ekimzulad
Offline
Upload & Sell: Off
|
 p.1 #1 · Ball Head Recommendations | |
Please point me to the right ballhead for my situation. When I used to shoot birds with the Canon 400mm 5.6, I got a Feisol 3442 tripod and Markins Q3 ballhead. I loved the fact that it was a light/sturdy/relatively inexpensive combo that I could also travel with. But for the last year or so I've been using it with a 300mm 2.8 IS w/TCs and am not as happy as I used to be. I think I could really benefit from a new ballhead, but there are so many options.....this is where YOU come in. Here's the criteria I'm looking for:
1) Weight - The Q3 is less than 1 pound, and I'd like my new one to be as close to 1 pound as possible (I hate carrying tripods)
2) Sturdy - The Q3 claims to support 65 pounds, but I noticed that when I put the AF sensor on the birds eye, tighten the ball head, and let go, the AF sensor moves. I hope a new head will fix this, as well as allow me to shot at lower shutter speeds.
3) Better Panning - The Q3 doesn't have the best panning knob, at least for my heavy load. It often needs to be tightened repeatedly.
4) Quick Release Lever - The Q3 uses a thumbscrew, and at times (like when the bird takes off from perch) it takes too long to be remove the camera/lens from the ball head to follow the auction. I've read about quick release levers and think that might be the way to go.
5) Price - I'd like to stay as close to $300 as possible for the replacement head, but understand that I may need to creep higher.
I'd like to think that I could continue to use the Feisol 3442 tripod. Perhaps I should remove the center column, unless I absolutely need it to improve stability even further.
Thanks in advance for your help!
|
