Zipshot managed to hold this Pentax K7 and Zeiss Olympic Sonnar lens combination. That's almost double Tamrac's 3 lb. specified limit.

Any photographer worth his salt knows the importance of a tripod to secure a really good shot.

Besides eliminating or reducing camera shake (which admittedly does little for you if the subject is moving), using a tripod allows the photographer to compose the scene more meticulously, and think more consciously about what's inside the frame.

A good one doesn't come cheap: although you can snap a bargain basement model in the $100-$200 range, it takes about $500 to get a design that really does the job, after which refinements come at great, added expense. You can easily spend well into the four figures to get a state-of-the art camera support system these days. That kind of money buys the ultimate in versatility, adjustability, and lightweight construction while still maintaining great rigidity.

Costly materials like titanium and carbon fibre separate the good from the great tripods; but even if you can afford to splurge on one of today's lightweight miracles, just about any tripod is large and cumbersome to set up. That's why you mainly see only pros and committed amateurs faithfully using them.

There's nothing new in this, and innovative photo gadget firms have tried for decades to provide the masses with a halfway house that is easier to set-up and haul.

Since the early ‘70s you could pick from a parade of miniature tripods that fold up to less than six inches, and telescope out to a foot or so. These can work in a pinch, but unless you want a perspective from only a few inches from the pavement, they presume the availability of a flat, stable surface, preferably at eye level.

More recently, a mini tripod variant with legs composed of ball-joints in a row, the JOBY Gorillapod and its cones, added extra versatility in that the legs could also be would around branches, rails and the like.

None of these designs help in the wide-open spaces. Also, in my experience, great care has to be taken when placing any of these mini tripods in the camera bag. Unless you secure it very well, the protruding metal screw on the tripod's head that goes into the camera's tripod socket invariably seeks and finds delicate surfaces, like the camera's LCD screen.

This brings us to the latest candidate in the ‘I-can't-be-bothered-to-bring-along-a-tripod' sweepstakes, and the subject of this hands-on review: Tamrac's Zipshot. This unique approach to the problem introduces a unique combination of strengths and weaknesses.
The tripod consists of three, four-section, thin (like a pencil) cylindrical aluminum legs held together by an elastic (bungee-type) cord that runs through each leg's centre. After gently pulling the sections apart and folding them over, the tripod collapses to a compact, 15" form that weighs only 11 ounces. Two, three-inch bungee cords tie the device together with a simple, neat locking system.

They can also be used to tether the tripod to the camera bag's handle. That's hardly an appetizing proposition, aesthetically speaking, but it proved to be practical in my experience. For one, it would take quite a spacious camera bag to accommodate a 15" accessory. Two, there is no fear of damaging equipment inside the bag with the tripod's screw head (as noted above). And three, the folded up tripod can actually add welcomed rigidity to the camera bag's strap.

Although it's may not be much to look at, securing the folded Zipshot outside the bag adds rigidity to the bag's handle, while ensuring that the tripod's screw head can't scratch anything inside.

The Zipshot is as easy to set up as any other mini tripod in my ken. You simply grasp it by its ball-joint head, yank the two tethers away from the built-in grip (an easy, two-finger procedure), give the device a gentle shake, and presto! The legs snap into place automatically, pulled into position by their internal bungee cords.

Five seconds should do it: simply screw in the SLR and your kit will be suspended 44 inches above the ground.

As no other mini tripod can do this, the Zipshot is self recommending for photographers that tend to kick themselves while standing in open spaces for not bringing along the tripod.

But let's be clear about its limitations. The Zipshot is no substitute for the ‘real' thing is there's the slightest of breezes blowing; or if you can't use the camera's timer or remote control to engage the shutter. Zipshot's support is so feeble that the slightest input, like gently pressing the shutter button, causes it to jiggle for many seconds.

For this reason, composing a shot using the camera's live view function is liable to induce queasiness in the hardiest of photographers.

Also, you're pretty well stuck with 44" of height. While some users report having controlled the height in 12" increments by unhooking the leg segments (or dealing with uneven surfaces), this causes the aluminum to cut into the bungee cord: not a good idea in the long run.

Tamrac sensibly suggests a 3 lb. limit for the device, although I managed to handily beat that with a Pentax K7 DSLR fitted with a Carl Zeiss Jena 180mm f/2.8 lens combination that tipped the scales at 5.5 lb. One of the legs was bowing with the weight, but the rig appeared to be in no real danger of keeling over.

Tamrac appears to have overlooked one of the best uses of the device. Wind the bungee cord around the unfurled legs to strap them together and you have a very usable monopod. It may not have the rigidity of the best purpose-built monopods, nor their instant height adjustability, but the 44" height is workable more often than not.

If you need to capture moving or still pictures of a moving target like a jumping horse or figure skater, a monopod can a uniquely desirable combination of support and response flexibility.

For around C$80 at retail, the Zipshot may rank as the world's least steady tripod (even the mini tripods beat it for rigidity), but its unique strengths earn it a place on (not in) my camera bag.

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