Ok so i am decided to buy a tripod but I have a newbie question.
The one i am buying doesn't come with a head.
Can i just screw my camera on top without a head for the time being till i get one? or is one needed?
Tripod head, Needed?
(41 posts) (13 voices)-
Posted 2 years ago #
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No. You need to get a head.
Posted 2 years ago # -
I am not a big fan of ball heads no matter how expensive. If you don't tighten it your expensive lens goes plop! If you have a telephoto, look at Wimberley(sp?). If your lens is very expensive, look at fluid heads. Manfrotto has some interesting configurations including some "joystick" heads that I like the looks of but have never used. Lots to choose from, rule of thumb with tripods, pick a tripod, buy one twice as nice.
Posted 2 years ago # -
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Well, you could easily have troubles from the advise so far. generally the thread on a tripod is bigger than the thread on your camera, though not always so. you could buy an adapter to connect it, which would be simple but restricting. you would have to adjust the tripod legs to change the camera position.
ball heads are great, unless you shoot birds, then you need a gimbal, or video, then you need a video head with dampening.
Posted 2 years ago # -
pbull221 said:
I am not a big fan of ball heads no matter how expensive. If you don't tighten it your expensive lens goes plop! If you have a telephoto, look at Wimberley(sp?). If your lens is very expensive, look at fluid heads. Manfrotto has some interesting configurations including some "joystick" heads that I like the looks of but have never used. Lots to choose from, rule of thumb with tripods, pick a tripod, buy one twice as nice.wimberlay or any gimbal head (i.e. jobu) is great, but it's out of reach for most camera users, as it's expensive and doesn't work nicely with short lenses (when You mount Your camera not the lens)
manfrotto's joystick ballheads are nice, but only when You don't put too much weight on them - I had one before and wasn't happy with using it with d200 and N24-70/2.8 as I found that combo was too heavy for it
fluid heads are nice, but the biggest drawback is weight, they can go really heavy.
IMHO, if You don't have a head right now, go for ball type of head, it's the most universal one, and You can get basic models (w/o panning) for just couple of bucksPosted 2 years ago # -
I did not intend bad advice. Gimbal heads such as the Wimberley would be for a telephoto for sure. As this is a Nikon forum, you may have purchased an $8-12K lens. Hence +$600.00 not even a tenth to protect from that sickening plop. Manfrotto 327RC2 Joystick Head was the joystick head I was thinking of, reportedly holds up to 12.3 lbs, pretty solid though I would not get it for one of those super telephotos. When I was little we had a new Questar telescope with an F3 w MD4 attached, ball head. Friend wanted to take a look, didn't tighten the ball head enough... plop. Multiple $K repairs. It is of course up to you. Suggestion, B&H/Photography/Tripods & Support/Tripod Heads. I picked Manfrotto as an example, 34 styles to choose from. Have fun with the research and yes Manfrotto has a Gimbal head that others have written nice things about. You will also see the Arca-Swiss balls heads and Manfrotto ball heads along with hundreds of other styles. Best of luck.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Gareth said:
Well, you could easily have troubles from the advise so far.Yes, so sorry iChilliPepper and others. I neglected to state that you could make a DIY doohickie from some sort of adapter; although if it worked it would, in fact, by definition be a tripod head. So, yes, you could build yourself a crappy tripod head and call it an adapter.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Buy a $50 Manfrotto ball head, use it for a few thousand shots in a variety of situations, and learn what you really NEED out of a head. Sure you'll bitch and grumble and likely miss a few shots, but it is those missed shots which will teach you.
Too many people become so fearful of missed opportunities they never learn how to create opportunities. Every missed shot is a chance for recognition and understanding of what goes wrong and the perfect opportunity to educate oneself on what is needed hardware and what is a status symbol piece of hardware.
Become an informed consumer.
Nobody can tell you what head you need, they are one of the most personal of photographic decisions.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Drab said:
Nobody can tell you what head you need, they are one of the most personal of photographic decisions.
Very true. I decided I didn't like ball heads so I got a 4 axis pan and tilt. Now I wish I'd just got a better ball head. The d@mn thing has handles sticking out all over the place and I have to take my eye off the viewfinder to grab the right one.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Hi,
Drab is his usual right self as is spraynpray - his point about axes is important, you may well wish to shift to another axis.
My travel tripod's weakness is that head tilt's on a single axis, but it's carbon fiber, and quite light overall.
My best,
Mike
Posted 2 years ago # -
Hope this doesn't get me in dutch with the moderator:
Just read this, well done...
Posted 2 years ago # -
pbull221 said:
Hope this doesn't get me in dutch with the moderator:Just read this, well done...
It is a well done article. The problem is Thom is assuming an audience which does not compromise, or compromises very little.
The advantage of starting with a $50 head is after a few months you learn what compromises YOU are willing to make, and what ones you aren't.Posted 2 years ago # -
I agree with that completely- I don't think it's that great an idea to start off with a $400+ tripod and head, until you know what you want. I'd normally suggest buying one of the cheap $50-100 tripod, and by the time it falls apart (1 year, maybe 2) then you know what you want or don't.
Since the OP already has a tripod and wants a head, I'd suggest getting a "cheaper" ballhead- something like a manfrotto 498 series, which can be had for $100 or so. Later on, if you find it's not enough, you can get your acratech, bh-55, arcaswiss cube, etc.. depending on what you need later.
Don't put your camera on directly on the head- you greatly reduce the angles you can shoot from, and adjusting the angle will be a huge pain. Yes, it is possible to directly mount it using a 3/8 to 1/4" bushing, but like everyone is saying, this is a bad idea.
Posted 2 years ago # -
pbull221 - no You are not gonna get in trouble with this link, IMHO it's the best article about camera support You can find.
drab - it's not all about compromises, it's about spending Your money once. If You are a professional user, than You should get the best of the best You can, as only this will let You from worrying about Your gear in all conditions (at least from the support point of view), sure that kind of stuff is expensive but if You can (assuming) afford d3s + some nice long tele ($5000+ lenses) than spending another $500 on head and $500 on legs shouldn't be a problem. If You starting and You know that the maximum weight You gonna put on Your tripod is 4pounds than get some cheaper solution. btw: there was a thread about tripods already on this forum, please check it out.
Posted 2 years ago # -
adamz:
I understand the thrust of Thom's argument, but it is still about compromises. Doesn't mean Thom is right and I am wrong, or vise versa, it means we have different philosophies about money.
I, myself, am able to afford a D3s, the "holy trinity" of zoom lenses, and a most impressive tripod and head. I could likely buy them without the wife raising an eyebrow. That doesn't mean money is unlimited, and it doesn't mean that spending money on one thing doesn't take it out of my pocket and prevent me from spending it on another.
Buying the best simply because it is the best and not because you need it is foolish, regardless of your financial position. When uncertain (as the OP clearly was) the best course is learning, and even the richest man is a fool who trains on an expensive bike.
Not to mention the almost certainty that IF the OP was wealthy he never would have escaped a camera store without some salesman convincing him of one head or another already. Therefore treating him as if money is not an issue is wrong.
Posted 2 years ago # -
As somebody with a limited budget, I followed the path that was mentioned first in that link - I learned by trial and error. I have a little Manfrotto Modo which is too twangy and a nice Slik which isn't. I use the Manfrotto for hiking and hang my pack off it to stabilise it because the Slik is too heavy to tote up a mountain.
Manfrotto £30, Slik AMT £80 - there are bargains out there if you search.
Posted 2 years ago # -
We have not heard from the OP(?) for a while. Do we know what tripod he was referring to that is in need of a head? I have several tripods after 40 years with photography. My Mom and Dad were very wise when they got me an hefty Bogen when I was about 17. It was the last tripod I got but have been learning recently about the super teles and have dreams of humping it up a hill and down through the valley to pick off some never been shot by Me photographs. Personally, I now save until I can afford what I want and thus do not compromise, it is not my profession (being creative on demand makes me lock up inside), it is what I do to rescue myself from the day's computer networking job. It is not using a computer for the sake of computers, it is using a computer because it is part of the work flow. I guess you could say it is compromise because I am limited by time, but the wait is virtually always worth it.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Drab said:
I, myself, am able to afford a D3s, the "holy trinity" of zoom lenses, and a most impressive tripod and head.
...and even the richest man is a fool who trains on an expensive bike.
Exactly my problem to a lesser degree...50% of the time you should just do it because you squander 2 yrs thinking about it, but 50% of the time you say WTH am I thinking spending this much??? (Pros aside of course.)
Seriously, when the D800 comes out, I will need counseling. I just shot my kid's basketball game and ISO 1250 @ 2.8 is still not great on D90. I am leaning towards the "just do it" if the FX can see in the dark, but it's a ridiculous amount of cash.
Photography is becoming like cars where you look at it as an investment to justify it all. The only person you're kidding is yourself. :-)
BTW, my Manfrotto XPROB055 legs and RC322 grip are doing very well for me. Oddly though, when I bracket 3 shots, I see a tiny shift for one of them in post-processing. I need to see again if that happens with or without remote.
Posted 2 years ago # -
drab, micron49 - unfortunately I'm not in Your position guys, I have to work my money hard, and each time I spend some money on my camera gear means that I don't spend it on some other (sometimes crucial, sometimes not) stuff. maybe because of that, I can't afford to buy one things just for learning, and than to buy another stuff only after I realize that the cheap stuff I bought before doesn't work as expected. my mother always says that: "we are too poor to buy cheap stuff". at the same time, I don't say that You need to get the most expensive things one can get, I say only that You have to get the best You can afford/suites You for Your stuff.
Posted 2 years ago # -
Yup. +1
Posted 2 years ago # -
Hi Guys
Thank you all for you feedback. Much appreciated.
pbull221 said:
Do we know what tripod he was referring to that is in need of a head?Hi yea. I haven't bought the tripod yet but I am planning to buy a Manfrotto 055XPROB. With a Manfrotto 804RC2 3way head once i get some cash.
First impressions seem good.
At the beginning I was just planning to use the tripod indoors on level ground. And thought if I bought an adapter then it would be a quick fix till i have enough money for the head.
I might leave that idea now and just wait a month and buy it all together.
Trouble is my mind works like a kid in a toy store
"I WANT IT I WANT IT NOW!" :D
Posted 2 years ago # -
iChilliPepper, you are not alone by a long shot. Take solace in the actual comfort of learning all about the things you simply want for the sake of wanting. The fact that you are disciplined enough to not just stick it on the credit card shows you have more impulse control than a lot of us. To everyone: when I hit 50 I had the WTH moment after over a year of reading about digital photography. There was a break point where I just looked at the right side of the menu, said to myself, I am going to do this and I am going to do it for the sake of the end product. I have taken great comfort in reading repeatedly (here) to keep my mindset on the photograph. One of the best photos I took when I took my college level intro to photography was a self portrait where I put the camera on timer, propped the camera in the crotch of a tree, and went over and struck a pose. The teacher was certain that I had help until I took him to the spot where I had taken it, and the sweet light time of day where the light was poking through the trees. Later that week I saw him carefully picking his way in the direction of that spot with his 5 X 7 camera mounted on his favorite wooden tripod and a kit bag. Connections people, don't forget connections...
Posted 2 years ago # -
I personally would not recommend using a 3 way head, because they are a little more troublesome to use than a real ballhead. I'd suggest trying one out first (or buying from a place that lets you return this stuff) before committing.
Posted 2 years ago # -
forgot to say that you can mount a camera to a monopod directly and still have adequate usability.
Posted 2 years ago #
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