Jun

9

Wanted: A travel tripod

June 9, 2008 |

When our tripod broke a couple of months ago, we ordered a new one with a grip action ball head - total weight about 7 pounds. For travel though, it’s preferable to have lighter, more compact options - like the Gitzo Mountaineer, which costs over $600 for the base and head.

When Suganya so generously offered the Gorillapod SLR-Zoom tripod as a prize for Bri’s fundraiser raffle, we were intrigued.

A tripod that weighs just 8.5 ounces and can carry 6.6 pounds (3 kg)? At 55 dollars? How did that happen?

We ordered one as a gift for our good friend and reader Cynic who’s an avid outdoor photographer. We asked him to tell us what he thinks about its performance.

Well, despite knowing Cynic for many years, we’d underestimated how crazy he is. When we said “review it”, we meant: “Play with it and give us a phone call when you get the time.”

Shortly after a flight halfway across the world, less than 24 hours after receiving this package, he sent us this written review, pics and all.

This is not a company-sponsored plug for this product. The manufacturers of Gorillapod have probably never heard of our site. We’re posting this review because it may be useful to someone who is thinking of buying it or bidding for it in the raffle draw. Thank you, dear Sug.

Gorillapod SLR-Zoom Tripod. A Review

By Cynic

See specs.

I don’t do product reviews. I am not good enough at what I do for me to review products. So, when I got home from work and found this FedEx box from the Jugalbandits, I really was not thinking product review.

I have always used tripods and more recently, monopods. They are useful little things. If you have ever attended a course in photography or browsed a serious book on the subject, you know the rule - A tripod makes every picture better.

But that was before I got myself the Nikon d40X with the 18-200 VR lens. That little beauty with its image stabilization (technically vibration reduction) made tripods redundant. And the real experts agree.

But J and B are good friends. If I can pick one fault, they are, you know, a little, how do I say it nicely – wacky. (An entire web post devoted to the science of farts … need I say more?) No surprise then that the product they want me to review looks a little wacky.

This is like no tripod I have ever seen. It looks pretty flimsy - kinda like a three-legged spider. Built with a series of ball and socket joints, the thing looks more like something from the set of Alien than what it is – a camera tripod. But I soldier on.

As I tried to attach it to my camera, I found out that the screw is too big. A closer look reveals that it is actually a 3/8” adapter that fits the newer (and heavier) DSLRs.

There was my first problem – how was I supposed to fit this into the camera? There is no instruction manual. The instructions are on the box itself. Smart move, to not waste paper. The 3/8” adapter just screws right off the top and now I have a part that cannot be stored anywhere. I know I am going to lose it or put it somewhere really safe and forget about it. Oh well.

Trying to get the tripod on the camera is quite a chore. The screw rotation is independent of the tripod. I had to hold the tripod with my fingers, hold the screw in place with my thumb, hold a heavy camera in the other hand and then try and get it on.

It looks quite flimsy, but it is not. Apart from the fact it kinda sorta resembles something out of Star Wars, it took the full weight of my Nikon n70, the 70-300 Sigma lens and the flash with only a small footprint. It is rated to carry 6 lbs and I can quite believe it.

I tested the tripod’s stability by putting a camcorder on it and took it to full zoom. Image stabilization or not, the thing definitely transmits vibrations. It is quite adequate for normal filming, but at extreme close up the picture was shaky when our dog walked into the next room. So yes, I was pushing it to the extreme and it definitely has its limits.

Apart from the bother of trying to get the damn thing on and off the camera (keep a coin handy….) the tripod is very useful under normal conditions. So I decided to up the ante. How about if I wanted to set up for a vertical shot? There is no tilt or pan. But, the legs bend.

In the picture to the left, I was quite careful not to cheat a little by resting the lens on the leg that is bent underneath it. This is pushing the laws of physics somewhat – as long as the overall center of gravity falls within the three points of contact, this thing really works. Of course, the friction is all in the little white round rubber pads at the bottom. For maximum stability, the bottom of the pad needs to be in contact with the surface. I tried to set it up like a gymnast doing the split and it could not keep up. But splay it out and point that last toe in to the ground and the thing becomes very stable.

I called Bee with an initial report and she mentioned that she saw the ad where it was wrapped around a staircase. Really? Hmm, but can it sit on a chair?

Well, yes. Quite comfortably, as a matter of fact. After messing with it for a few minutes, I lost my fear that the camera was going to topple over, lens and all. As I experimented with various configurations, I reminded myself of all those high school physics classes where we drew those crazy Force Vectors, horizontal and vertical components and sin(theta). And before you go all glassy eyed on me, - no, you don’t need to know all that physics.

But if you do, it is a bit more fun figuring out the zany configurations you could get this into.

Next stop, staircase.

I even made the thing stand without any support on the banister. No problemo. Pretty neat.

This is very impressive.

And now, for one final test. How do I simulate outdoor conditions where you are trying to set this thing up on a couple of random rocks?

Here is how:

Notice how the three legs are on three different objects at different heights. In fact the front leg is resting on my squishy camera cover, and the camera is on its side with all the weight of the flash trying to rotate the whole thing to the floor. It is still impressively stable.

Pros: Extremely flexible, lightweight, deceptively stable.

Cons: Poor engineering of the screws. Plus, I am not sure how well the ball and sockets will hold up to repeated flexing over time. And of course, the legs don’t extend.

If you need a compact lightweight tripod that can support a camera under some pretty freaky positions, go for it. Half the fun is in playing with it to figure out the limits of its stability.

Apart from the fact that mounting the camera on it is a bit of a pain, it is a pretty awesome little product - good for the hiker types.

Do you use a travel tripod? Is there one in particular you recommend? Please tell us about it.

Edited to add:
Suganya says:

Choosing a Travel Tripod is always quite tricky. The key is to identify the needs first. The decision on which tripod is choose always comes down to reliabilty, ease of use and cost. Choose the tripod that offers the best value for the money spent. In my opinion any tripod that weighs less than 1.4Kgs and that supports > 3kgs of equipment and costs < $250 is a good criteria for a travel Tripod.

Since you have ruled out the Gitzo ($400 - $600 range) here are some alternate choices in the order of preference. We prefer the Manfrotto tripods because they are cheap, sturdy, well built and easily available in the US.

1) Bogen-Manfrotto 190 Series (e.g. 190CXPRO3 Mag Fiber Tripod, 190CX3)
2) Bogen-Manfrotto 714/715/718 series
3) SLIK is another company that makes decent carbon fiber tripods (SLIK PRO 614 CF, SLIK PRO 613 CF, Slik Pro 714 CF-II)
4) Giotto has several light weight tripods (MT Series), Flexible Monopods (Upod, Ppod) that can be used as Travel Tripods.

Other alternatives include

Velbon Tripods (Sherpa Pro Series)
Cullmann Tripods
The Pod

Thank you for the review on Gorillapod.

On their website, Joby recommends using the SLR-ZOOM gorillapod with a ball head or a professional tripod head. The problems that Cynic has been having with mounting the camera onto the tripod should go away with this approach. Most tripod heads have a quick release system, so it will be a snap to mount or dismount the camera.

For those who do not know about ball heads, here are some common examples

BOGEN 488 (Mounting Plate can vary - RC2, RC4 etc. We use the RC2 plate and we are quite happy with it).
BOGEN 486
BOGEN 484

Most online stores carry them (BHPHOTO.com, Adorama.com, Amazon.com are some of the better and reliable places to get them in the US).

Here are some useful links for anyone who is interested.

http://www.gorillapod.com/faq/#slrzoomquickrelease (Refer Question #3)

There is a lot of additional information on Gorillapod on www.joby.com as well.

This Flickr Group is dedicated to Gorillapod. A lot of useful configurations from various Gorillapod users are available here.

http://flickr.com/groups/gorillapod/

Some examples of GorillaPod configurations HERE, HERE, HERE and HERE.

AN UPDATE ON BRIANA

Bri’s going through intensive chemo. She’s worn out and not very well. She thanks everyone who has supported her with their love, kind words, and donations.

We appeal to all of you to keep the momentum going for the fundraiser and to help us reach our goal of $12,000 for her treatment.

Here are two more examples of Love-In-Action. Thank you Denise, Laudalino and Victoria.

*** A big loaf of homemade Portuguese Sweet Bread (Masa)
Donated by Denise and Laudalino. Details at Chez Us. Bid Price: $25. Code: Masa. Shipping: U.S. only.

*** ‘Banana Jewel’. A watercolour painting by Victoria Brush
Bri’s aunt-in-law Victoria is an accomplished painter, and she is offering this painting for sale. Half the proceeds will go to the fundraiser. Details at Spring Moon.

- Bee and Jai

Related posts

http://www.wikio.com PRINT THIS POST PRINT THIS POST EMAIL THIS POST EMAIL THIS POST

, , , , , ,


SPEAK YOUR MIND

18 Comments so far

  1. christey on June 9, 2008 10:03 am

    wow, you know i keep seeing that tripod in the back of my photo mags and curious if it really was as good as it looks. now i really really really want one. sad i have a long ‘want’ list, but this is going on it! thanks for the post!

  2. mekhala on June 9, 2008 10:09 am

    I use a gorilla pod too! I find it extremely useful when I travel light, walk around the town and when I take macro photos.

  3. Happy Cook on June 9, 2008 10:28 am

    We are going to India this summer so when my hubby gets home tommorow i am going to show this to him.
    Now i just went back to look to the pic i think we don’t have a huge camera, ours is a tiny one so tripod might be no use.
    Will see.
    It was good to read the update of Bir.
    Today my SIL and I were talking about it and she was saying one of her friend is also having breast cancer and that her friend is going through chemo.

  4. Asha on June 9, 2008 11:00 am

    Cool tripod. We have a tripod and Unipod, we just don’t use it at all!

  5. Mythili on June 9, 2008 11:45 am

    That review is soo cool! Cynic totally rocks :)

    Thanks for the update on Bri.

  6. Mythili on June 9, 2008 11:49 am

    btw, did you try out editing the timestamp? i left a comment in the crazy upma post.

    just did. thank you. it’s under the May archives now.

  7. Suganya on June 9, 2008 3:45 pm

    Bee, I have sent a mail regarding gorillapod. Its too big for a comment. You may chose to reproduce it, if you want to.

  8. Uma on June 9, 2008 3:59 pm

    Wow, it looks like a cool tripod! Worth buying! BTW, I have something for you at my blog. Check it out here:

    http://teluguruchi.blogspot.com/2008/06/tomato-achar.html

    Hope you like my little reward for you guys! Have a good day!

  9. Suganya on June 9, 2008 5:06 pm

    Thank you, Bee.

  10. dee on June 9, 2008 8:50 pm

    Good informative post bee, Thanks to cynic , suganya and you for the post!

  11. sushma on June 9, 2008 10:58 pm

    Bee first time im looking at this tripod.. such an amazing piece.. liks bery handy, nice information thnks for sharing it.
    lobvely painting too..

  12. Nirmala on June 10, 2008 1:39 am

    Wow! Thats wonderful and since all “Great Photographers” recommend this would be added to my wish list :)

  13. Cynthe (said like ee) on June 10, 2008 8:26 am

    Totally enjoyed this Gorillapod review, especially Cynic’s creative situational test set-ups! Who could resist playing with a wild-looking object like this anyway? Speaks to the playful kid inside us for sure.

    I have tripods and never use them. (Tsk, tsk.) Do find myself leaning against or propping my elbows on: chairs, walls, buildings, fences, cars, holding my breath for the shutter click, etc. Hmmm….maybe I’m doing it the hard way.

  14. Ramya's Mane Adige on June 10, 2008 12:14 pm

    the tripod looks quite flexi n nice!!! the review is gr8 too :)

  15. shalini on June 10, 2008 8:47 pm

    I have a gorillapod too. i really like it for travel. Did u know there is a gorillapod lovers group on flickr?

  16. arundathi on June 10, 2008 11:20 pm

    thats a great review thanks - i mostly do only food or portraits of people, so this is probably not even needed, but it looks so cool!! :)

    thanks for the update on Bri - all our thoughts and prayers are with her.

  17. Manisha on June 12, 2008 11:57 pm

    The gorillapod rocks. It’s been invaluable on our trip through the various canyons of Utah, Arizona and Colorado this past week!

  18. Jen Yu on June 18, 2008 7:34 am

    waugh.

    I have the Gitzo Mountaineer and Acratech Ballhead (for a combined price tag that made me whimper). I’ve been using them together for over 4 years with my Nikon D70 and now my Nikon D200. I think for the travel we do (mountaineering, backpacking, foul weather conditions) it is the best combination of weight, compactness, and performance. Because I’m not made of money, I use that tripod and ballhead in the kitchen too - works *fabulously*. I also have the 18-200 mm VR zoom lens and I rarely ever use the VR because most of my shots require exposures too long for that to be helpful.

    That said, I don’t tote the tripod and bh with me into restaurants which are notorious for crappy lighting. I recently got a sunpack mini tripod pro plus B for something like $25. It’s as big as my hand when it’s folded down. Has a mini ballhead which sucks for something as ginormous as the D200 - i.e. it starts to slide. It will work with the D70 as long as I steady it with my hand (I know this seems backwards - using a tripod that won’t hold steady without my hand to hold it steady), but that’s what works to get a clean shot at a sushi bar ;) I can only hold steady down to 1/8th of second handheld and that doesn’t cut it indoors.

    Okay, that’s my 3 cents and I may give the gorilla a try for restaurant shots - but the Gitzo Mountaineer plus Acratech Ballhead is just about the most phenomenal combo to haul across a glacier and more! Consider the investment and then don’t look back. Oh - and I recommend RRS’s (Really Right Stuff) dovetail quick release dovetail clamps. You’ll never go back to what you had before. xxoo

    thanks jen. 1/8th of a second. i’m impressed by your steady hand! -j

Back to the BLOG.

Name

Email
(Not mandatory)

Website
(Not mandatory)


    Thank you for taking the time to visit our site, read our posts, and offer your feedback. While we may not be able to acknowledge and respond to all comments, we do read and appreciate each one. We will answer all questions to the best of our knowledge, however, if we do not respond to a question then most likely it has already been addressed in the post.

    We are grateful for your input. Hope you visit us again...and happy surfing.

    Jai and Bee.


Find older posts at ARCHIVE