Do you use a tripod that costs just $8.50? See what you get when you buy the cheapest tripod on Amazon.
Almost all photographers use some type of stand and tripod in their practice, whether it’s to hold the camera, lights, backdrop, or many other items that aid the process. create a photo. It’s hard to think how you can manage without such an essential set of tools. Like most products on the market, not all photographic equipment is created equal. Some will last a lifetime, while others will break down after a few uses. This is so true of stands, which is why photographers Adam Harig set out to test how bad the cheapest tripod on Amazon indeed, and his findings are somewhat surprising.
The video begins with Harig briefly unboxing the item, in which he finds that for the $8.50 he spent, he not only got the stand, but also the phone holder, GoPro mount, and remote. Bluetooth remote to trigger the shutter on both iPhone and Android phones. This is a nice little bonus that might come in handy for some of us who are considering this stand for use with smartphones. Next, we learn that this particular stand has a range of 20.2 inches when closed, up to 67.1 inches when fully open. For the price, it’s a decent range for the various applications that photographers use every day. Unfortunately, that’s not all good news, as Harig shows us some of the limitations of the built-in tripod head as well as the overall build quality. All in all, the conclusion is that this cheap stand is worth the investment as long as you don’t expect too much from it in terms of pan and tilt movement.
Having purchased and used various stands and tripods throughout my career, I definitely want to add one of these to my camera bag. That said, I wouldn’t use it to hold anything too heavy or too valuable, as I was worried it might spill. I think it would be helpful to have some of these to hold the flag or cucoloris in front of my lights or to stick in the corner of my studio when I need to capture some behind-the-scenes on my phone. As the old saying goes, buy cheap, buy twice. So be realistic about the true capabilities of such a stand before you splurge.
What do you do with this stall? Do you add one of these to your camera bag? We’d love to hear from you in the comments below.
