For image-makers from point-and-shoot snap shooters to professionals who depend on their photo gear, a tripod has always been regarded, at best, as a necessary evil. For some, the bulk, weight and inconvenience have made tripod use out of the question. For others who won’t accept less-than-absolutely-sharp pictures, a tripod is absolutely necessary. Those who have captured images since the dawn of photographic history have had a love/hate relationship with this piece of gear. While not dispensing with the hardware, the MAXi343E from Velbon is a long overdue but immensely welcome tripod.

As one who enjoys recording outdoor images as I travel, I’ve become used to a fair amount of photographic gear at my side. At least two SLR bodies, a quiver of lenses, flash equipment and other ancillary gear fill whichever bag system I choose to take on a trip. While I’ve accepted the growing weight and volume of that gear with little complaint, grabbing my most used tripod is usually accomplished with a grimace. At over 11 pounds and 30 inches in its stowed configuration, my Bogen tripod system is no trivial piece of equipment. This weight and size along with over 20 pounds of other camera gear seems to grow even more on extended hikes. As airlines become more restrictive in baggage regulations and tighter in security procedures, my big Bogen becomes a greater nuisance. Now airlines consider my old tripod a piece of carry on luggage and, more than once, I’ve been asked to dismantle the tripod to prove it doesn’t hide or disguise some weapon or contraband.

Keeping my eye open for a solution to mitigate this hassle, I’ve been impressed with a number of tripod models featuring carbon composite construction. However, the prices of these extremely light but strong tripods have been way out of line with any budget that would get approved by a fiscally responsible spouse.

Enter our hero
Catching my eye was a report by “Popular Photographer” columnist Herbert Keppler – a venerable photographic pundit who has been in the business longer than most of us have been alive. He was most impressed with Velbon’s little, lightweight offering calling it, “my ideal travel tripod.” Having seen the specifications, I too was impressed. However, at seeing its “introductory price” of $90, I was sold.

For sure, this is not the first affordable lightweight tripod the world has ever seen. Furthermore, I’ve associated Velbon with the cheap tripods one can find at department stores or those “thrown in” as part of a camera sales promotion. Most of the tripods I’ve inspected in the less-than-$100 range have been flimsy, hard to use, and just a step above better-than-nothing. So it was not with a little trepidation that I went about testing this Velbon.

Weighing less than 2 pounds including a removable ball socket head and a collapsed length at 17.5 inches, the tripod is insubstantial compared to my Bogen system. The short “folded” length is accomplished by four telescoping leg sections. The inclusion of an extendable center post can bring the attached camera or camcorder up to a comfortable viewing height for a six-foot-tall user. The legs, as is typical in most tripods, are extruded aluminum with remaining parts being die cast. The tripod comes with a black nylon carrying case with a drawstring at the opening.

The tripod is covered by a lifetime warranty.

In the field
Normally carrying a tripod over my shoulders or at my side hanging from a wide shoulder strap, I found this was far from necessary with the MAXi343E. With a couple of short, one-inch, ballistic nylon straps (not included), I was able to simply lash the tripod to the side or to the bottom of my Tamrac photo backpack. Once attached, I could not tell there was a fully functional tripod along for the ride. So far, so good!

With a three motions unlatching the binding levers on the leg sections, extending the legs and relatching the levers, I found deployment of the tripod quick and easily accomplished. A nice feature is the ability to select a rubber or spike tip by rotating the rubber tip up and out of the way. This allows appropriate contact points for the surface on which the user is working. The center post is held in position with a lever that locks it.

The ball head appears to be useful for nothing heavier than a point and shoot or lightweight camcorder. Happily, I found this to be untrue. The three-quarter inch ball is attached by a post to the rotating platform on which is mounted the standard tripod screw. The user simply rotates the platform to secure the camera to the platform. A single lever is turned to secure the ball in a fixed position.

While a camera mounted above the head is no challenge to any ball type mount, turning the camera 90 degrees to the side is the real test. I used a Nikon N8008s body and Tokina wide-angle zoom lens to test the ball head in a variety of positions. Be aware that the N8008s is the heaviest amateur level SLR Nikon has produced. The head performed flawlessly. There was no creeping after I tightened the lever. I was able to remove and replace the lens with no apparent change in position of the camera. For grins, and since I had brought along my chunky Nikkor 300m f/4.0 telephoto prime, I decided to give this tripod the supreme test. Sure enough, even with this beefy lens and camera combination set on the side, the ball head held tight. It gives me no small sense of confidence knowing I can depend on this tripod even if I had to ask it to do more than casual shooting.

It’s no tank
Because a tripod’s number one job is steadying the camera and lens during exposure, this lightweight tripod cannot depend on its mass. I used a long-time photographer’s trick in helping stabilize the tripod in windy conditions by hanging my camera bag around the tripod’s legs. While yielding a more stable tripod, I saw the legs bending inward. This indicated that I should handle this tripod a bit more gingerly that my industrial duty Bogen. Still, I would not consider this tripod fragile by any stretch.

Prospective buyers of this or any tripod should not be misled by the current vogue in marketing photo gear. Most advertisements that indicate a piece of gear is made for digital cameras are merely jumping on the digital trend. Hopefully most consumers are savvy enough to know that a bag, lens filter, or tripod will work equally with any type of camera regardless of the technology. Still, I find it silly that the Velbon tripod is marked “for Digital Camera.”

I’m glad someone was finally able to create a tripod that satisfies the outdoor and traveling photographer’s need for lightweight and convenience without asking for a small fortune. Since I purchased the MAXi343E, “Shutterbug” magazine praised this model by saying, “it eliminates excuses about not having a tripod with you.” I’m a long way from retiring my workhorse Bogen but when you see me ten miles from the trailhead, odds are it’ll be the Velbon under my camera or on my pack.


Recommended: Yes