Caption is my little joke.
It is becoming increasingly difficult to find a review or comment that does not contain the word ultimate or similar.
I once bought such an ultimate tripod and I’m going to sell it (Ulanzi Coman Zero Y)
We will be talking about the small Freewell T1 tripod.
It’s simply… cute and … quiet.
It’s all telling me: take me with you, I weigh nothing, you won’t even notice me inside backpack.
These are the links to the videos that convinced me to buy this tripod (+ I found refurbished for half price)
In video below look at 30:55 (Yes - at least/finally someone noticed how unstable the center column is in Ulanzi tripod).
OK - search " 3 MEILLEURS trépieds voyage de 2025 : Freewell Real Travel Tripod vs Ulanzi Zero Y vs Peak Design"
This is Emil von Matitz channel on YT, " Pint-sized Stability - The Freewell T1 travel tripod"
I can fully confirm all informations about Freewell T1.
If You are family, tourist photographer amateur - it is for You.
If You need little more stable tripod - consider Smallrig AP-02 (weight 1100g). 2x cheaper, higher, little more stable and not so convenient beacause of length (+/- 10cm longer when collapsed). Overall very good as a tripod for tourist but it will stick out from the inside of the backpack. Aha - noisy when folding and unfolding. Clasps crack a lot. (I am not sure - “crac” it is good translation, this is sound when openig and closing clamp in tripod).
If You need more, more stable tripod - I think Sirui ST-125 (5 sections, shorter) or ST-124 (4 sections, longer). Weight 1600g with factory head.
I had finally had it with mid priced tripods and bought a really right stuff. Is it 3x better than my old tripod (it was 3x the cost), no, not really, but it is a really excellent tripod and hopefully the last one I buy for a really long time.
For me a tripod has to be light and transportable. The best tripod is of no use if you leave it at home.
Anyway I’ve bought a new tripod for another reason: The locking system of the tripod legs: I hate this locking systems where you have to screw the legs. This ruined me some shots, because you have not really a control if every segment is locked properly.
Last year I finally bought a new tripod. I had a Manfrotto before - a really cheap one. Before buying the new tripod, I bought a ArcaSwiss Monoball fix p0 head three years ago - which was in my opinion the best photo equipment I ever bought. The head is really really well made and works absolutely gorgeous.
I think the best tripod is the one you do not buy at all.
There are still use cases for tripods (astro, etc) but they are pretty niche now that even enthusiast cameras have great IBIS that cooperates with lens IS. And with recent cameras, one can handhold 1/2s or more. Improvise some support to stabilize the body just a bit and you can do longer.
You definitely do not need a tripod for landscapes unless you are washing out motion (eg water) with long exposures. And even then 99% of the time you can improvise something from rocks or branches.
IMO “travel tripod” is an oxymoron. When you are constrained for weight or space, it would be the first item to leave at home.
I find tripods to be of great use, not only technically, but also because it forces you to slow down and compose with more definition. I happen to have the Ifootage Gazelle TC-7 (bought at a high discount) which is awesome in its functionality but painfully slow to set up. It felt in the beginning like I had bought the wrong thing but I came to enjoy this more and more.
Jesus H. Christ, that is 1.86 kg, and in itself weighs more than all the photo gear I usually carry on a photo trip. If I were to carry that on a day hike I would be tempted to throw it into a gorge from the top of the mountain. Well, each to his own I guess
This makes me wonder about the complications of losing fat weight. Say if you lose 2kg of fat and get a 2kg tripod, will the hikes feel exactly the same? Coincidentally will tall slim people be less troubled by a heavy tripod since it’s less % of their own body weight?
Dunno why I am even having these questions but maybe there’s an interesting demographic study on gear form factor preferences waiting to happen
Like eating your sandwiches and drinking all the water at the start of a hike so you don’t have to carry them around.
On tripods, Chinese manufacturer Leofoto produces good quality RRS-like items for a bit less money, fwiw. But, tbh, I’ve stopped taking mine out with me on hikes. My wife is patient enough with me taking 28 near identical shots at every location without me messing about with trying to level tripod legs.
Never tried But where you carry the weight definitely matters. It is said that the weight in hiking shoes is equivalent to 6x the weight in the backpack, which is why I take sandals whenever the climate permits. And weight on your lower back and waist is much better than weight on your shoulders, which is why large backpacks have lumbar support. I guess body fat would be closer to your center of mass than the tripod, so it would be more convenient.
I see some hikers carry tripods, but it is relatively rare to see someone using it.
Well that would be a waste of many calories you spend carrying this device up the mountain. In the summer I will be going on a 3 week trip in the Alps. I have not yet decided on my gear. But I think the tripod will stay in the car - independently of what else I have with me.
Well anyways, I got Velbon M43 and it’s just shy of 1 kg, I usually use it for night time long exposures in the city (so I can go all the way down to ISO 100), but I also find myself using it less and less, especially if I don’t use extreme NDs. I don’t take exposure stacks anymore, either, I just use a single underexposed RAW, if the ISO is low, then shadow recovery is mostly ok.
Theoretically it’s useful for panoramas - if I loosen the center column it allows me to rotate the camera only in one axis – horizontally, which could be useful for such occasions.
But the thing is, I don’t like having to settle and set it up, it doesn’t fit my style of photography of running around snapping pictures or kneeling somewhere to get the right angle…
I think we have to make differences. If I go for a hike, I am for sure not carrying a tripod with me. But we drive a lot when we are on holiday and then make shorter walks. Depending on what I expect to see, I take my tripod with me. A Waterfall fir example screams for a tripod…
Sometimes I spot a place where I take a picture later on, when the light is more suited. So my only intend is to take this photo. Quite often these are pictures on the coast where I make extreme long time exposures over several minutes. Without a tripod impossible.
When I hit on a Waterfall and I have no tripod with me I help myself with a long serial exposure. Afterwards I stich them together. Most of the times this works quite OK.
Coincidentally will tall slim people be less troubled by a heavy tripod since it’s less % of their own body weight?