Thanks, that gives me a much better idea of how it works. Seems to
be a ball mount, which would provide total freedom of adjustment,
but not too much help if you wanted to pan the camera smoothly and
evenly, such as for photostitch panoramas.
Gotta be honest with ya here: If I'm serious about using the camera
for panos, I'm not going to be using ANY of the table-top tripods.
I'm going to use something more solid and more comfortable. A
full-size tripod and a nice basic but sturdy head like the Bogen
3030.
If I were serious about this, then yes, I'd agree. But if you traveled somewhere and you were not willing to lug around a full sized tripod, would you not even attempt a pano shot, or would you give it a go with a compact tripod?
Or is it virtually impossible to get acceptable results without a full sized tripod in this case?
The Pro comes with a compact ball head instead of the pan-head.
The Pro II has a two-way pan head with positioning handle. I think
the picture is inaccurate. This is what it ought to look like.
Yes, that's the Pro II. But the Pro I, with a ball head, is priced significantly higher (almost double). That's what I find confusing. I think the prices should be much closer, and I would expect that, if anything, the pan head would cost more than the ball head.
Primarily, I need maximum portability while still allowing me to
set up the camera on a table, trash can, wall, car hood, etc.,
without restricting camera positioning.
On those surfaces, you're just begging for instability and/or an
accident to happen. Just be ready for it.
I know, and I try to be careful. But even with a full sized tripod I've seen people almost trip on them which could send your expensive camera crashing down to the ground from a considerable heght.
(I wonder if that suction
cup would allow positioning the tripod on a slanted windshield.
Then again, why would I want to do that?)
Exactly!
))
Secondly, I'd like something I could use as a chest brace.
Now that might be nice. Seems I saw something that could do it, but
can't recall the link.
The Slik can do that. Hell I've even done that with my little Canon pocket tripod. For slow shutter speeds, anything helps in the absence of a tripod.
And thirdly, I'd like the ability to lock the camera's position
along each axis, to allow for even panning or tilting.
I guess if I go by my own priorities, I should get a ball mount
Hmm... and here I thought you were leaning towards the pan head.
Wow. You're confusing the both of us here.
))
Well, I was leaning towards the pan head... until you suggested I consider my priorities...
Since panning is much less important to me than portability, ease of adjustment, and suitability as a chest brace, I'm now thinking that the ball head, while less precise, might better suit my needs. That is, so long as it provides complete range of movement, including allowing positioning of the camera for portrait shots without having the camera topple over.
