Top positive review
5.0 out of 5 starsIf short isn't a problem (or if it's a plus...) this is an excellent solid tripod.
Reviewed in the United States on March 15, 2021
This (AM-223) is a very short tripod, not a full sized tripod, not something you will use to take family pictures, not something you will use to sit on the ground and take pictures of fireworks, or pics of the sunset. Well ... unless you want to bend over a lot.
However, I'm SOOOOOO glad someone finally made a ROCK SOLID small tripod!!! I like to hike, backpack, and shoot nature - flowers, animals, waterfalls, etc.. My full sized tripods (Benro, Manfrotto, etc) have great stability ... total pain to heft those guys some of the places I go. So I don't. I've got a several Al and carbon travel tripods from similar level manufacturers. They are good, but still a bit bulky/long and really, I never extend the legs beyond maybe one segment as extending more they cross that line of adequate stability IMHO. And I have to rework them and/or remove the center column so they can go low. Then there are those table-top versions that are compact and light but are flimsy even from decent brands. And the heads on those ... can we even call those "heads"...?? Makes me want to cry. That's where this guy comes in. Even though it's far more compact than my travel tripods, it's more stable d/t larger leg diameter and overall beefier construction. Finally, a short/small/compact tripod that is rock solid.
It holds a FF DSLR (ie Nikon D750) with a decent sized lens (ie 70-200F2.8 using the collar mount of course, 105F2.8 micro, even my 135mmF2DF... etc.) without any problem. For mirrorless, I shoot SONY and use MFT when I'm going light; for those it's more than solid, no problem with anything I've got for those including fast telephotos.
Works with my dozens of different brands (some cheap-o no-names) Arca plates - locks them all down tight. Ball head is solid and smooth (not RRS or Kirk, or such, but on par with similar brands/price). No creep, even with heavier setup and in vertical. Legs flatten out so goes as low as any other tripod I have, and is very stable with legs 'flat.'
I've used it for 4-5 months (I typically wait to write reviews until I've really put an item through it's paces...) and it's holding up and functioning great. No concerns about quality, durability, or function.
Fantastic compact tripod. If you need elevation to sitting/standing position, then go with the typical carbon or Al travel tripod - there are lots of those, including larger models in this line. If you don't need much elevation AND you want compact BUY THIS ONE! I've been looking for/ waiting for this guy for 30 years!!
