Oben CTT-1000
$99.95 Carbon-Fibre Mini Tripod
New: CTT-1000L Long Version.
Oben CTT-1000 Mini Tripod with included ball head and Arca-Swiss-compatible plate (15.4 oz./436g as shown, 11 pounds maximum load, 9¾″ high as shown with three-section legs collapsed in standard position, 10¼" carry length, includes additional three-section center extension column that weighs 2.0 oz/56g and adds 6" ~ 12" of height, ball head comes off for shooting closer to ground, each leg locks at three angles leading to a 1½″ ~ 27½″ system height range, $99.95). bigger. I got mine at B&H.
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April 2022 Better Pictures Oben Canon Sony Nikon Fuji LEICA Zeiss Hasselblad All Reviews
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Sample Images
Moonrise over Manhattan, 10:48 PM, 16 July 2019 . Sony A7R IV, Sony 135mm f/1.8 GM at f/1.8 at ISO 100 for 1.6 seconds on Oben CTT-1000 mini tripod sitting on hotel desk shot and through a dirty hotel window, Perfectly Clear. bigger or full resolution or camera-original © normal JPG file.
The dirty window through which I shot is causing the fog flare effects on the lights of the buildings.
Introduction
Top Intro Unboxing Specifications
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This amazing little tripod is small enough to throw in any camera bag and holds any camera I might want to put on it. It's tiny, sturdy, tough and offers all the adjustments and adaptability of full-size tripods.
It weighs less than a pound (436g) and easily holds my two-pound (930g) Canon 5DS/R with gargantuan three-pound (1,349g) Zeiss Otus 100mm f/1.4:
Desert poolside with my Canon 5DS/R and Zeiss Otus 100mm f/1.4 atop my Oben CTT-1000 mini tripod. bigger.
I left the legs in their first position just for this picture. With an $8,700 rig this heavy, spread the legs out to their second positions which greatly increases stability and decreases the risk that this big camera and lens will topple over into the drink.
This tiny tripod easily holds a real camera when I need it and don't have a grown-up tripod with me, like on vacation when I made this time-exposure from my hotel balcony:
Tropical Storm, Bahamas. bigger.
If I hadn't brought along a mini tripod on vacation, I'd have missed this shot which graces my home page as one of my greatest works of all time. This is one of many one-second exposures made to catch a random thunderbolt and be long enough to expose the sky and foreground properly.
Good
Non-rotating legs make it fast to set up and knock-down (just turn the lock rings, you don't have to hold a leg at the same time).
Spike tips covered by removable rubber tips.
Adapts to all sorts of uses.
Small.
Light.
Inexpensive.
Sturdy.
Well made.
Tools, extension column, ball head and quick-release plate all included.
Missing
Ships in a nice box with cut-out closed-cell foam you could cut-into a larger foam case, but no individual carry case included.
Nothing keeps the extension column and tools together when you're not using them. Throw them in your bag and try not to lose them.
Unboxing
Top Intro Unboxing Specifications
I got my Oben CTT-1000 at B&H.
Box. bigger.
Inside the box: tripod, tools, extension column, warranty and manual. bigger.
What's included. bigger.
Included
Tripod legs.
Ball head with Arca-Swiss compatible receiver and plate.
Three-section center extension column.
Two ¼″ × 20 TPI to ⅜″ × 16 TPI adapter bushings. See User's Guide.
Two identical Allen wrenches. I'm unsure if I just got an extra, or if they deliberately throw in a spare.
Owner's Manual.
Specifications
Top Intro Unboxing Specifications
I got my Oben CTT-1000 at B&H.
Load Capacity
11 pounds (5 kg).
Weights
Legs, ball head and plate
15.390 oz. (436.4 g) actual measured weight as shown at top.
Three-section extension column
1.980 oz. (56.2g) actual measured weight.
Carry Length
10¼" when collapsed with ball head and plate.
Heights
System Height Range
1½" ~ 27½″
Tripod and Ball Head
9¾″ high as shown at the top with legs collapsed and in standard operating position.
4¼" ~ 15½″ high as you move the legs into different positions and extensions.
4¼" high with included ball head and Arca-Swiss compatible plate at minimum height. bigger.
Extension Column
Adds 6" ~ 12" of height for a total of 10¼" ~ 27½″ high with legs and ball head.
Ball Head only
2¾″ high.
Legs only, no ball head or extension
Take off the ball head and there's a standard ¼″ × 20 TPI camera screw to which you may attach a camera.
1½" ~ 12¾″ high:
1½" high: ball head removes to expose a ¼″ × 20 TPI camera screw. bigger.
Price
$99.95, April 2022.
$89.95, November 2020.
$99.95, June 2019.
User's Guide
Top Intro Unboxing Specifications
Leg Pointing
First point one leg towards your subject.
This helps balance the weight of a camera and larger lens so it is less likely to fall forwards.
Heads and Columns
Most tripod legs have ⅜″ × 16 TPI threads at the top for attaching tripod heads which also have ⅜″ × 16 TPI threads at their bottoms.
This little tripod instead has ¼″ × 20 TPI threads so you can attach a camera directly:
¼″ × 20 TPI thread and leg locks. bigger.
The included ball head has a standard ⅜″ × 16 TPI thread, so as shipped there is a ¼″ × 20 TPI to ⅜″ × 16 TPI adapter bushing installed.
If you remove the included head, pay attention to the bushing. Put that bushing on the legs to attach another standard tripod head, or leave the bushing inside the included head if you want to mount a camera there.
The extension column has a ⅜″ × 16 TPI socket at its bottom to attach to any standard tripod legs and a ¼″ × 20 TPI thread at the top for mounting a camera. Use the second included ¼″ × 20 TPI to ⅜″ × 16 TPI adapter bushing to attach this extension to the included legs, or if you want to use any standard head (including the included ball head) on top of the extension.
This is very clever: this system lets you interchange these parts with any other standard tripod parts or mount cameras directly to them.
Leg Angles
Push the leg in a bit and you can pull-out the leg lock and then pull any leg out to two further extension angles.
Here I've lifted two legs to their middle positions and one leg to its top position:
Oben CTT-1000 mini tabletop tripod. bigger.
Tools & Leg Pivots
The leg pivots arrive perfectly adjusted.
Just as with my world's first Gitzo G1227 carbon fibre tripod I bought in 1995 for $500 (equal to $830 today, and that's just for the legs), we use the included wrenches to tighten the leg pivots as needed over the years.
Spikes or Rubber Tips
Oben CTT-1000 mini tabletop tripod. bigger.
As shipped there are rubber covers over the spike tips.
You might not realize it, but just pull off any of these rubber covers to expose the spike within. Try not to lose the rubber covers.
Maximum Height: 27½″
Simply put the extension column on top of the tripod in-between the ball head and the legs.
The tripod is sturdy, but be careful as the legs are not very far apart as shown below and it will be easy for an unattended camera to get knocked over.
You can splay-out the legs further, but you may lose as much height as you gained with the extension.
27½″ high. bigger.
Minimum Height: 1½″
Unscrew the ball head, keep the adapter bushing in the bottom of the ball head to expose the ¼″ × 20 TPI camera screw on top of the legs, spread the legs out all the way, and it's only 1½″ off the ground:
1½" high. bigger.
Recommendations
Top Intro Unboxing Specifications
Everyone should have one of these little gems in their camera bags or glove box just in case. Unlike the $14 one I used to use that only holds one pound, this Oben CTT-1000 easily supports full-sized cameras and offers a complete range of adjustments.
I don't see anything like this at anywhere near the price. Good mini tripods with anywhere near the CTT-1000's capability cost hundreds of dollars more.
I got my Oben CTT-1000 at B&H. You should get a few and stash them everywhere as you never know when you'll need it, as I needed one in the Bahamas when an unexpected storm blew in on my first night there.
© Ken Rockwell. All rights reserved. Tous droits réservés. Alle Rechte vorbehalten.
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