LensCoat LegCushion Vs. LegWrap Pro: Which to Buy for Your Tripod?

Earlier this year, I wrote a full review of the new LensCoat LegWrap Pro. From the title, "The Best Way to Carry a Heavy Tripod Setup," you can probably guess that I liked it. Here I take a look another new tripod accessory from LensCoat, the LegCushion, and see how it compares to my beloved LegWrap Pro.

The hardest part of starting this review for the LegCushion was taking off the LegWrap Pro. I would find out, however, that the LegCushion offers some nice advantages that the LegWrap Pro can't match.

The LegCushion is made with dense foam padded blocks with a water-resistant Cordura fabric lining that comes in black and a variety of camouflage patterns. The inner side that contacts the shoulder has 3D mesh fabric that wicks moisture. Like the LegWrap Pro, I had no issues with construction quality and it has managed to withstand my constant use throughout the past month and a half of using it.

While the LegWrap Pro has a removable shoulder pad that connects to the leg sleeves with Velcro, the LegCushion is single unit that incorporates the Velcro sleeve attachments into the shoulder padding. The LegCushion is a one-size-fits-all design, and LensCoat states it works with medium to large-sized professional tripods with upper leg diameters between 1.25 and 2.46 inches. In Gitzo terms, that would be the 3, 4, and 5 series tripods.

One major advantage I found with the LegCushion is that it can remain attached to my tripod even with the legs fully spread out to shoot from ground level. For the LegWrap Pro, at least one side of the shoulder pad needs to be removed first, and with its Velcro attachment, it creates a loud noise. For wildlife photography, loud disturbances like that are generally going to scare away critters or put them on edge towards your presence.

Compared to the LegWrap Pro

Advantages

• Lower price, $60 versus $80
• One-size-fits-all design, can use on a variety of tripods
• Can stay on the tripod when the legs are spread out flat for ground-level shooting.

Disadvantages

• Sits higher up, bottom of legs will have less clearance to the ground when carrying tripod vertically
• The heavy foam padding makes for a bulkier product
• Not all three legs have a wrap, and the two that do are small and a little awkward to grab on to

With prices at around $60 for the LensCoat LegCushion, I would recommend them without hesitation to those who are shooting off a heavier tripod setup but already own a set of leg wraps. If your tripod didn't come with sleeves, or you just don't like the ones you have now, the $80 LegWrap Pro set would be my choice to get set up with some good quality leg wraps with the shoulder pad as an extra bonus.