Joby GorillaPod SLR Zoom Tripod and Ball Head Bundle - Black/Red

Been using this with my Canon 600D for a while now and I love it. It is strong enough to support my 18-55mm zoom lens and my (heavier but more compact) 28mm prime, but it's worth noting that it might prove trickier to support and balance well with a long telephoto lens such as a 200mm/300mm zoom.Whilst it won't suit every occasion, this is a great tripod for when you're on the move and need something small enough to fit in a backpack. The legs bend in ways that would be very difficult or impossible on a normal tripod, combined with the ballhead this means that you can quickly and easily shoot on all kinds of surfaces.I leave the mount screwed onto my camera and it's really quick and easy to slide the camera onto the Gorillapod as and when necessary. The ballhead is very well built and strong and the spirit level is a handy addition, though it only works in one axis. I'm so impressed with the ballhead that I am considering buying a second to use with a full size tripod - meaning I could use the same quick release clip for both tripods.The GorillaPod is not very tall, so you generally need to have a surface other than the floor to stand it on or wrap it around. This is both a blessing and a curse as sometimes I find myself attaching to a surface which is not that stable in itself - but for day to day use the GorillaPod's size and portability make it incredibly useful.

This is a brilliant radical piece of camera equipment. it can handle a lot of weight. I have mounted my JVC HD620 Camcorder (310g) plus highest capacity battery (84g) plus a canon wide angle lens that weighs more than my camcorder (330g) - total 726g. And that is less than a third of the quoted maximum weight of 3kg. It felt completely safe and secure. The legs have many joints to make it bend round most ground fixed objects with the legs clamping round rails and posts very tightly. However the manueverability of the head is limited. So I also bought the Joby Gorilla Ball head attachment:http://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B002CVU4G0/ref=oss_product...which perfectly complements this gorillapod so I strongly suggest both items be bought as a complete flexible mini-tripod solutionIt is also pretty effective as a normal table top tripod with the legs straightened. My camcorder can zoom to 30X optical. Usually with cheap tripods, maximum zooming results in little shakes or jutters. Not so with this Gorillapod. With my camcorder's inbuilt anti-shake mechanism OFF, I could zoom in all the way to the max without suffering any shakes unless the table itself vibrates when people walk near it, naturally.So I just have to give it 5 star because even though the platform is not easily maneuvreable, you are really purchasing the stand itself which is very much worth the retail price and of course here on Amazon its selling for less than that. But for that complete flexibility of the camcorder/camera lens postioning you do also need the ball head.

I wanted to use this pod with my Canon 70D and Canon 100-400mm lens, the weight for them both being 2.3kg, under the 3kg designated weight. I did ask the question of other Amazon users whether this tripod would hold such a weight and was informed it would. I also contacted Joby direct, told them of my set up and they actually suggested the SLR Focus - I'm sure they would! That retails at £72.66 on Amazon! However, not having that amount of cash spare, I went ahead and ordered the SLR Zoom which came today (31st March).First of all, to get to the chase, yes, it does hold my set up, but with one caveat. When using my 100-400mm lens which weights 1.38kg, I have to attach the lens to the gorilla pod with the lens tripod collar when I'm using it in an 'upright position', for example on a table top (or on the shelf of a bird hide) otherwise it simply starts to sag! That said, the most common use for this kind of tripod is, I suppose, to use it wrapped around something like a fence or pole which I tried and its great! If you position it carefully, there is no sag! With this set up, I can get away with attaching the actual camera to the gorilla pod rather than the lens with the tripod collar. However, for future use, I will always attach this particular lens to the gorilla pod with its tripod collar even if I'm using it in the 'wrapped around a fence' position.Finally, I'm using this gorilla pod with my Manfrotto 486RC2 ball head which has a quick release plate and to be honest, the gorilla pod then becomes far more versatile than using it without a ball head. I keep the gorilla pod attached to the tripod collar by means of the quick release plate which is screwed into the bottom of my camera and then attached to my Peak Design Slide strap (which is absolutely fantastic by the way and much better than the Black Rapid camera strap!) so I can still walk around. Okay, it might look a bit odd with the gorilla pod hanging from the bottom of my camera, but it means I don't have to keep attaching and detaching it when I need to use it.My conclusion is that this is a good tripod, but know its limitations when using a heavy lens like the 100-400mm. If you're just using a kit lens, for example an 18-135mm or even 55-250mm then there will be absolutely no problem, but I would really recommend you use a ball head and as you can see, if you already have one, it should fit the Joby SLR Zoom no problem!