You might also look at the Leica tabletop tripod and ball head. Expensive and the tripod has limited flexibility, but it's worth investigating. I bought one almost 40 years ago and it's perfect for what it does. I still use it occasionally.

Thanks for your comments.

I have the SLR zoom Gorillapod, it is only any good if you wrap the legs around something, it wont stand up on its own with a D300 and say an 18-200 attached let alone anything heavier.

It is just small enough to carry in a backpack, but just too big to carry when travelling light. I think it has a purpose and fares well with compact cameras or really light weight dSLR's but I can't recommend it and mine never gets used.

It would be useful for an external flash support out in the open, which is something I have been toying with but haven't put it into practice yet.

Rich.

I have the smaller SLR version and i love it.

I usually use it in the "weird" way than as a normal tripod.

I have a D60 so its pretty stable when attached to a chair or pole and its really worth it.

Anyone tried this? I'm more interested in using it as a small tripod than for the funky things they show on the website. I'm looking for something very light so that I can take it hiking. Another alternative could be a beanbag. Thoughts?

http://joby.com/gorillapod/slrzoom/