Which Manfrotto monopod please?

I have been looking at the Manfrotto MM294A4 4 section monopod, and the 679B 3 section.

I have a Pentax k30 and I thought it would be easier to carry around then a tripod. I am not sure which one would be better. The best deal I have seen at the moment is at London Camera Exchange, which I am rather surprised at. I thought Castle cameras would have the better deal.

The MM294A4 4 section is £34.99, while the 679B 3 section is £44.99. LCE say they can do me a deal if it's cheaper on Amazon, and will also let me part exchange my old monopod (which I can't get on with) if it's good enough.

Can you tell me which one I should put my money towards please?

Thank you.

In my experience as long as the monopod is a fairly rigid one. It matters not which brand you choose. $ section ones tend to fold smaller for attaching to a carry bag. But tend to have more flex in them. The monopod also needs to be coupled to a head...

There is a Manfrotto for sale on the forum with head. That seems a good buy...

Thank you. Where is the link for that please?

Whilst a monopod is easier to carry around I find it complements rather than replaces a tripod, so be sure it'll suit your purpose.

I use tripods for landscapes, macro, portraits, etc, in fact for anything where I need/want time to prepare/consider/compose the shot and also to ensure maximum IQ.

My monopod gets used in places where I can't take a tripod, or where a tripod would be difficult to use even if allowed, i.e. where there are lots of people, like a sport or music event, etc, or where I want lens support but need to move a lot, i.e. motor racing.

Also, choice of head is important.

I find the 'conventional' heads for monopods, either tilt or ball, don't work for me - I seem to need more than two hands to set them up - so prefer to use a grip type like the Manfrotto 324RC2 (see link).

That's not to say simpler and cheaper tilt and ball heads aren't any good, just that you need to consider everything, not get focussed on just one aspect like weight.

Here you go link

it all depends on your budget i have a 4 stage one which is ok and i use that with a k10 and powerpack and that cops ok

Agreed that the choice of head seems very important. I'm keen to add a monopod for video, where I want the more fluid movements that a tripod wont easily allow, so the head will need to be suited to my needs also.

Just need to work out what exactly will work best now...

What sort of head is best please?

If you are using it for still photography the simple Manfrotto tilt head (as on the one Tony has for sale) is ideal. You may need something a bit more elaborate for airshows or birding but for most photography a sophisticated head on a monopod is a bit of a pain.

which would you suggest for landscapes please?

I wouldn't suggest any monopod for landscapes. There are so many lightweight tripods around

I agree with Alan

&day shop do a tripod at under £40 - there's a thread on here all bout it and some feedback from a couple of users.

There's also the Konig Traveller I recently got for £48 ***BUT*** the head on that one is rubbish so you'll want another head - I got a Beike one, thanks to a heads up on here too, at £15 which looks excellent.

I hope to get a Manfrotto tripod one day, as my other one is terrible. You position the ball head and it slips a bit which is a pain. There's places you can't take tripods.

I might go for the 679B, would you say that was a good one? Thanks.

I have the 681B and find it great for my needs but cannot offer experience of any other monopods

How is the 681B different from the 679b?