Joby GorillaPod Original Tripod - Charcoal

Product Information

For lightweight compact cameras weighing less than 500 g (1.1 lbs), the GorillaPod 325 is the tiny little flexible tripod for you. i) Fixed– the GorillaPod head screws in directly to the tripod hole on the base of your camera. To remove your camera, you need to unscrew the entire GorillaPod. The 5 main products in the GorillaPod line up are named after their weight capacity, as measured in grams – if you measure in imperial, this can be a little confusing at first!

I say ‘combined’, since often you’ll need to take into account a camera body plus lens, or even additional video equipment like lighting, mics, and monitors. I’ve also assumed you’ll need the ‘GorillaPod Kits’ where available – a ‘Kit’ refers to the GorillaPod legs plus tripod ball head.

Which GorillaPod to buy for my DSLR, Mirrorless, or Point and Shoot?

The main thing you need to work out when selecting a GorillaPod is the combined weight of the object you want it to carry. On the flip side, the GorilllaPod 3K is a lot lighter, and has a neat little bubble level built in to the ball head which can aid in getting a level shot – something that can be a bit of a challenge when using GorillaPods as regular tripods on a flat surface. One thing to note – even if own a lightweight compact camera such as the Ricoh GRIII, I’d actually recommend you buy the aforementioned GorillaPod 500 rather than the 325, just to give me a bit of additional strength and stability when bending the GorillaPod around objects.

If you’re using a large zoom lens, it’s also worth choosing a stronger GorillaPod model than the combined weight of your camera + lens, since the weight of zoom lenses often extend away from the centre point of the tripod. This is a new size GorillaPod that hasn’t previously been available – a beefed up version of the 325, coming up next in the review. While the smaller GorillaPods tend to feel a little like well-engineered toys, the 5K Kit feels like a serious piece of gear. Once you have the total combined weight, you can see how it lines up with the maximum capacity of each GorillaPod. There’s also a cut-away section to allow fast and easy portrait orientation positioning of your device.One seldom touted benefit of a GorillaPod, particularly one as compact as the 325, is that it provides a more substantial hand grip for shooting than using the camera alone. This is the macdaddy of all GorillaPods – the one Casey Neistat and all other famous YouTubers use to support their vlogging rigs. There’s not much more to say about the GorillaPod 500 – it’s a simple bit of kit that allows you to stabilize or secure your compact camera in places that wouldn’t normally be possible.

In general, if you own a compact camera or anything weighing less than 500g (1.1 lbs), you can opt for the GorillaPod 325 or 500. On the plus side, this makes attachment simple – there’s no initial fiddling around with base plates. However, you still need to screw the head into your chosen device, and removing it takes more time.An example set up to attach to the end of the GorillaPod 1K might be the Fujifilm X-T3 with Fujinon 23mm f/2 WR lens – basically any set up with a combined weight of under 1 kg (2.2 lbs). Lightweight, precision-engineered ball head for versatile mounting of mirrorless and compact DSLR cameras, pro accessories and other devices Pro Tip: If in doubt, always go for the GorillaPod rated one higher than your considered max weight capacity. i.e. even if you own a lightweight Sony a6000, I’d still recommend choosing the GorillaPod 1K, just in case you ever attach a heavy lens. 2. Means of Attachment