Jerky Ball Head on a Tripod.

Shirleyr

Shirleyr

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Shirley
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The ball head on my tripod jerks when I move the lens up and down which means I often miss a bird. Is there anything to put on the ball without it being grease. The lens I'm using is a 400mm so it is heavy so it jerks with a big jump and the birds I'm watching usually flies off.
 
For telephotos and birds a gimbal head is the way forward really, no need to lock it down, just balance the lens and enjoy effortless movement.

The suggestion I would make if you are continuing with a ball head is to consider a wimberley side kick to use with your existing ball head.

Which ball head, and which 400mm lens are you using.
 
Hello Martyn,
The Canon lens is the 400mm f/5.6 and the ballhead is Manfrotto 494 RC2, and whilst your on have you a monopod you could suggest as I won't be able to carry this combination very far.
 
That is not a heavy lens, so a sidekick would handle that no problem.

The trouble is that your ballhead does not have an 'Arca Swiss' style capture plate, so it would not take the Sidekick.

So to accommodate the Sidekick, you would also need a new ballhead, if you are going to be spending that sort of money I would suggest a gimbal head such as the Jobu Jr 2, this will be fine for your lens, and at £184 is a good price for a well made bit of kit.

All you have to do is make sure the camera is balanced so when the tilt knob is released it stays horizontal.

UK Distributor the one at the bottom of the page, or the one above if you would prefer horizontal mounting, but the side mounting one will be fine for your lens.

You will also need an Arca Swiss style capture plate to fit on your lens foot to allow mounting on the Jobu (and any other Arca Swiss style head)

Monopods ... I have a Gitzo one, but any carbon one will be light and do the job, as with everything you get what you pay for.
 
I've just been looking at the gimbal head 393 Manfrotto, that supports the lens and it looks very good also it can be used on both a monopod and tripod. At Warehouse its just over a hundred pounds. I've read what you have wrote and I'll have a look at the Gitzo monopod at warehouse. Would the Manfrotto head fit the Gitzo?
 
molly said:
I've just been looking at the gimbal head 393 Manfrotto, that supports the lens and it looks very good also it can be used on both a monopod and tripod. At Warehouse its just over a hundred pounds. I've read what you have wrote and I'll have a look at the Gitzo monopod at warehouse. Would the Manfrotto head fit the Gitzo?
Click to expand...

Any head should fit onto any tripod / monopod :thumbs:

That 393 has favourable reports, not sure I would use a gimbal on a monopod, I tend to just fit the lens directly to the monopod without using any head at all, they are easy enough to tilt and pan with.
 
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