GH4 Anyone uses mefoto road trip tripod?

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xhridhar

Active member
Has anyone here, used a mefoto road trip tripod?

Just checking to see if it's a worthwhile purchase. I am looking for a good light portable (and discreet) Tripod + monopod for my new GH4.

all suggestions welcome :-)

thanks
 
Yep - I've got one.
Quite like it but I only use it for stills and (static) timelapse shots - For video I've started using the Sachtler Ace tripod (my other pods where too heavy duty for such a small/light camera)
The Mephoto is light and folds up to a nice short unit but still give a good height when being used - haven't really used the monopod feature but good to know that it's there if I need it.
 
All the travel tripods are crap the moment you want to pan - the thin legs don't have enough rigidity to make that happen.
 
I just used one on a trip as it fits in carry-on bags. Its compact, lightweight but yeah but good point about the panning. Any tripod under about $700 is also probably susceptible to wind vibration (it took a Gitzo 35 series to fix it for me). I looked at cheaper travel compacts and they are not built to last. The mefoto was built well but those legs are so skinny! For a main tripod spend more money and be at peace.
 
I snagged the Mefoto at a Salvation Army for 15 bucks. I wouldn't use it for video unless it's a lock down shot, as the legs flex way too easily. But for stills it's handy. And the ball head is good enough if you want to put it on a slider or something.
 
yslee said:
All the travel tripods are crap the moment you want to pan - the thin legs don't have enough rigidity to make that happen.
Click to expand...
That's true, but what's the alternative? Drag your full size 20 pound tripod around while on holiday? I've been stuck with this problem too. The travel tripod is too light to be any good and the good tripod is too heavy to carry around.
 
I used one of the even lighter MeFoto tripods (backpacker?) on a job last year that involved 2-camera interviews in several cities with basically no support personnel... the kit had to be carry-on friendly, and that tripod was.

Three things I did to make it workable:
1. only used it with my GH camera, nothing heavier
2. ditched the stock ballhead for a Manfrotto 701 head
3. either weighted the tripod with a bag or by applying downward pressure just below the head with my off hand

Yeah, it's no Miller, but it's workable for travel jobs where supported moves will be minimal (and fits in carry-on)
 
yslee said:
All the travel tripods are crap the moment you want to pan - the thin legs don't have enough rigidity to make that happen.
Click to expand...

If they we're we'd all be using the every day as our main tripod, but much lighter to carry around ;)
 
Hey compared to handheld or using a monopod even a flimsy cheap tripod isn't so bad. While we would always love to have our beast of a support system with us when we travel we do have to make some sacrifices. A crappy tripod is always better than no tripod at all. There are also certain tricks you can use to make a lightweight tripod work a bit better.

1. Get one with a hook to attach a sandbag. Really helps weigh it down only when you actually need to weigh it down.
2. Use a rubber band to pull the handle when panning. Acts as a poor mans shock absorber. Not perfect but can help.
3. If you can extend the thicker parts of the legs first if you don't need the full height of the tripod. Those tiny toothpicks at the bottom are your weakest point.
4. Panning really comes down to the head you are using and not as much the sticks. The sticks help but the head is about 80% of what you need. Don't skimp on the head and get the right kind of head.
5. Don't be afraid to replace nuts and bolts or oil that sucker, even on a brand new tripod. Sometimes cheaper tripods and light stands are not all that bad and it is the crappy nuts and bolts they use that become the weak points. I have a bunch of cheap light stands that were like that. They couldn't anything up until I visited my local Ace Hardware and bought $10.00 of high quality nuts and bolts. Night and day difference.
6. Always bring the right tools and lubricant with you to adjust the tripod. Sometimes a flimsy tripod just needs to be tightened.
 
For photography mefoto roadtrip is great. Mefoto is the side brand from benro. You can also attach a video head on the legs go work. The success of mefoto tripods mostly prompted bento the create the aero4. Which I didn't like it at all.
 
for travel i grabbed one of these on sale. and i leave it in the car pretty much at all times for any on a whim type situations, and it's small/light enough i've started bringing it on those gigs where i'm told i won't need a tripod, but you know half the time you'll end up wanting one for something. it also breaks off a leg for a monopod. i still need to pick up a video head for it. and a leveling base...

those benros that dusty mentioned are real nice for having a leveling base built in, as you'll see it's a hundred bucks for such an adapter to add to a photo built tripod
 
ralfmouth said:
I just used one on a trip as it fits in carry-on bags. Its compact, lightweight but yeah but good point about the panning. Any tripod under about $700 is also probably susceptible to wind vibration (it took a Gitzo 35 series to fix it for me). I looked at cheaper travel compacts and they are not built to last. The mefoto was built well but those legs are so skinny! For a main tripod spend more money and be at peace.
Click to expand...

Any small tripod is susceptible as well. A Gitzo GT1542T that costs 4x as much as the Mefoto is going to perform the same.

Andrius Simutis said:
That's true, but what's the alternative? Drag your full size 20 pound tripod around while on holiday? I've been stuck with this problem too. The travel tripod is too light to be any good and the good tripod is too heavy to carry around.
Click to expand...

There isn't one. Mr. Physics says you have to live with it for now. Maybe when we get to the next level of materials?

Thomas Smet said:
4. Panning really comes down to the head you are using and not as much the sticks. The sticks help but the head is about 80% of what you need. Don't skimp on the head and get the right kind of head.
Click to expand...
That 20% will still kill the footage. Some sticks are just too thin to allow for a good pan.
 
I use the mefoto backpacker, but only as a tripod for stills. It's a great little tripod, and I use the thing for hiking trips. However, for video work the head just isn't up to the job and it's too light weight to feel sturdy when doing camera movements.
 
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