Lighter weight accessories for VG20

[Terry Cummings]

I'm getting ready for a major foreign trip. Baggage weight is a serious problem. Here are some of my gear findings.

The LowePro Top Loader Zoom 55 case is a perfect fit if the lens hood is stowed or left off. It weighs 0.8 pounds. The LowePro TZL AW is a bit larger and will take the VG20 with the lens hood in shooting position. It weighs 1.6 pounds.

I found the Sony VCT-80AV tripod works well. It has a remote on the handle which turns the camera on and off and starts/stops the video and triggers the still image when in that mode. It weighs 3.44 pounds with bag. This is about a pound less that my previous traveling tripod. The fluid head is okay. Seems like a good fit for this camcorder. Its rated load capacity is 8 lbs 13 oz.

In the process of searching for this tripod, I came across an adapter cable to convert my older tripod LANC plug to the plug this camcorder needs. Is this change still another Sony Marketing driven design decision?

At home I use other more robust tripods. They don't come with a LANC remote on the handle. Sony I think sells an add on remote, but a trick from years ago comes to mind. We just bought Sony's cheapest remote tripods, transferred the handles to the Gitzos or equivalent and threw the Sony legs away.