Celtis87

Thanks. Was wondering about them.

Celtis87

Thanks. That is helpful.

ecurb Loc: Metro Chicago Area

Much prefer a good pan/tilt head or a motion picture fluid head, particularly for long lens work. Never liked ball heads.

uhaas2009

It took me some time to find the right tripod with the head. Foba was my sec head I bought used for $75. My 810 with 200-500 not a problem. I just couldn’t figure out what I needed and like-manfrotto and foba are heavy but now I found fotopro E6 tripod what I really love.

https://www.fotopro.com/

https://www.ebay.com/itm/125329129422?_trkparms=amclksrc%3DITM%26aid%3D1110006%26algo%3DHOMESPLICE.SIM%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20190917065201%26meid%3D637ca961ed9b43e7a0872ce24e4fdea6%26pid%3D100935%26rk%3D1%26rkt%3D3%26sd%3D273101697701%26itm%3D125329129422%26pmt%3D1%26noa%3D0%26pg%3D2332490%26algv%3DSimplAMLv9PairwiseUnbiasedWebCpr08MlcGreedyV3%26brand%3DFOBA&_trksid=p2332490.c100935.m2460&amdata=cksum%3A125329129422637ca961ed9b43e7a0872ce24e4fdea6%7Cenc%3AAQAHAAABEIxnp208POpAtEdSbeoza%252FtzyQmh2SBqORzgyIzbrfwKs8mDYiJnIRJg4GvE9THHqTbRe%252B2OSkV68q%252FKrXcGLGG0e%252Flgy%252BlAW1BSmz%252BQ%252B4skNBQO7vFUguLxvSzttAg4I%252BNLKipX%252BEw8CkoWs1vkPrdW%252BT8NvbQR108iKQOf54%252Fm%252BPBRgA664JUSjy1s8cD7Q0NNhOV8pnkj53zBSkVc8ldZwQn6GtAV0OinYxnzWX9JWSZ15sixR0sHV%252FcZ%252FfTXq2Aojmc590LuLoYqlstJAR3ASYAsykzz32GgnelMZsRgPBwEF7JRlQOQpMFjK2UckF%252F2IVHPk7tFuBgG27paXPuXpeWOdIZkqPdMF46eszma%7Campid%3APL_CLK%7Cclp%3A2332490

greenwork Loc: Southwest Florida

I have been very happy with the Acratech ball head. Strong, open design and a pound lighter than the leader of the pack .... Company You Tubes are a bit dry but informative.

cjc2 Loc: Hellertown PA

I have never, ever heard a complaint with an RRS BH 55. The D850 with a 70-200 is nowhere near a heavy combination. I would suggest that either you don't quite understand the operating instructions, or your copy might just have an issue. I would strongly suggest you contact RRS immediately! Best of luck.

MrBob Loc: lookout Mtn. NE Alabama

Check out recommendations given by Gene51... Of the three or four he recommended I purchased a Leofoto LH 55. Built like a tank and BIG knobs... Best of all, VERY price competitive. Listen to those in the know around here...

amfoto1 Loc: San Jose, Calif. USA

I use a Kirk BH-1 on one tripod. That's rated to support 50 lb., weighs 2 lb., cost about $350 but don't appear to be available right now. I also have a Smith-Victor BH8 ballhead on another tripod... rated to support 50 lb., weighs 2 lb., cost $80 when I bought it (but is no longer available). Virtually identical in design, function and capability. The Kirk is better made... all metal. The rubber grips on the S-V head tore and fell off (I replaced with a few wraps of grippy tape that works fine). The S-V's pan movement was very stiff when I first got it, too. I unscrewed the base, cleaned the axle grease out of the ball bearings there, replaced it with a heavy oil (bicycle chain oil) and it's smooth as silk now.

My point is that price isn't always a good indicator... but higher prices usually equate to more reliably good quality. Still, it's "just" a ballhead!

You didn't indicate your largest lens and maximum weight... or the quality of the tripod you'll use the head upon... but for part of my recommendations I'm going to assume you have some long telephotos with tripod mounting collars like the Nikon 200-500mm or Tamron/Sigma 150-600mm.

First, I recommend you get a ballhead with an Arca-Swiss compatible quick release platform (more on why this is recommended below). This is by far the most widely used quick release system. Many manufacturers make products compatible with it. You will need a matching mounting plate for your camera and one for each lens with a tripod collar (unless they are a Tamron or Sigma, some of which have a built-in dovetail to fit the A-S QR system). A ballhead may come with a "universal" plate, but those are often questionable. One that is specifically fitted to your camera is much better, to prevent accidental twisting and loosening.

Next I recommend a ballhead with between 30 lb. and 55 lb. load capacity. The larger gear you'll put on it, the heavier duty head you should get. Be sure, too, that the ballhead you get has a separate panning access lock (some use a single lock for all movements).

You can use the above directly and immediately. But you also have option of adding a "gimbal adapter" to it if you wish, to better handle really large lenses like those 200-500 and 150-600s. The Wimberley Sidekick (which I use) and the Induro GHBA are examples of gimbaL adapters. These fit into the ballhead, which stays on the tripod, and provide easier work with bigger, heavier lenses.

There are "full size" gimbals, which completely replace any other head on your tripod. Those are great for big, heavy telephotos with tripod collars, too. BUT, that's all they are good for. To use the tripod for anything else you have to swap out the full size gimbal for a different head... be it a ballhead or pan/tilt or whatever. Basically a full size gimbal makes your tripod "big telephotos only", unless you carry around a 2nd head and any tools you might need to swap out the heads.

Until recently I said, "no thanks" to that. I've been using a Wimberley Sidekick for 20+ years with lenses up to 8 and 10 lb. Works great! (I now have a third tripod set up with a full size gimbal, making it pretty specialized. Sees much less use than my tripods with ballheads and the gimbal adapter.)

To use a gimbal adapter requires a ballhead that's reasonably heavy duty (minimum of 30 or 33 lb. capacity... 45 to 55 lb. would be even better). The ballhead also MUST have an Arca-Swiss quick release platform AND must have a separate panning axis lock (the way the adapters work is they fit into the platform and provide the up/down tilt movement, while the ballhead is locked except for it's panning axis which provides the horizontal movement). This is why I recommended what I did above.

Below is a link to B&H Photo, because they carry practically everything and their search features are useful (you can buy wherever you like, of course). First is a list of ballheads. And below that is a list of the gimbals they carry (both full size and adapters).

BALLHEADS: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/products/Tripod-Heads/ci/140/N/4075788769?sort=PRICE_HIGH_TO_LOW&filters=fct_head-type_1544%3Aball-heads%2Cfct_quick-release-system_7375%3Aarca%2Cfct_support-weight_1470%3A30-lb%7C33-lb%7C35-lb%7C40-lb%7C44-lb%7C50-lb%7C55-lb

GIMBALS: https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/products/Tripod-Heads/ci/140/N/4075788769?sort=PRICE_LOW_TO_HIGH&filters=fct_head-type_1544%3Agimbal-heads

EDIT: Someone mentions a 70-200mm lens above. I looked but am not sure what your "big heavy" lens is. If 70-200mm is your largest I DO NOT recommend a gimbal. It's actually too small a lens for use on a gimbal. A gimbal works best when the camera/lens combo can be slid back and forth a little until they are near perfect equilibrium. Then the whole thing will move smoothly with a light touch, to follow moving subjects such as sports and wildlife. The smallest lens I use on a gimbal with is my 100-400mm (about 3.5 lb.)... largest is an 8 lb. 500mm f/4 (I have a vintage 800mm that's even heavier, about 15 lb., but almost never shoot with it... It's more of a collectible than a "shooter").

jno

I would NOT recommend a ball head for the lenses that you are going to use. A gimble type head is what you need. There are several out in the market. I suggest that you look at the FLEX shooter which is as small as a ball head but is a gimble head. Look at Birds as art website and get the swing clamp not the knob type.

Deecee

I agree!! I have one for my D850 and my very heavy 70-200mm lens. The large knob allows you to crank the head down rock solid with no drift. Pairs nicely with their "L" bracket. The only cons are the weight (not terribly heavy) and the price. But it's a good investment.

Celtis87

Thanks for the input.

mikee

I have a BH55, it could double as an anchor for an aircraft carrier. I also have a bh40 which I actually use. Seems to hold a d4s and 200-500 just fine. Also about $100 less on ebay

Celtis87

Thanks. Helpful.

Celtis87

Wow! Fantastic analysis and terrific information. Thanks for taking the time to really go into the details of your recommendations.

Celtis87

I tried my best to thank every responder individually, but lost track after a while of which responders I thanked and which I hadn’t. So, please allow me to thank EVERYONE for giving so much great information, opinions, experiences, recommendations, and cautions. I’m going through all of them. I learned a ton and feel much more confident that I can make an informed choice now. You all are the best. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻