<<< big snip
By the way, I've no ax to grind either way. I fully understand that
pan/tilt heads have their proper place, as do geared heads. I can easily
see the use of either with larger, heavier gear, or when working in a
studio setting with light set-ups and plenty of time to get everything just
so. In fact, my first head was a pan/tilt job which sat atop my old Leitz
Tilt-all tripod. It worked just fine. I finally changed over to a ballhead
scheme because after working with a few owned by friends I discovered that
for most applications ballheads are simply more efficient, and furthermore
take up less space when packed. As far as weight goes, I'd guess my present
ballhead weighs about the same as the pan/tilt job I used to use. The Arca
Swiss is somewhat massive and I doubt I'd want to haul it around Europe on
vacation, just for example--in that instance I'd opt for one of the
mini-heads, like the one from Gitzo I mentioned earlier.
Tris
I see the main difference in using the ball heads versus the pan/tilt types
is that the movement of the camera on a ball device is a two-handed
operation. When releasing the lock on the ball the camera needs to be
supported with the other hand. If not, you have to trust the friction to be
set correctly and it must might not be. With my Bogen pan/tilt head the
lever you rotate to release the head for movement is the same lever you use
to move the camera so it tends to be a more one-handed operation. Operator
error can always be a problem though. The buyem and tryem approach can get
expensive if you're using the high-end ball heads. Most are over $400US and
some are well over $500. My Bogen 3038 is very heavy at 3.6 pounds. It seems
to work well but carrying it is a pain.
/jim
< This message was delivered via the Olympus Mailing List >
< For questions, mailto:owner-olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx >
< Web Page: http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright/olympuslist.html >
< This message was delivered via the Olympus Mailing List >
< For questions, mailto:owner-olympus@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx >
< Web Page: http://Zuiko.sls.bc.ca/swright/olympuslist.html >
|