Good thread Doug. I think people really overlook the importance and convenience of a decent tripod. I went through a cheap (~$50) tripod and absolutely hated it. I purchased Manfrotto 3001pro legs w/488RC2 ball head a few years back and have been MUCH happier. The legs are a little heavier than I would like since they are aluminum but I've been able to hike with them just fine and they fit into carry-on luggage (I frequently travel for work and bring my gear with me, this was important). I have to extent the center column to bring the camera to eye level but larger legs would have been more difficult to fly with. One thing I hated about the cheap tripod is that all of the legs were connected to the center column and couldn't move independently. I found it much better to have each leg move on its own when setting the camera in some strange positions and on uneven ground. A good tripod makes photography a better experience