Manfrotto Befree Advanced GT PRO Camera Tripod Kit, Travel Tripod with Ball Head, Portable & Compact, Professional Carbon Camera Tripod for DSLR, Reflex, Mirrorless, Photo Accessories, MKBFRTC4GT-BH

This is a really well designed tripod from Manfrotto but then you wouldn’t expect anything less given their reputation.It manages to balance a light weight design with a surprising stability and holds my D850 (plus lens) with no issues. The ball head is solid and locks tightly and the four section legs are easy to adjust using the twist lock system. I am in the early days of using it so it’s diffficult lt to make a judgement about long term durability but the tripod is well made and feels solid and my previous Manfrotto is still going strong after many years of constant use. In summary I think the design, weight and ball head will make it my ideal travel tripod simply because it performs well in the field balancing a lighter weight (to carry all day) with a solid performance when in use. A little expensive but worth it I think.

Excellent lightweight and compact tripod at an affordable price. Very easy to adjust to different heights and positions. Relatively stable except when using long lenses when wind vibration can become an issue. Extremely well made.I cannot see the benefits of paying more for the carbon fibre variant, given the weight difference is so small.Thoroughly recommended!

First off I'll say I did return this item to get the more expensive befree gt xpro due to 2 flaws in the entire befree range except the xpro but I ordered this item as a at the time of order the xpro carbon was £400 but by the time it arrived they had dropped the xpro carbon to £299 but note price was not the reason for the return. (I wanted under 1.8kg weight hence going carbon rather than the ally options but wanted a good solid tripod to hold 7d2 and 70-300L lens why it had to be the befree gt range rather than the lower befree ranges)First off the build quality of the legs, centre column and ball head are really good on the carbon, the twist lock on legs is really good and the feel and weight are very good, ball head is very easy to use and feels strong and well build but does lack a level but how often do you really use this and most cameras have a build in level you can use.I use up to 7d2 with 70-300L lens so the befree gt is easily able to hold this stable fully extended (the befree advanced or befree wont hold this weight steady. I wouldn't go over a mid range 100 lens or a 70 pro lens on the lower befree range) but there are 2 huge flaws with the entire befree range except the xpro.1. The little rubber bung in the end of the centre column. 2. The tightening and release center column twist screw. Now I had watched reviews and none mentioned number 2 but a few said about number 1 the bung. The issues are to use this travel tripod everytime you have to lower the centre column to get the most stability from the tripod but to pack away you have to raise it. So in raising it to pack away or raise right up you loosen the centre twist and lift the column and 8 of 10 as you hit the stop which is the end rubber bung the bung will start to pop out the bottom of the centre column but the 2nd or 3rd light pull on this centre and the bung falls out. Every now and then it will fall out on 1 pull when you lift the centre even if it was fully in place.2. The centre twice retainer feels very cheap and feels like it's done up when it's not. You really have to twist it and lock it hard to hold the centre column into place if you use it slightly up or fully up to hold the weight of the camera (even just with a small lens on) what's worse is if you turned the column upside down to hang the camera you run the risk of the camera falling to the floor as the stop bung would just come out rather than stopping if the centre lock wasnt tightened fully. The flaw is it feels tight to twist up even if it's not and you feel like the twist centre lock is going to break when you do get it to tighten.Given you have to use both the bung stop and the centre twist lock every time you use a befree tripod (all models even the xpro) having something that feels like it will break and something that will fall out every time is not ideal. I had read about the rubber bung and had decided I could glue this if I liked the tripod and at time of ordering the xpro was an extra £200 to get around this (xpro uses a press locking pin on the centre column) was a bit much for a minor flaw but given the centre twist lock flaw it turns into a big problem at least for me (the tripod wont fit into its carry bag unless the centre is right up) as said If was just the bung I could live with it as the rest of the product if extremely good quality. If your pushing to get this then do it's very light weight, strong and very nice to hold and use but if you can push at time of review from £269 for befree gt carbon to £299 then I recomend getting the gt xpro as both these flaws are removed on the xpro as has different designs for both.All In all the befree gt carbon is a really good product just be aware.

Expensive but strong and easy to operate, I have no worries about my Expensive kit sat on this tripod.

Light enough to carry around for several hours (even one without the carbon fibre) and sturdy enough more most jobs. The ball head, with separate adjustment for pano shots, works really well. Can't fault it.

This is my first quality tripod after previously buying a cheap and lightweight tripod for my previous camera.My Nikon Z6II is much heavier so it needed a better tripod. This has proved so far to be just want I wanted.

One of the better travel tripods out there . Very happy with this product . Others iv played around with are very flimsy. So I'd say pay the bit extra get this . You wont be sorry. I do long multi day hikes and this is perfect for such thing

I've waited until using the tripod a few times to do this review. Overall the befree aluminium tripod is very good, stability is great , super sturdy too . It's definitely tall enough to use without raising the centre colum and I'm over 6 foot tall . Build quality is excellent as I would expect from Manfrotto, however and this is a big gripe for me , the quick release MH496-BH plate is not good, it isn't arca swiss compatible and at this price point I would expect it to be , also no bubble level, also at this price point I would expect it to have one . The ball head Itself is great and does take my heaviest lens easily. Overall a great piece of kit but the plate needs a re-think , it definitely needs to be compatible with arca swiss.