Manfrotto MT294C3 Series 294, 3 Section Carbon Tripod (Black)

UPDATE 10/3/15 ********I have become a huge fan of this tripod. It is saving me some pain with carrying around my big lens and my bad lower back. Manfrotto was a bit of a hassle to get ahold of to purchase a new foot for the one I lost. The whole process of getting someone to contact me back and then having to leave a voicemail just to order the parts and wait for them to call me back took about a month. The feet are sold in a set of 3 and are only about $7.00, which isn't bad, and it's nice to have a few extras now.My problem with the levers to drop the tripod down always switching themselves was easily fixed by tightening the screw attaching them. This "issue" was just my lack of time with it and nothing to do with the tripod itself.Despite the questionable customer service from Manfrotto, I still give this awesome tripod 5 stars.----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Awesome tripod. Very light and sturdy. I am 6' 4" and this thing rises to a more than comfortable height for me to see through my viewfinder while standing up. I have a 300m f2.8 with a D7200 and Sirui carbon fiber gimbal and have NO issues with stability.I am not a huge fan of the 2nd (lower) adjustment mechanism. I have an aluminum manfrotto tripod that has 2 settings and then full spread dropping it pretty much to the ground. This one has a lever that you turn that basically bypasses the high lock of the legs allowing you to drop it down to a slightly lower level. They accidentally get switched a lot while I am carrying it around. There is no way to have this drop all the way to the ground like my other tripod. I did have to cut down the middle bar of my aluminum tripod to allow for ground level photography, which I more than likely won't do with this carbon fiber one, but it would be nice to be able to lower it a little more than it allows.Another thing to note. With this being carbon fiber (very smooth) the first time I took it out, I lost one of the rubber feet on the legs even though I was just setting it up on grass or sandy shoreline. I looked for a while but never found it. I had to contact Manfrotto about purchasing another foot as I don't want to damage the carbon fiber as I couldn't find anywhere that sold parts. I plan on super-gluing all the legs on before I take it out again.Minor issues, but definitely no regrets.

Lightweight and seemingly durable. But I don't like how the legs don't lock at the very top. Makes for inconsistent shooting levels.

Great tripod. I upgraded from the Manfrotto 190XPROB 3 Section Aluminum Pro Tripod, and this one is sturdier, taller, and lighter. This does make the collapsed size a little larger than the previous one I had, though not that much more. I never found my previous tripod to be tall enough. I always felt I needed a few extra inches. This one extends above my head, and to have it fully extended I would need a step, which is great to have that extra height. I'm 5'11". I was surprised how sturdy it is. I do a lot of architectural shoots and longer exposures, having something that doesn't have sway or bounce is an nice feature.Some of the work I do requires quick relocations and fast set up. This tripod is quick to extend out to the full height needed, and quick to collapse. The light weight makes it easy to move around with. This is not the solve-all end-all tripod, but it's one of the best mid-range tri-pods I've interacted with.

good

I hated to send this back, the height was perfect --- until I added the ball head which made the camera sit about 4" too high! So I would have to adjust the legs down about 6" every time I use it, and the deal breaker is that it wouldn't fit my old nicely padded case. The legs are larger and sturdier the the old ones. If you are around 6ft tall, you'll have a very sturdy tripod and never use the adjustable center height adjuster (which makes it less stable... )

I ALREADY HAVE THE MANFROTTO 055XPROB ALUMINUM TRIPOD AND WHILE IT IS A GREAT TRIPOD THERE ARE TIMES WHEN I NEEDED A LIGHTER TRIPOD WHEN HAVING TO WALK FURTHER AWAY FROM MY VEHICLE...THIS TRIPOD FULFILLS THAT NEED AS IT IS MUCH LIGHTER, SHORTER IN COLLAPSED LENGTH AND EASIER TO CARRY...THIS WITH THE 498C2 BALL HEAD SETS UP FAST WITH THE QUICK RELEASE HEAD AND IS LIGHT ENOUGH TO LUG A WAYS SO I CAN GET MY NEXT SHOT WITHOUT BREAKING IT DOWN...LOVE THEM BOTH!!!

Great light weight tripod. Used immediately in heavy snow in Colorado to light painting in Arches National Park. So much lighter than my old pods.Highly recommend. I will need to look for larger feet for each leg or spiked feet to keep better traction on sand and rock but that's nothing negative against this tripod. I'm just in crazy terrain at times. Delivery was quick and everything received with out any problems.

I use this tripod to hold my Leica 77 spotting scope.Its light to carry for its size and very sturdy even when the wind is blowing. Also it extends high enough to stand up and view with out having to bend down which is a good thing when looking through a scope. I'm 5ft 10inch.and never have it out to full extension .

Great set of legs solid light enough not to leave behind and tall enough so i'am not bending to much as 6'1" tall.

Fantastic buy and does what it says.

A nice light tripod

mi ha lasciato un po' deluso, mi aspettavo qualcosa di meglio soprattutto non mi aspettavo un'apertura che non fosse regolabile, le gambe sono molto divaricate per evitare ribaltamenti ma non è possibile fermarle a metà corsa per situazioni di emergenza

Auch mit schweren Objektiv ist das Stativ sehr standfest. Ideal auch für längere Wanderungen. Die Verarbeitung lässt aus unserer Sicht keine Wünsche offen.