Monopod reviews are few and far between in number if you compare them with the number of reviews of other kinds of photography equipment.

That's too bad because the monopod is often overlooked as a valuable piece of equipment to take better digital pictures. I love my monopod and it's many uses.

It is important to know what features and options are available when choosing the best monopod. Additionally, knowing the pros and cons, why, when and how to a monopod will help make the best decision when buying your monopod.

Monopods are refreshingly simple to use, having only one leg to adjust instead of the usual 3 legs of a tripod. They are obviously lighter than tripods, but what are the other advantages of monopods.

Read these tips first and then visit the monopod reviews and links to other related articles at the end of this article.

Monopod Reviews – Advantages of Monopods

1. Having a lighter load is an important benefit for me personally because of lower back issues that are magnified when I have to carry heavy loads. Another big advantage to monopods is their portability.

This is true not only in terms of moving easily from one photography vantage point to another when shooting your photos, but also in terms of luggage and travel.

You can easily pack a monopod in your suitcase.

2. When I go backpacking, my monopod doubles as a lightweight walking stick. It has a nice soft cushion grip and has the option of using the rubber pad or the steal tip on the bottom.

Wildlife and sports photographers find it much easier to pick up from one spot and move to another.

3. Any action photography like photographing birds in flight, race cars or quickly moving athletes is accomplished better by the ease of rotating your monopod instantly to follow the action.

4. When using a telephoto setting or a long lens, camera movement is magnified, so the use of a monopod may help you avoid the common photo mistake of a blurry image that you would otherwise get with a hand held photo.

5. Using a monopod is like having an image stabilization system, but better. It allows you to use a slower shutter speed which may give you a sharper image as well as the option of getting a Deep Depth of Field.

6. Another advantage of using a monopod is when you are in a small area, such as in a crowd of people or a confined space. It may not be feasible to spread out the three legs of a tripod.

7. On a lighter note, using a monopod also gives you the appearance that you know that you are doing as a photographer. Showing up at your kids soccer or baseball game makes you look like you are a talented, knowledgeable camera person.

Before you know it, you may have people asking you for digital photography tips too.

Monopod Reviews – Disadvantages of Monopods

1. With a monopod you cannot accomplish the same degree of stability as a tripod. One leg is not as good as three.

2. You are stuck with a horizontal photo composition unless you add a rotating head to turn your camera on its side.

I can avoid this problem when I am shooting portraits because my Canon 70-200 lens has a mount ring on the lens barrel that mounts to the monopod and permits me to rotate the camera to any exact angle I wish.

3. It's not possible to let go of your camera when it's mounted on a monopod.

With a tripod, you can walk away, adjust your subject, your background or your lighting and your camera has not moved at all.

Once you've composed your photo of a stationary subject, with a tripod you can keep an eye on your subject without looking through the camera.

4. With a monopod you must look through your viewfinder or at your camera screen to maintain a good composition while holding your monopod and taking the photo.

Monopod Reviews - Features and Options

Feet. Some monopods have feet as a feature. This adds stability without needing the same space as a tripod.

I must confess that I have never owned a monopod with feet. There are mixed reviews.

Some of the monopod reviews of the feet complain that they are quite flimsy and rattle around too much.

The monopod models that only have one foot have very questionable value.

With higher priced models, the feet are heavier and definitely had some stability over a simple one-legged monopod. Essentially what you have is a scaled-down tripod with small legs and a large adjustable center leg.

Swivel heads. Swivel heads allow you to tilt your digital camera forward and backward.

They are very sturdy and give you great structural stability for sharp photos.

Shooting with your camera aimed downward or upward becomes much easier to do.

Mounting your camera sideways will allow you to shoot your photos with a vertical photo composition.

Quick-release Mount. This photo on the right has both a swivel head and a quick release mount.

If you need to save a few seconds or are in a need for the quick changing of a camera or a real quick set-up, the quick release feature saves you the time of having to thread the mounting screw into the bottom of your camera.

Shoulder Strap. Shoulder straps free up your hand to carry an additional piece of equipment.

Hand Strap. Can you say annoying? I've never liked wrist straps for anything. Most photographers do like the security and convenience of hand straps. It's definitely a personal choice.

If I am going to be carrying my monopod in my hand anyway, I don't need another loop to get tangled up with other equipment.

Carbon fiber. Monopods are quite light anyway, but if you want that extra reduction in weight, carbon fiber is the way to go. Carbon fiber monopods and tripods are strong, lightweight and also have a vibration-dampening characteristic that makes them very valuable.

My favorite non-camera piece of equipment is my carbon fiber Rocketfish tripod: Carbon Fiber Tripod-Rocketfish Reviews.

Monopod Reviews – More Features and Options

Optional Tip. Pay attention to the tip of your monopod.

Some tips are available as a separate attachment in heavier duty models.

It's a good ideas to buy a monopod with a combination metal point-rubber pad.

It's a quick easy adjustment to change from the point to the pad by simple unscrewing the rubber pad until the point is fully recessed.

Pistol-grip Ball Head. I love my pistol-grip ball head on my tripod, but I don't like it on a monopod.

This is just my own personal opinion and you might find that a pistol-grip ball head as a great option for a monopod.

I like the extreme light load of a monopod without a heavy head. With my Manfrotto tripod, I never shoot without my pistol-grip ball head attached.

Pistol-grip heads are extremely easy to use quickly adjust to any angle. They are pretty stable if you invest in a high quality model.

The downside is that they do add a relatively significant amount of weight to your monopod.

Ball Head. The best monopods come with a regular or quick-release ball head. These light-weight accessories provide ultimate flexibility to using a monopod.

The Rocketfish ball-head pictured here is the one I use on my monopod as well as my Rocketfish lightweight carbon fiber tripod.

It is remarkable strong for such a small piece of photography equipment. Of course, the larger the ball in the head the stronger and more stable the hold on your camera.

It is a little small for using with my Canon 5d and 70-200 lens, but I have used it this way in a pinch.

Use caution that a heavy camera/lens combination turned in a vertical orientation on either a monopod or tripod can be unbalanced.

Another monopod accessory which is real hand to free up your hands when you are moving from one location to another is a monopod holster.Monopod holsters attach to your belt and secure your monopod where it will be handy for quick access to shoot your next photo. The links to the monopod reviews are below as well as several more article on tips and tricks on how to use and how to get the most out of your monopod.

Specific Monopod Reviews

Opteka Monopod Reviews. Reviews of the features, pros and cons of Opteka Monopods.

Manfrotto-Bogen Monopods - Reviews. Higher quality and higher priced line of Manfrotto and Bogen Monopods.

Slik Monopods - Reviews. Slik has won many prestigious design awards and its designs have been copied many times.

Gitzo Monopods. Gitzo makes the best monopods on the planet in terms of the materials, precision workmanship and manufacturing.

Get the Best Monopod Performance

Best Monopods. The best ones are not only the ones that get good monopod reviews, but also the ones that have the features, options and price that are right for your specific needs.

How to Use a Monopod. Using a monopod is simple, but many people make don't know the best monopod techniques. Discover these unknown tips on how use a monopod the right way and get the sharpest photos.

Monopod Tips. A video giving reasons why to use a monopod and 4 additional tips on how to use a monopod to get the best results.

Tripod Ball Heads. One of the most useful accessories you can possibly have for your tripod or monopod is either a ballhead or a pan-tilt head.

Monopod Stability Tip. Here is a simple way to make your monopod work almost like a tripod. Typically, reviews of monopods don't include some of the tips and techniques that can help you get the most stability out of your monopod. This article reveals a simple trick to multiply the steadiness of your monopod without the weight and bulk of a tripod.

Camera Monopods, Video Monopods or Hiking Monopods. What are the differences and does it really matter?

Getting the Most from Reading Monopod Reviews

There are hundreds of monopod reviews to read; but, if you want to get the most out of them, use a little bit of logic when evaluating. Remember that a review is only the opinion of one person's experience. Occasionally you may get a very low rating of a monopod from an individual who purchased it without educating themselves on it's specific uses or features.

As an example I once read a review from a tall photographer who was very dis-satisfied because his monopod was too short for him to use without stopping over. To keep them lightweight, manufactures make most of them to be long enough to satisfy the average user. If you are tall, it's your task to buy a longer model.

In another instance, a photographer complained that his monopod was too heavy. Perhaps he should have compared the weights of different monopods first. There are so many camera monopods available for purchase, there is no way you can't find one that is the right size, weight, strength and has the desired accessories.

Another tip is to read the longest and most detailed monopod reviews. You can learn the most about any given monopod from the photographer who took the time to give loads of details on features and what they liked and didn't like about their monopod.

By far the biggest complaint given in monopod reviews is receiving a defective monopod or having it break early on. Like many things things, if you buy cheap you get a cheap product. Sellers and manufactures have to cut the cost of manufacturing, materials, quality control and even packaging to be able to offer a piece of photography equipment for a bargain price.

Here is a link to Amazon and more information about monopods, monopod accessories and reviews on them:

All Amazon monopods

In addition to these ideas on monopod reviews, please enjoy all of the digital photography tips on this website and share your ideas or reviews too.

Happy Shooting
Photo TipMan

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