what's the adv , disadvantage btw ball head vs panhead

Michael Ang · 22nd July 2003

Hi,

i been itching to buy a ball head to replace the pan head on my new bought Slik Pro 700 DX...

well the pan head is very solid and can take up to 7kg weight...
and I am using about 3 - 4 kg at the moment...

only downside of using the panhead is that it is kind of heavy and a little troublesome to adjust

what advantages does a ball head have over a pan head?

been using a pan head all along ....

any body can tempt me to get a ball head? ... thanks ...

ST1100 · 22nd July 2003

Hi Michael.

i've a little experience w both, though my pan head wasn't a high quality one.

Panheads are more suitable for scenery and architecture, where you want to control up/down and left/right independently (Eg rotating the camera left or right without moving it up or down.)

A ballhead is more suitable more times when you need a faster response, like tracking birds in flight, soccer players, dancers on stage, or even just kids running around. Panheads are not as suitable bcoz they are a little slower.

A good ballhead also has this feature: you point the lens to whatever you want to shoot, and when you let go of the camera, it stays exactly it is. A poorer quality one might droop a bit, and the bad ones may just flop over. i recommend the Acra Swiss B1 - a very good ballhead.

You can pop by Cathay and visit their tripod section. A senior staff there, Christopher, is very friendly to talk to and he can advise you based on your needs, budget and equipment weight.

Michael Ang · 23rd July 2003

hi,

thanks for your reply.. yeah i spoke to christopher at CP before.. but am a bit scared of his recommendation.. usually very expensive..

also heard of the Acra Swiss B1 but that is way above my budget...

saw this Slik Pro 800 ball ... looks quite good... at sub 110 price seems reasonable...

what do u think?

ST1100 · 23rd July 2003

Sorry, my experience with ballheads is limited to exactly one ballhead, so i can't help you much. i think you can thick-skin a bit go inside with your gear and try. i don't think Cathay will mind.

i really don't know the quality of the ballhead you mentioned, but if your panhead is heavy and good (and smooth) you may need to put quite a bit of money into the ballhead to get an 'upgrade' experience. Usually, you get what you pay for.

Maybe others who have the Slik can offer some comments?

gremlin · 2nd August 2003

I have the slik ballhead 800. It is generally an "ok" ballhead for its price. It features panning lock and tension control, which is quite useful. The reason why I said ok is that it only supports up to 3kg. This translates to a 10D body, batt grip, 70-200 2.8 plus 550ex and you are already pushing it. You will need to tighten the knob very very hard to make the ballhead "unmovable"

chgoh · 2nd August 2003

There's an article on tripod in general by Thom Hogan titled Tripod 101 which you might want to read. The URL is http://www.bythom.com/support.htm.

chgoh

22nd July 2003	#1
Michael Ang Gallery Subscriber Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Singapore Posts: 301	what's the adv , disadvantage btw ball head vs panhead Hi, i been itching to buy a ball head to replace the pan head on my new bought Slik Pro 700 DX... well the pan head is very solid and can take up to 7kg weight... and I am using about 3 - 4 kg at the moment... only downside of using the panhead is that it is kind of heavy and a little troublesome to adjust what advantages does a ball head have over a pan head? been using a pan head all along .... any body can tempt me to get a ball head? ... thanks ...

2nd August 2003	#5
gremlin Member Join Date: Nov 2002 Posts: 990	I have the slik ballhead 800. It is generally an "ok" ballhead for its price. It features panning lock and tension control, which is quite useful. The reason why I said ok is that it only supports up to 3kg. This translates to a 10D body, batt grip, 70-200 2.8 plus 550ex and you are already pushing it. You will need to tighten the knob very very hard to make the ballhead "unmovable" __________________ PixelPixie Wedding Photography \| Blog

22nd July 2003	#2
ST1100 Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2003 Location: Singapore, Bedok Posts: 1,801	Hi Michael. i've a little experience w both, though my pan head wasn't a high quality one. Panheads are more suitable for scenery and architecture, where you want to control up/down and left/right independently (Eg rotating the camera left or right without moving it up or down.) A ballhead is more suitable more times when you need a faster response, like tracking birds in flight, soccer players, dancers on stage, or even just kids running around. Panheads are not as suitable bcoz they are a little slower. A good ballhead also has this feature: you point the lens to whatever you want to shoot, and when you let go of the camera, it stays exactly it is. A poorer quality one might droop a bit, and the bad ones may just flop over. i recommend the Acra Swiss B1 - a very good ballhead. You can pop by Cathay and visit their tripod section. A senior staff there, Christopher, is very friendly to talk to and he can advise you based on your needs, budget and equipment weight.

23rd July 2003	#3
Michael Ang Gallery Subscriber Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Singapore Posts: 301	hi, thanks for your reply.. yeah i spoke to christopher at CP before.. but am a bit scared of his recommendation.. usually very expensive.. also heard of the Acra Swiss B1 but that is way above my budget... saw this Slik Pro 800 ball ... looks quite good... at sub 110 price seems reasonable... what do u think?

2nd August 2003	#6
chgoh Member Join Date: Jan 2003 Posts: 668	There's an article on tripod in general by Thom Hogan titled Tripod 101 which you might want to read. The URL is http://www.bythom.com/support.htm. chgoh