Customer Reviews

Joby GP3 Gorillapod SLR-Zoom Flexible Tripod

5 star:		(80)
4 star:		(58)
3 star:		(24)
2 star:		(11)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

I bought this small tripod to take on a backpacking trip across glacier. Having read reviews of the smaller versions of this tripod I opted for the biggest one since I have a rather solid D200 with 18-200mm lens that I intended to use with this product.

First, the joints are quite firm, yes it will support the camera fairly well, however when the legs are bent too far from a straight tripod style the leverage will over come the joints and your camera will sag in frustrating ways.

Second, forget framing a shot in a reasonable amount of time. Horizen line off a little bit? Be prepared to fight the above slops and sags while trying to make precision adjustments.

Third, make sure when you buy this that you are not expecting small tripod style behavior. You can't throw this thing down, make a couple of quick leg adjustments and go. You will be screwing around for a good 5 to 10 minutes trying to force it to do what you could have done in less than a minute with a real tripod.

Bonus - the screw that attaches to your camera is a pain to use. It is not fixed to the tripod; it spins freely. Who has a screw driver around all the time to take it on and off? I ended up lightly screwing it on and off by spinning the whole tripod while holding the screw with my thumbnail. This sort of works as you fight the non-slip rubber on the camera and the tripod top. After the frustrations of using it and not getting what I wanted in the shots, fighting to take it on and off the camera can be enough to evoke choice words from the most patient...

Overall this product might be easier to use with a tiny ball-head. Points two and three could hopefully be resolved for the most part but it would cause even more leverage on the legs compounding the observations in point one above. Since I own it I will probably go this route to give it one more shot and update my review if it helps out a lot.

Over all this product works as described, you can hang it off random posts (upto about 2.5" in diameter) and entertain small children. I probably won't use it more than 2 or 3 times in the next couple years for the type of work I do though.

This version of the Gorillapod is supposed to hold up to a 6.3lb combination of lens and camera but... it doesn't. If you use it as a regular tabletop tripod, the top knuckles buckle under a medium weight dSLR (Canon 50D or 5D) equipped with a solid lens. It would probably hold a lighter camera and mostly-plastic "kit lens" -- a Canon 500, 1000 or XT series or a Nikon D40 or D60 series.

Even then, it's a very springy platform and it will vibrate to the slightest touch, so if you're in a low light situation and need to use a stable platform, you'll need to use a cable release or use the 10-second delayed release timer. (Two seconds is too short a time -- the Gorillapod vibrates for longer than that if you exert enough pressure to trip the shutter.

There are two places where where I can use it with a mid-weight dSLR: (1) when I wrap the legs around, say, the top rail of a chair, or a two to three inch thick tree branch and get the platform close to the horizontal support and (2) if I want to get very close to the ground for a shot and can bend out the bottom half of the legs so they're horizontal. That makes it less likely that the knuckles just below the platform will buckle under the weight of the camera.

So: OK for a light SLR; limited use for a medium one (Canon 20D-40D-50D & 5D series or a Nikon D700); don't even think about it for a pro camera (Nikon D3 or Canon ID series). I'm sure this would work well for just about any camera lighter than an SLR. But even with a light camera, you need a delayed shutter release to let the considerable vibration from tripping the shutter to die down.

When traveling, less is more. This is especially true for the serious photo enthusiast. When I travel, I want to carry as little as possible. However, I also want to have at hand everything I need to deal with the variety of situations I might encounter. In other words, my equipment choices need to be relatively compact, lightweight and flexible. I don't want to carry multiple single-purpose items. Instead, I look for single multi-purpose items.

That said, the Gorillapod is ideal. It's clever design and lightweight materials make it easy to carry and useful for a variety of photo situations. The SLR-Zoom Gorillapod is sturdy enough to support my Nikon D200 with 18mm-200mm Nikor zoom lens, and at the same time compact and light enough to attach to my camera bag with a hook and loop strap. All 'n all, a clever, useful and travel-friendly photo accessory.

What I like :
a. It's reasonably rigid and does not change position under the camera's weight.
b. VERY light - love that !
c. Takes standard 1/4" and 3/8" screw mounts for most cameras / tripod heads so works with all your gear. (But see below !)

What could improve :
a. Not very stable with long lenses. (I think they may have to change the laws of physics to fix that problem !)
b. Open package VERY CAREFULLY, or you may lose the 3/8" adapter ! It's a small thing and you will lose it unless you look out for it.
c. I had expected it to be a bit longer; the legs are not that long, so the ability to wrap the thing around pipes / tree branches / park bench handles, is a bit constrained as you often run out of leg !

Overall does the job reasonably well.

I frequently carry my dSLR with me to work or when hiking but don't always want the bulk of a traditional tripod. The Gorillapod is small enough to fit into my camera bag or backpack without adding much bulk.

I regularly use it for low/no light photography with my Rebel XT and 10-22mm lens. I have made exposures of up to 30 seconds with no problems whatsoever. The bendy legs allow me to mold it to say fit on a chain link fence or tree branch and then use a remote trigger to trip the shutter.

This product will never replace a traditional tripod but once you understand what it excels at and learn how best to use it you'll be incredibly happy you bought it.

For a handy little tripod that's slightly smaller and much more versatile that a traditional tabletop tripod the Gorillapod can't be beat.

I bought this last year to use on hikes where I didn't want to carry a tripod. It's not as stable as I had hoped, but it works out ok as long as you don't have a heavy kit on it. I have a 20D and use heavier 2.8 zooms...this seems to be a little too much weight for SLR camera support, as it just doesn't hold on surfaces that I had in mind when I bought it - railings, branches, anything round. I have found an alternate use for it though...

I mounted a swivel adapter on the gorillapod and attached a flash and Pocket Wizard to it. This is the nice alternative to using a superclamp. While it's not as stable and sturdy as a superclamp, it's a little more forgiving and will allow you to stick a flash just about anywhere. It also works much better than the normal "flash" hotshoe stands as you can spread the legs for more stability.

I imagine this would be great for a smaller DSLR kit, like a Canon Rebel series or Nikon D40/D50 and lighter lenses. I was a little disappointed with it at first and almost returned it, but it has earned it place in my kit as a flash clamp.

This model, the SLR-ZOOM Gorillapod, is designed without a quick release mount so you can use your own tripod head. If you don't have your own tripod head or plan to get one, you should probably look into the original Gorillapod or the SLR Gorillapod. The SLR-ZOOM Gorillapod can support an amazing 6.6 lbs. Great product!

I think that this is a great product. It has the strength to hold my XTi with a 70-300IS lens without the legs collapsing. My only complaint is that there is no "quick release" included with this tripod. You either have to screw the 'pod directly to the camera or buy a "ball head", which I did. The addition of the ball head increased the weigth but I get great shots with tripod.

I have quite enjoyed this gorillapod slr, but I must say that there are some issues with its use.
Others have mentioned the constant struggle to get it at just the right angle, and its true. If you want to get around this problem the easiest (though not cheapest) way it to get a separate head to mount on it that you can swivel to your heart's content.
My only real criticism is a matter of lifespan: I have found that over time the segments of the legs tend to crack slightly, resulting in a loss of strength and weight capacity. Once this had happened in two leg segments on two of the legs, it is now unable to support the weight of a Canon 5d mkII with 24-105mm f/4 L lens. Since that is my only good camera body, and one of my lighter lenses, it is now quite useless. I should mention though that I never put this gorillapod through much hard work, so these small fractures are not the result of improper use.

What it lacks in convenience, it makes up for in practicality.
Explanation: it's a bit cumbersome to secure the joby so you can frame the shot. Definitely easier with a conventional tripod and head. However, it's so light weight, that you can actually carry it around with you everywhere without thinking twice about it. I hardly ever take my conventional tripod with me when hiking, missing out on those twilight or evening shots. And I think twice about packing the conventional tripod when going on vacation. Not so with the joby. I always have it in my bag. Not sure it would work with a 500 mm lens.