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Manfrotto 190 With XPRO Ball Head Review

I recently had the opportunity to try out the Manfrotto 190 tripod with XPRO Ball Head. The 190 comes in a few different versions, as an aluminum three section or four section tripod, as a four section aluminum with twist locks on the legs and as a carbon fibre three or four section tripod. It is also available with the XPRO ball head, as legs alone or with a video fluid head or with a three way pan tilt head. The version I used is the three section, aluminum with the ball head and quick power lock legs.

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Manfrotto 190 Tripod and XPRO Ball Head

Some of the highlights I noticed right away when I took the tripod out of the box.
It has a very high build quality and is very stable, as all Manfrotto tripods I have used have been.

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Manfrotto 190 Tripod

 

Two of the legs have a rubber cover that makes the tripod easy to carry and hold. This an especially nice feature when shooting in the cold.

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Quick Power Lock

The Quick Power Locks on the legs are very easy to loosen and tighten, and can all be released at the same time when the tripod is collapsed to get it extended quickly and easily. With this kind of latch, it is also easy to know if the legs are locked tight or not, no need to worry about whether the legs are tight or not.

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Easy Link attachment

 

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New Leg Angle Selector

The tripod has an Easy Link socket, to allow for easy attachment of accessories to the tripod.

The legs have a release, allowing for three different angles, making it very easy to place the tripod legs where I need them to be for maximum stability.

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90° column system

 

The center column can be raised and placed horizontally to get the camera directly over a subject or past an obstacle.

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Leveling bubble

It has a small, rotating, bubble level to easily make sure the tripod is level and steady.

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XPRO Ball Head ideal for fast action and quick framing

 

The MHXPRO-BHQ2 ball head has a tension control dial that can be adjusted based on the weight of the camera.
The ball head has a rotating lock, so panning is easy when needed.
The ball head itself is strong and easy to use, and being made of magnesium it is also very light. Additionally the head itself has two bubble levels so it can be corrected and leveled separately from the tripod itself. The ball head is also very smooth, easy to adjust when loose, while still easily locking down tight when tightened.

With all this, I was of course very excited to actually get outside and use it!

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Shooting with the horizontal arm extended
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Shot with a Sonyalpha a6300 with Sony/Zeiss 16-35/4, 20sec, f/22, ISO 100

One of the first things I did was to take the camera out at dusk along the Hudson River here in New York City. For this shot I wanted to be past the railing so I could see the water more clearly. With the center column going horizontal, it was very easy to boom the camera out over the railing to better capture both the river and the walking path. Even with the camera at the end of the horizontal arm, the tripod was still very steady and I was able to take a twenty second exposure even with a bit of wind. A shot like this would be extremely difficult without the horizontal column.

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With one tripod leg spread for stability and height

 

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Shot with a Sonyalpha a7RII with Sony 24-70/2.8 G Master lens, 6 sec, f/22, ISO 50 with a .9 ND filter

For my second day testing I headed up to Central Park to photograph the hidden waterfalls. For this shot I wanted to get the tripod low to keep the log in the foreground and still see the waterfall. I also wanted a long exposure to blur the water. Because the legs can be positioned at different angles I was able to put two legs in the water and the third on a rock all at different heights to keep the camera steady for a six second exposure.

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Two tripod legs spread for stability on the rocks
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Shot with a Sonyalpha a7RII with Sony 24-70/2.8 G Master lens, 10 sec, f/22, ISO 50 with a .9 ND filter, cropped to vertical

Next I headed upstream to another waterfall. This one has a large pool in front which can be very nice as a foreground element. I placed two legs on rocks, with the third in the water and again I was very impressed with the stability of the tripod. Even with a ten second exposure it was completely steady against the current.

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Shot with a Sonyalpha a7RII with Sony 24-70/2.8 G Master lens, 13 sec, f/16, ISO 50 with a .9 ND filter

Another shot with the tripod center column placed in horizontal position, pointing straight down at the rushing water.

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Using the horizontal center column and Easy Link socket
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Shot with a Sonyalpha a7RII with Sony 90/2.8 G Macro lens, 1/160sec, f/8, ISO 100

I really wanted to test all the features of the 190 tripod, so I setup a small close up set. I put a Gitzo Monitor and Laptop Platform on a Gitzo traveler tripod to control the height of my shot. I connected a Manfrotto Flexible Arm to the Easy Link socket with Flash Shoe attachment to mount a second speedlite in addition to the flash on camera. The lighting was setup to get the texture and of the coins and to avoid a heavy reflection from the light on the camera. This setup is a very easy way to do close up photos.

After trying out the 190 tripod with the XPRO ball head I am very impressed. It is a stable and strong tripod, which is the first thing any good tripod should be. The 190 also has some fantastic features beyond just being stable, the horizontal center column is a terrific feature and with the Easy Link connecter and multi position legs, this is a great all around tripod. I am very happy to have it as part of my equipment arsenal and look forward to using it for many years to come.

Tony GaleOther articles by author

Tony Gale is an award winning photographer based in New York City, specializing in people and portraits. He shoots for a variety of editorial, advertising and corporate clients and teaches photography workshops. In addition to being a Manfrotto Ambassador he is a Sony Artisan of Imagery, the current chair of APA National President and an avid triathlete.

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