Manfrotto MS0490C Carbon Fiber Nanopole Stand (6.5')

I bought this to keep in my ThinkTank Intl Roller as an emergency option in case my checked stand bag gets delayed. The cheaper standard metal one is slightly shorter than this stand and fits into the bag but this one is too long to fit. Beyond that, it's a good stand but not a huge amount lighter than the metal one.

I look forward to giving it a spin. Almost brought it on my trip, but bags were already hitting limit. Will review after using it.

Good reverse stand. Annoying to me they are still using the same plastic leg knob on the base as the other similar stands like this but i do love the twist lock for the riser sections. Reverse stands drive me nuts because you don't get that firm locked down feeling that you get with something like an avenger baby stand or something when you tighten down sections. This stand is like a carbon fibre tripod leg with twist locks and it is much better in that regard of locking it down. The ability to use it as a boom pole for a small flash with a small modifier on it is awesome if you want to walk around with an assistant. Im sure video guys will love that as well for mic's and so forth as well. Lastly, i wish every stand i owned had the adjustable leg feature. Can be very very useful on location where the ground is not level or if you want to tilt a light to lean on a wall a little bit to get it out of your way in a very small space. As stated by the manufacturer and others, this is NOT a stand for huge strobes. I personally use it with a godox ad100 and the angler 24" flip softbox. an AD300 without a modifier is the largest load i would feel safe about using on this stand.

I do location video/audio and hate the idea of ever having to visit a chiropractor, so I've spent a lot of time/energy trying to lighten my setup. I've long used 1051BAC and 1004BAC as mic stands, and love them for that function. However, I was looking for something even smaller and lighter for times when I don't need as much height or density and so I picked these up. Overall the carbon fiber nanopole is superb. Extremely lightweight, the grey carbon fiber and small twist locks are fairly inconspicuous, and the whole thing is a good bit shorter than the 1051BAC's too. Honestly they look pretty slick on gigs even when you do get stuck with them being in the shot, way nicer than your average steel boom stands and less conspicuous than typical lighting stands, even with the big red braces (gosh that would be so much nicer if it were grey). My only real complaint is that, unlike any aluminum lighting stand I've used, you cannot rotate the center column once the legs have been locked, i.e. the sections cannot rotate within themselves. I'm not sure if this is true of all carbon fiber stands, but it's definitely slightly annoying if you want to rotate whatever 3/8ths threaded thing you put on top of it (e.g. a threaded light or microphone holder/clip). Even if they just made the top section rotatable that would solve the problem. The current solution is bending over, holding the center column to keep it from collapsing, and slowly releasing the clamping screw until you can just manage to rotate it, then attempt to finagle the center column back to the height it was supposed to be before tightening it all back down. Also keep in mind the weight limit. These are surprisingly strong, but sticking anything more than a stereo pair of mics or something on top may not result in a fun time; don't expect to put a decca tree or a counterweighted boom arm on this. That's just what happens when you prioritize weight though, so I'm not unhappy with that at all. The only mechanical weakness is that they are prone to rotational flexing when loaded. If you use a wide stereo bar on one, you will notice it wiggle rotationally for a bit after adjusting things. I think this is because of the thinness of the legs. Again, not really a problem and I'd much prefer that to side-to-side instability/wobble. Overall it is very stable if deployed as instructed to the white line, or even if you pass the line (at your own risk of course). Another minor issue to keep in mind is that it's actually somewhat difficult to reliably index the height of these. Unlike the 1051BAC/stacker designs, which have a fixed 'deployed' and 'non-deployed' position, the MS0490C's legs can be deployed at any width you desire, even something absurdly and dangerously narrow. If you deploy it at the marked white line, it is quite wide but very stable, but a centimeter or two of difference in where the stand is deployed leads to considerably higher/lower max height. I would suggest that manfrotto provide a few 1 cm gradations on the center column on either side of the max-stability point to help users index their stands better, but that's such an absurdly small nit-pick it's probably not worth the time I took to explain it to you in the first place. Anyway, if you want to see the dumbest thing I've done with these, here's a full wide Faulkner array and a F6 recorder strapped onto one. A 1051BAC would have been considerably smarter, but this did the job without complaint.

Just got two of these as my main wedding light stands. I have been using bigger stands for a while and found I seldom need more than six feet in hight. These are so light and seem strong enough for a speed light and westport Apollo soft box as long as I weight it down outside. Inside at wedding receptions they will just have speed lights on and the size and weight are incredible game changers. The less weight I have the easier to get around. The adjustable leg is huge for me at sunset outdoor sessions as I am often on beaches or hills and need leveling legs. Exceptionally well made. Not cheap but worth every cent!

This is a very light stand so easy to take on your hikes, camping trips etc. It folds up small so easily fits in a small suitcase fro travel. It has an extendible leg to level it in rugged terrain and elevates nicely . I don't know about you, but I am not that strong and my heavy backpack filled with camera equipment is all I can handle. Yet I needed a stand to put a remote flash or light on when hiking. This is perfect.