K&F Carbon Fibre Tripod

Ok before we start you need to know I am not a massive tripod user, in part because I do music and sports photography, and have only recently started with landscape and that kind of thing. So this review of this tripod comes from the point of view of a newbie testing something out.

I tried to do a video of this review, however that didn't exactly go to plan, my head tends to get in the way of things, so over thinking stuff, which is what happened here, so hopefully the same wont happen with this written review.

I have tried a couple of tripods, but nothing expensive at all and both that I have had I have had problems with from the off, I had my eye on this one a a little while ago but passed it up, but then it was time get something decent

So let me introduce you to the K&F Concept Tripod.

Specs(Taken from the K&F website)

The Tripod is made of carbon fibre, it can anti fold 180 degrees reversely and install inverted.

The folded height is only 13.6inc and the tripod net weight it 1.85lbs.

Centre column inverted installation to realise the lowest panoramic view, macro shooting, or other special photography.

360 degree ball head with bubble level provide you with panoramic view, Three position leg angle adjustment system provides flexible shooting.

Centre column design with attached to sand bag increasing stability, with non slip feet design to keep the tripod steady, Max load weight is 26.5lbs for optimal performance.

Tripod specs : 23mm, 5 section carbon fibre legs, Folded height 13.6inc, extended height 53.1inc 

 Carry case

Verdict: I have to say I like the bag, and I like that it is a very tight fit, and that is not a bad thing, because if your carrying it in the bag then your not going to get extra movement when walking which can be a utter pain in the butt or in my case the shoulder, the down side of it being that tight a fit is that it may long term add extra stress on the material when putting the tripod in and out,

Score 9/10

Tripod initial look and feel.

Verdict : I like the initial look of the tripod, its a very good design, the design and has been well thought out to make it as compact as it can be. Coming from somebody that has had two surgically repaired shoulders am mega impresses with how light this is, even over a distance its not something you tend to notice much which has to be a bonus.

Score 9/10

Usability

Verdict: This tripod is a very versatile tool for photography, if your doing a panorama your able to measure the angle with the built in measure tool just by the tripod head, and with the numbers actually being on the edge and not on the top this makes it easier to read.

The ball head mount that comes with the tripod is actually pretty good, but with a Nikon d5300 and bog standard lens, have found at times that the camera had  creeped out of place a couple of times usually when its at an angle which is such a shame and makes some shots ni on impossible unless you aim above the and let it creep down a little bit, 

The legs work on a twist lock system, which works really well for the majority of the time. The reason i say this is that i took the tripod to the beach, it was a case of rock up and set up, which i did, and when i went to pack up i went to close the legs and noticed a weird grinding noise, so when i got back home i had to undo the legs and take them apart, i found that sand had got into the sections you twist, so cleaned these out, brushed them off and put it back together, and every now and again one of the legs has had problems closing.

I am no engineer or designer, but there should be some way to be able to stop things like sand getting into the joints that can cause problems, yes you can take the sections out to clean them but hopefully in future versions there may be something that can be added.

While we are on the legs, at the top of the legs there is  small catch that you can push when the legs are at a specific position, now there are to points where this can happen, the first is when the legs are pretty much facing downwards, and this works well, however if you need a wider stance with the legs you can pull out the catch and the legs can be spread out, and there is another latch further out, but this one does not work so well. because the legs are spread out it does not hold them very well, and they can just slide out even further, so they end up looking like a drunk spider. 

Because of the way the legs fold you can do macro shots with the tripod with the camera upside down, as shows in the pictures above, but this does not give you the same ability to lock the legs in place so just make sure your on secure ground, and not some funky position.

On to the 360 ability of the head, my only issue with this is that the only way to do this and allow it to rotate freely is to loosen the locking nut which also looseness the actual ball head so be really careful if your thinking about using that part of the tripod.

My last gripe is the plate that attaches to the camera, its more of a niggle rather than a bigger issue, but when you fully open the nut to attach the camera or whatever you have the plate on, you have to put it in at a slight angle rather than be able to slide the plate in, its because of the nut in the middle that stops you being able to slide the plate in, which is shame, what they could do for me is to lower the nut a little, and you would be talking a tiny amount, but that would make a big difference 

Score 7/10

 With that being said, i would buy this tripod again, despite the problems that have cropped up, in part because of how lightweight it is, that makes a massive difference to me because i dont want to be struggling before i have even started due to having to carry a heavy tripod, and that its so easy and quick to set up. the majority of the things i have brought up you would get used too, the only one that i feel needs more work is the issue around the legs allowing that much sand to get into the joints to the point where they have to be pulled out fully to be cleaned and any sand removed.

I think my overall score would be a 8/10

Pictures have been supplied by K&F Concept. This review has not been sponsored by K&F or anybody else