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3Pod Tripod Review | Adorama 3Pod P4CFH tripod

Gear, Still photography, Tech stuff

Adorama recently announced its new line of in-house tripods, which they are calling the 3Pod by Flashpoint tripod series, and today I had a chance to try out the 3Pod P4CFH 8X Carbon Fiber 4 Section FlatFold Tripod with the 3Pod H2 BallHead. I have to say I’m really impressed with what they’ve come up with. See below for my 3Pod tripod review and find out if this is the right piece of gear for you.

The 3Pod P4CFH retails for about $225 right now on Adorama.com and the 3Pod H2 BallHead retails for about $70 on Adorama.com.

The 3Pod by Flashpoint tripod series offers products for pros or beginners, video or photo shooters, and studio or traveling folks. I like this specific piece of kit, the 3Pod P4CFH tripod, for a few reasons: it folds flat, it is very light, and it can become a monopod as well.

It was hard for me at first to understand what they meant by “folds flat,” but imagine this: the three legs of the tripod, when folded down and collapsed, lay side by side in a line instead of in a triangular cluster like most tripods. This makes packing for travel much easier with the 3Pod P4CFH tripod.

 

The 3Pod P4CFH tripod goes down to 13″ and extends to an impressive 65.5″.

 

It comes in a slick little case. How about that?

 

This is what comes inside. How often does your ballhead come in a velvet case?? Velvet.

 

A close up of the 3Pod H2 BallHead. Its movements are smooth and feels solidly built.

 

The 3Pod P4CFH tripod is extremely flat and small when fully collapsed. Here it is next to a banana for scale. It’s a big banana too, FYI.

 

The center leg of the 3Pod P4CFH tripod detaches to become a monopod. Very handy for traveling in case you want to save space.

 

The 3Pod P4CFH comes with a two-section extending center column, which is removable. This is one part of the design that didn’t blow me away. I generally like tripods with center columns that collapse in the tripod, below the mounting plate, but that would not be possible given the “flat folding” design of the 3Pod P4CFH tripod.

 

The quick release adjustments on the tripod legs are easy to use and they feel reliable.

 

The carbon fiber construction makes the tripod light, but sturdy. You can also see here how the 3Pod P4CFH tripod folds flat.

 

Thanks for reading this 3Pod P4CFH tripod review and I hope it was helpful.

 

 

Adorama Glow HexaPop Review

Gear, Lighting, Still photography

 

Adorama now makes its own photography lighting gear, and they recently sent me their Glow HexaPop 24″ softbox for review. The Adorama Glow HexaPop is similar to a standard softbox for still photography, but it’s got some nice umbrella-like features in the back so that it can collapse down quickly for transport. It retails for about $135 on Adorama with a current rebate offer. With this Adorama Glow HexaPop review I’ll tell you about some of the pros and cons in case you’re shopping for this kind of gear.

 

Pros:

  • Use with any standard flash
  • Lightweight
  • Quick setup and take down
  • Solid construction of the softbox
  • Soft, but crisp, light

Cons:

  • Although it is lightweight, only time can tell how well the plastic elements of the bracket will hold up

 

The Glow series of light modifiers includes all sorts of shapes and sizes, and this HexaPop version of their softbox is 24″. It’s a good, manageable size for shooting portraits on-the-go or doing quick head shots in tight spaces, etc. You could even wander an event like a wedding and shoot candids with this softbox in one hand and your camera in the other. I wish I had this with me on my three minute portrait shoot with Amazon.com CEO Jeff Bezos earlier this month! The six wires in the back of the softbox snap into place really quickly, and I could’ve set this up in no time.

Simply put, this is a nice, light softbox that will get the job done. Of course, if you want softer light, you’ll need to get something larger. They do make a range of light modifiers for still photography, built for both large studio strobes and smaller flashes. Stay tuned for a review of the Adorama Glow 71″ Grand Softbox, but the Adorama Glow HexaPop 24″ is a nice place to start for creating simple, soft light from your flash. I think it’s worth the $135 it’s going for right now on Adorama.com.