Travel Tripod, Aluminum, Compact Design, Quick Setup and Takedown, Pro-Level Stability, Ergonomic Ball Head, Compact and Portable Travel Tripod for Camera and Phone, 20 lb Capacity

I have a tripod problem. Too many tripods in the stable over the years! Still in search of the perfect tripod. With low cost, low weight, compact for hiking, easy deployment, tall enough for near eye level work, and sturdy enough for a heavier setup. And more importantly, plate compatibility allowing easy transferability to alternate carry systems (strap clip, PD Capture). The Peak Designs team really did listen to photographers looking for a multi-purpose travel tripod. As a photographer who spends time hiking for picture taking opportunities, I have looked for the perfect travel tripod over the last decade. Surveying my current collection, including a Manfrotto MKC3-H01 travel tripod (now, MKCOMPACTACN-BK, with different proprietary hybrid head “joystick” grip ball head, and a different plate arrangement), a Velbon carbon fiber 630 with a Manfrotto 498 RC2 head, a Velbon DF-10ML (closely related to the EX Macro 3-section), and a small Neewer CK-30 compact tripod purchased for the Arca plate and ability for ground level macros. The PD aluminum tripod is not the lightest among them, and it is expensive --but it is one of the most thoughtful, compact, well-constructed, stable, and confidence inspiring tripods, with an advantage “in the field”. Features I like. Compact. In its carry state, a little taller than the size of a standard Nalgene water bottle. The legs, connection pieces, and clasps. I prefer the flip-out clasps for leg deployment over the screw types. For me, there is less fumbling around trying to find release and locking positions. The height is great, along with being able to position close to the ground. The ball head works well for me. The tightening mech on the ball works as expected, even with a Sony a7r-IV with a heavy Sony 200-600mm zoom. Positioning is easy and can be straight up or down. The Peak Design Capture clip uses the same Arca mount plate so you can easily go from carrying to tripod mount with no fumbling to change the mount plate. There is a locking mechanism that prevents accidental release of the plate. Tools attached to the tripod are a thoughtful addition. The carry bag is durable and apparently water proof. Things I don’t like. Price. Oh, the price is high for sure, even higher if you pick the lower weight carbon fiber version. Weight. It is not as light as my Manfrotto compact tripod, but not overly so. With anything like this, lower weight is always something I want. Is this tripod worth it? For those inclined to save money and look for a similar feature set, albeit not as complete? The Manfrotto travel tripod-- if you can find a head version that works for you (read through the comments on the different versions). IF Manfrotto had an Arca plate version, it would be a no brainer – significantly lower cost, lower weight, with just enough features, it would be a great choice. That said, I am keeping the Peak Designs tripod! For me, it is nearly perfect. If you can afford spending over $350 for a tripod, I do not think you would be disappointed.

Excellent tripod - I use it for plein air oil painting. My pochade is a bit heavy at 13 lbs, but this easily supports it and if it isn’t windy, I often use the center column instead of raising all the legs. Mounting the pochade is always a bit tricky, but i take all the drawers out of the pochade to lighten it and the quick release is great. I also made a watercolor setup with a mounting plate and art board so it does double duty. The videos for setup on You tube and Peak website are really helpful. Best part- customer support from Peak Design website was excellent: One of my leg clamps popped off 2 years after purchase (perhaps my fault), and I lost the hardware in the grass. I emailed Peak and someone named MJ responded right away. They sent me a new leg with instructions for changing it out at no cost. Highly recommend!!! Thank you MJ and Peak Design.

I was a little skeptical when this was first released, with the high price and mixed reviews. I have another super popular brand travel tripod made of carbon fiber, which I did not like using, because it check all the boxes but the user experience is not smooth. The feet fell off and I had to dig them out of the mod and screw them back in! Putting the camera back on required two hands twisting and turning two levers, very stupid when you are holding a camera among rocks and trying to get it on. My friend is a big peak design fan, this is on his wish list. I thought I would try it. I did not go for the carbon fiber because of the price, I hope the vibration does not come back and bite me. I figure most of my landscape shots will be away from people and traffic, so I should be fine. A little extra weight is bad for my back but good for image stabilization. 1. The build. This is a rock solid, heavy duty tripod. A little heavier than most travel tripod I owned. The positive is the stability. The joints are very stable. The camera latch on to the top securely. No worries. Of course all of you know by now it folds into size of a large water bottle. 2. The user experience. This is where peak design shines. It is all about convenient design. Popping the leges out are quick. Twist to unlock, the camera pop in, twist to lock, a very easy and secure operation, the best I have used. Twist to raise the center column. Another twist to adjust the ball head. A spring loaded push lever right on the leg to change angle of the legs. There is a build in storage for a two headed tool, which is mostly used to screw in the plate. 3. Of course the base plate works with the capture clip, if you bought into the peak design eco system. 4. The packaging is surprisingly premium. A beautiful cardboard box with elastic latch. Then a travel bag made of the good peak design material stuff. I will probably never use them but it’s good they don’t cut corners on quality.

Let's be real: this thing is not cheap, it's not a Manfrotto, it's not the most fully-featured. What it is is a portable, sturdy, thoughtfully-designed system using an incredibly convenient quick release system usable with other Peak Design products and any other 3rd party accessories that use the same rail based mount. It's quick to set up, has a delightfully easy to use ball mount allowing for free rotation in all three directions, supports flipping the center column upside-down to suspend a camera underneath, and includes a small hard tool pocket that snaps into one of the legs, perfect for quickly swapping out mounts (not necessary if you are using a mount that uses a thumb screw, just nice to have). I'd like a level and knobs for fine adjustments but honestly, it's good enough. And feels good to use! I'm confident I'll have this thing for quite a while. Great to travel with, easy to set up, great build quality. Maybe just a skosh pricey.

Peak Designs tends to be name of the game when it comes to photography equipment. After using a very old and bad tripod for a long time, it was time for an upgrade. While I really wanted to have the carbon fiber model, we opted for aluminum because of the price. This is still a very expensive tripod, but it is significantly cheaper than its carbon fiber counterpart. Unless you must absolutely have the lightest available thing, this should serve your tripod functions just fine! It comes with a decent enough carry case, and the setup/teardown is so quick and convenient. Peak designs mounts are also second to none. We often use this tripod in a portrait configuration, which requires that the camera be turned 90 degrees on its side with nothing holding it to the tripod other than the mount/plate that you get with the tripod. Across multiple accessories, this mount is just incredible. I’ve used it to secure my camera to the outside of my motorcycle tank bag, on my shoulder strap of my hiking bag, and lots of other convenient spots. The head is also insanely adjustable, able to be manipulated to put the camera at just about any angle, portrait or landscape. Combing the adjustability with the sturdiness and lightness of the tripod makes it a really great performer, but it is a little pricey. A lot of other companies make similar-looking items for much less money. I decided to join the buy-once, cry-once camp, and while I don’t know that I absolutely needed to do that, I don’t regret it.

I needed a portable lightweight tripod for mobile work and leisure, and was originally looking at something about a quarter of the price. Found this and although it is not the very lightest out there, the functionality, and build quality make it the best thing I found. For most of my work needing a tripod I have a heavy commercial model from Bogen that I've used for almost 40 years, but portable and easy to carry it is not. This PD model is surprisingly sturdy. The legs are fast to deploy and the leg clamps are not only good, they are adjustable so they will not just become loose and useless in a few years. The shape alone is a big selling point as it folds to the outer diameter of a large water bottle. It is short enough to fit into any of my backpacks or shoulder bags. When I looked around at tripods it was tempting to spend $150 and be done and just suffer through whatever was not optimum, but extending the budget and buying this was the right decision.

I never thought I'd spend this much on a tripod and couldn't even understand how a tripod could be worth hundreds of dollars. Right away the tripod feels extremely premium to me. All the parts slide and move smoothly and with ease but lock into place with confidence. There're so many thoughtful design elements too and everything has a nice storage solution. If you've already bought into the Peak Design ecosystem with their straps and quick release, this tripod makes life so much easier. I'm very happy to say the least.

I hated spending as much as I did on this tripod until I used it a few times. Its compact size is amazing, and it is surprisingly sturdy in windy conditions despite being lightweight aluminum. I have a couple of heavier tripods that don't do as well. The included iPhone holder folds up nicely into the center shaft, so is always there when I go looking for it. The standard feet do well on most surfaces although you can buy feet that will dig in nicely when extra stability is needed. I've used this with iPhone, decently large camera, and compact ham radio antenna, all flawless. It's easy and quick to set up and take down. If there is any criticism it might be that the pressboard case it comes in doesn't last long, but I keep it in with other gear, so not a problem. Highly recommended.

Weight too, but the aluminum version is not that light. Other than that, excellent quality, operation, extras, everything is well thought and implemented.

Ho avuto e provato diversi treppiedi in circa di 10 anni di fotografia, ma da quando ho il Peak Design (alluminio) uso solo questo! Leggero, veloce da aprire e chiudere, ultra compatto, super stabile e con la capacità di smontare la colonna centrale per avere angoli raso terra. Il prezzo può sembrare esorbitante, ma la costruzione, il design e i materiali giustificano fino all'ultimo centesimo.

Although expensive, this tripod is really worth every penny. I managed to find it for 10% off and it has exceeded my expectations. I can't justify the cost of the carbon fiber model but the aluminum is light enough and is way smaller and more convienent than my other main tripod. I do wish it would go a bit higher but for what it is, its a great tripod. Well designed and good product. You get what you pay for.

Excelente producto, perfección e ingeniería. También el proveedor ProImports entrega en tiempo y forma. Estuve cazando la oferta hasta que estuvo en 20 % de descuento y más descuento de banco, justo al terminar el Hotsale.

Tengo la versión de aluminio y pesa algo más de lo que pensaba. Lo que redunda en más estabilidad. No obstante, al hacer foto de viaje, mi espalda lo termina notando... Por lo demás, todo perfecto. El trípode más completo, novedoso y compacto que jamás he visto.