Working on the theory that I'm probably better off not putting an
expensive and heavy lens on a cheap tripod or head I bought a Wimberley
gimbal to put under my A*600/5.6.
Being able to adjust the camera mount vertically and horizontally is
important for balancing the lens/ camera combo so that it doesn't flop.
My head allows vertical adjustment, but horizontal adjustment is done by
using an extended Arca Swiss plate and sliding it forwards or backwards
to achieve balance.
They don't work well as "just a tripod head" because the camera swings a
lot when adjusting tilt. This is especially unhandy when tilting the
camera upwards as the back of the camera moves ahead of the tripod and
points downwards into the head..
https://flic.kr/p/2jruqo7
bill
On 12/18/2025 5:09 PM, Larry Colen wrote:
Gimbal heads look like they have a lot of advantages when using very
heavy lenses (250-600, I'm looking at you), particularly when
photographing things that aren't very stationary, particularly birds
or airplanes that can move in all three dimensions. A ball head on a
monopod, or tripod can afford a lot of the freedom of motion, but if
you let go of the camera, the rest position is very suboptimal (clunk!).
A quick look at them show prices from $60 for the Magnus (which one
review says is a great value), or $80 for a K&F, all of the way past
$600.
I've never used one before, and $60 just to get one to play with
(which could then be a backup once I learn what I really need) is
tempting. But I figure if some of y'all have already made mistakes, I
don't need to. If I was going to go on a photo safari, or was
expecting to do a lot of wildlife photography, my needs would be very
different than someone who occasionally wants something better for
photographing with a large chunk of glass.
What are the important features? Things to avoid? Are there any
amazing values that people recommend? Or anything to avoid at any cost?
I know that I want it Arca-Swiss compatible.
I see that some are height adjustable, and some also let you adjust
horizontal distance. How critical are these?
Also, how well do they work as "just a tripod" rather than a pan/tilt
or ball head?
thanks,
LRC
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