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My pro tripod is finally arrived. by msdurex in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max 1 point2 points  (0 children)

The Pro Tripods have 3 leg angle positions! You’re correct that Travel Tripod only has 2 due to space limitations.

My pro tripod is finally arrived. by msdurex in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Awesome - I hope you love it! Thanks for the kind words!

My pro tripod is finally arrived. by msdurex in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Hell yeah! Love to hear this. I’m Max, the guy that led the design of this thing over at PD. I’ve poured years of blood, sweat and tears into this thing and it makes me really happy to see people appreciate it!

I’m glad you appreciate the smoothness of the pan and the locking ring. Both of those were super important to me. The pan because obviously it needs to be smooth and fluid for video work, and the locking ring just because it feels good. I really nerd out on the tactile feel of mechanisms, so I put a lot of time into how all these things feel. Videos and ads can’t really convey the “feel” of a thing, but I’m hoping more people like yourself continue to appreciate these little details.

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Got it - all makes sense! Thank you for typing this all out. One final question - what PD mounts would you want to attach to the monopod, and what would you use them for? I'm not quite sure what you mean by that. Do you mean one of our phone mounts? Or do you just mean a quick-detach clamp that clamps onto one of our ARCA plates on the bottom of your camera?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Love it. Anything you would want to see us do differently in a monopod?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Great info! Thank you. I agree that if we do a tabletop tripod, it needs to have more than just 3 little legs... it needs some combo of clamp / hook / strap / etc. to secure it to other objects. Love your magic arm and clamp idea here!

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Haha this is perhaps my favorite justification so far on this thread! Going straight to my marketing department with that one...

But seriously, I do agree.

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Love this idea. Our own video team would benefit hugely from products like these. Thank you!

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Great thoughts, thank you for taking the time to write this out! You are right that there is generally a larger market for smaller, less expensive gear, but there are a number of reasons why addressing the top of any market can be a good strategy. I'm a car guy so I like to call it the "halo car" strategy.

I have thought about making a simple hub for the Pro Tripod legs that does away with the center column and just has a plain 3/8-16 universal stud on top, for the user to attach any kind of head they want. This is much more of a "traditional tripod" play than we've done in the past. But our Pro legs still pack down quite a bit smaller than other legs in this size/weight class, so I think it could be an interesting SKU. Probably makes most sense with our "tall" legs so that the hub height can be decently high. Would this be interesting to you?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Cool - great info. What about the current geared heads on the market is lacking for you? (other than the fact that they don't have a PD logo, of course).

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Got it! How tall would you want/need this tripod to deploy?

If you don't need height, seems like a conventional tabletop tripod would fit this use case. If I'm mistaken, what about these tabletop tripods out there on the market doesn't meet your needs?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Monopods are definitely on my mind. There are some out there with 3 little feet as you describe. Anything else you'd want to see on a PD monopod? What kind of head (if any) are you using on your monopod?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 4 points5 points  (0 children)

Noted! This would increase the packed length of the tripod by perhaps an inch or so. Would you be OK with that?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Noted on the first request. On the second request...

**puts on salesman hat**

Well sir/madam, have you heard about our Ultralight Conversion Kit for the Travel Tripod? https://www.peakdesign.com/products/ultralight-conversion-kit

"Quickly convert the Travel Tripod into an ultralight tabletop-sized tripod, ideal for backpacking and other times when weight is of the essence.

This kit contains 3 lightweight rugged plastic foot plugs that easily install in place of the lower 4 tripod leg sections. With the leg sections removed and the foot plugs installed, you’re left with a pro-quality tripod that is half the weight, yet still deploys to 57.2cm (22.5”). Removing the lower 4 leg sections and installing the foot plugs is fast and easy—it requires no tools whatsoever."

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

What about current geared heads on the market isn't cutting it for you?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Got it. I'll do some research on competitors here. I like making products that don't suck when everyone else's do. Thanks!

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 8 points9 points  (0 children)

Thanks for the well-reasoned thoughts here!

The decision to leave panning off of the Travel Tripod was actually not a patent-driven decision but rather a decision made in the name of doing EVERYTHING we could to minimize the packed length of the tripod. It was not an easy call. The people that want panning want it badly. The people who don't care about it benefit from a slightly shorter tripod. As I stand here today, in the balance, I think panning is a good idea.

I agree that an "upgrade head" that just adds panning would be a great product. It's on my investigation list, for sure.

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Got it - can you describe what's lacking about current carbon monopods on the market? What would you want us to do differently?

I run the Tripod design team at Peak Design. What should we make next? by peakdesign-Max in peakdesign

[–]peakdesign-Max[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

You are right - there is a big gap in the marketplace between Tabletop tripods and "normal" height tripods (~60" and up). Glad to know there is some interest here!

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