I was looking for a lightweight tripod for travel, something that would fit in a suitcase and be reasonably compact and light to carry, but still be sturdy and usable enough to support a DSLR with 70-200mm f/2.8 lens. For quite some time I’ve owned a Manfrotto 3021PRO, which is an inexpensive aluminum tripod and very usable. The Manfrotto is a great tripod for use in the studio or driving around in the car, but it is a bit much to carry on plane trips or hikes.
At first I was thinking of a very light Gitzo carbon fiber model. Carbon fiber materials are expensive, but I figured it was worth splurging a bit to get something light that could take abuse. The Traveler series appeared to be perfect but was out of my price range at US$600+. I then figured the GT0540 was worth a look, being one of the smallest in the Gitzo line. I bought one from B&H Photo, and found immediately that it was too small and flimsy for my purposes. The thing was well made but barely adequate for a point-and-shoot camera. I sent it back.
After doing some research, I became intrigued by the Benro tripod series. They are a Chinese-made Gitzo imitation, and they got some really good reviews online. B&H stocks a few models, and it wasn’t at all clear to me which one would be right. So I bought both the Benro C-158n6(US$240) and Benro C-258n6 (US$270), both carbon fiber models with similar specs, both on the lower end of the Benro line, and tried them both out, with the intention of returning the one I did not like.
They are both well-made tripods, quite the engineering marvels. Both are pretty much identical, except the 158n6 is slightly smaller and the legs are slightly narrower, and a bit lighter in weight. Not smaller by much in any dimension. They are both 4-section tripods with built-in compass and bubble level. The leg grips are nice and large, easy to turn, and the leg sections do not rotate, so it’s easy to, say, unscrew the bottom grip when the other sections are extended (which is impossible with tripods in which the leg sections rotate freely). One nice feature, there’s enough friction on the leg sections when collapsed that I don’t need to lock the grips when the tripod is in storage. Both tripods come with a nice carry case, and one leg is padded with a foam grip.
Of the two, the smaller version (C-158n6), which I expected to prefer, appeared significantly less stable. It didn’t give me much confidence in terms of holding a DSLR camera steady. Also, the extended height of the C-158n6 seems really too short to be of much use.
The larger version (Benro C-258n6) on the other hand, while it does not seem much bigger, seems in my opinion to cross the threshold of usefulness. While the C-158n6 seems flimsy, the C-258n6 seems quite adequate. I have had good results mounting a 5D DSLR with 70-200 f/2.8 lens on it and 1.6 extender. Similarly, the height seems quite usable. When fully extended, it is nearly as tall as my Manfrotto. True, it is not quite as sturdy as my Manfrotto, and it fails the “twisting test” in which you try to twist the tripod while it’s standing. Yet, it performs well in the field for my purposes. When collapsed, it’s significantly smaller than the Manfrotto, small enough to fit in my suitcase. I have since carried it while bicycling both on my back and on the rear rack, and it is barely noticeable. I have carried it strapped to the back of my Lowepro backpack, and it is uncomfortable in tight spaces but not much of a problem when hiking in the outdoors. And it travels well in my luggage.
So, in my opinion, the Benro C-258n6 seems like a very good choice for travel tripod. Without a head, it fits into my smaller luggage. With my old Manfrotto ball head (the 3262QR Ball Head, which is not particularly precise, but small), it fits into my larger luggage. It’s probably the smallest tripod that I would consider using. As a travel tripod for taking on airplane flights and hikes, I recommend it.
