Head for 500 f/4
Sorry for the really basic question, but what's the deal with fluid heads and long lenses? Currently I have a Manfrotto 501 fluid head on a Manfrotto 055 NAT III tripod. The tripod is OK, not great just OK, but I'll replace it with a carbon one before too long. I bought the 501 head for digiscoping, but these days I'm using 20Ds, a 100-400, and thte 500 f/4 arrived 20 minutes ago. (Joy!)
Is there any reason not to keep on using the 501? It's a video head, designed to pan and tilt smoothly any way you like, but I screw the tension right up so that it is hard to push against but stays exactly where I point it, and it has coped with the 80mm scope + digicam no worries. (Size and weight around the same as a 100-400 and 20D, but *much* more zoom, in the 2000-3000mm range.)
I have never used any other type of head. Ball heads look so frail and cumbersome, and I don't like the thought of constantly having to screw up and release the tension every time I want to adjust something. The Wimberly looks nice and solid, but it too seems like it would be a pain to use.
So how do these compare to a good fluid head? Do I need to upgrade? If so, what to?
|