Rock Out Your Shoot with Peak Design's Pro Lite, Pro, and Pro Tall Tripods! 🚀
Tested Peak Design's upcoming Pro tripods prior to the Kickstarter debut. The newly-designed Peak Design Pro exudes an aura of impressive engineering prowess.
Ever dreamt of a camera support system that's both robust and straightforward? Well, look no further! The fantastic folks at Peak Design have unveiled three new tripods – the Pro Lite, Pro, and Pro Tall – on Kickstarter, and I couldn't resist giving them a spin.
These bad boys continue the sleek design of the Travel Tripod but kick it up a notch with more stability, higher weight capacity, taller heights, and an upgraded ball head. So, let's dive right in!
The original Peak Design Travel Tripod caught my attention due to its innovative leg design, allowing it to pack down slimmer than most. The new Pro series retains that minimalist feel yet trades a bit of portability for stability.
The Pro Lite tripod, with its four leg sections instead of three, packs down to the same diameter as the Travel Tripod but stands a bit taller. This little champ supports up to 35 lbs / 15.9 kg, compared to the Travel tripod's 20 lbs / 9.1kg weight capacity.
The Pro and Pro Tall take things even further, offering even sturdier legs to support up to 40 lbs / 18.1 kg. The Pro soars to 66.3 inches / 168.4 cm, while the aptly named Pro Tall extends to a whopping 77.7 inches / 197.4 cm. Remarkably, the Pro Tall achieves these heights without additional leg sections, maintaining stability throughout.
Another fantastic upgrade is the newly designed ball head, which is both streamlined and functional. The ball locking mechanism is a ring that wraps around the head, and unlike the Travel Tripod, the Pro series has panning included. Plus, there's a small knob for adjusting panning, ensuring smooth motion.
The Pro Ball Head features a redesigned quick-release plate that snaps in place and locks automatically. It also includes a secondary locking switch, a bubble level, and labels for the panning feature.
The center column sports a weight hook, useful for hanging accessories or even a bag to save some weight during travel. And, as a bonus, if you fancy shooting with your smartphone, you can pick up a mobile mount (though you'll need to pay extra for it).
Peak Design is also cooking up a few add-ons: a Tilt Mod that converts the ball head into a pan-and-tilt head with a video handle, and a Pro Leveling Base for use with third-party tripod heads.
I adore the sturdy yet portable construction of the Pro series, as it allows me to focus on taking pictures rather than fussing with tripod adjustments. These tripods are a breeze to set up, and thanks to their smart design, they’re also quick to adjust. I was even able to test all three on a road trip, thanks to their compact packing.
I would've loved a rotating center column for better flat lay shots, which this series lacks. However, the price tag might make you say "whoa." Starting at $799.99 / £699.99 for the Lite, and going up to $999.99 / £899.99 for the Pro Tall, these tripods sit squarely in the more expensive range for their class. But, as the saying goes, you get what you pay for, especially when it comes to high-weight capacity tripods with smart designs.
While the Peak Design Pro series is making its debut on Kickstarter, the ones I tested were pre-production samples. I’m hesitant to dish out my final verdict until the final versions hit the market. For now, feel free to peruse the Peak Design Pro Tripod Early Review for additional insights!
Ready to Up Your Game? 🏆
- Discover More Trips: Check out our top picks for tripods or the best tripods for travel.
- Photography Mastery Awaits: Take a peek at more informative reads in our Cameras News.
Written By:Hillary K. Grigonis - With over a decade of experience in the camera and tech world, Hillary K. Grigonis heads up our US coverage for Digital Camera World. Her work has appeared in prominent publications like Business Insider, Digital Trends, Pocket-lint, Rangefinder, The Phoblographer, and more. Her love for photojournalistic style shines through in her wedding and portrait photography. She's a former Nikon shooter, and her current bag of tricks includes Fujifilm gear. Hillary’s also a licensed drone flyer!
- The newly announced Peak Design Pro Lite, Pro, and Pro Tall tripods, unveiled on Kickstarter, are a game changer for photography enthusiasts looking for a robust and user-friendly camera support system.
- Being a follow-up to the Travel Tripod, the Pro series retains its innovative leg design while boosting stability, weight capacity, and height, making it suitable for a variety of shooting scenarios.
- Ideal for travel photographers, the Pro Lite stands a bit taller than the Travel Tripod and supports heavier equipment, despite packing down to the same diameter. It impressively caters to weight capacities ranging from 35 lbs (15.9 kg).
- The Pro and Pro Tall models go one step further, offering even sturdier legs capable of supporting up to 40 lbs (18.1 kg). They also feature taller heights, with the Pro soaring to 66.3 inches (168.4 cm) and the Pro Tall reaching an impressive 77.7 inches (197.4 cm).
- More than just a smart design, the Pro series boasts an upgraded ball head with a wraparound ball locking mechanism and panning included. It also includes a small knob for adjusting panning, ensuring smooth motion.
- Key features of the Pro Ball Head include a redesigned quick-release plate that snaps in place and locks automatically, a secondary locking switch, a bubble level, and labels for the panning feature.
- With a variety of add-ons in the pipeline like the Tilt Mod and the Pro Leveling Base, these tripods are compatible with third-party tripod heads and even smartphones (though the mobile mount is an additional purchase). Upgrade your gear, and focus on capturing stunning moments with the Pro series, designed for both photography and video enthusiasts.
