Which Ball Head? Help.

[sharpf8]

Hello, all. I have been away from the exciting world of photography for a while, after having been bitten by another "exciting" bug, but I am coming back to my first love--photography. I have been lurking lately, though and waiting one day, that someone would post a thread regarding ball heads. I have searched the archives, but couldn't find anything.:bang:

I have a Leica M system and an SLR camera. Primarily, it will be for the M, since it's my chosen gear. I need a light and easy to use ball head.

So, any suggestions for a sturdy and light ball head? Kirk ball heads comes to mind, as well as Arca Swiss.

As always, I certainly appreciate all your thoughts.

Happy Holloween!

Louie

 

[FPjohn]

There is a world of choice - perhaps RRS

http://reallyrightstuff.com/ballheads/02.html

My BH25 holds a Leica IIIb to a Century Graphic.

yours
FPJ

 

[majid]

Acratech Ultimate Ballhead, hands-down. It has a simple but foolproof design, holds a Nikon D3 with tele lens, Hasselblad 500C/M or Fuji G617 without problems, and is very lightweight to boot.

I used to have an Arca-Swiss B1, it would get stuck all the time, until I couldn't unfreeze it any more. Arca apologists tell you there is a procedure to prevent this - it didn't work for me, and they should stop making excuses for a $300+ product that was clearly designed wrong.

 

[Photon42]

maybe the smallest Markins ball head? It's called Emille. Very well made.

 

[BillBingham2]

My favorite is the one I am selling now

http://www.rangefinderforum.com/pho...duct/12997/cat/6/limit/recent/date/1220810094

They make a smaller one now but it's very handy. It allows you to put the head on the bottom of the center pillar and shoot very close to the ground. While it's not a ball head IMHO it works much better. The small one that they still sell is much lighter in weight, same design.

If you're stuck on the idea of a ball head for a Leica M I really the large or medium ball head from Leica. You can find them used some times on EvilBay.

Sorry for the shameless plug. It's bigger than you need unless you are going to use long lenses, MF or smaller 4x5s.

B2 (;->

 

[plummerl]

I recently acquired a Markins M20 (my first ballhead) and I can sing nothing but praise for it. http://www.markinsamerica.com/MA5/M20.php

 

[sharpf8]

Thanks for all your reply. Much appreciated.

 

[fergus]

Acratech Ultimate Ballhead, hands-down. It has a simple but foolproof design, holds a Nion D3 with tele lens, Hasselblad 500C/M or Fuji G617 without problems, and is very lightweight to boot.

I'd 2nd this - the acratech has worked perfectly for me with both SLR and MF cameras.

 

[Frank Petronio]

They are hard to find but the Linhof 3-way head is strong and compact for up to medium 4x5/long teles, a good match for #3 Gitzos. About the same $ used as a new quality Arca-type ball head. I had several Arca-type heads and found I prefer the 3-axis heads.

The locking levers are small and don't require much force because it is well designed and high quality -- and unlike ballheads, it is bombproof, airlines can not damage it ;-)

 

[mfogiel]

Another vote for Acratech - best proper weight/camera weight ratio I've ever seen.

 

[kxl]

I vote for the Acratech as well. Nice and light and sturdy.

Another nice thing for you in Diamond Bar, Acratech is actually located not too far away in Glendora, so maybe you can call them and drop by for a visit.

I called them when I bought my ballhead and dropped by (I'm in Chino Hills) to see their shop and chat for a few minutes with Scott, the CEO -- nice, knowledgeable guy.

Keith

 

[mervynyan]

markins m20

 

[Yammerman]

Velbon QHD-71Qhas done me sterling service. Used with a Pentax 6X7 no problems and its pretty cheap. The release plates seem the pricey part and I now have 3.

 

[Roger Hicks]

Novoflex's 'inside out' or 'upside down' design (the substantially exposed ball goes on the tripod, the base on the camera) is small, light and very efficient. By the standards of good ball heads, it's not very expensive eothjer.

I much prefer ball heads for travel, but use 3-way heads in the studio, except for 8x10 where I hang the camera downwards from the cross-arm of an IFF stand with a BIG ball (Paterson).

Oh: and for QRs, the Q-Top is back in production (Monochrom in Germany has it).

Cheers,

R.

 

[ChrisN]

And I'll add the 5th vote for the Acratech. As the others have said, excellent build quality, very good performance, excellent design that doesn't collect dust or sand in difficult conditions. Ball heads have their disadvantages, as some note, but for minimum weight and bulk with good performance the Acratech is hard to beat. Link

Edit to add - paired with quick release plates from Really Right Stuff.

 

[Fred Burton]

I use both the Kirk BH-3 and BH-1. The smaller on a monopod. I've had several other brands self destruct, but I've really beat these kirk heads up and they just keep working. Not cheap, but for me definitely worth the money.

 

[David Goldfarb]

I've got two--an Arca Swiss B2, which is way more than you need, and an Acratech, which is very strong for its weight.

 

[Photon42]

Another vote for Acratech - best proper weight/camera weight ratio I've ever seen.

The Markins Emille holds 30 kgs with a bit less than 400g for head and clamp. Never verified it, though 😉

 

[peter_n]

I think the Markins and Kirk are excellent choices. I use Markins QR clamps and they are beautifully made. Markins used to have the reputation of sticking a bit in winter but they seem to have got past that. When I was buying I took a long look at the Acratech and eventually decided to steer clear of it, it had a reputation for creep and I felt a bit uncomfortable with the design. The GV2 may have fixed the creep. I ended up with a Linhof ballhead, mainly for the ergonomics. Just a couple of simple controls and a huge rubber knob. You may need to use the ballhead with gloves on and you need something that is easy to operate. Whatever you do get a ballhead that will accept an Arca-Swiss type clamp at the top of the post. You also need to get plates for your bodies. The one from ClearSight is excellent for your M, slim but strong. The Wimberley P-5 is a very well designed and made universal plate for any SLR.