Customer Reviews

Joby GP3 Gorillapod SLR-Zoom Flexible Tripod + BH1 Ball Head with Bubble Level

5 star:		(46)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I read the reviews here complaining about the weight not being supported but I have had no issue so far. I use a Pentax K200D with a battery pack and while I have not used my biggest lens "in the field" with this, I have tested it and once I got it balanced, it did fine. Im not sure I would try hanging it off the side of my car with a huge lens on but I feel more than comfortable with my lighter lenses.

If you are familiar with the Gorillapod concept there is nothing new about this one other than being bigger and having a ball head. The legs are big enough to wrap around a normal railing/post you would find in most touristy places. Bigger than a stop sign pole but smaller than a street light pole.

Attaching it to strange places is much easier due to the quick release on the ball head. You can position the pod, slide the camera in, test the load and then either adjust or start shooting.

My ball head is quite stiff to the point that if it has been unused for more than a day or two I have to push hard to get it "fluid" again. Not a bad thing in my opinion.

The quick release plate is small the level placement is excellent. I have gotten in the habit of leaving it on and using it to level my shots hand shooting. The connector is a screw and really needs to be tightened with a quarter so keep one handy.

If I had a complain it would be that getting the legs straight for storage can be a pain. It seems like getting one straight makes the others bent. This is not a "carry in a pocket" tripod and leaving it attacked would not be a good idea. I got mine on sale and I am not sure if I would have paid full price for it. Its a great product but the full price seems a bit excessive.

I have not explored the world of wild connections much but for me where the Gorillapod really shines are those low angle shots. I can make my "real" tripod get as low as the Gorillapod but it means reconfiguring to flip the center post and shooting upside down. 20 minutes vs 1 minute with the Groillapod. It doesnt replace a full tripod but it does a lot of things better and faster. Highly recommended.

Bought this for a trip to China. Weight and size were a consideration, but I knew I wanted some kind of stable platform for low-light/night shots.
Gorillapod filled the bill. Bought it with the BH1 ball head, and strongly suggest some kind of adjustable 'head' as screwing the camera onto the g'pod alone gives very restricted movement.
Used the G'pod extensively in the 'TerraCotta Warrior' exhibit in Xi'an. Almost perfect. Attached my Nikon D90 with a medium zoom. Wrapped the flex-legs around the guard rail and shot some very low exposures. Worked well. Attaching the 70-300mm zoom caused some 'creep' unless the lens/camera combo was almost level. Still, that's a lot of weight for so small a ball-head, and should be expected.
Night shots along the seawall in Shanghai and Hong Kong were perfect. DO use a self timer or remote release, as this isn't the most stable of platforms. That said, there aren't many tripods which will curl up in your camera bag. Took it to several museums which required a "Professional" permit for tripod usage and no one batted an eye.
Pro: Small, inexpensive, sturdy and okay for light zooms.
Con: The tacky rubber rings WILL slip on metal rails w/o careful adjustment.
Recommended

It's easy to reach the Gorillapod's 6.5 lb weight limit. My 40D plus a zoom lens like the 38-135mm, or larger, plus a Speedlite 580EX II and a wireless receiver and I'm at or over the limit. Plus, good luck on the Gorillapod's (small) ball head holding the camera in portrait orientation (sideways) without drift. It holds somewhat better in portrait orientation without the Speedlite and with a lighter lens like the 50mm. Somewhat.

Works fine in landscape orientation (normal camera position) on relatively level surfaces. But when wrapping the legs around an angled object, you're back to depending on the (small) ball head to keep the camera level -- which again is difficult to do without drift when trying for portrait orientation.

So far I've not found the Gorillapod as practical or versatile as I'd hoped and imagined. So I've used it far less than I anticipated. I've heard exactly the same reactions from a friend who bought his Gorillapod a week before I did.

Am I disappointed? Maybe I was expecting too much. Yes, it's easy to carry and I will use it (or try to) in some situations. Is it overpriced? Not really, in my opinion. Will it replace your tripod? Not even close. Is it essential? No. Helpful? Yes.

Frankly, I imagine I'll ultimately use it more often to position a Speedlite than to hold my camera. For THAT, it's terrific. Will hold a shoe mount multiclamp, Speedlite and umbrella -- as long as there's something to wrap the Gorillapod's legs around. You can quickly set your light in some interesting positions, depending on the environment.

This is an awesome little tripod that works great. I'm using it with a Nikon D90 with battery grip (including 2 batteries) and it holds the weight just fine. The ball head on this tripod is sturdy for the application. I wanted a small, lightweight tripod that I could carry easily when I was mobile without having to take my larger Manfrotto tripod with me. This unit is very small in size and easily clips onto my SlingShot 202AW camera bag. The ball head has a quick release plate that attaches to your camera and there is a level on the back side for convenience. It's a 1/4" thread screw with a flat-blade notch for tightening. You might want to carry a quarter or other coin with you to tighten this screw. Another method I found that works well if you DON'T have a coin is to get the screw finger-tight with the back of the quick release plate (side with the level on it) pointed to "10 o'clock". Then just turn the quick release plate to "12 o'clock" and it tightens up. Turn the quick release plate counterclockwise to loosen the screw.

Using the tripod is easy with the adjustable legs. Each "nub" has it's own ability to twist and pivot within it's mount so you can really twist this thing around a number of items for great shots. I recently wanted to take a photo of me and a bunch of friends lined up a staircase in a vacation home so I wrapped the Gorillpod around the top of a dining room chair for a make-shift tripod mount and was able to get the shot. Very nice. I used it to take pictures of a sunrise by wrapping the Gorillapod around the corner of a patio deck and was able to get the shot. It just sets up so quickly that it's hard NOT to want to use this thing more and more.

I read reviews where users said that getting the legs straight after bending them was an issue but I didn't find it hard at all. As I mentioned above, each nub can pivot in it's own mount so just work the legs moving one mount at a time and you'll get them straight in no time. It seriously only takes less than 30 seconds. However, even if it took longer it's still worth it because the Gorillapod allows you to get really creative in taking photos. You're not supposed to take photos from the same vantage points as your true amateur...you're supposed to capture angles not seen before and this tripod definitely helps achieve that goal.

I recommend this unit 200%. Absolutely worth the money, it's lightweight, build quality is solid, and the ball head is smooth but tight. Great buy for the money and you won't be disappointed.

First of all, I'm assuming you're considering the version that comes with the ball head. Buy the one with the ball head. Seriously. Just do it. This little guy is really great for travel for the following reasons:

SIZE:
It's smaller than just about any other travel tripod. The legs don't extend. What you see is what you get. Still, if you can live with an upward angled shot, or if you can find something to set it on (see versatility below) then you can't go wrong with this guy. It's so small that it may actually fit INSIDE your camera bag, instead of having to be strapped to the side.

VERSATILITY:
The flexible legs give this tripod the versatility to "grab" onto things as other tripods cannot. You can wrap it around a light pole, tree branch, park bench arm-rest, ... you get the picture. Yes, it's short, but you can connect it to just about anything. In my mind, that's a fair trade.

LOOKS:
The look of this tripod is a feature in a way that you wouldn't expect. Frankly, it's ugly and not-at-all professional looking. However, I think that's a BONUS. A lot of tourist attractions have taken to forbidding tripods. Whatever their rationale, the more "professional" you look the more hassle you're probably going to get. I don't take my carbon-fiber Manfrotto to museums. I take this guy because it flies right under the radar and I can generally play the "stupid tourist" bit. Then again, if not, ... see "speed" below.

SPEED:
Assuming you buy the one with the ball head, this baby is FAST. Just leave the mounting plate attached to your camera and you're ready to go in seconds -- no legs to extend, no knobs to tighten, nothing. Simplicity makes for speed. When you're done, pop the plate off the base and stow the tripod again. Even if a venue wants to hassle you for using a tripod, you'll be gone before they have a chance to say anything.

SUPPORT:
This isn't a feature so much as an expectation. Other reviews have suggested that this tripod isn't "stiff" enough to support heavy camera gear. I guess that depends on what you consider to be "heavy" and, in some regards, they're probably right. If you're a pro with a full-frame body and a monster zoom, then no, this is probably not the right solution for you. However, I shoot a Nikon D90 and this tripod will support the body, flash gun, and the Nikkor 18-200 at full extension with no problem. (I will note, though, that the leg joints use only friction to keep them in place. Over time, they will loosen up and may start to slip. I haven't experienced this yet, but it's bound to happen eventually. Hopefully that time is far enough off that I feel like I got my money's worth.)

All in all, this is part of my standard kit now.

I took a couple pictures with my iPhone of my Canon XSi with my 55-250mm lens and hood on the Gorillapod. I seem to have deleted the pictures, but will look for them and hopefully I can post after the fact. It was very solid, legs had no problems supporting the weight and I wasn't nervous in the least. The rubber feet do an excellent job of keeping it in one place. I used this tripod to take a number of pictures and it was so easy to get it in just the right spot, thanks to the ball head and level!

A friend of mine has a cheaper brand and is always complaining about how the joints in the legs don't hold position. If anything, the Gorillapod joints are almost too tough to move, but I consider that a necessity! I think having to finesse the tripod into a solid and stable position is a good thing. I think the little extra you might pay for the Gorillapod is worth the peace of mind when you're setting $1,000, or more, worth of gear on top of it! I was able to take advantage of a promo and got this at a very nice price. Look around for promo's and make this a real bargain!

When carrying a tripod doesn't make sense, too lazy to carry one a tripod, or just one of those tripod less days, this product comes in handy. I've coupled the joby with a 5D Mark I with grip and 70-200 F2.8 IS lens and the joby held up pretty well. I was impressed. The legs were, beyond my expectation, stiff. Very function and fits comfortably in any camera bag. Not a cure all product but for the space requirements, this works very well.

Well, if I could finally use a GorillaPod, I'd probably like it. First, I bought one of these things for 50$ without the fluid head at a camera store, and when I realized that it's impossible to use without the head, I looked online to see how much the head was. I expected the head to be $20, but it was 50$ too! Luckily, Amazon was having a kit sale, a two-for-one for $50, so I took my GorillaPod back to the store and then bought this set. Trouble is, the ball head does not work! It does a smooth pan as a head (with grease practically flowing out of the seams and crannies, it's a bit messy.), but the entire ball part is completely stuck and from inspecting it, it looks like the ball is simply too big and tight for it's holder. It simply will not budge no matter what I do, loosing the screw or not (that just makes the lower section loose.) so I'm returning this tripod and hoping that a new one works.

The positive things about a GorillaPod -

-You can curve them around objects very generally, but I would not trust it without being right there behind the camera to make sure it doesn't fall, unless you truly know it is secure by tugging on it first.

-You can bend the legs in different fashions and make a hand-held stablizer that works well for video modes!

-Works as a table-top tripod.

-The head included with this kit turns an unwieldy system into something that is very precise, giving you the options for panning with the head, the ball options (if it's not stuck), and the snap on-off screw mount makes attaching your camera to this tripod a breeze!

-The rubber feet and leg pads keep it from sliding on smooth surfaces.

-$55 really isn't bad for this kit, it looks very professional and they pulled out all the stops for this.

The Cons -

-After bending the legs for the first time, they become significantly looser, making it a bit loose for large DSLR standards. Even the T2i on my GorillaPod is a bit of a load for this tripod, making it top heavy, prone to tipping over, and making any handheld stablizer work a bit unpredictable as the legs may suddenly buckle a bit uncontrollably with a heavier camera like the T2i.

-The legs are a bit of a hassle to get straight and you may look a little foolish fighting with this thing.

-The legs are a bit too big to truly wrap them around things, I have a feeling this invention suits the tiny, thin legs better, with this thicker, stronger version being a later attempt at the DSLR market.

As I noted in the title of my review this product does much better holding a camera when mounted horizontally than it does vertically. I tested it out the past few days at Niagara Falls - works great for night photography of the falls without having to lug around a "real" tripod. As an amputee who must walk with a cane it's great to be able to just have this hanging on the camera while strapped around my neck and not having to hold it thereby freeing up the only available hand I have to hold anything. Horizontally it wrapped around the railings there beautifully and held it steadily even with some moisture on the railing. When mounted horizontally, but with the camera tilted vertically it did well too with the ball head. The quick release bubble level mount worked well and I had no concerns with its ability to effectively secure my camera. I purchased 2 additional bubble quick release mounts (Joby GP2-41EN Extra Gorillapod SLR Clip with Bubble Level) for a point and shoot camera and a digital camera with zoom that is between the point and shoot and an SLR.

My dissatisfaction came when I wanted to take some night pictures of lighted Disney holiday displays but had nothing else to mount it to but a vertical no parking signpost. It just didn't seem to hold well at all this way and at first I wondered if it had anything to do with my camera (Nikon D50 SLR with 18-55 mm lens on it) or "user error" until I saw someone else trying to do the exact same thing with his point and shoot on his smaller Gorillapod - he, like I, simply gave up on it and moved on.

Bottom line: It's a handy product depending on what your intended use is. If a very good friend asked me if I'd recommend it to him/her I'd probably let him/her borrow mine rather than invest the money into their own. I don't regret buying it, but am not as pleased with it as I thought I'd be.

I have had this for about 9 months and absolutely love it.

I use it with a D90 and have had great results with even my heavier lenses (18-200VR, 70-300VR). I have not tried it when using the battery grip, but it seems that since the weight it centered it should work for that too. The ball head is surprisingly stable for the price. I personally added a Manfrotto quick release so that I can use it interchangeably with my monopod & tripod and not change plates.

This tripod can be spread out to be very stable on a flat surface, and has long enough legs to wrap around a handrail or substantial size tree branch. The rubberized joints on the legs prevent it from slipping, even when wrapped around a smooth object. Finally, the tripod is small enough to be easily carried, and its flexibility allows it to be attached by wrapping it around any loop on your pack. In the end, it isn't quite as functional as a nice full size tripod, but you simply cannot beat the portability of a tripod that works nearly perfectly in so many situations. If you ever use your standard DSLR hiking or in situations that you don't want to lug a full tripod, this is the solution for you.