The Slik PROFESSIONAL is a member of Slik's "PROFESSIONAL" collection.  While they aren't well known in the United States, they do have an enviable reputation in Japan.  Rock solid and easy on your hands, the Professionals are embodied by abundant intelligence and precision craftsmanship.  Consider them a pinnacle amongst studio tripods, with stepladder-height capacity and the strength for large setups. Slik's unique and patented engineering, plus a remarkably wide selection of tripods, makes it is easy to choose just the right one to hold your camera steady at any angle, on virtually any terrain, for applications indoors or outdoors.