Expecting to take a lot of long-distance photos on an upcoming safari in Tanzania, I looked around my box of photo stuff to see what there was to steady my camera and prevent shaky and off-subject shots.
Nearly all photos would be taken from within a stationery Toyota land cruiser with a pop-up top. So my mini-tripod was ruled out, as was the monopod. Neither was suitable for letting me capture moving subjects, for rapid setup, or for working without a flat surface to rest upon.
This beanbag was an ideal solution because of its small size and light weight, and I used it to steady my distant 42x photos and many of the videos. By coincidence, the guide also had a huge beanbag in his vehicle for the same purpose, one as big as a seat cushion and pretty heavy. That was rock-steady, but too unwieldy to grab and use for the oh-my-God! shots.
My one complaint about the featured bag is that it does not contain enough beans to provide sufficient support on all surfaces: specifically, the 1" tubular rail that I placed it on when taking photos. There was no other support for passengers to use, and most of the beans deserted the center and went to the front and rear portions of the bag that drooped over the rail. With more beans, the bag would bend a little, but the center would contain enough beans to provide better support for a camera on odd surfaces.
The bag's maker is at fault for being too cheap in its manufacture. I expect to use this bag again, but only after my wife adds more dry beans, sews it back up, and turns it into a 5-star product.
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