Scott_G

Okay, very quick shoot of a simple pattern.  Note: it wasn't all that clear printed at "fine" on my inkjet.  A look at the original PDF shows it wasn't all that great when I downloaded it.  ::sigh::  No modifications have been done on the pix, other than a simple resize.  All of them should still be at 300 dpi.

1st pic is at 16mm, f/3.5 from about a foot away.  A bit overexposed.

2nd is, I think, the cleanest of the lot.  Same distance, f/11.  A touch dark maybe.

Then I backed up. . . I don't know.  30 feet?  300mm f/6.5.  This seems to be the blurriest (Most blurred?).

Last shot, same distance.  300mm at f/11

All shot from a tripod, totally on manual.  I did not use a remote release because, well. . . I was too lazy.  The blur on the 3rd shot (which was actually the last shot I took) might be related to me pushing the button myself.

I've tried shooting the moon with this lens, too.  Even at 300 with remote release, I find it a little soft.  I had to play with this a little to get it this sharp.  But again, it's not mission critical for me to get super sharp details in every shot.

This is just the beginning.  I'll be able to test it a bit more in the next week or so.

Here are the two open, side by side:

As you can see, the StableShot (sold under the Kodak name) is about a foot taller fully extended.  The Yunteng, with it's three "feet" can stand on it's own on fairly level ground.  However, don't put a camera on it and expect it to stay up.  It might, by why trust even a cheap camera to a self-supporting monopod?

The Yunteng quick release plate has a cork top, while the Kodak has a plastic top.  At least for me, the plastic top gripped my camera better than the cork.

The Kodak top also flips to the side and locks, letting you shoot in portrait mode.

The Yunteng bottom is a ball-and-socket joint, allowing the feet to be swiveled at angles yet let the pole stand upright.  The Kodak bottom has a metal point with a rubber donut that screws down to protect delicate surfaces, and a foot peg that flips down from the main pole.  In this shot, it's simply flipped down.

If you keep moving it to the other side of the pole, it's elevated above the bottom tip, allowing you to exert downward force with your foot.  It seems to hold better this way.

The handle on the Yunteng is larger, and more solid while the Kodak's is thinner.  However, I don't think it's any more delicate.  The Yunteng has a large strap allowing you to sling it over a shoulder, while the Kodak has a wrist strap.  At it's smallest, the Yunteng is only slightly shorter than the Kodak.  The Yunteng has square column pieces, while the Kodak has round pieces with a notch in them so they don't rotate.  Weighing them in my hand, the Yunteng is about 150% of the weight of the Kodak.  (Both also come with zippered covers, not shown in my pix.)

Even though I have big hands, I found the Kodak easier to use.  True, the "key" on the bottom of the quick plate is small and snaps back easily, but that's more than offset by the negatives of the Yunteng: extra weight, shorter pole and no portrait swivel.  You're not going to use either of these as a hiking pole, and neither of the swivel heads are as smooth as even my cheapest video tripod.  But the Kodak is a third of the price of the other one, and saving even a little weight when you're carrying something all day is a good thing.

Until I have a few hundred bucks to burn on a better monopod, I'll keep the Kodak and send the Yunteng back.

Another shot from my D7100 with my Tamron 16-300.

One of my first shots with the Tamron 16-300. 

Scott, what brand and model monopods did you order?
 
--Ron

Ron:

Yunteng VCT-288 and StableShot 72 Inch Camera Monopod, both from Amazon.  Yunteng arrived today, kinda lists to one side without anything on it.  Seems stable enough with a D7100 and a fisheye on it.  Will play with both hopefully this weekend.