Red And Black - Stendhal's Tripod

Go On. Look it up. Better yet...read it.

This tripod from Manfrotto - one of  the BeFree series - addresses four complaints I have had about other firm's work in the past. In addition to a great deal of Italian style, I am delighted that:

1. The tripod has colour. All too many of them are black and dull, and apart from the aesthetics of that, they are a camouflaged menace in a darkened studio, or out in open air after dark. A black tripod has three black legs splayed out there just waiting to trip up the unwary or hard of seeing.

2. The leg angle adjustment can be made with one hand, and is not hard to understand. I've owned tripods that concealed their angle adjustments in under the leg itself and then invited you to insert your fingers in there....Then they snapped shut like a nutcracker! These red ( thank you, Manfrotto ) levers have three possies - closed, tall leg, or short leg, and that is it.

3. When it folds back together on itself for travel, the three legs have somewhere to go close to the quick release holder. Many other tripods adopt the folder leg but when they come home to roost there is no room for it.

4.The smaller knobs are actually shaped bars that define which way to turn them to loosen or tighten the screw. This is again a blessing in a darkened studio or paddock.

See the Manfrotto range on the Camera Electronic website here