planepics Loc: St. Louis burbs, but originally Chicago burbs

I've never used a gimble mount before, but it's the cheapest one available at Lensrentals. Is it easy to mount/use? I'd be using it for aircraft in flight (F4Fs, A-10s, U2s, etc) in Oshkosh - leaving next weekend. I'd be using it with an a99ii and 150-600 lens.

jeryh Loc: Oxfordshire UK

In a word, it is unbeatable !

Sidwalkastronomy Loc: New Jersey Shore

he was referring to the side kick not regular model. I never used side kick but have the regular one and love it

charles tabb Loc: Richmond VA.

Your a99II, I love mine so much that I don't have any desire to go to the new cameras.
As long as mine keeps going I will never trade. But is up the word?

Thomas902 Loc: Washington DC

Gary you likely will not enjoy the Wimberly Sidekick for shooting aircraft with a Sigma or Tamron 150-600mm f/5-6.3 Lens... At well over 5 lbs you will be fighting to mount it vertically... Think massive amount of swear words...

However the most SERIOUS issue is you will never be able to zero out balance either the Sigma or Tamron

Both are Rotary zooms a.k.a. the Front extends as zoomed longer!
There is absolutely NO constant Center of Gravity point to adjust to!

I have / shoot both the Wimberley WH-200 Gimbal (bottom mount) and Induro GHB1 (side mount) Gimbal Head
They work stellar for my AF-S 200-400mm f/4 IF ED VR and AF 300mm f/2.8 prime (neither change length with zoom (the 200-400mm) or focus function. To use a Gimble the lens must remain constant length... While some may claim they have no problem with this... They are not being up front... you will be fighting the lens all day. With a constant length lens you should be able to zero in the CG and move it and any position with a feather light touch.

Anyone who tries to tell you otherwise hasn't used these pieces of kit on a commercial assignment.

Don't believe me? Ask Lens Rentals if it is possible to zero in balance on a lens which changes length (either via zooming or focusing)

Great aerial shots on your FB page Gary!
Good luck at Oshkosh

planepics Loc: St. Louis burbs, but originally Chicago burbs

I might trade my a77 someday for an a77ii, I rented one 3 or 4 years ago at Oshkosh along with a 100-400. It was so much quicker in focus than my a77 with either lens used (or did I have the a330 back then?) Anyways it was a big improvement. right now I need to save $$$ for incidentals and souvenirs for my revenge vacation next summer.

planepics Loc: St. Louis burbs, but originally Chicago burbs

Thank you for checking out my FB gallery :) I have several other pics that I've been too lazy to go through or I get frustrated when "Photos" shuts down whenever I so much as magnify the pic if it's shot in RAW. Not sure how to change native downloads to PSE - which would eliminate that problem. I mostly shoot JPG because it's faster at 12 FPS (camera doesn't bog down). Frankly, most of the time I've handheld anyways. I tend to trip over my monopod or tripod when trying to pan for say, an F22 doing a low and fast flyby. I'd have some better pics if I remembered to change my shutter speed, i.e. shooting B-29s right after an F-18 demo. I plan on putting my newly acquired (relatively speaking) 24-105 Art on my a77. That way I'd have a solid 36-600 range. And I can also use CIZ, which I tend to forget about. PS I never thought about the zooming front element. Can't afford 1/2 the price of a new car for a big constant-aperture bazooka, though.

Orphoto Loc: Oregon

Sidekick works out quite nicely with heavier lenses. However, you need to know that it mounts on your large ball head. It is not a standalone device. If you want to try a gimbal but don't already have the large ballhead with an arca-swiss mount, this is NOT what you want.

planepics Loc: St. Louis burbs, but originally Chicago burbs

I DO have a Sirui K-30X ballhead on my CF tripod so weight probably wouldn't be an issue. I'm only concerned about the comment the previous respondent gave about the balancing issue.

Orphoto Loc: Oregon

As to the balancing issue, do a little test. Hang the lense from your finger using the tripod foot/plate. Zoom the lense to difference settings and see just how far that throws the balance off. If it doesn't change things by much I would not be too worried about it.

By the way, this balance issue would equally apply to a ball head, pan head or monopod setup.

ClarkJohnson Loc: Fort Myers, FL and Cohasset, MA

Thomas902 is absolutely correct about the impossibility of balancing a zoom lens with a variable lenght. I would counter by saying that if you use your lens zoomed out most of the time, you essentially have a fixed lens, and can go ahead and balance it at the maximum extension. The Sidekick, in my humble opinion, is a great option if you are alternating between using a ball head and needing a gimbal. If you need a gimbal only, the combined weight of the sidekick and a suitable heavy duty ball head could very well be greater than a full gimbal by itself, and slightly harder to operate.

If you end up shopping for gimbals, keep in mind that you don’t really need the full cradle style. Side mount gimbals (similar to the Sidekick) work just fine and are generally less expensive. Used gear is a great option, as these items don’t really wear out. I have purchased Wimberley, Induro, Benro and RRS gimbals and heads on ebay with no issue.

billnikon Loc: Pennsylvania/Ohio/Florida/Maui/Oregon/Vermont

Is this what you are referring to.
https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/769675-REG/Wimberley_WH_200_S_WH_200_S_Sidemount_Wimberley_Head.html?sts=pi&pim=Y

imagemeister Loc: mid east Florida

If you are using a 150-600 with a Sidekick, you really need a ballhead bigger than 30mm IMO !

As mentioned, balance could be an issue - IF - you actually zoom and IF perfect balance matters to you.

Mounting a large lens on a sidemount can be a little challenging - but can be overcome. IMO, vertical tracking motion is faster with a sidemount vs bottom arm mount - if that matters.

Just so everyone knows, the older Sigma 100-300 f4 is an internal zoom and zooms with one finger and can be used with CIZ to extend to 600mm ! I have used the Sigma with crop frame at airshows - was all I needed.

As mention, using a tripod at an air show, tripping over the legs can be a concern - a monopod is safer or I mostly use a bodypod.
.

Jagnut07 Loc: South Carolina

I have and use the Sidekick and is a really great device.

photoman43

This is good advice. I will add that for a sidekick or any gimbal to work well for airshow shootings, the tripod has to be robust enough to support all of the weight and TALL enough to get the lens and camera high enough to photograph the planes that will be above the horizon. Make sure your tripod is up to the task as well as your ballhead. Many of the tripods I see at airshows are not tall enough or not set at the right height.

Getting balance right on a gimbal with zoom lenses that extend in length is a real challenge. One way to help overcome the issue is to use a long lens foot on the lens' tripod collar foot. I always buy lens plates longer than what is usually recommended for any tele lens.