't have the tripod flat when you use it, as it would topple over, which means lowering the legs on the opposite side lower, to counterbalance it (there should probably be a hook to allow you to hang a counterweight which would mean it could stand straight, but for the price, I'm not going to complaint!). All in all, though, it's a great set of legs
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I should probably have given the 484 a bit of a break, I still think of it as a reasonably capable head and definitely a cut above the cheap and cheerful. If your 484 handles the 20D with 24-70, it should do ok with the 70-200. I recommend buying the collar for the 70-200 anyway, a lot of people moan that it's not needed, I don't care, it makes for a more stable rig, and it makes it easier to handhold. I rest the collar in the palm of my left hand so the fingers can turn the zoom ring freely, and it so happens that by some amazing coincidence (NOT), the collar IS the center of gravity and so happens to make a great handhold to balance the rig!
I have the IS version, but I can shoot it at 1/30 racked all the way out at 200mm and get sharp shots without IS thanks to my handhold technique (center of gravity). The other day I went "Check out what this looks like without IS and with IS!" and I snapped off a shot at 1/30 after disabling the stabilizer. There was no difference between it and the IS shot.. NOT what I had intended 
As for tripods, you have a good rig. There are three setups I recommend - the Slik Sprint Pro GM for someone who MUST have an ultralight that is easy on both the shoulders and the wallet. This is the lightest pod that I find stable. Good for 350D and 17-85, anything beyond it and it cracks up. Since most of my friends are using 350D/400D's with 10-20, 18-55, they like this one.
The second is an alu setup which IMO is the best value for money. I have so many wonderful keepers from my alu rig, which was a Benro A127n6 and Benro KS-1 ballhead. Nice, CHEAP CHEAP CHEAP for what you are getting and very, VERY solid. The KS-1 is now with the PermaPuddle couple. So far feedback has been good. For those who are REALLY scared of the Chinese tripods (no offence to those who already bought the Manfrotto) - then it would be 190X and 486 or 488 ballhead.
The only thing I don't quite like is the proprietary plates. The KS-1 introduced me to the wonderful Arca mount. There are a billion and one amazing contraptions that attach to the Arca that none of the proprietary systems can replicate. Check out the ReallyRightStuff.com catalog (and be prepared to shell out - you WILL be led into temptation, I want the MPR-CL2 rails, some brackets, and odds and ends..)
Many people will stop at the alu rig. I KNOW there is a lot of talk, I have participated in it, we all know CF is better, we all know CF is great, we all know it is damn expensive. I acknowledge that the alu setup may be more tripod than most hobbyists need.
Then there is the "I'm nuts about photography, I want to go all the way and never look back" setup. Gitzo GT1530 and Markins. Markins is less well known compared to big names like Arca, RRS, and Kirk, but they make pro-caliber ballheads with some of the highest 'holding power to weight' ratio. Like all of the above they use an Arca-compatible mount. My Q3 (the smallest) is supposedly able to hold a 300/2.8 ISL with Wimberley Sidekick. I believe it. I have not actually been fiscally able to purchase sufficient hardware to break my Q3. A 100-400, 1D classic and 430EX flash did not make it budge.
By the time you want a setup of this caliber, you will know it. You won't look back either.
I love them. Just couldn't fit me, the Mrs and our 2 (nearly 3) kids in one 
