The Manfrotto MT055XPRO3 is the aluminum version of Manfrotto’s top of the line photo tripod. Unfortunately, as an aluminum tripod with relatively lightweight legs, it simply does no perform very well for its weight. It is quite inexpensive though, and may be an excellent first tripod.
| Name | Manfrotto MT055XPRO3 |
|---|---|
| Stiffness About Vertical Axis | 576 +/- 8 Nm/rad |
| Damping About Vertical Axis | 0.147 +/- 0.015 Js/rad |
| Stiffness About Radial Axis | 1844 +/- 6 Nm/rad |
| Damping About Radial Axis | 0.313 +/- 0.031 Js/rad |
| Retail Price | $230 |
| Weight | 5.51 lbs (2.498 kgs) |
| Manufacturer weight rating | 39.68 lbs |
| Maximum Height | 54.7 in (138.9 cm) |
| Minimum Height | 11.5 in (29.2 cm) |
| Max Height with Center Column | 66.2 in (168.1 cm) |
| Center Column | Yes |
| Base Diameter | 2.3 in (5.8 cm) |
| Folded Length | 22.1 in (56.1 cm) |
| Folded Circumference | 10.5 in (26.7 cm) |
| Folded Volume | 194.0 cu. in. (3.2 liters) |
| Leg Material | Aluminum |
| Leg Sections | 3 |
| Primary Leg Angle | 26.0 deg |
| Leg Locks | Flip |
| Top Tube Diameter | 30.1 mm |
| Second Tube Diameter | 26.0 mm |
| Third Tube Diameter | 22.6 mm |
| Exchangeable Feet | No |
| Foot Type | Rubber |
The stiffness and damping data are the averages of 10 trials for each measurement. The reported error is the standard error, except in the case of the damping data. I have set the error in the damping at 10% as the standard error metric does not appropriately capture the error in fitting to the data. All of the reported specifications are measured, with the exception of the weight rating.
Bonus Content:
Stiffness vs Height:
Example data for oscillations about the vertical axis of the tripod:
As we can see, the oscillations are relatively low frequency and damp at a fairly slow rate. This is poor performance for a tripod of its weight, but in line with what we expect from aluminum tripods. It is apparent from the fit that the damping has some non-linearity to it. There is less damping at smaller oscillation amplitudes than there is at larger ones.
This kind of long slow oscillation tends to produce beautiful plots in the frequency space, and this one doesn’t disappoint. We can be very certain that we are hitting the correct natural oscillation frequency for the tripod.
Example data for oscillations about the radial axis of the tripod:
In this case, the oscillations are too fast to see properly on this plot, but the frequency plot confirms that we are getting the correct natural oscillation. The damping is a little better in this direction too, but not by a lot. As with most tripods, we would expect the dominant vibrations to be around the vertical axis.
Very clean behavior shown on the frequency space plot.