What zoom to buy?

[Norm53]

I put up a bird feed at the edge of a woods about 80 feet from my lunch table behind a french door. My Canon EOS Rebel T3i with EF 75-300 mm 1:4-5.6 will not bring into focus the birds, large and small.

What lens do I need to buy that will do the job? Cost is no object.

Thanks, Norm

[Norm53]

Guess the only way I'm going to get balance is to play around with the knobs until I can move the gear around "with my little pinky".

Thanks much, Norm

[Waddizzle]

---

@Norm53 wrote:

Manfrotto 393 gimbal gets good reviews at amazon. I will go with that one unless someone here suggests something better.

I keep stressing balanced because otherwise, you'd be worse off than using a pan/tilt.

Do you mean that I need to keep the tripod level?

Norm

---

I just took a look at that Manfrotto 393.  I rejected that one because of its' lack of vertical height adjustment.  I did not see where you can accurately raise or lower the CofG to be in line with the tilt axis.  I consider that head to be more of a tilt, than a true gimbal.

[Norm53]

I just took a look at that Manfrotto 393.  I rejected that one because of its lack of vertical height adjustment.  I did not see where you can accurately raise or lower the CofG to be in line with the tilt axis.  I consider that head to be more of a tilt, than a true gimbal.

Then please suggest something else. How about the one you showed in the photo? I don't see its make and model # anywhere.

Norm

[Waddizzle]

The model that I posted, and that someone else said that they use, was the Induro GHB2 Gimbal Head.  Induro and Benro are two faces of the same brand.  Benro sells a similar model for much less, the Benro GH2. 

Benro sells a BH3 at the same price point as the Induro GHB2.  It seems to have more features, like friction control.  I might be revising my wish list to the Benro gimbal.

You mentioned Amazon.  Personally, I have never used the service, and doubt if I ever will.  For camera gear I shop on the web at B&H Photo Video, or the Canon Store.  B&H is used by many professionals, and they offer excellent support after the sale....second to none, IMHO.  I would put more faith in the reviews at B&H than I would those on Amazon.

I have added a picture of the Feisol UA-180, which is a similar design to the Manfrotto.  Notice how the camera mounting bracket can be precisely, and continuously raised and lowered to achieve proper balance. 

[Norm53]

bh3 gimbal did not compute at google. However, the ghb2 ought to get the job done. I'll order that one and fit it to the Manfritto tripod.

You mentioned Amazon.  Personally, I have never used the service, and doubt if I ever will. 

Googled the manfritto gimbal looking for reviews and up popped amazon. Have no intention of buying this equipment there. I use amazon extensively, but more for books, DVDs, and CDs.

Norm

[Norm53]

I finally found the benro gimbal bh3, but couldn't find many reviews, I suppose because of its newness.

Feisol UA-180 gets excellent reviews.

Lots of discussions at Photo Camel comparing the Wimberly II with the Mongoose 3.6:

The "Mongoose" looks kind of similar to the Kirk Enterprises "King Cobra" (I suspect it may have inspired the name somehow, too  ) in terms of it being a side mount. I prefer the full Gimbal, since with the "cradle" with the lens mount underneath the lens, you have the lens centered over the tripod. With the side mount, you get an odd off-centered movement that makes turning a bit awkward (unless, of course, you have the good fortune to have the exact lens that has the perfect tripod mount and lens barrel dimension such that it is precisely centered over the tripod mounted to your side-mount Gimbal).

This is an interesting point that you make. It is along the lines of some of my thinking in that when I looked at the side-mount I got the feeling that it could be potentially, or inherently, unstable in some situations - not sure which ones, but the wee bit of physics I took way back when, got me thinking about stability and I felt the cradled model such as the Wimberley or the Custom Brackets and other similar designs, where the lens is "over" the main, central axis of the tripod, just looked a bit more stable.

Knowing my physics, I'm persuaded that a cradle gimbal head is more stable than a side gimbal head.

Ah, decisions, decisions!

Norm

[Waddizzle]

---

@Norm53 wrote:

bh3 gimbal did not compute at google. However, the ghb2 ought to get the job done. I'll order that one and fit it to the Manfritto tripod.

You mentioned Amazon.  Personally, I have never used the service, and doubt if I ever will. 

Googled the manfritto gimbal looking for reviews and up popped amazon. Have no intention of buying this equipment there. I use amazon extensively, but more for books, DVDs, and CDs.

Norm

---

Sorry, that was a typo on the Benro model numbers.  That should have been the Benro GH2 and GH3 gimbal heads.  I would point out that the Benro heads come with a dust bag, to protect the head whether it is mounted on or off the tripod.

I sub-majored in Theoretical and Applied Mechanics in college.  The side mount gimbals are just as stable as the other design.  The side mount is just as centered over the tripod as the cradle mount.  In fact, I would expect that the side mount gives you more room to work with because the metal bracket is not in the way on one side.  Don't forget, you may want to reach out and adjust your lens from time to time.

The Wimberly WH-200 II has stellar reviews, but is a bit more costly than the Induro, Benro, or Feisol models that I have mentioned.  The Induro head also comes in a carbon fiber version, weighing in at 3.0 lbs. compared to 3.2 lbs for the aluminum.  The small weight gain for carbon fiber is not worth it to me.  However, carbon fiber will be stronger than a comparably sized piece of aluminum.

[Norm53]

The side mount gimbals are just as stable as the other design.  The side mount is just as centered over the tripod as the cradle mount.  In fact, I would expect that the side mount gives you more room to work with because the metal bracket is not in the way on one side.  Don't forget, you may want to reach out and adjust your lens from time to time.

Fine for stability and work space, but what about the Photo Camel reviewer's opinion on movement:

With the side mount, you get an odd off-centered movement that makes turning a bit awkward (unless, of course, you have the good fortune to have the exact lens that has the perfect tripod mount and lens barrel dimension such that it is precisely centered over the tripod mounted to your side-mount Gimbal).

Norm

[Waddizzle]

What do I think?  I think someone failed to properly balance their rig, or read the instruction manual.  That review seems to be more of an outlier, than anything else.

[Waddizzle]

I am not sure what that person is really talking about. It almost sounds like they are describing something like what is pictured just below, Induro GHBA, ball to gimbal adapter.

Notice how the lens bracket is on the side.  Is that what the person is talking about?  Those adapters may require spacers for some lenses, in order to center the lens over the panning axis of rotation.  If you lens is too big, and overshoots the center of gravity, then I guess you'd just be out of luck.  I would not recommend that type of device, at all.