New Member Registered: February, 2011 Location: Calgary Alberta Posts: 16 | | Review Date: December 14, 2011 | Recommended | Price: $330.00
| Rating: 10 |
| Pros: | Tiny AND tall when extended/ Light weight/ Mono-pod included!!! | | Cons: | Could include spiked feet in package, but that's nitpicking | |
First, let me say, what a fantastic tripod/MONO-POD! I did a fair bit of research online before buying and originally ended up with a Benro Travel Angel. I was convinced that it had all the same feature as the Giottos, but cost roughly $100 less. Well, once I got it home, there were some reservations that arose that I just couldn’t overcome, so I returned it to the store promptly the next morning. Worked out well b/c I actually ended up getting a serious deal on the Giottos Vitruvian. They may have similar specifications and very similar features, but let me tell you, there’s a difference.
The Giottos is incredibly well made. When I compared it to the Benro, it was leaps and bounds ahead. Not just because it boasts Carbon Fiber legs or slightly better dimensions, but because there’s simply more attention to detail.
To start, the leg mechanisms are much more consistent than the Benro. With a quarter twist, the legs are loose and all the LOCKS CAN BE DONE WITH ONE HAND, AT ONE TIME! The Benro can do this as well, but the set-up system felt smoother and better built with the Giottos...Both make it super quick for set up. I’m 6’1 and fully extended, the tripod is taller than I will ever need….even for shooting upwards. This is important because the specs lead me to believe that it would be shorter than the Benro and although I never compared them side by side, the Giottos felt taller….pleasant surprise I guess. A great little feature of the tripod is the retractable hook off the center column for hanging weight/my bag to give the tripod added stability.
In addition to a ridiculously compact tripod (especially for its fully extended height), there’s a full sized mono-pod. By removing one leg and the center column with head attached, you screw the two together and voila, mono-pod. When compared to the Benro, the Giottos was my preference, b/c the Benro didn’t include the center column (only head plus leg) which is needed to provide the full height/enough height for me, where as the Giottos makes use of the center column in the tripod height, giving you all the length you will need….that being said, I would love the choice of whether or not to use the center column, but that’s just nitpicking….choosing between center column or not, I choose to have the extra height.
The head is plenty robust for my need since I shoot with a trusty little K-5 and the biggest lens I have is the DA* 200mm. That being said, it holds at any angle without any sliding or slipping. Apparently there was an issue once upon a time with the plate in the kit head being too small – causing a little slippage, but the latest generation has solved the problem with a larger release plate. Also, I know it’s common on most ball heads, but I really appreciate the panning feature….just something worth noting as some head and legs combo kits that I looked at from Manfrotto didn’t have that feature. Compared to the Benro, I greatly prefer the Giottos set up as the quick release is much more secure and I find that I appreciate having the safety release as well.
The tripod comes with a handy bag that will keep it from general wear and tear if you keep it in the back of the truck like me. The bag has extra room at the top, so if you don’t have time to fold the tripod back on itself (legs over the head – makes it super small) then the bag will still work…also gives you room for a larger head if need be. Typically when I’m out for a shoot, the tripod is in my backpack, so the bag is relative, but still nice that they include it.
It’s too bad that the Giottos don’t come with retractable spiked feet, but I realistically don’t know how much people/I would use them. That being said, they’re only an extra $10 at the store and they would be nice to have just in case, so I might just pick them up the next time I’m there….which on a personal note, is way too often.
All in all, there’s lots of thought that goes into this tripod and I really appreciate it. Little things like having padding on all three legs and actual functioning levels make it good, but a solid built that instills confidence for me, makes it great!
Although I hear that Gitzo is supposed to be the king of travel tripods, I’ve gotta say that Giottos has my vote. Value for dollar, I haven’t found anything else that I prefer.
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