I have thought about getting a carbon fiber tripod for travel, but when I have looked into it, the price was usually around $350, so I just put it off thinking that the price would eventually drop. Anyway. right now the Vanguard VEO2GO235CB is currently being priced at $219.99, so at least the price of this particular tripod is at a more affordable level.
The first thing I noticed about the VEO2GO235CB is just how compact it was coming out of its carrying bag. The bag itself has a strap that you can sling over a shoulder, which is very convenient. I was a little worried that this would be too small and fragile to work for my purposes. That has been proven to be far from the case.
I tested this with my Sony A7 RIII body, with a Metabones adapter, and a Canon 100-400mm lens. This is a fairly heavy combination and I didn’t have the tripod mount ring to make things more stable. In other words, I simply connected the tripod adapter directly to the Sony body. I extended the legs, with the exception of the last section, and took a bunch of pictures of birds and I never felt concerned about the heavy lens making things unsteady. Of course, if it is a windy day, they have a little hook you can use with your camera bag to put more weight at the base of the tripod. The tripod uses the twist on - twist off things to release and tightened each leg section. I prefer the kind of tripods that have clips, but I am getting used to them.
This tripod fits easily inside my travel bag (I have a video on my travel bag, with this tripod) that I never posted on my blog, so I will do that soon). I just throw it in the bottom of one side of the the bag and use the rest of the bag for the camera and a few lenses, and other things. This small size and weight means I can have the tripod with me all the time. The ability of using it on a table or expanding it out to a pretty decent height means I have a lot of flexibility, as well. It makes me a little bit sorry that I didn’t pony up that extra money years ago. It really changes the way I shoot!