Joby Gorillapod

[Glen]

Joby Gorillapod, anyone used one? Did they work, did the make you look like a pro?

http://www.joby.com/gp3.html

[MHD]

Very cool

[Yi-P]

I have seen someone using it at darling harbour the last time I went there.

It is sure a very funny 'tripod'. It is very small in size and really stay out of the public's way. I have nearly missed him taking a shot if I wasnt taking a shot next to him...

I didnt have a chance to chat with that guy, but what appears to me is that thing 'holds' on to object by the friction rubber on the legs, and you just wrap it tight and make sure it doesnt slide down... how stable it is, I dont know, but Im sure it is very discrete and small/light to travel everywhere you go.

The question is, if you have a D2x or D200+grip and then a 70-200VR + SB800, will the 'gorilla' kneel in front of you??

[Nnnnsic]

I think it'd make you look like a lunatic, but I still want one.

[Yi-P]

I think it'd make you look like a lunatic, but I still want one.

Yeah, nobody will ever know if you are a pro or not at any stage...

[Glen]

I sort of like the look of what it can do. I think it reminds me of the robot from Lost in Space.

[Nnnnsic]

Yeah, nobody will ever know if you are a pro or not at any stage...

I've come up with a solution to getting people to stop asking me questions when it comes to taking pictures or convincing people I'm shooting for myself... now I need to come up with a t-shirt that says... "Hey! I'm A Pro!"...

I've got it! I'll come up with a t-shirt that says "Hey! I'm Not A Pro!" and use reverse psychology! Yeah! That'll work!

[bwhinnen]

I sort of like the look of what it can do. I think it reminds me of the robot from Lost in Space.

It'll make people think you are making a spy-bot... Imagine the looks with a long prime lens on it...

[Glen]

[Greg B]

AUD $85, not bad

[Yi-P]

I've got it! I'll come up with a t-shirt that says "Hey! I'm Not A Pro!" and use reverse psychology! Yeah! That'll work!

I still remember the T-shirt that says "I'm a photographer, not a terrorist" that people wear to the airport while transporting their precious supreme primes whose looked like rocket launchers on x-ray scanners.

[Greg B]

I've got it! I'll come up with a t-shirt that says "Hey! I'm Not A Pro!" and use reverse psychology! Yeah! That'll work!

I still remember the T-shirt that says "I'm a photographer, not a terrorist" that people wear to the airport while transporting their precious supreme primes whose looked like rocket launchers on x-ray scanners.

Yep, I have ordered two of those shirts from OCAU, should be arriving soon.

[PiroStitch]

Just need a T-shirt that says I'm paparazzi..

[ozimax]

I sort of like the look of what it can do. I think it reminds me of the robot from Lost in Space.

The "bubble headed booby" ! (O the pain, the pain...)

[moz]

OK, $US12 shipping is not too bad. I'd like to play with one first but it does look ideal for cycle touring - small, lightweight and not especially fragile. Who's up to buy the first SLR-zoom and give us a report?

[bwhinnen]

Photocontinental in Brissie has the SLR in stock according to their website. I should be heading there this weekend with wife in tow to look at a telescope for her for Christmas, I can always make a side trip to the tripod area and have a look and play with the smaller model, they have a number of camera bodies and lens' there to try it out with

[sheepie]

Who's up to buy the first SLR-zoom and give us a report?

I know Stubbsy's looking for a travel tripod for NZ! Don't know that this would suit his cam though - a load limit of 3kg isn't that much

[Yi-P]

Who's up to buy the first SLR-zoom and give us a report?

I know Stubbsy's looking for a travel tripod for NZ! Don't know that this would suit his cam though - a load limit of 3kg isn't that much

That is a D2x + fisheye...

[moz]

OK, I've bought one and it's at least as good as I expected. Pics after the weekend, but playing around in the living room it's quite neat. It will easily hold the 30D + 24-70/2.8 lens, and I'll test it with the 70-200/2.8 later (I need to remove the arca-swiss plate) but I suspect that will be a "hold the camera level" lens rather than the lighter lens where I could twist it into alarming shapes and it still held steady. I suspect 2.5kg is the upper limit on what it will hold full stop, rather than what it will hold in odd positions.

I just wish there as a 1/4" thread on the portrait side of the RRS L plate, because it's tricky to get that rotation out of the gorillapod without adding a head to it (and i don't really want to buy a cheap head just for this. But maybe i should.

Oh, and it comes with a tiny adaptor from 1/4" to 3/8" (or whatever the larger size is), I must try not to lose that.

[moz]

Well that didn't last long...

We've got a german backpacker staying with us, and he's got his 5D and toys to take photos with. Including a Benro carbon tripod (he takes architecture photos), and he's just bought the gorillapod off me. He tried it and decided that he can't live without it. Apparently it will hold a 5D, battery grip and 28-70 solidly enough to make him happy!

[Raskill]

2 days?

you're worse than me with lenses!

[Nnnnsic]

I have a Paxton's 50 buck voucher (yep, aside from being an admin on a camera forum, some relatives think I'd actually go there...) and they sell the regular SLR styled one for 70 bucks.

Here's the question... should I buy it?

Would it hold the D70 and say the 45 or 50 or 24 or kit lens, and if so... would I use it?

[Oscar]

I think it'd make you look like a lunatic, but I still want one.

So why wouldn't you buy it now you have a voucher - not sure what else you would buy at Paxtons.
Although the SLR Zoom version looks a more usable prospect.

Cheers, Mick

[Nnnnsic]

Hence the issue.

If I saw the SLR Zoom for 85 or 90, then the extra 35 isn't bad I take it and I'd be buying something the 80-400 could use for under 50 bucks.

I'm just wondering is it something I'd actually use?

[moz]

I think you'd use it often enough to be worth $50 or less without a shadow of a doubt. It's small and light so it's easy to just throw in a bag with other junk. I found it's brilliant with smaller lenses, my placement technique os "vaguely spread the legs out, push the camera down while holding it facing the right way" and that works 90% of the time. Sample photos at the end of this page when we were at the lighthouse: solstice ride, some over 10s exposure. The wind was the main issue, you can't hang a 10kg camera bag off the gorillapod to get extra stability. But by leaning on the leans where they hit the ground I made it mostly work.

With the 70-200IS on it it works because the tripod mount is under the centre of gravity. With the 24-70 (a 1kg lens) it's a little fussy, it works better with two legs out the front to help old the weight and it won't hold on a pole in some positions. But that's about 2kg all up so i'm not too critical - for the size and weight it's brilliant.

For comparison, I weighed my bike over the weekend and that is 25kg without adding a load! Or 250kg with four people on it...


http://www.mozbike.com/build/binbike/index.html

Nnnnsic's edit: Link removed because of the error your server was causing by remote linking with a big image.
(fixed: it was actually a deep linking blocker that returns a 4000x4000 10kB gif)

[Willy wombat]

Well that didn't last long...

We've got a german backpacker staying with us, and he's got his 5D and toys to take photos with. Including a Benro carbon tripod (he takes architecture photos), and he's just bought the gorillapod off me. He tried it and decided that he can't live without it. Apparently it will hold a 5D, battery grip and 28-70 solidly enough to make him happy!

I hope you made a proffit

[moz]

I hope you made a proffit

I think I actually lost <$1 from rounding errors.

The amusing part was that I signed up for tracking emails from the courier and the only one I got was just after the guy dropped it off, to tell me that it had been delivered. Nothing as it left the US or entered Australia, just the one within a few minutes of me signing for the package to tell me that I'd signed for it.