Vanguard Tourist-2 Compact Travel Tripod

Rating:
Summary: It is what it is
Review: I am an intermediate digital photographer, and this is my third tripod. I travel frequently, and wanted something that could come anywhere. My first tripod, inherited from my father is exceptionally sturdy, but heavy and immense. My second is smaller, folding up to about 15 inches in length and nearly 3 in diameter. It's light enough to be portable, but large enough to be combersome. The Vanguard Tourist 2 is not designed to be a primary tripod. It's small and lightweight (it actually does weigh about a pound). It isn't very tall at full height, but it will due for those moments when you need to have either A: a steady camera in a low light or night shot (a tripod is a definite must here) or B: to use the self timer and hold above a crowd. It comes with a small travel case, so if you already carry a camera around with you, throwing this into a bag or hooking it to your belt (although a little weighty and sure to raise eyebrows at security checkpoints), it's an excellent choice to have. It's not plastic or flimsy, it feels surprisingly sterdy considering the size and weight, but don't expect it to take too much abuse. If you need something better, get a real tripod.

Rating:
Summary: It is what it is
Review: I am an intermediate digital photographer, and this is my third tripod. I travel frequently, and wanted something that could come anywhere. My first tripod, inherited from my father is exceptionally sturdy, but heavy and immense. My second is smaller, folding up to about 15 inches in length and nearly 3 in diameter. It's light enough to be portable, but large enough to be combersome. The Vanguard Tourist 2 is not designed to be a primary tripod. It's small and lightweight (it actually does weigh about a pound). It isn't very tall at full height, but it will due for those moments when you need to have either A: a steady camera in a low light or night shot (a tripod is a definite must here) or B: to use the self timer and hold above a crowd. It comes with a small travel case, so if you already carry a camera around with you, throwing this into a bag or hooking it to your belt (although a little weighty and sure to raise eyebrows at security checkpoints), it's an excellent choice to have. It's not plastic or flimsy, it feels surprisingly sterdy considering the size and weight, but don't expect it to take too much abuse. If you need something better, get a real tripod.

Rating:
Summary: Good for what it does
Review: I bought this tripod specifically to keep in my camera bag for those times when I need a tripod but don't have one. It is a light-weight travel tripod and that's exactly what it's good for. Don't buy this if you expect more than that. For $18 (what I paid, definitely not list @ $30) it's there for me when I'm in a pinch.

This tripod (without legs extended) will hold my digital rebel, 550EX flash, and canon 70-200mm f/2.8L lens (about 4 lbs total) level but the ball head locking mechanism is not strong enough to hold it at an angle. It certainly cannot hold this setup in portrait. Using a smaller lens (e.g., EF-S 17-55mm) and no flash this tripod will hold at any angle including portrait. If you have a non-SLR camera this problem probably shouldn't be an issue for you.

I have used this tripod in both night shots and a spur of the moment family pictures (I certainly wanted to be in it).

The tripod is somewhat difficult to fit in the case (tight fit but not too hard to get in and zipped shut). With no center column it's fairly easy for the camera in portrait to hit the legs when panned around and requires some shuffling around with the legs to get the shot.

All in all, a worthy tripod that fits the bill of what I purchased it for: to keep handy. If I buy another flash (like the 420EX) then this tripod might serve to hold that flash when used as a wireless slave.

Rating:
Summary: Does what it suppose to....but
Review: I was looking for a tripod that I can take with me anywhere. But I was wary of flimsy construction of the most compact tripods. The sturdier tripods, even the ones that claim to be COMPACT, fold down to the vicinity of 13 to 14 inches. The Vanguard Tourist-2 folds down to 10.5 inches. I decided to go for the Tourist-2, not really knowing what to expect since I bought it online, sight unseen except for the pic. Here is my assessment:

My first impression is that the tripod felt much heavier than I expected, even though the box states that it is only 1.1 pound. This may be a bit too heavy to loop around your belt, but it would work fine in a back-pack. The legs are on the flimsy side, as I expected. They are pretty much like large extendable antennas on cars. Construction is fairly nice, but I'd have to doubt that the longevity of this tripod is very long when it is used extensively. This tripod would work well for occasional use out on the road, as intended. However, I would NOT pay it's list price; it is not worth it! Fortunately, I got it for a lot less. Since it is still too heavy to loop around the belt and has to be toted in a back-pack anyway, I think I would prefer now a 13" tripod that extends a bit higher with much sturdier legs. Oh well...next time.

Rating:
Summary: WYSIWYG
Review: Okay; if you want something STURDY this may not be the tripod for you. Out of the box I was a little afraid, but I liked the fact that it is this small, while extending a fair length. I do miss a quick-release and the (easy extending & retracting) legs don't spread out very wide, but for a cheap, lightweight tripod compared to the price I paid I cannot complain. In practical use it does all that I require it to do and it holds my 2.2 lbs camera stable and still (I shot some long exposures of the moonrise over Palm Springs from a windy 10'000ft peak). Nifty carry bag easily clips to your belt, but as mentioned elsewhere it may raise some eyebrows (looks like you are into something kinky). So; if you don't like to tote around a big tripod and you don't require easy (or any) panning and your camera is at or below 2 lbs, this may be all you need.

Rating:
Summary: Problem with Ball Mount
Review: The size of this tripod is ideal when space is limited - in a pinch it can fit in a pocket. There is one major design/construction flaw however - the ball portion of the ball & socket mechanism is actually the head of a rivet machined to a ball shape. This rivet attaches to the headpiece that connects the three legs. In my case - this rivet worked loose the first day (with absolutely no pressure or abuse), meaning that the ball now rotates and wiggles back and forth. Obviously, this makes the tripod useless because there's no solid mounting for the camera. Since the construction uses a rivet (instead of a screw), there's no way to tighten this. Maybe mine's defective - but I'd be leary this construction.