This was something I didn’t know I needed; after all I’ve been using my current travel tripod for a couple of years now, and I was perfectly happy with it and learned to live with the little things that annoyed me over time. Then this Manfrotto Befree Advanced showed up on my doorstep, and, well, you can read below what I had issues with and what I loved because, after all, nothing is perfect 😳.
Oh, btw, I’m calling this a travel tripod, although I notice that Manfrotto call it a carry-on.
Notes:
- Not having an Arca Swiss plate head (caveat: if you have a small Arca Swiss plate or a Manfrotto one, you might be able to fit it, but not all mine did and my pro gear has longer plates which didn’t fit). So this really isn’t an issue everyone is going to have, but it’s one that didn’t fit with my workflow because I have SmallRig grips on my cameras, which have an Arca Swiss plate built into them, so I don’t want to have to add another plate on the bottom which now will not be centred. That being said, the Manfrotto head plate system is fantastic and well above the standards of others on the market. They do, however sell an Arca Swiss version, and the link is below 👍🏻 (it just means I have to buy one)
UPDATE: They now have an Arca Swiss version of the tripod out: https://amzn.to/4dIvFQ8
Issues:
- The tension dial moves when you travel around with it, so you have to remember not to rely on it to keep your last setting and your camera suddenly dropping. This isn’t a deal breaker, but it does require my brain to be retrained; who said you can’t teach an old dog new tricks!
- No pocket for the star alan key, which means I’m going to lose it or forget it because it’s in another bag! We’re photographers, of course we have 20 bags.
Loves:
- The leg tighteners; these are fantastic! They are precise and just move so easily. This was one of the features that hit me straight away, and I realised I need it in my life.
- How smooth the legs move!
- The latch for releasing the degrees the legs can move is soooooo nice. So much better than the ones built into the tops of the legs. I don’t catch my fingers with these, and they easily move (not in a way that will cause you problems, either).
- The head collar has notches on it, which makes it easy to grip and turn, and you don’t have rubber moving and spinning as time moves on, which has been an issue with every tripod I’ve had (apart from Manfrotto ones).
- The bag, so it hasn’t got a detachable strap or a pocket, but it looks neat and well made, which makes it a)nice to use and carry and b) respectable enough to be seen with 😬
Recommendation
The price is fantastic, and you won’t regret picking this up; the quality is there in every part of this travel tripod, and I think that is down to the fact that they have a reputation to uphold and they also have the range of products which share the same technology so the development and manufacturing costs get spread out over the range.
Links
➡️ Manfrotto Tripod: https://amzn.to/3T0tYVM
➡️ Manfrotto Tripod Arca Swiss Version: https://amzn.to/4dIvFQ8
➡️ Manfrotto Arca Swiss Ball Head https://amzn.to/3yF9YBv
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