We spend the money anyway, so I am writing this hoping that everyone agrees that we want the things we acquire last. Of course, I would not want my food to last, but I want this tool to fulfill its scope for as long as possible if I buy a hammer., or a camera tripod.
As a photographer, I want the gear I am paying for to be as good as possible for a reasonable price. Being a photographer is not the cheapest hobby. There is a lot of gear involved, and when I buy a tripod, I want to be a heavy-duty camera tripod. I need it to endure in time.
I am going for branded stuff. I am not trustful about ”professional” equipment, not branded I can buy ten times cheaper than a branded one. At the same time, I will not buy a branded tool that is very expensive to the detriment of a much cheaper one that does the same thing.
As a swift example, I searched for some heavy-duty camera tripod, and I come out with this:
- Professional camera tripod unbranded from China – 12$
- Professional camera tripod K&F with 33 five stars rating out of 37 ratings – about 55$
- X carbon fiber tripod – more than 6000$
My point is if you are not a millionaire, go with something similar to the second option. I am sure X is better, but so much better, 6000$ +?
Branded tabletop camera tripods
Manfrotto PIXI Mini Table Top Tripod
This little one will do the job for small cameras. The plastic legs extend to one position for a length of 13.5 cm, and it also has smaller rubberized pads for a good grip.
The ball is operating with a small push-button gear, which allows you to rotate the camera 360° and provides a tilt range to a maximum of 35°
Once you reach the desired position, the small push-button can be released, locking back the head. Though it is not high performance, the PIXI is a reliable product that will successfully face challenges and will resist in time. You can read the full review I wrote about this product.
Zomei CK-30 Tabletop Mini Tripod
This one is more sophisticated and almost double as price. Everyone knows his needs, and it is good to understand what they are. For example, I never buy the last released smartphone, which is for sure expensive, as long as mine is perfect and fast, really over my needs.
Enough of me, though, you get it – I’m chatty …
This Zomei CK-30 is easy to set up – extend the legs, adjust the legs’ angle, attach the camera to the plate and lock it down. It is compact when folded -20 cm and comes with a professional head to release the plate quickly. Arca Swiss compatible. Read my full review for more information.
Branded travel
ZOMEI Q111 PRO Aluminum Portable
Another one from Zomei, the Q111 tripod, is sophisticated for the price. Believe it or not, it is cheaper than CK-30, the upper tabletop.
Made of high-quality aluminum, it is very steady. Arca Swiss compatible will work for most cameras. Four-section column leg (non-slip rubber feet) with quick-release is efficiently satisfying the desired height when shooting.
It goes from a minimum height of 47 cm to a maximum of 140 cm, is one of the best choices for an SLR camera to travel with. For more information, read my review. Thank you!
Branded professional tripods
SIRUI -T2205X Professional
This magnificent tripod can hold up to 12 kg, which is excellent. It is very steady and robust. T2205X is very versatile, allowing the photographer to work in the most unusual positions.
It goes from 13.5 cm to 152.7 cm, which is excellent, but it can go below the lowest limit, as shown in the image.
It comes with a 1/4 to 3/8 standard screw. Foot 3 degrees adjust knob, anti-flat warm dense sponge, stretch hook, stabilize tripod, and rapid, stable screw foot. This is a retractable spiked foot for outdoor photography. Isn’t this useful?
It can fold to 38 cm, which is also great for traveling and weighs about 1.2 kg, built from carbon fiber.
BENRO IT25 Camera&DV
Another tremendous professional tripod, the IT25 from Benro, which got its charming advantages. He also has the inverted function to shoot close to the ground but has an extra option – disassembling into a monopod, which can be useful.
I got the option to adjust the angle independently for each leg, which is great for outdoor shooting. It makes a great travel tripod, that’s for sure. It is built from aluminum alloy, and the head is a 360 ° swivel fluid ball head. It folds to 41.5 cm and goes to a height of 154.5 cm. It has five column sections, anti coldness characteristics, and anti-high-temperature powder paint.
Got the idea. Those are just a few options to guide you through the thousands of options. Don’t buy the cheapest, don’t buy the most expensive unless you can afford that. Go for the best quality-price ratio, and it will do the job. Look on Amazon for more tripod examples if this is the place you like to buy from.
Good luck everyone, I hope you enjoyed and found my article helpful.
Such interesting info, thank you! Great content!
Thanks so much for your insight into tripods. I’m no professional but lately I’ve found that keeping my camera still when photographing nature is quite tricky. I’d love to get the IT25 from Benro but I think it’s a little out of my price range. I might get one of the cheaper ones
This blog was extremely informative. I brought a few tripods off of Amazon not knowing about quality and they fell apart. When I replace the one I have now, I will come to you to make sure I’m getting good quality.