MINI TESTS
3 LEGGED THING AIRHED TRINITY £80/$90 3leggedthing.com
Funky British brand 3 Legged Thing has a reputation for quirky and cool tripods with stills-style flat tops, but it’s had a limited range suitable for filmmaking. In recent years, it has moved into video with the Airhed Cine fluid head, a 75mm half-bowl adapter, self-levelling tripods and a levelling base that screws onto a standard flat top of any tripod. Now comes an expansion into more compact heads with the Airhed Trinity – an affordable fluid-motion, pan-and-tilt head. Without the pan handle, it’s just 7.7cm/3.03in tall and 5.5cm/2.17in wide, but has a decent 5kg/11lb payload capability and is supplied with a standard 38mm Arca-Swiss- compatible quick-release plate. It’s made from aerospace-grade Tilt range: 170° (+90°, -80°) Camera plate: Arca-Swiss 38mm Controls: Pan knob, clamp release knob, tilt knob, arm knob Load capacity: 5kg/11lb Threads: 1/4in-20 and 3/8in-16 threaded sleeve adapter Dimensions (hxw): 7.7x5.5cm/ 3.03x2.17in Weight 292g/0.64lb (no arm) SPECIFICATIONS
magnesium alloy and features a 360° panning base with a 170° range of tilt. Both pan and tilt are smooth and fluid. At the right side of the head is a large control knob which holds and releases the tilt movement. It’s nicely damped, but not adjustable, and there is no counterbalance control. So any front-heavy camera set-up – that’s most mirrorless models – will make the head droop forward if the adjuster is not relatively tight. Panning and clamp controls have a knurled finish for grip. The Airhed Trinity also features a removable 20cm/7.9in panning arm with a rubber grip. This has a security retainer to prevent the arm, which can be screwed off for storage and transportation, from detaching when loosened. That is one of the biggest benefits, as the head is very compact. It won’t replace a full-spec fluid head, though it makes any small tripod good for video when you’re out and about and need to travel light. For an affordable, compact head, it has its limitations but performs well regardless. It’s ideal on monopods or even sliders as it’s so light. Available in all-black or with bright orange/copper details, it can be ordered as a bundle with 3 Legged Thing’s Corey, Travis, Patti, Billy and Brian 2.0 tripods, or its monopod kits. We used it on top of the magnesium alloy Corey 2.0 travel tripod, which
HEAD MASTER The Airhed Trinity (right) plays well with the Corey 2.0 travel tripod
folds up to just 36.1cm/14.2in and has three detachable monopod legs. You can take this apart and use it as a monopod, boom or even a selfie stick! The whole kit weighs 1.78kg/3.92lb, yet reaches up to 1.46m/57.5in if you extend the two-section centre column. On its own, extending the five-section legs, it goes up to just 1.11m/43.7in. At head height, it’s not the most stable tripod but still decent. As a kit, it’s small, compact, multipurpose and has a pretty good fluid head for small cameras. All that for £180/$200, which makes it a great addition to your set-up for when you want to travel as light as possible. PRO MOVIEMAKER RATING: 8/10 Good-value kit; no drag adjustment Pros: An affordable option for flat- head tripods Cons: No self-levelling
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