Do you lube your ball?

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jason
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I have a tripod with a ball head and although its not a mega professional one, it works well for me. I want to learn the technique of panning for motorsport and aviation. Question is, does anyone use any kind of lubricant on the ball head for smoother operation? Or will it just attract dust and get icky?
 
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It happened that I had to disassemble a ball head that
got too dirty after a mishap… but I did not lubricate it.
Some higher end balls are made to not need any kind
of lubrication.
 
I never have as I've never had a sticky one. I think it'll attract dirt.
 
"Panning" is generally best done handheld if possible.
Any lubrication to make a ballhead move easier/smoother will also inhibit it's ability to lock into place (as well as collect dirt)... it's generally a bad idea.
 
Thanks guys. I do have a monopod so could be an option. I was just thinking that keeping the camera steady in at least one plane and reducing other influences (up and down) , a ball head and tripod cold be set up to just allow side to side panning.
 
If you must lubricate, use something which will leave a dry film (like a silicon lubricant) rather than a grease. Not sure I see the point of panning with a tripod for motorsport.
 
Wait a minute! Some ball heads have a fluid panning rotation joint intended for video work that is lubricated with a special kind of silicone grease that easily permits slow motion, and stiffens up for fast motion, i.e. it helps you to make even smooth motion. The lubricant is applied to a different part of the joint than is used for locking it down.
 
chris malcolm said:
Wait a minute! Some ball heads have a fluid panning rotation joint intended for video work
Click to expand...
Can't say that I've ever seen one...

The main problem with panning using a tripod is that *you* have to move around the tripod, while also keeping your eye to the viewfinder so you can keep the focus on the subject. It's completely different from video where you are using a monitor instead. It works well enough if the subject is rather distant.
I would say that the shorter/slower the pan is, the more a tripod may be beneficial... and yes, I would prefer a fluid head.
 
chris malcolm said:
Wait a minute! Some ball heads have a fluid panning rotation joint intended for video work that is lubricated with a special kind of silicone grease that easily permits slow motion, and stiffens up for fast motion, i.e. it helps you to make even smooth motion. The lubricant is applied to a different part of the joint than is used for locking it down.
Click to expand...
Bit like a non-newtonian fluid?
 
Never used tripod to pan for sports etc. Generally do it handheld (though can only really do it well fro right to left!)

Part of my job used to be to service optical instruments in a hospital where soem required very fluid movement. On most the manufacturers advised thoroughly cleaning the moving components then apply a small amount of a silicon based grease and wipe nost back off.
 
sk66 said:
Can't say that I've ever seen one...
Click to expand...

I bought one without realising it -- it came as the ball head fitted to a Mefoto Globetrotter I bought. It looks just like an ordinary ballhead with the not uncommon horizontally swiveling and separately lockable joint underneath the ball. Very handy for doing smooth video contextual pans and (not) "handheld" in-camera panorama shots, which require a smooth constant speed camera rotation.

The main problem with panning using a tripod is that *you* have to move around the tripod, while also keeping your eye to the viewfinder so you can keep the focus on the subject.
Click to expand...

Why can't you use the liveview LCD when panning?
 
Hard to se anything through an SLR viewfinder while shooting video.
 
chris malcolm said:
I bought one without realising it -- it came as the ball head fitted to a Mefoto Globetrotter I bought. It looks just like an ordinary ballhead with the not uncommon horizontally swiveling and separately lockable joint underneath the ball. Very handy for doing smooth video contextual pans and (not) "handheld" in-camera panorama shots, which require a smooth constant speed camera rotation.[

Why can't you use the liveview LCD when panning?
Click to expand...
The sensor output can only go to one place at a time when doing photography. It either goes to the LCD or it goes to the card(s).
I tried using continuous frame rate photography with liveview and the AF/tracking was interrupted during the exposures (Nikon). And the LCD blacked out...
 
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sk66 said:
The sensor output can only go to one place at a time when doing photography. It either goes to the LCD or it goes to the card(s).
I tried using continuous frame rate photography with liveview and the AF/tracking was interrupted during the exposures (Nikon). And the LCD blacked out...
Click to expand...
That's a technological problem which afflicted early cameras with liveview, and, sad to say, some camera makers haven't yet either developed their own technological solutions or been prepared to pay for the use of someone else's patent. It's not really a problem if you think of it in terms of computer technology, it just needs a slightly more sophisticated computer in the camera.
 
chris malcolm said:
That's a technological problem which afflicted early cameras with liveview, and, sad to say, some camera makers haven't yet either developed their own technological solutions or been prepared to pay for the use of someone else's patent. It's not really a problem if you think of it in terms of computer technology, it just needs a slightly more sophisticated computer in the camera.
Click to expand...
I'm not aware of any camera that records the full data stream simultaneously while showing it on a display (even an electronic viewfinder). AFAIK, *if* a camera is recording photos during display it is rolling readout at a reduced resolution (essentially video stills). I think that a global shutter/sensor arrangement would be required in order to get around this limitation.
 
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