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Reviews
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Views
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Date of last review
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1
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4697
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Fri September 28, 2007
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Recommended By
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Average Price
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Average Rating
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100% of reviewers
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£50.00
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8.0
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Description:
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Known as the most compact, full height tripod available today, the MAGIC 2 & the VIDEO MAGIC are tripods which photographers and video enthusiasts alike can take with them wherever they go, due to it's compact size.
When folded flat, the magic measures a mere 13 3/4 inches high x 1.5 inches thick! and can fit into the bottom pocket of many camera bags. Assembled in no time at all, it provides remarkable stability, even when fully extended.
MAGIC 2 and VIDEO MAGIC can also be converted into full height Monopods....simply unscrew one of the legs and join it up to the removable center column. Our unique one-twist mechanism allows the tripod legs to lock at one quick turn of the topmost leg portion....another Cullmann exclusive.
The entire tripod is anodized in a cobalt matte finish for reflection free photos. Of course, both the MAGIC 2 and the VIDEO MAGIC come equipped with a removable ballhead. ( Quick Release & plate included w/ Photo version)
Weight is only 2.5 lbs. Model No. CU-2722
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Keywords:
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Cullman Magic Tripod
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Author
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VinnyP
Forum Regular
Registered: February 2006
Location: Surbiton Surrey
Posts: 1147
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Review Date: Fri September 28, 2007
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Would you recommend the product? Yes |
Price you paid?: £50.00
| Rating: 8
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Pros:
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Compact, portable, versatile, good working heights if you need them. Converts to a very usable monopod
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Cons:
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Slow to erect, not available in carbon fibre so could be lighter, supplied head is awful, not sturdy enough as an only tripod.
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This is a tripod that will divide people. With a tripod you can't have compact light sturdy and full height. So if sturdy is more important than portability then stop reading now.
This is not ideal as first or only tripod and will frustrate anyone who uses it many many times. It is slow to set up (especially from fully folded as the column needs to be reversed) and it is not very steady especially if you extend it fully. The head that comes with it is a bit of a joke and I would throw that in the bin straight away in case you are ever tempted to use it! The FLM 24F is just perfect on this and I use it with a Novoflex MR quick release that is compatible with all my other kit. This combination is under 1.5Kg
I have 2 other full height tripods both more expensive and a number of other support devices and have tried several other alternatives.
You'd think reading by now I'd hate this and believe me at first I did because I wanted too much. However I can't shake the fact that it is the best around for one important task. I travel a lot and this is very easy to pack away in hand or hold luggage a briefcase or a rucksack it is not too heavy and no matter how unstable it is it is 100s of times more stable than me handholding.
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It is actually pretty good at low heights if you forgo the last leg extension and centre column but if you need it then fully extended it is high enough for me to use it comfortably and I am 6'3". Hanging a bag from one of the legs improves things. Now as I said I travel with this and the other big plus is that it converts to a monopod that is again plenty high enough for me so no need to carry a seperate one. It even has a reversible column for close up work. This has gotten me out of a lot of scrapes as it is always better to have a bad tripod than a good handheld shot. If you just remember it's weaknesses. It is not for 30 sec plus exposures it's not for landscapes in force ten gales and really needs a remote release or self timer for best results as it will flex a bit.
I have used it with my 300 2.8 and D2X of course it struggled but just about held up, it's happy enough with a 70-200 2.8 downwards and I even once put the 600 F4 on there just for a laugh and it balanced but I wouldn't have called it supported and I quickly took it off. .jpg)
All of this would be impossible with the included head which is junk, and anyway, if you took my advice, it would be well on it's way to recycling by now. It is a trade off between being compact yet being versatile in respect of working heights. But more importantly it is with me whereas my other much better tripods would be left at home since this dinky little thing just about makes it past the packing police "Do we really need so much camera equipment?" The bigger and of course better tripods and heads would mysteriously be absent when we landed.
There are lots of improvements that could be made but if they brought out a carbon fibre model that shaved some weight off and stiffened things up a bit I'd buy it even at 2-3 times the price.
So buy this if you already have a sturdy tripod and wish you used it on more trips but deep down inside know you won't carry it. AND only buy it if you appreciate that it will not give as good results as your big heavy tripod because it isn't big and heavy!
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