The Coolest Pieces of Gear We Tested This Week

I’m going to start this review off by stating: This is the finest tripod I’ve ever used. Now that I got that out the door, I’d like to introduce you to the Peak Design Carbon Fiber Travel Tripod. I’ve been a glorified camera nerd for several decades, got my BA in Photography, and even spent an entire year shooting nothing but my Leica M3 and B&W film—as a challenge from a photography professor in college. I’ve shot professionally with every type of DSLR kit, all the latest mirrorless kits, and even (my personal favorite) big ol’ medium format Hasselblad systems. But no matter what system you shoot, nor locations you find yourself, a solid tripod is one of the most important pieces of gear that a photographer should have in their kit—one that many people simply don’t invest much thought in. That being said: the Peak Design tripod is the best you can get, in our humble opinion.

This impressive little Mighty Mouse packs down into the size of a water bottle, it weighs in at a mind-blowing 2.81 lbs., and in can muscle up to a 20-lb. weight limit. (This tripod is like those ants that can carry 10-times their own body weight.) It has 5 leg sections, aluminum cam leg locks, a super smooth and capable built-in ball head with load hook, as well as an ultra-dependable anodized aluminum quick-release plate—for those photographers who know how invaluable a dependable (and lockable) quick-release plate is, this among the best we’ve ever seen.

Everything about this tripod is beyond superb. It sets up (and takes down) in mere seconds, and it’s as strong as an ox, yet nimble as a gazelle. The carbon fiber legs make those Manfrotto or Gitzo legs—that you spent thousands of dollars on—look like dinosaurs… and this tripod comes standard with an A+ ball head (that you additionally spent another several hundred dollars on with those other systems). We recently spent a few days shooting with our Canon 1DX, with multiple long lenses (70-200mm f/2.8, 100-400mm f/4), and we found that the max load that we were comfortable with on this tripod was our 300mm f/2.8 IS with a 1.4X Teleconverter—which is insane. We were amazed that this little tripod could handle such a load. Whether you’re looking for that jaw-dropping long-exposure starry night image, rocksteady landscape capture, or the swift-pan action sports shot, this tripod is built for every photographer under the sun. From the traveling adventure photographer to the casual family portrait shooter, to the beach-day action surf photog, this tripod does it all, and it does it in the simplest and easiest way we’ve ever seen—all at a very reasonable price point for a piece of photographic equipment of this caliber.

If you fancy yourself a photography enthusiast on any level, then this tripod needs to be in your kit. The photos on your wall will be the proof that we’re right about this—This piece photographic gear is THAT good.—Jon Perino, senior editor

[$649.95; peakdesign.com]

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