I only know one Gimball head well, the Wimberley II (I have two of them). I am interested to learn about other heads and I am also happy to share what I have learned.
Here is a stock picture of one, which I have annotated to identify the 4 knobs:
Knob 1 is used to lock the rotation (also required to screw the head into the tripod)
Knob 2 is used to lock the angle of elevation.
Knob 3 is used to lock the position of the lens fore and aft.
Knob 4 is used to lock the height of the lens.
The use of knob 1 is immediately obvious to everyone.
Knob 2 is also, pretty obvious, but note that with a properly adjusted head, you don't need to tighten it provide enough resistance to hold the lens in position in normal use. I would use it if I have found some interesting object in the distance and want to let someone else look through and see it.
Knob 3 is used for positioning the lens/camera combo so that it is balanced fore and aft. Again, this is fairly obvious.
Knob 4 is where the confusion comes. It isn't shown clearly in the photo but the horizontal platform can be positioned up or down on the swing-arm. In order to get the Gimball to work properly, you need to get this into the right position too. Allow me to explain...
The centre of gravity of the lens/camera combo is not at the level of the platform, rather, it is somewhere above the platform. What matters is the poition of the GofG relative to the swing bearing (at knob 2).
If the CofG is below knob 2, then the swing arm will work just like a pendulum and when you let go of the camera, it will swing to a horizontal position - it will not stay where you left it.
If the CofG is above knob 2, then the whole thing is top heavy. When you let go of the camera, it will swing down one way or the other, till the lens is pointing at either the ground or the sky.
When you have adjusted knob 4 to the right position, you can position the camera pointing at any angle, let go and it will STAY THERE. And suddenly you realise why it was worth spending £450 on a nice head.
Of course, different camera and lens combos have the CofG at different heights above the plate, so you need to adjust the height differently when you change your gear. I use marker tape here to identify the right height for 200/400/800mm.
Mostly, you will see a gimball head on top of a tripod, but I use them with a monopod too. When you are busy and hassled, it is very handy to be able to hold monopod by the stick, knowing that the camera won't flop about, just because you arn't holding it.
Andrew
Here is a stock picture of one, which I have annotated to identify the 4 knobs:
Knob 1 is used to lock the rotation (also required to screw the head into the tripod)
Knob 2 is used to lock the angle of elevation.
Knob 3 is used to lock the position of the lens fore and aft.
Knob 4 is used to lock the height of the lens.
The use of knob 1 is immediately obvious to everyone.
Knob 2 is also, pretty obvious, but note that with a properly adjusted head, you don't need to tighten it provide enough resistance to hold the lens in position in normal use. I would use it if I have found some interesting object in the distance and want to let someone else look through and see it.
Knob 3 is used for positioning the lens/camera combo so that it is balanced fore and aft. Again, this is fairly obvious.
Knob 4 is where the confusion comes. It isn't shown clearly in the photo but the horizontal platform can be positioned up or down on the swing-arm. In order to get the Gimball to work properly, you need to get this into the right position too. Allow me to explain...
The centre of gravity of the lens/camera combo is not at the level of the platform, rather, it is somewhere above the platform. What matters is the poition of the GofG relative to the swing bearing (at knob 2).
If the CofG is below knob 2, then the swing arm will work just like a pendulum and when you let go of the camera, it will swing to a horizontal position - it will not stay where you left it.
If the CofG is above knob 2, then the whole thing is top heavy. When you let go of the camera, it will swing down one way or the other, till the lens is pointing at either the ground or the sky.
When you have adjusted knob 4 to the right position, you can position the camera pointing at any angle, let go and it will STAY THERE. And suddenly you realise why it was worth spending £450 on a nice head.
Of course, different camera and lens combos have the CofG at different heights above the plate, so you need to adjust the height differently when you change your gear. I use marker tape here to identify the right height for 200/400/800mm.
Mostly, you will see a gimball head on top of a tripod, but I use them with a monopod too. When you are busy and hassled, it is very handy to be able to hold monopod by the stick, knowing that the camera won't flop about, just because you arn't holding it.
Andrew
