I have chosen a tripod, now I need to select a tripod head (for an 8x10 field ca mera). I am curious to hear other's experience regarding ballheads vs. 3-way hea ds. What advantages do you perceive? Also, what brands and models, and do they p erform to their advertised maximum loads? Thanks in advance, Mark
Ball heads are faster and easier to use. However, you have much better control of each axis of rotation with a pan tilt head. For LF photography, I find that a pan tilt head is the way to go; it makes you go a little slower and more metho dically, which is what you want to do with LF. You can make fine adjustments to your camera on each axis separately, which works quite well when looking at the ground glass trying to get the best composition.
Are you asking about a 3-way pan head or a 3-way levelling head like the Linhof one John Sexton uses?
You may want to look at the Ries head - it gives ~110 degrees front to back and ~30 degrees side to side movement. It is more convenient than a pan head and more secure-feeling than a ballhead (IMHO). Don't forget about geared heads either(Majestic and Bogen among others).
Mark,
I have both and use both, but here's my take on them.
I use a ballhead for 35mm work only. For LF, my biggest problem with this head type is that there is nothing on the head to grab hold of when you release the lockdown lever. That means you have to hold onto the camera. In my case, that just doesn't feel very comfortable, and the balance can be way off center, resulting in difficulty maintaining gradule adjustments of the camera. Yes, you can play with the friction knob to help hold it, but unless the mass is balanced over the head, that is of limited utility. And you still have the problem of having to use the camera as a lever to make adjustments.
I use the tilt-pan head (Bogen 3047) for LF to eliminate these problems, and for one additional benefit. You can lock down the whole thing, and then release one axis of movement at a time. When doing something where you want to correct for converging lines, this can be very useful. Before I got a ballhead, I used this head for everything.
If I am travelling light with only one tripod, than the ballhead comes along, since I shoot far more in 35mm than LF. If I'm travelling very light only one camera system, then it depends on the system I have along. If I'm travelling extremely light (backpacking), I use a smaller tilt pan variation (Bogen 3028 I think) on a very small tripod, regardless of the system I have with me.
Note that these comments are for field use. In a studio, there may be no reason to use anything but one of the very large ballheads, that I'll leave for someone with experience in the studio.
---Michael
3-way panheads are a much better choice. Bogen 3047 or one of their geared heads will work and are reasonably priced.
I use my Arca Swiss B1 for 35mm and have been using it with an RRS plate on my Linhof Technikardan for convenience. it truly is not a solution, and for LF work, you need separate control of each axis. I love the Bogen (Manfrotto) 410, the geared movements, but will not buy one until they offer it without their quick-release. I have too much invested in RRS and Kirk plates to fall back on Bogens solution. extend the Linhof out, doing 1:1 and they tell me that things are shakey with the 410 in that mode. Bogen ... listen up!
Daniel, try the Arca Swiss B2, it is the best dual axis head I have tried, but t hen I haven't tried the 3 way leveling Linhof head Bob S. recommends. Ries heads are also very good. The Gitzo 1570 head is also very fine, especially for 8x10.
I shoot with an 8x10 Wisner, and I have finally settled on a head after doing much searching. I like the Gitzo 1570M. This is the light weight magnesium head. It has an excellent weight/support ratio, and has long handles (some people don't like these) that stick out far enough to clear the base of the camera. This head also has a very large top plate, so you get great support. A Bogen 3047 weighs more than the Gitzo head, and is not made to support more than 4x5. I would stay away from ball heads. If you don't like the long handles of the Gitzo, Bromwell make a panhead (the Master Panhead) that is designed for 8x10, and resembles Bogen's 3D heads.
I've used both Bogen 3047 3-way and Arca Swiss B-1 Ballhead for 8 X 10 and _much_ prefer the latter. With spirit levels on the camera, especially if you can see both axes simultaneously as I can on my Ebony, you can very quickly get the camera set perfectly level. The Arca Swiss is rated at 90 lb, and is rock solid, esp. with the Really Right Stuff plate -- much more solid than any three-way I've used, though I've not tried Ries or Linhof. The added advantage of a much smaller head --> easier-to-carry tripod was what really sold me. I found the long handles made it difficult to strap the tripod to my back pack. Just another point of view.
Nathan
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