Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

Just received. I love that it is very light and - most important - very compact. More than sturdy enough for my compact camera. Can easily fit in my everyday tote. Yes - it doesn't open and close as easily as the usual leg clip configuration - but it is not that hard to open/close. Also there is no plate you can attach to bottom of camera and then slip in and out of tripod - you have to screw the camera on to tripod. Also cannot fully customize height of tripod - only a limited choice. So not as versatile or easy to use as standard tripod - but - for me this is all minor - the convenience is great- no problem, hassle carrying this around - great for travel. The best tripod is the one you have with you. And for $ you can't go wrong.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

Great lightweight tripod, opens quickly and stable enough for MegaZoom and my 35mm with 50mm lense. The only drawback is it a bit short/small in the height range.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

5 stars in the context of an extremely light travel tripod, there are downsides.

+extremely light (Tamrac ZipShot is less)
+ballhead
+variable height(partially expand one leg)
+quick setup/breakdown
+small size

-ballhead jerks, good for photo, not video
-sags with telephoto zoom lens, so aim high, twist handle to tighten ballhead, hope sag ends up at level you want. On high-zoom so the angle must be very exact? Repeat three times.

With a NEX mirrorless, the 18-55 lens or smaller the sag is not a problem. With a larger 55-210 telephoto zoomed, it is the limit of what this can handle. When used with my Sony DSC-RX100 compact it is perfect.

I wish they made a legs only version so I could add my own ballhead.

Re-sold under at least 3 names: Polaroid, Targus, Afga.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

This product is excellent to small cameras.

Big cameras is not compatible.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

Used this for my recent backpacking trip in the Cascades.

It is easy to unfold and fold back up very quickly.
(I had no problems folding it back up. You just twist the leg a little to lock and unlock and then push on of the foot to close)

It is very light weight and compact with it's own travel sack which makes it perfect for my backpacking needs and attatching it to my backpack.

I would look to a more sturdy tripod if you have a digital SLR with tripod lens.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

unless your going to be using it specifically for a point and shoot camera. It does not allow for exact height adjustments. It's not real good quality which I expected but the preset lengths was a surprise. I couldn't use it.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

I took this tripod to Europe with all my belongings in a backpack. It worked great, held my pocket camera for great shots, was light and easy to use. I lost it in the middle of my trip and it was missed. Bought another for my next adventure.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

very portable and lightweight tripod. it fits in my camera bag without the excess weight of a full size tripod. it only raises to 42 inches, not really a problem for most of my shots, it's better than nothing. can't have it all and for the price and weight this one is perfect. comes with a travel bag as well, which is cool. collapsing the tripod is probably the biggest challenge but once i learned to do it properly, it became easier. can't be beat for the price, holds my compact camera as well as my micro four thirds cameras as well.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

I used this tripod for a backpacking trip this month. It is ideal if you are looking for a tripod to be mobile, light and simply just help frame a shot. I took my Canon 60D with a 18-135mm lens. It just holds the weight, anything more than that is going to be too heavy. I used it to do time lapses over a weeks time. The best thing about this tripod is the weight, it is super light, and collapses to a very small size. The downside is it will not hold much more than my Canon and the small zoom lens. So if you are looking for a cheap tripod that is light and small this is great for exactly what they advertise is for.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

So I have to clarify I am rating this in comparison to my expectations, not in comparison to pro and mid level tripods, there is no comparison to carbon fiber fluid head build, obviously.I am a student filmmaker who has been around the pro gear but totally broke so I was looking to put together an economic starter pack for my Canon 60D to hold me over for a little while. Essentially I wanted a mid-low level tripod for tricky low video shots or long night exposure stills, portable enough to carry into any situation, stylish, stable, and durable.When I received the tripod I was immediately pleased with the style, sleek black and steel silver. I'm a bit of a sucker for style I will admit. However upon immediate testing I knew it would do the job. The legs unfold and fold easily, so long as you read the instructions and actually do what they say. People are mostly correct when they say there is no "in between" height setting with these tripods, however with a little extra time and ingenuity you can achieve these mid heights using the lock system and crutching on the minny leg ball snaps, its sketchy but supported my 60D fine for quick shots, etc.The stabilization is absolutely fine for taking stills and motion free video. When people say the legs bend it is not when I set my DSLR on the head, I noticed the considerable bend ONLY when I try to pan, this is because there is no center column so the pan torques the whole tripod. Will stand in moderate wind, high wind with a light camera is questionable. I would leave my camera on it unattended for a portrait, but a rogue cat could probably knock it over.THIS IS NOT A FILMING TRIPOD. The head is composed of a single steel ball clamp mechanism which allows most any angle variability, I like this a lot. You can achieve amateur panning with the handle locked tight which is awesome if you want to capture your child tripping around a soccer field, or some random quizzical thing. I DON'T recommend anything other than still photos and still/single angle video.My greatest lament is that due to the ball head it is very difficult to get the head perfectly level, you have to eye ball it and lock it tight, I'm used to this so NBD. There is no spirit or anything so if this is a pain for you, rethink, especially if you tote a heavy DSLR. I really don't think a fully loaded 7D or 5D will be a good partner for this tripod.Its a mostly steel metal build so I'm confident it will last me a descent amount of time. Not really a jungle mountain pod, but certainly everything else. Then again its so cheap its not a big loss.I went with this as opposed to the other fuller sized cheap tripods for the extreme portability, low minimum height, and of course the sleek look. For the price I am pretty well pleased.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

I like the size and portability of this tripod. Primarily for use with Panasonic FZ150 for night shots, video, and HDR. Fits in my messenger bag and light enough to walk around with all day. However, it is somewhat of a pain to collapse for storage and the panning mount seems somewhat cheaply made and not as smooth to operate. But, it serves the purpose of a portable tripod for those perfect night shots.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

I am using this tripod together with my Lumix LX5, and it's just perfect for it. I like how this 42" tripod can collapse to 11", which makes it very portable. Also, it can double as a tabletop tripod. Just be careful about retracting the legs though. You can hurt yourself if your fingers get caught between retracting segments. I would suggest lubricating the legs of the tripod to avoid forcing the segments back in.

Comments about Polaroid PLTRI42 42" Travel Tripod with Panhead:

Very difficult not to pinch your fingers collapsing this thing, and the time it takes really takes away the convenience factor of having a travel tripod.