Thanks to Manfrotto for the Befree Tripod, you can know travel with a sturdy, durable tripod that won’t weigh you down. It is truly the ultimate travel tripod. I was already convinced it would perform as expected, being that it was made with the integrity and experience of the Manfrotto brand. However, even the best-made products in the world still had a hard chance against my single cylinder motorcycle dubbed the paint-shaker.
Motorcycles are just simply very hard on gear, and the rocky off-roads we succumbed to many times didn’t help the situation. Over 3000 miles on the motorcycle, I didn’t even have a bolt come loose on the Befree tripod. I was incredibly impressed!
Aside from the durability of the tripod, the features incorporated into the Befree made it much less of a chore to pull out a tripod. The three legs are super easy to maneuver and I love the technology used to make this tripod packable as well as versatile. The tripod can be set at both a 25° angle and a 51° angle which is great for the variable situations that come about while traveling.
Lightweight travel tripods are great but in all honesty, I don’t like how flimsy they feel. The Befree feels like a stout, normal sized tripod but packs down into a very doable size. I am more than happy to trade a little bit of size for a lot of sturdiness.
Even after sand, rain, hot temperatures and cold temperatures, the flip locks on the legs still worked very well (not to mention all of the rattling that the tripod inevitably faced).
The quick release plate is easy to use and the lock on the plate ensures your camera won’t release even in the worst conditions. I love the ball head on the Befree, it is super quick and easy to get any shot you could possibly dream of. Even shooting video, it does very well with a steady guide hand.
Manfrotto includes a padded carrying case with a shoulder strap, which I simply used as a mode of protection. The overall length is 15.7 inches and fit perfectly strapped to the duffle on the back of the motorcycle. With a weight of only 3 pounds, I know my motorcycle didn’t notice it but if I were on a camping trip, I wouldn’t leave this one at home especially because of a weight factor.
If you do a lot of traveling or what I’ll call adventure photography, I genuinely think that this could be the only tripod you have to own. For our particular trip, I only took a few smaller lenses and a 100-300mm lens. Although the Befree does have a load capacity of 8.8 lbs, I think you could push that limit a bit and get away with it while having above average performance.
The Befree took on every challenge I threw at I, and like I said, setting up this tripod is quick, easy, and definitely not a chore. Whether you’re shooting seascapes, starry nights, or simple video, the Befree will achieve whatever you want it to and withstand years of abuse in the great outdoors!
