Tripod Head help: I have a Manfrotto tripod with ball head. I have never been happy with the ball head and thinking of changing over to a pan/tilt head or video head. I used to use my...

dusty3d Loc: South Florida

I have a Manfrotto tripod with ball head. I have never been happy with the ball head and thinking of changing over to a pan/tilt head or video head. I used to use my tripod a lot shooting wildlife but now more into landscapes. I would also like to do some panos and time lapse. Any suggestions without breaking the bank?

MT Shooter Loc: Montana

dusty3d wrote:

I have a Manfrotto tripod with ball head. I have never been happy with the ball head and thinking of changing over to a pan/tilt head or video head. I used to use my tripod a lot shooting wildlife but now more into landscapes. I would also like to do some panos and time lapse. Any suggestions without breaking the bank?

Three-way heads are available quite cheaply everywhere, sounds like something along the lines of a Manfrotto 3030 or 3047 model would suit your needs for very little cash outlay.

Bridges Loc: Memphis, Charleston SC, now Nazareth PA

For wildlife look at a gimbal head. For lenses 200mm and less, Or up to 300 like the 28-300 or 70-300, I like the Slik pistol grip. With a ball head you need one hand on the camera so it doesn't flop forward or to the side, and another hand to tighten the resistance. With the pistol grip I can maneuver the camera in any plane with only one hand. This frees a hand to hold a flash or reflector.

RWR Loc: La Mesa, CA

Bridges wrote:

For wildlife look at a gimbal head. For lenses 200mm and less, Or up to 300 like the 28-300 or 70-300, I like the Slik pistol grip. With a ball head you need one hand on the camera so it doesn't flop forward or to the side, and another hand to tighten the resistance. With the pistol grip I can maneuver the camera in any plane with only one hand. This frees a hand to hold a flash or reflector.

If the camera flops, you loosened the ball head too much.

Dik

My favorite for other than moving subjects is a geared head. The Manfrotto 3275 has 3 axis adjustment both rapid movement with gears released and prescision movement by turning knobs. When you aim the camera with the precision knobs, there is no change in aim as you release the knob. There is no position creep like you get when tightening other types of heads.

For long lenses and moving subjects, a gimbal head is the answer. I bought the inexpensive ProMaster, which has the added advantage that the lens's NPP can be aligned with the head's pivot axis for panoramas. No stop detents, but it does have
index markings every 15˚.

Bridges Loc: Memphis, Charleston SC, now Nazareth PA

RWR wrote:

If the camera flops, you loosened the ball head too much.

Yes, but while you are loosening it, don't you have one hand on your camera in case you loosen it too much? To my point.

DJO

The Tiltall Professional tripod is an EXCELLENT performer when pannning; it has a very unique design. Will not break the bank. A durable inexpensive lightweight workhorse all around. I've used one for shooting video many times. I'd call it a well kept secret, but I'm not a video guy so it could be common knowledge.

Rich1939 Loc: Pike County Penna.

Quote:

I used to use my tripod a lot shooting wildlife but now more into landscapes. I would also like to do some panos and time lapse.

For what you are looking to get into I would suggest a leveling base and add a rotating clamp for the panos.

(Download)

Reinaldokool Loc: San Rafael, CA

dusty3d wrote:

I have a Manfrotto tripod with ball head. I have never been happy with the ball head and thinking of changing over to a pan/tilt head or video head. I used to use my tripod a lot shooting wildlife but now more into landscapes. I would also like to do some panos and time lapse. Any suggestions without breaking the bank?

I replaced the ball head on my Dolica with a Benro pan-tilt head. Lightweight and yet strong. Smooth as silk.

Gene51 Loc: Yonkers, NY, now in LSD (LowerSlowerDelaware)

dusty3d wrote:

I have a Manfrotto tripod with ball head. I have never been happy with the ball head and thinking of changing over to a pan/tilt head or video head. I used to use my tripod a lot shooting wildlife but now more into landscapes. I would also like to do some panos and time lapse. Any suggestions without breaking the bank?

Ideally, the RRS Gimbal/Pano head is what you are looking for. aside from that, I do pretty well using a bubble level on the top of the tripod base and the leveling indicator in the camera (Nikon D800) with an Arca-Swiss ball head -to do panos. I first level the tripod, then I level the camera. I am usually off by not more than a degree or so. Pistol grips require two hands and they do not actually lock securely, and three way pan and tilt heads, unless you use the geared studio heads, are inherently less stable.

Rich1939 Loc: Pike County Penna.

PS: A couple of positive points about using the leveling base for landscapes and panos. First is that once you have the base leveled, (fore and aft, port and starboard :) )when you pan the camera either with a rotating clamp or a ball head with a rotating base, your camera moves on a level plain. Before I got a leveling base I often had to trim a pano more than I liked because it climbed up in one direction or the other. If you level the camera using a ball head for instance, if the base isnt level too then your images will staircase.
Another is that using a leveling base is a whole lot quicker and easier than messing around with your tripod legs. This turned out to be a fringe benefit that wasnt considered originally.

RWR Loc: La Mesa, CA

Bridges wrote:

Yes, but while you are loosening it, don't you have one hand on your camera in case you loosen it too much? To my point.

Yes, I do keep one hand on the camera or lens to sense just when the ball is loose enough. I do not carry anything else in my hands when positioning the tripod, so using both hands to compose is no problem. I do use off-camera flash quite often, mostly for fill light, but it's in the bag until needed.
Afterthought: I'm talking strictly of still subjects, which is the topic of this thread.

Carl D Loc: Albemarle, NC.

I've come to like Pan and Tilt head lately.