Wimberley Head

[Russell]

Is there an alternative to a wimberley head for holding a 100-400mm/300mm?. At the moment I use a benbo because the legs are easy to move in confined spaces also you can turn the middle ext upside to shoot macro 4" off the ground. I have a manfrotto ball socket head but I find it diffulcult to get the tension right when you need to move the camera/lens what normally happens is it's to tight to move freely or it flops over like a jelly. Thanks Russell

[Magpiemick]

The Wimberley is over-kill for the 100/400 and at 500 quid is to much as well ............
Give me a bit and i with come back to you Russell .......

Mick ...

[Magpiemick]

Ok have a look at these links ..........

Jobu Design BWG-J2K Jobu Junior 2 Compact Gimbal Head Kit

Manfrotto 393 Long Lens Monopod Bracket (MN393) - Warehouse Express ............. I've use one of theses and are excellent value !!!!!!!

Induro GHBA Gimbal head on Dale Photographic Online

Must be others out there as well ...

Mick ...

[Russell]

Thanks for the info Mick, did a google search before posting but only found the manfrotto, But I like the look and price of the Jobu Bwg-j2 which is the smallest one and with the lens plate and P+P costs £240 ish. Thanks again Russell.

[Roy]

LensesForHire offer the MN393 when hiring a long lens - they just might be willing to let you hire it for a few days on its own if it's available - would give you an opportunity to test before buying. They say on their website it's only available in conjunction with a lens hire but might be worth a quick email ...

[baz]

Russell save your money and get a 393, there great i use this with 500mm and 100-400mm as do many other members
no problem.


Baz

[MarkOne]

Agree with Baz ..................

[Pete W]

I use the Manfrotto 393 with my 1Dmk4 EF500, it is a great bit of kit

i use it in the "U" configuration rather than the "0" as per the picture on the Warehouse Express site

[tonto]

Yep,Manfrotto 393 for me on 100-400 does the job easily.

[Russell]

Many Thanks for all replys, will see if I can try the manfrotto 393 with view to purchase from my local camera store. Will post back and let you know what I end up with. Thanks Russell

[RonL]

I've been using a Giottos ball head with separate tension adjuster and sllding plate. Today however the thread for the plate tightening screw stripped so have ordered a Manfrotto 393. Amazon UK have a few left at £120.

[RonL]

On a slightly different note what tripod you you recommend for say up to 600mm F4 lens without breaking the bank?

[Magpiemick]

This is how i looked at it when i needed a tripod/head etc ............

You've spent 5k+ on a lens and then upto 3.5k on a body, so somewhere in the region of 8 to 10K and then you want to skimp on a set-up to mount it on, just doesn't make sense to me ....

Im not suggesting that's what your doing Ron, i just read it all the time and have seen people with two-bob tripods that i are not designed to take the weight yet they still use it !!!!!!!!!!! mad ........

Have a look at these Ron ....

FeisolUK - Carbon Fibre Tripods

Highly recommend these

photo tripods - systematic | Gitzo photo accessories=

Mick ...

[Brian N]

I'm using a Manfrotto 055 CXPRO3 (it says on it...) with a 7D+500/4 combination. Previously I used it with a 400/2.8, which I think is about the weight of the 600/4, and it is fine. I know the Gitzo tripods at about twice the price are a bit more solid but it works for me - although I don't raise the centre column or hang that lens off the end of the column set horizontally! It also has the advantage over the Gitzo that you can use it very easily as a monopod by just dropping one leg where the Gitzo just folds up under those circumstance - the central column on the Manfrotto stops that happening.

I did try a decent ball head on it but for the long-reach lenses I have bitten the bullet and use a Custom Brackets gimbal head which is really excellent (and slightly cheaper than the Wimberley). The ball head is OK for something like the 70-200 (which is a bit small to balance on the gimbal head anyway) but anything much heavier and even a decent ball head struggles, and one slip means that the lens crashes against the tripod leg

I agree that paying a lot of money for lens and body, then putting it on an assembly that doesn't do it justice and could well end up breaking something if you aren't very careful, doesn't sound like a good plan. It ain't cheap, but neither are repairs to a big lens...

[RonL]

Not looking for the cheapest tripod but theres no point spending £1000 on a tripod if there is a £400-£500 alternative that will suffice...