I recently tested the K&F Concept SA254T1 Tripod, a tripod that I have been looking forward to trying out for a while after coming across a friend with it last year. I thank K&F again for this collaboration. If you are interested in getting the product for yourself after reading this:
Click HERE to go directly to K&F Concept's website
or
Click HERE to go to K&F Concept's Amazon page and get a 5% discount with promo code: ESFILTERS05
Who are K&F Concept?
K&F Concept, a brand founded in 2012, has been committed to designing, innovating, and manufacturing photography accessories. In the pursuit of product excellence, K&F Concept has obtained more than 150 patents and various international product awards. K&F Concept has been a popular buy in 56 countries and regions and is involved in different markets in the Americas, Europe, and Asia.
Their official website is being upgraded, so you can browse www.kentfaith.com - the website of K&F Concept authorised shopping mall - for reference. Kentfaith is a comprehensive shopping mall of all kinds of video and audio products, which is popular with users all over the world. All K&F Concept products are available at Kent Faith.
Packaging
The only bits of plastic within the packaging were the plastic bag around the tripod and a sandwich bag with the allen/hex key and manual. I was impressed as this was an improvement on previous packaging of other tripods I have reviewed in the past. The tripod comes in a sleek yellow box which is different from what I have received in the past. As always, the tripod comes with a stylish carrying bag.
What's in the box?
In the box you will find a smart, compact and well built carrying bag which will protect your tripod well and is pretty convenient and comfortable to carry on short hikes. This bag is slightly bigger than the previous tripods I reviewed and due to it's bulkiness, it wouldn't fit in the tripod carrier section of my camera bag, neither would the tripod itself due to the size.
If you prefer to carry the tripod in its carry bag, it has a comfortable shoulder strap within the bag that is easily installed.
The Tripod
Upon opening the box, as always, I was immediately impressed with the build quality. The tripod is slightly on the heavier side when compared to other Kent & Faith tripods (4.4lbs/2kg) due to being built from a high quality military magnesium-aluminium alloy. This material is not as light as carbon fibre but it still manages to keep to the weight down by having a hollowed out design for the pipping.
At its' smallest working height, the tripod has a height of 27.17"/69cm and at its' tallest, the tripod is 93.9"/238cm (but this entirely depends on which height option you go for, the tripod comes in four different height options) which is more than 30 centimetres taller than I am. In fact it was tall as my apartment from floor to roof. What really attracted me to this tripod was the Traverse Centre Column which we will go more into in the next section.
I found this tripod a little bit heavy and bulky for my usual hiking and it didn't fit into the side of my camera bag but that is my issue of camera bag choice. For me this tripod is great if you are using it for a home set up for example, filming tutorials, product photography or if you are travelling to a location by car which doesn't require much walking with it.
Traverse Centre Column
The stand out feature for this tripod is the traverse column which can be used vertically or horizontally. Horizontally, it allows you to get great top down images/footage as well as 360 degrees rotation to achieve panoramic shots.
Setting up the tripod from vertical to horizontal is pretty simple, pull the centre column up fully and then turn the ball head on its side until it is flat horizontally. The column has a clear ¨stop¨ line which helps to balance the tripod so it doesn't topple over with your expensive gear on top. The centre column is made out of the same durable magnesium-aluminium alloy as the rest of the tripod so you know it isn't going to fall over if you secure everything correctly.
The horizontal column is really great for getting top down shots or recording from above for tutorials. My mind immediately goes to cooking or educational videos on social media.
I also had a go at a panorama with the horizontal column:
Monopod
One of the tripod's legs is detachable and can be used as a monopod if you so desire. I love this feature from the K&F Concept's tripod range. You are essentially getting two tripods for the price of one. The monopod can also be used as an alpenstock (hiking stick) for the long hikes. I might have to test that out on my next hike.
A monopod can be quite useful for getting a steady shot when you are on the go and don't have the time to set up a tripod. Monopod's are a great option for sports photographers as well. For me this feature is particularly useful for low light settings as my Canon 80D is quite heavy and hard to get sharp shots in low light.
I found assembling the monopod back to a tripod very easy. This is really great as using a monopod in the past for me has been a frustrating experience as I spent more time trying to put the tripod back together than actually taking my photographs.
Thread Lock System
Each leg of the tripod comes fitted with a thread lock system which is great for locking in your desired height or angle quickly. For a quicker set up, you can open all three thread-locks at the same time to release all the levels of the legs. First impressions were that this system is secure but make sure you have each lock secured before attaching your camera so you don't have an accident that breaks your expensive gear.
Quick Plate Head and KF-28 Metal Ball Head
The tripod comes with the standard quick plate head which I'm sure most photographers will have come across at some point. Getting it off and on your camera is a piece of cake, quick and screws up every time.
The ball head of the tripod is made of durable metal built to withstand whatever you need it to do. With 360 degrees of movement, the compositions are endless whether it be panoramas, horizontal or vertical shooting. I recommend keeping the allen key set that comes with the tripod in your camera bag or carrying bag as some of the screws around the ball head can become loose.
Loading Capacity
The ball head of this tripod has a loading capacity of 10kg. I'm not sure who would be able to put that weight to the test (maybe a wildlife photographer with one of those rocket launcher size lens) but I have full confidence that the ball head can take whatever I throw at it. It screws up pretty well with no looseness.
Angle Adjustment Buttons
With the angle adjustment buttons, the tripod legs can be adjusted and locked to three different levels which helps with stabilisation on varying ground and inclines. I found the set up time pretty quick and balancing the tripod with the fluid head easy. As always with Kent & Faith tripods, the buttons felt really sturdy and I didn't feel it would break on me.
The other locking systems, the centre column lock that holds the main section of the tripod, the locking knob on the tripod head and the locking force for the ball head are also very solid.
Macro Shooting
With many of the other K&F Concept tripods, it can be inverted due to its' central axis to achieve low angle shooting and macro shooting. I find this feature is particularly useful for my product photography. Again, set up for this was easy if you have a flip screen on your camera as you need to set up your camera on the 1/4 head upside down if your lens doesn't have a mounting ring.
Without the flip screen, shooting in this manner may be difficult if your camera doesn't rotate its viewing screen internally.
Backpack Storage
Now this is where I ran into some problems, due to the size of the tripod, it wouldn't fit into the side of the camera bag without ripping the elasticated side. This is a shame as it means I would have to carry two bags with me whilst I go hiking which isn't ideal. If you were hiking as a couple then I suppose you could share the baggage between you.
Conclusion
Overall, I'm really impressed with how solid the SA254T1 tripod is. Extremely sturdy and durable, a tripod you know that will never let you down.
The downside for me is the bulkiness if you intend to use the tripod for hiking. If you are planning on getting the 2.4m model, maybe it would be better suited for use at a home studio or if you are driving directly to your location. I would be intrigued to see if the lower height tripods would fit easier into my camera bag side.
The links again:
Click HERE to go directly to K&F Concept's website
or
Click HERE to go to K&F Concept's Amazon page and get a 5% discount with promo code: ESFILTERS05