Gorillapod Review
I’ve finally had enough of using cheap little tripods and picked up a Joby Gorillapod SLR-Zoom for use with my cameras and Tascam audio recorder. If you’re not familiar with this popular accessory, it’s like a tripod, but with bendy legs.
Oh yea, and here’s a shot of the dollar store tripods I sometimes use for simple shots. They literally cost a buck each, but it’s time to stash them away for good — my cameras deserve better!
Anyhow, I’ve always had my eye on owning a Gorillapod, as I’ve always been looking for a better way to position my cameras. One particularly problem that I have is shooting downwards at items sitting on my desk. With the Gorillapod, there’s so many fun and creative ways I can do this.
So you might be wondering, if the Gorillapods have been out for a couple of years already, why has it taken me so long to get one? I guess it was a combination of laziness and not wanting to spend any extra money on camera accessories that made me reluctant to pull the trigger. But now that I finally own a Gorillapod, it’s obvious that I should have had one a long time ago!
Gorillapod Sizes
There are 3 sizes of Gorillapods to choose from. I decided to opt for the largest size (Gorillapod SLR-Zoom) so that I wouldn’t run into any problems down the road should I use a heavier lens – or God forbid – own a larger camera in the future. Conveniently, the larger model also has longer legs, so it should be able to attach to more things.
One reason why you might still want to own one of the smaller Gorillapods is that they’re lighter and more portable. If you only own a compact camera, I’d probably get their original model, or maybe their new one with the magnetic legs.
The mid model, the Gorillapod SLR, is probably right for people who just can’t make up their mind on what to get. It’ll handle all compacts and most DSLRs just fine.
Gorillapod Features
With the Gorillapod SLR-Zoom, there are 9 joints in each leg, and they’re all very stiff to position. There’s also a rubber ring around each knob, which makes the legs extremely grippy on almost any surface.
Although I imagined that its legs would only be of use on objects that they could fully wrap around, this is not so. The Gorillapod can mount all sorts of fixtures by simply clamping onto them. Often, you’ll only need two points of contact for the camera to be secure. However, the third leg is nice to have for peace of mind – when you’ve got your DSLR swinging from a tree branch you’ll know what I mean!
The Joby Ballhead
Unfortunately, after buying this Gorillapod, I’m now interested in getting an accessory for this accessory!
The Joby Ballhead is an attachment that fits between your camera and the Gorillapod. It is, as the name implies, a ball head that allows you to rotate and angle the camera independent of the Gorillapod’s orientation. Without this accessory, you can still maneuver the Gorillapod’s legs to get the angle you want, but it’s just so much easier to position the camera using the Ballhead attachment.
More Gorillapods?!
Now that I’m satisfied with my tripod solution, I’ve become interested in getting a Gorillapod for my iPhone. Lately, I’ve been riding my bike quite a bit, and hate having to dig through my pockets to find my phone when I’m stopped at a light. (I like to catch up on my blog news with Reeder for the iPhone.)
So this got me interested in finding an iPhone mount for my handlebars. Well, it turns out Joby has made a Gorillapod for the iPhone that should work quite well for this purpose. I guess my love affair with the brand has only just begun…
Where to Get a Gorillapod
You can check out the following Gorillapod products on Amazon for user reviews and up-to-date pricing:
- Gorillapod for compacts
- Gorillapod magnetic
- Gorillapod SLR
- Gorillapod SLR-Zoom or bundled with the Ballhead
- Gorillapod for iPhone
Do you already own a Gorillapod? What do you think of it? Drop me a line.
