Manfrotto 560B Monopod First Impressions

The Manfrotto 560B. Ok so I did a bit of an about face with my tripod decision.  You know that point where you have looked through that many reviews of tripod heads and legs that you feel as if you actually might know less than you did prior to searching? I’m so there.

Manfrotto 560B (compacted)

Plus, I am booked to go on holiday, was tight on budget and looking for something light and relatively portable to take with me on a hike.  The heads and legs decision was driving me bonkers, just when I thought I’d reached a decision (the Manfrotto 190XBPRO with a 701RC2 head) more numbers and acronyms would jump on board, and when I started adding up the kit price, I discovered I was beginning to eat into my holiday budget.

Taking a different approach, I thought about what I really wanted to achieve short term with my video expedition. Number 1 was reducing shake and number 2 was achieving number 1 whilst remaining mobile. The Manfrotto 560B seemed to satisfy both demands.

Sure I can’t leave the manfrotto standing while I take a coffee break, and time lapse is out of the question, but I’m open to experimentation and new ways of filming.  I say if you don’t have the equipment (or the budget) to do terrific still shots, start learning how to do terrific moving shots. It’s evolution baby.

I looked at a number of very positive reviews of the Manfrotto 560B which listed as one of its main benefits: the ability to add significant stability without the need to lug around a bloody great big tripod setup. The price was also very reasonable; available here in Australia for under AU$200 compared to my dream tripod setup of more than AU$600.

So you know how that story goes…I have only just got it, hence why this is a first impressions post and not a full review. But here’s hoping that first impressions, in this case, last.

The immediate impression you get when unpacking the 560B is that it feels built to last. This is a hefty paperweight and everything feels very well put together, tough enough to take on extended use without worrying about bends or scratches (well maybe scratches…). 0.7kg feels a little weightier than I first thought it would be, but that’s still half the weight of pretty much every other set of legs out there and it includes the head and snap on camera plate.  The midget legs that pop out at the base don’t exactly scream unbreakable, but on the whole I was surprised at just how good this thing feels to heft in your hand.

The whole unit extends to 166cm and compacts down to about 60cm.

The clips snap into place easily and convincingly, and the little legs on the base are easily extended to give you extra support and access to panning. If you have not seen the 560B in action before, check out the video demo on vimeo (pictured below).

Manfrotto 560B Monopod Demo

The only issue I have with the little legs is that there is no way to snap them in/out other than lifting up the tripod and doing it one by one with your hands. It would be great, if a little unrealistic, to be able to snap the little legs out in one go, rather than do it one by one, then repeat the process when you are finished. Maybe I’m expecting too much…

The fluid ball joint at the bottom of the unit is very cool. You can rotate the whole “pod” around 360 degrees up to an angle of just shy of 45 degrees to the ground. Panning is a sinch, the unit has enough drag to make them very easy to do with a slight turning of the wrist. I had a pretty decent pan going after about 3 minutes of practice. The rubber grip up the top helps a lot and feels very reasuring in the hand (if such a thing is possible).

Manfrotto 560B (extended)

Unfortunately, I haven’t got any test footage yet because my twoneil DOF adapter is broken (see another story) but this week I will do my best to post some footage sans adapter. It won’t be as dramatic, as I think the HV30 already has pretty decent image stability.

I’ll be taking the 560B with me all around New Zealand and Melbourne for the next four weeks so after that I’ll do another post with more detailed impressions.

In the meantime, if anyone else out there has one of these babies, let me know and I’ll post your video instead!