wild idea : Mod ballhead into panhead ?

[cubicon]

okay ... basically i have a benro BH-0 ballhead ... thing is the base can be rotated 360 degrees ... i'm thinkin ... if i can lock the ballhead somehow, wouldn't i have a pan head (el cheapo style) :sweat:

now the thing is to find ways to jam it ... got already a few ideas in my head ... just need to find time and the materials to do it as simple as possible :sweatsm:

anyone else had this kind of ideas before for your tripod head :dunno:

 

[ed9119]

why ?

 

[sabee]

Manfrotto already makes something like that, its a U shaped sleeve thing that you jam between the ball and the top to force the setup into a horizontal position.

 

[sabee]

Anyway, I don't know if you can do it with Benro tripods, but you can just lock the ballhead and loosen+rotate the entire centre column if you want to pan a ballhead without an individual panning control.

 

[night86mare]

just buy a panhead

 

[Ian]

okay ... basically i have a benro BH-0 ballhead ... thing is the base can be rotated 360 degrees ... i'm thinkin ... if i can lock the ballhead somehow, wouldn't i have a pan head (el cheapo style) :sweat:

anyone else had this kind of ideas before for your tripod head :dunno:

Yawn, it's been done commercially at the top end of the Ballhead league for years. Take a look at the Arca Swiss B1, or the Graf Studioball (the only ballhead with a bearing race in the base) or similar heads.

Next!

 

[cubicon]

wau , there is .... suddenly make me feel like a mountain tortise :sweat:

sabee : if i move the center column, i was thinkin it might affect the leveling of the pictures taken thus affecting the final pic if i want to stich a them togather, although i can pp it later ..

anyway why i tot of this is during outdoor shootin and wan to do impromptu panaroma , having something small definatly beats bringing out 2 heads :sweatsm: and panhead is damn bulky with all the rods sticking out .... i like to travel light when i'm shooting

 

[KY1977]

Just buy the Benro B-0. It will do both job.

 

[sabee]

wau , there is .... suddenly make me feel like a mountain tortise :sweat:

sabee : if i move the center column, i was thinkin it might affect the leveling of the pictures taken thus affecting the final pic if i want to stich a them togather, although i can pp it later ..

anyway why i tot of this is during outdoor shootin and wan to do impromptu panaroma , having something small definatly beats bringing out 2 heads :sweatsm: and panhead is damn bulky with all the rods sticking out .... i like to travel light when i'm shooting

If the hassle of 2 heads and not price is your concern, can always get a ball head that has a independent panning control like this: http://www.bogenimaging.us/Jahia/si...I BALL HEAD W/ RC2&curBrandId=MAN&market=MKT1

 

[Ian]

okay ... basically i have a benro BH-0 ballhead ... thing is the base can be rotated 360 degrees ... i'm thinkin ... if i can lock the ballhead somehow, wouldn't i have a pan head (el cheapo style) :sweat:

Make a slotted wooden, plastic or aluminium collar, thats what I did 30 years ago and it works very well. or buy a panhead and be done with it.

 

[CamInit]

I just figured out a zero-cost way to do panning with a ball head. It only requires you to be able to unscrew the center column.

Very simple, deploy your tripod as normal. Loosen the center column by a turn or so, then raise so that the tripod is now holding onto the highest part of the lower column (the part that's supposed to be removable) to retain maximum stability. The upper portion can now rotate freely as you wish. It's not as precise as pan head or as stable (with the center column partially raised) but should be decent enough for ordinary shots. What do you think?
:think:

 

[Ian]

I just figured out a zero-cost way to do panning with a ball head. It only requires you to be able to unscrew the center column.

Very simple, deploy your tripod as normal. Loosen the center column by a turn or so, then raise so that the tripod is now holding onto the highest part of the lower column (the part that's supposed to be removable) to retain maximum stability. The upper portion can now rotate freely as you wish. It's not as precise as pan head or as stable (with the center column partially raised) but should be decent enough for ordinary shots. What do you think?
:think:

Hate to burst your bubble but a lot of tripods do NOT have a rotating centre column.

 

[CamInit]

Hate to burst your bubble but a lot of tripods do NOT have a rotating centre column.

Well, I did say it's a requirement to be able to unscrew the center column. So for those who can, can always give it a try. Those not, well... *shrugs*.