ETHICS STATEMENT: I have not been paid by Miller to write this review. Miller asked me to write an article/review for their Sharpshooters site (here) but all opinions are my own and have not been influenced by Miller in any way.
I usually operate as a one man band and was on the lookout for an affordable, quality, light weight tripod solution for some time. Lately I’ve been mainly shooting on my Sony NEX-FS700 which is a relatively light camera. I haven’t got the luxury of assistants to help move gear for the next shot so I like to keep my rig as light and minimal as possible.
My most stripped down rig weighs just 2kg and fully loaded weighs 8kg. When I began searching for a tripod system I realised that not many were designed to support this light weight range. Then I discovered the new Compass 12 fluid head by Miller, which combined with their solo carbon fibre sticks was a perfect match. It supports a payload of between 2kg and 10kg and weighs just 6.5kg.
I’ve been using it on various shoots over the last two months from fast paced documentary shooting to hiking up hills to capture wildlife shots. It’s been an ideal companion on these shoots and has quickly become one of my proudest purchases.
The nature of my work often requires a quick move between shots where seconds matter. Fighting a heavy tripod into position whilst loosing a shot is a painful experience so I have been delighted with how easy and pain free this Miller tripod system is to work with. Panning and tilting on the Compass 12 is controlled by four selectable drag positions (including 0) which I have found to be very sufficient. Four selectable counterbalance positions make it very quick and easy to balance the camera when changing lenses or adding/removing accessories. The optional mounting block allows me to attach an accessory such as an external monitor to the head, rather the camera. This means such accessories can be added/removed without having to rebalance the camera. Perhaps my favourite thing about this system is the ability to quickly place the camera anywhere from 70.2 inches (1783mm) down to just 15.9 inches (404mm) off the ground. This has made my life a whole lot easier! The 2 stage carbon fibre sticks are easily extended and retracted with a quarter turn of the locking grip to loosen and lock. It’s surprisingly robust when fully extended and the ability to spread the legs apart also makes it a sturdy support for a slider.
It comes with a robust padded soft case which has been more than sufficient for my frequent air travel. A bonus has been the padded shoulder strap which attaches to the tripod itself, making hiking or moving distances between shots a lot easier.
It is often said that cameras are for Christmas and tripods are for life. I certainly have no regrets choosing this tripod and look forward to many more productive shoots with this able companion
