Pochade Box vs French Easel: Which Plein Air Setup Should You Buy?

Plein air painting is a race against light, and the pochade box is built for that race. The u.go hinges open to a palette and a panel holder, threads onto a camera tripod, and you are mixing paint. New Wave's specs for the mid-size model are 2.1 lb with the palette and 8.4 by 11.25 by 1.25 inches closed. Stainless steel panel holders grip anything from a 1/16 inch panel to 3/4 inch stretched canvas, and New Wave recommends a painting surface up to 10 inches tall.

Its limits are size and storage. Anything much past 9 by 12 overhangs the box, and there is only a small recessed compartment for paint, so tubes and brushes travel in a bag. For painters who work in quick studies and finish larger pieces in the studio, that is exactly right. It is the top pick in our best pochade boxes guide.

If cost decides it, the French easel wins outright at this price. A pochade box plus a decent tripod costs more than this whole easel. It is the value French easel in our plein air kits guide and a sensible start for painters who drive to their spots.

The French easel is the older answer to plein air, and for larger work it is still the right one. It folds into a wooden case with a handle. Open it and three legs telescope out, a drawer slides forward for paint, and a mast holds a canvas far taller than any pochade box can. Dealer specs for the Jullian Original Half Box list a canvas capacity of about 32 inches and a folded size of about 22 by 11.75 by 6.5 inches in naturally dried beechwood with brass fittings.

The costs are weight and time. At about 13 lb it is a shoulder-strap load rather than a daypack load, and setting three legs plus the canvas mast takes a few minutes, not seconds. In return you get self-contained storage, no tripod purchase, and a canvas size that lets you finish a painting on site. Our plein air painting kits guide covers the rest of a French easel setup.

This is the hybrid for painters torn between the two formats. The storage well is 2.5 inches deep, the lid carries two wet panels back to back, and Guerrilla Painter says extension clips let you paint on panels larger than 9 by 12. You still carry under 4 lb of box, a third of a French easel. It is the upgrade pick in our best pochade boxes guide.

The SoHo gets you the pochade workflow with some French easel convenience at a starter price. It is not as refined as the u.go or the Guerrilla, but it teaches you whether you prefer a tripod box before you commit to a premium one. It is the value pick in our pochade box guide.

If you are sure the French easel is your format, the Mabef M22 is the one to keep. The canvas holder adjusts from vertical to horizontal, which also makes it work for watercolor, and the tin-lined drawer survives years of paint and solvent. For hiking, the Jullian half box is lighter to carry; for studio-plus-field use, the Mabef is the heirloom pick.