Dustin Gent wrote:
As I am starting to acquire equipment geared more specifically for wildlife/nature, I forgot that my current tripod head may not be the "best" option for my endeavor. The gear I have right now is:
A7r4, Sigma 24-70 ART, 200-600 (on Tuesday!!), RRS TVC 34 II and an Acratech GPP something, which i really like. I just remember when I had the Sigma 150-500, it was not the most ideal head to use for fast moving birds, etc.
My question now in regards to a gimbal style setup. Ive never personally used one, but was watching a Mark Smith video on wildlife settings he uses on his A7r4, and he had a 600mm mounted on a Wimberley style gimbal head. It looked pretty sweet, and got me thinking. I would rather have one mount that will work with all styles of photography that i do, but i am most likely gonna have to split up the genres, as the Wimberley is probably heavy and cumbersome to hike with lol.
Anyways, sorry for all the newbie questions. ...Show more →
I switched to a fluid head. It has the advantage of being stable with big lenses like a gimbal, it's great with stills and video, and if you get the right head, you can do birds in flight. The disadvantages is that it is heavy like a gimbal, you will need a way to switch orientation, you will need to adapt to Arca Swiss, and it's kinda big like a gimbal.
You can't fix the weight. The Wimberley Head II gimbal (which I used to own) is heavy, and my E-Image GH10 (one my fluid heads) is heavy too, but both can do birds in flight, but the GH10 is a lot more versatile.
If you are interested in fluid heads, send me a PM. I can provide you the skinny.
i have a video background, but i've shot a lot of 600-840mm sports stills with a fluid head on a tripod, i never understood why people want gimbals for stills.
fluid heads don't have to be heavy, i just got an e-image gh06 rig, looks like it has potential, although perhaps a bit too much friction on the first pan setting above zero.
I will have to look into a leveling base. I am a rookie on this type of photography, and have never used one. Supposed to get my Katana today so will find out what it does lol
Dustin Gent wrote:
I LITERALLY just submitted my order from B&H just now. Dang. B&H has their black friday pricing right now that ends tonight. Stoked to try this out though!
If you don't like it, let me know! Bummed I missed the BF pricing!
osv2 wrote:
i have a video background, but i've shot a lot of 600-840mm sports stills with a fluid head on a tripod, i never understood why people want gimbals for stills.
fluid heads don't have to be heavy, i just got an e-image gh06 rig, looks like it has potential, although perhaps a bit too much friction on the first pan setting above zero.
I sold off two fluid heads - they simply don't have the easy maneuverability of gimbals, especially for BIFs when the monopod may be at head height , and camera above that, to enable you to still comfortably see the screen without stooping (the VF is out of reach).
Dustin Gent wrote:
I will have to look into a leveling base. I am a rookie on this type of photography, and have never used one. Supposed to get my Katana today so will find out what it does lol
Whether you need a levelling base or not depends on what you are shooting Dustin. I ALWAYS use one for landscape and astro but NEVER for birds/wildlife.
Frogfish wrote:
I sold off two fluid heads - they simply don't have the easy maneuverability of gimbals, especially for BIFs when the monopod may be at head height , and camera above that, to enable you to still comfortably see the screen without stooping (the VF is out of reach).
i wouldn't want to use a fluid head for high-flying birds.
a good fluid head can be set for zero drag in all directions... the evf going too low happens with gimbals as well, because they both rotate at similar fulcrum points on the lens... they are generally lighter tho, in my case the fluid head is over a pound heavier than a wimberly wh200 for example.
where the fluild head wins is more range of motion and it's much better for video.
Thanks everyone again! I am blown away by the ProMedia Gear quality - this thing is beautiful (if gear can be beautiful lol). Im spoiled now - finally got a RRS tripod (bought the wrong one, but deal was too good to pass up!), the gimbal and absolutely love my Acratech GP ballhead.
Anyways, I looked up what a leveling base does, and i think i need one. I think i know the answer to this, but how are the Leofoto versions? I don't mind paying $100 more if the quality is that much better. I had a Leofoto tripod head (straight knock off of the RRS BH-40), and it was ok, nothing special other than the price - which seems have gone up a bit since 2017 (or whenever i had mine).
We just had a decent sized storm here in SLC, and may head up to Yellowstone on Tuesday afternoon (they got hammered with the storm). Sadly the wolf packs have been thinned this past spring due to hunting, so may not have as good luck as I hope
Congratulations on your purchase, Dustin. The PMG gear is beautiful and functional. I have a ProMediaGear leveling head as well. I probably wouldn't have spent the money, but it came installed on the tripod I bought from a friend. I have enjoyed the adjustability it provides.
A leveling base might help you get setup more quickly. For me it depends on how tall of a tripod I'm using. On taller legs I usually just adjust the legs to level out the head. With shorter legs I sometimes don't want to lose any height so I'll use a leveling base rather than subtract any length from the legs. Adjusting the legs definitely takes longer. If you're moving around, readjusting the legs to level can get annoying.
I use all Leofoto stuff so I guess that gives you my vote on if it is good enough for me. My preference is a leveling bowl versus a top mounted leveling base. But a bowl is only an option on bigger "systematic" style legs. Not sure what legs you ended up with. For a thread-on top mounted leveling base I much prefer ones with big wing nut around the base to tighten it with. Those with only a small side mounted locking lever never seem to stay tight enough for me. Leofoto and (I believe RRS??) use the "wing" style locks. Way easier to use in the cold with gloves.
On the leveling base it may not matter too much, but all the top mounted ones I've used had some type of "fluid" damping grease inside. This can get really, really slow to move in extreme cold. That's one more reason I prefer the un-damped bowls. Not a big deal since you only need to adjust the base periodically, but it is something I've run into in the winter.
Dustin Gent wrote:
Thanks everyone again! I am blown away by the ProMedia Gear quality - this thing is beautiful (if gear can be beautiful lol). Im spoiled now - finally got a RRS tripod (bought the wrong one, but deal was too good to pass up!), the gimbal and absolutely love my Acratech GP ballhead.
Anyways, I looked up what a leveling base does, and i think i need one. I think i know the answer to this, but how are the Leofoto versions? I don't mind paying $100 more if the quality is that much better. I had a Leofoto tripod head (straight knock off of the RRS BH-40), and it was ok, nothing special other than the price - which seems have gone up a bit since 2017 (or whenever i had mine).
We just had a decent sized storm here in SLC, and may head up to Yellowstone on Tuesday afternoon (they got hammered with the storm). Sadly the wolf packs have been thinned this past spring due to hunting, so may not have as good luck as I hope ...Show more →
Hi Dustin,
I have the Leofoto LB-60N Leveling Base that I use with my Leofoto LS-284C tripod at times. It is smaller and lighter than my RRS TA-ULB Universal Leveling Base and my RRS Series 2 Leveling Base (version of the TA-ULB with Quick Release Clamp designed for the RRS Series 2 Tripods like my RRS TVC-24L tripod). All 3 of my leveling bases as well as my Gitzo F1257LVL tripod all only offer 15 degrees of movement in any direction. The newest series 2 leveling base by RRS offers 20 degrees.
I believe that the Leofoto LB-60N is rated to support 33 pounds and sells for $82.99 at B&H photo:
I have found that my smaller and lighter Leofoto LB-60N works almost as well as my RRS leveling bases. It is also well made and works well. If you want to have an Arca Swiss Type QR Clamp for the head, you can easily find one to install.
Thanks Rich! I was looking at the links you posted as well. I may drive down to RRS this next week and see if they have one in their showroom so i can check it out.
