Review: Slik Pro 700DX

I've been using my new Slik Pro tripod now for more than two weeks and I've been shooting quite a lot with this setup, having a really good time.
I wanted a new tripod because I had been bicycling around town with my 550D or GH2 using a very lightweight Velbon tripod to shoot video. But the plasticky Velbon is really a photo tripod, only good for static shots and it doesn't have a bowl head for easy leveling.
I already owned a Fancier 717AH head (also known as Weifeng) that I bought to use with my Konova slider so all I needed was a set of legs. I decided to complement the head with the Slik Pro 700DX tripod legs and added the Manfrotto 438 ball leveler because I really wanted the speed and convenience of quick leveling.
For portable use this combination has really proven itself. First of all (and maybe most importantly), it has taken away my reluctance to go out and shoot because I needed to tug around a heavy, impractical tripod.

Mailbox: Manfrotto 438

MANFROTTO 438: BUILT TO LAST

A few days ago I wrote about my frustrations about not being able to find a practical solution for leveling a portable tripod without a bowl. I have a decent tripod head, the Fancier FT-717, but it's not a bowl head. I also have a cheap Velbon tripod I can only level by extending/retracting legs: tedious and impractical. My Manfrotto 525P kit is too heavy/big for portable use. Reader Neil McDiarmid suggested the Manfrotto 438 ball camera leveller which turns my Fancier tripod head into a bowl-type tripod head. It is certainly not cheap, but very well-built and very practical.
Aside from using it on a tripod, the 438/head combo also comes in very handy in combination with a slider like the Konova. Leveling made easy and lightweight- without a bowl!

438 and FANCIER HEAD COMBO