Why I’m Happy I Shoot with a Sirui N-2204 Tripod and G-20 Ball Head
- Each of the legs has a spike that is recessed inside the leg. When you need that extra grip and support, you simply twist the rubber foot, exposing a solid stainless steal spike that is approximately 3/8” in length.
- Detach one of the legs quickly and it becomes a monopod to which you can attach one of the Sirui Ball Heads.
- The Sirui N-2204 Tripod also includes a separate shorter-than-normal center column, which replaces the primary center column when you want to position your camera close to the ground for macro or extremely low-angle photography.
I wouldn’t have much credibility, as founder and president of PhotographyTalk, if I didn’t spend as much time as possible actually shooting digital photos with my equipment. You may have seen my photos that accompanied the articles about the 2012 Long Beach Grand Prix during April. Motor sports is one of my favorite subjects.
Now, typically, tripods don’t excite me much, as only a few have grabbed my attention. Sirui, an innovative Chinese company, however, has designed and built a very impressive product, actually a number of products. Sirui obviously doesn’t spend much time thinking of clever names for their products, for example, the N-2204; it’s a tripod. That’s a good thing, actually, because it means the people at Sirui focus their time on the excellence of the engineering of its tripods and ball heads.
There were 4 real customer reviews of the Sirui N-2204 all giving it 4 star rating if you would like to read these reviews you can do so here.
In this review, I want to tell you about the Sirui N-2204, which is an 8X carbon fiber, 4-section tripod. When you unlock the legs for the first time, you can’t help but notice how smoothly they extend. Matter of fact, every moving piece on this tripod operates so precisely that it’s easy to forget this tripod’s price tag. You would think this tripod would set you back close to a grand, however it’s less than half! The extended legs are very sturdy and receive two big thumbs up from me!
The Sirui N-2204 Tripod weighs only 2.8 lbs. (1.3 kg) and folds into a convenient 18-inch length that fits in the included padded traveling bag with a strong, durable shoulder strap. This tripod will support as much as 33 lbs. (15 kg) of equipment, so it’s perfect for DSLRs and medium-format cameras as well as digital and standard camcorders.
I also like the Sirui philosophy of keeping the entire design, manufacturing and assembly processes in house. In addition, Sirui has pioneered the use of forging technology, which makes its tripod parts stronger than casting. The actual structure of the metal, the internal grains, are more consistently bonded with forging, so a Sirui tripod lasts longer and gives the company no pause to offer a 6-year warranty against manufacturing defects.
A number of other features of the Sirui N-2204 tripod are noteworthy.
Sirui’s attention to detail is evident in the leg warmer it included on the monopod leg. You’ll be able to shoot without a glove and have more control of the monopod during cold-weather shoots.
My Sirui N-2204 tripod came with the company’s G-20 Ball Head. (Sirui’s K-20X and G-10 Ball Heads are also compatible with the N-2204 Tripod.) I love my Acratech GP ball heads, so, honestly, I planned to remove the G-20 and mount my Acratech GP on the Sirui tripod. After all, Adorama sells the Acratech GPs for $399.95 and the Sirui G-20 for only $99.95. I wasn’t expecting much satisfaction from this low-priced ball head. I’m a firm believer that “you get what you pay for.” My preconceived notion of the G-20 couldn’t have been more wrong. I tested the Sirui N-2204 Tripod and G-20 Ball Head with my largest lens: a 300mm f/2.8 mounted on a Nikon D800 DLSR. I locked the camera onto the G-20, framed and took a quick shot. Afterwards, just for the heck of it, I pushed down on the camera and lens while the G-20 was still in lock position. I was floored with how much resistance this ball head had! You might have heard the saying, “Small axes can chop big trees,” well, the GP-20 does it with style! I spent an afternoon putting the tripod and ball head through a variety of tests and will state with enthusiasm that you should order one immediately from Adorama or B&H before Sirui reconsiders and raises the prices. My Acratech GPs have been collecting dust during the last couple months since I’ve been using the Sirui N-2204 Tripod and G-20 Ball Head. |
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| Photo copyright Alex Schult | Adorama sells the Sirui N-2204 Tripod for $404.95, or $504.90, with the G-20 Ball Head included at http://www.adorama.com/searchsite/default.aspx?searchinfo=Sirui+N-2204+tripod. Read our Adorama review. |