Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

Overall its okay, but the boom arm will leave you fingerless if your not careful. The boom isnt spring-loaded, so if the boom is vertical and your collapsing it.. it can come down with quite some force.
Be careful!! I still have all 5 fingers, but i've been hurt by it

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

It does the job for me. I mainly use it to hold a hair light (160W/S light with a snoot). It comes with a sand bag for weighting down the whole unit, but no counter balance weight. I solved that problem by simply filling a 1/2 gallon milk bottle with water and hanging it on the counterbalance D-Ring (included) It worked so I painted the bottle black (to match the stand). If I ever attach a heavier unit or light box, I'll just use a 1 gallon bottle. It's a bit on the heavy/bulky side but that may be due to the confined space I'm working in (small home studio) Besides if I take it outside the extra weight may come in handy. When I saw the locking tab and threaded mount on the upright colum I thought it would also double as a regular light stand but alas, there was no other tube inside the colum. To bad, that would have been nice. I would even pay for an extension tube it they could supply one. I read a review that spoke about it not handling a heavy unit and not having a counter weight but for me this unit gets the job done just fine. If you need a boom for a small home type studio this will do the job

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

Descent boom stand - I would not use it to hold a huge softbox over someone's head, but for most uses it's excellent. Seems well constructed and for the price cannot be beat. Score another for Adorama!

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

This is a decent boom stand, for the price it's great. For the beginner or casual studio setup it does the job very well. It is quite sturdy for its weight, and quite easy to setup and use.

As mentioned by other reviewers - this unit does NOT come with a carrying bag nor counterweight, and it is black.

The clamshell boom swivel is fine for light/medium use but I wouldn't recommend putting a monolight and large striplight out on the boom with it extended very far.

It would definitely be nice if it shipped with at least a 5lbs counterweight for the boom - the included weight bag is too big and bulky to use on the boom but works fine for weighting the legs for added stability.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

If you are after a budget boom, then consider this Adorama offering.

I have had one for a few months and concur with the reviewers who say that it is surprisingly sturdy for the money. It does use the clamshell swivel joint that I hate and it is difficult to adjust the angle on account of that. In all other regards it is great value. Here is my enumerated rundown:

1) Good strength for such a budget boom. Easily holds a 4.5 lb. monolight with reflector, grid, and barn doors at 42" extension from stand, and could go farther without too much stress. Would easily support a 36" striplight.

2) All metal construction except for the clamshell swivel joint and adjustment handles. Bracing and clamping are adequate, but not heavy duty. Black aluminum tubing is of reasonable size for the expected loading.

3) About a 43" footprint. Should always use a sandbag(s) on the legs (true of any boom). The good side of this is that it doesn't take up much floor space, which can be good for a very small studio and for location work in tight places (my reason for buying it).

4) Sliding tubing is keyed, so the light will not flop downward when adjusting the boom length.

5) Very light and portable. When folded down, it is still a bit long, but it is very light and easy to transport.

6) Comes with a sandbag counterweight. I say, put that on the legs and buy an adjustable counterweight for the boom. (always anchor a boom stand with sandbags)

Overall this is THE budget boom. I don't think you could find a new product for less that offers this kind of support. In fact, you would probably need to spend 2-3 times as much to get a significant upgrade.

One thing to be aware of. The photo provided by Adorama is just wrong. It does not come with a carry bag, does not come with an adjustable counterweight, and it is not silver. Nonetheless, it is a real bargain for a bottom end boom stand.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

This stand was probably usable for 4 shoots. Then things became loose and I can't hold the posts and boom arm stretched positions because the pieces are not held tightly even when the levers are turned all the way. The screw got loose, but this is not easily fixable. Then, when you secure the clamp tightly, it slowly deforms the boom arm. That is, when you try to extend or retract the arm, there is excessive friction. I have to hit mine hard to get past those tight areas (constricted by the deformation caused by the clamp).

This stand may be okay for a barebulb head or light battery-operated flash (like Sunpak 383 super) but not good enough for any studio light head, even without a heavy diffuser attachment. I used it with Dynalite 2040 head with grids, but not very comfortably.

For anything but light amateur use, I'd suggest to skip this one and go for real boom stands.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

I didn't receive the one in the picture. Mine is black.

It's satisfies my needs for occasional use. The boom can be raised tall enough for adults to stand below it, and is long enough for a maximum of 2-3 people standing closely. However when being raised to the max like this, the light will shine at an angle, rather than coming straight down.

I use a very small softbox (1.5ft x 2ft) on it, with a shoe-mount flash. I already see the boom bends a little bit after I mounted the counter weight on the other side. I wouldn't recommend using a studio strobe + large softbox on it.

On the bad side, it's rather difficult to raise or lower the boom. This is because there are teeths (deep groves) on the boom mount. I have to losen it quite a bit to separate the teeth out before I can adjust it. The weight of the softbox and counterweight makes it difficult to adjust accurately.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

Just received this stand this week. It is not the one pictured! The Bad- does not have a carrying bag or a counterweight! The stand I received comes with a weight bag and you will have to buy your own weight to put in it. The good it is all black, seems very heavy duty for the price and is easy to set-up. Adorama should update the image to reflect the current product!

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

Very useful, works well, and very versital. The only drawback is that it can be a bit difficult to change the boom arm angle.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

Most of the stand is well built and sturdy. Unfortunately the legs are too lightweight for really serious work. This seems to be the weak point of most Flashpoint stands.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

very light wight and very easy to set up the boom arm is kind of short but it is very good for a beginner like me

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

Very easy to set up,more than what i expected.
just a great boom, and stand.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

have used this for Alien Bee in a fairly large softbox and it worked great. Only downsides: need to supply your own counterweight, chrome color can reflect in images, and not an air cushioned stand.

If you need instruction to set this up, you've got bigger problems.

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

The boom assembles easily, and it's reasonably solid. But it's just too short for a standing subject and does not offer enough reach

Comments about Adorama Adorama Boom Arm with Weight Bag & Light Stand for Studio Lights:

I can not figure out how to assemble it. I have figured out many complex things but this one's got me. I can't use it. In my opinion, this Boom kit is worthless because if I can't use than what is it worth. A good manual would be helpful. It would definately need to have clear diagrams with well writen instructions.