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|| SportsShooter.com: Member Message Board
Inverted Ballhead = Free Panning Base
Jeff Mills, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 5:50 PM on 09.07.09 |
->> I certainly can't take credit for this brilliant idea but as I never came across it before, figured plenty of others haven't either so thought it was worth sharing.
If your like me, you've probably been interested in doing some panoramic photos. Modern stitching software makes it so easy to get great results and it can make for some very cool shots. One thing you typically want to do it pan level. Simply leveling your ballhead won't work because you need to then make sure the legs are level or else the ballheads panning base in going to move your camera in an arc.
Leveling the tripod legs seems easy but in the field it can be difficult and leveling bases only give a small range of movements which sometimes isn't enough for times when you've got one leg on a rock or two straddling a stream etc. These also cost money and add weight.
Solution for most has been an additional panning base that you mount onto your ballhead. Then what you do is put the legs how you need them, and your ballhead itself is used to level the platform. This is very quick and easy and then your additional panning base on top rotates the camera around perfectly level.
Works great so whats the problem ? Cost and weight, mainly cost.
The best solution I've found is the Really Right Stuff PCL-1 panning clamp. Great unit that does everything it says it will, however, its $235! Add another $30 if you want a dovetail plate for the bottom of it for $265 total. Additionally its another 13oz of weight to carry on your tripod, which if like me, its carbon fiber to make it as light as possible is the last thing you want. Mainly its a cost issue though.
Luckily, as someone far smarter than me realized, your ballhead, mine being a Kirk BH-3, already has a panning base on it thats very stable as well. Problem is its on the bottom of the ballhead so what do you do ? Flip it over following these easy steps.
1. take the clamp off the top of the ballhead (had loctite so I need to heat it first, just FYI)
2. I was then left with a ball that had a 1/4th thread sticking out the top of it. I put a 3/8th adapter sleeve onto that thread and then after removing the male thread from my tripod base, screwed the ballhead right into the base plate so its now upside down.
3. Now with the head head upside down, I took a 3/8th to 1/4th" stud and screwed the quick release clamp into the top (formerly bottom) of my ballhead and your done.
Its that easy and you've now got a perfectly level panning base that you can mount your camera directly to with a dovetail plate or if you want to offset the nodal point, use one of those long rails.
While the upside down ballhead looks a bit odd I've found it works exactly the same and there are no issues with slipping or anything else. If your not doing a pano just tighten the knob on the panning base and it works just like a normal ballhead.
This added no additional weight or bulk, gave me some new capabilities and didn't cost me a dime additional money. Why pay RRS or any other company money for a panning base when you've already got one built right into your ballhead ?? |
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Philip Johnson, Photographer
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Garland | TX | USA | Posted: 6:14 PM on 09.07.09 |
| ->> I think I understand what you are explaining, but couldn't you do the some thing by leaving your ball head with panning base and use an L bracket to go vertical with your camera? Then you just level the ball head and camera and rotate on the panning base. Let me know what I'm missing. |
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Jeff Mills, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 7:20 PM on 09.07.09 |
->> Philip,
That works in theory but in reality presents several problems in the field.
First of which is that you need to have the base of the tripod perfectly level as that is what the ballheads panning base is going to pan around.
Now working indoors or on a sidewalk, basically any perfectly flat surface its not that hard to level your tripod just adjusting the length of a leg. It becomes much more difficult though when your on soft ground, sand, or setting up the legs all at different angles. An example of this would be if your on the bank of a stream and you've got one leg extended further out and down into the water and another is set at a different angle and pressed against the top of a boulder etc.
With some effort you could probably get this level but its a lot of extra work and can affect your camera position. Instead its far easier simply to setup the tripod however you need it to get the angle and stability you want, regardless of if the platform is level or not. I'll sometimes set up my tripod where the platform is at a 45 degree angle and adjust the ballhead as needed to get back to level.
Other problem is once you've got your legs and platform level, you then need to make sure the ballhead clamp is perfectly squared up with the panning base of the ballhead. That again becomes a bit tricky and on most ballheads there is no detent for when its perfectly level.
Its for those reasons leveling bases and/or panning clamps were invented. Setup the legs and then use the leveling base to get things level, or use the ballhead to get things level and then put a panning clamp on top of it, effectively turning the ballhead into a leveling base.
Its worth mentioning with leveling bases that the range of adjustment is usually only 5 degrees so you've still got to get the tripod pretty squared up and they are rather finicky to adjust quickly.
Far easier to just move the ballhead til its level and use a panning clamp. As I said, the panning clamp works great. Tons of people are using the RRS PCL-1 and getting great results. Its a solid piece of hardware for sure.
But as I mentioned, its not cheap. $265 is a bit of an investment for doing pano's and while I'm sure if your serious about it it is money well spent, if your more of an occasional user, such as just on a vacation once a year, I think the inverted ballhead makes more sense because it gives you the exact same ability but doesn't require you to spend any more money. |
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Scott Dreslinski, Photographer
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Rochester Hills | MI | US | Posted: 10:54 PM on 09.07.09 |
->> Jeff,
Any photos? I can't picture it. I have a complete pano head I use when doing spherical panos, but this sounds like it could be good for light traveling like vacation.
Thanks |
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Jeff Mills, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 11:59 PM on 09.07.09 |
->> Scott, I'll see if I can find a free image hosting site to put up some images so I can put a link in the thread. If not I'll be happy to email them to you.
Your definitely right about it being good for travel because there is no more weight or components than just a ballhead by itself, and/or a long rail if you want to do entrance pupil rotation.
I had a PCL-1 and it being just under 1lb hardly was a deal breaker on vacation but as I said, why invest in an additional $265 piece of gear when I had the same thing at my disposal for free all along. |
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Juliann Tallino, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Port Townsend/Seattle | WA | USA | Posted: 12:28 AM on 09.08.09 |
->> Jeff,
Sportsshooter is a free image hosting site, create a hidden gallery. |
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Jeff Mills, Photographer, Photo Editor
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Columbus | OH | USA | Posted: 12:38 AM on 09.08.09 |
->> Did not know that Juliann. Never heard of a hidden gallery before, I'll have to check that out.
In the meantime, here is a link that should work.
You can see how the ballhead is inverted and how even when the tripod base is quite uneven, by using the ball itself to level things out, you've then got a perfectly horizontal plane to rotate the camera around on, using the panning base built right into the ballhead.
When using the tripod/ballhead in a "normal" fashion, you just tighten the knob for the panning base and use it like any other ballhead. Only difference is that its got some extra mass over using it rightside up, but we are only talking about 6 ounces and the head is more than solid enough to hold it.
Thats a Nikon 45mm PC-E in case anyone was curious
http://img246.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=696l.jpg |
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Philip Johnson, Photographer
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Garland | TX | USA | Posted: 1:32 AM on 09.08.09 |
| ->> Jeff, thanks for the photos. I'll have to play around with this. |
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