My choice of head will be determined by whether I use a ‘Focusing Rail’ or not and just wondered what your thoughts were about it! Is a focusing rail just another gizmo that ends up rattling in the depths of a camera bag until you decide to clear it out or is it a real boon that is really needed! I have thinking about using the Kirk one with Arca-Swiss plates and my Kirk BH-3 Ball Head!
Does using a geared head eradicate the need of a focusing rail?
Many thanks for all your patience with these two threads!
This really is a personal preference thing, I tend to use a rail quite often, prefering the Manfrotto one which is easy for minor adjustments, I have Arca Swiss plates etc mounted on it.
Focusing rails really come into their own at levels of magnification above 1:1 i.e. if you're using extension tubes on your macro lens or using a lens such as Canon's MPE-65. Personally, I never use one with my Sigma 150. They can be heavy and cumbersome to use in the field. I have used one on occasions with my MPE-65 but it's not something I'll use regularly.
Matt
Posted by Andy Astbury on April 1, 2008 at 9:38 AM
Paul - forget the focus rail - you are over-complicating things for yourself imho.
Every head has pluses and minuses to be honest, but for me the 410 geared head provides adjustment with super precision, enough to get the subject as parallel to the sensor plane as possible at any rate.
It's not as quick to use as a ball head but it offers much more precision, and coupled with a 55ProB tripod you can get the camera in virtually any position - armed with that combo and an angle finder, a couple of 'plamps' , a remote release and a small reflector or two you'll be set for just about anything.
Use the focus rail money to get the Nikon R1C1 ringlight and remote commander and you'll be ready for absolutely everything
Hi Paul,
focusing rail or not, thats the question.
The Manfrotto is fast, large but not much precise.
I found an old Pentax rail at the flea market
its smaller, loads more precise, cost nearly nothing
I have loads of fun with it. Also use it for panoramas (nodal point)
Bertl Menegoni
Innsbruck
Austria
Posted by David Taylor on April 1, 2008 at 5:19 PM
Hand held, natural light, that's my preference with my Sigma SD14s.
For other occasions I use Benbo Mk 2 and Benbo Trekker Mk 3 tripods, Novoflex MagicBall and MagicBall MB50 heads and have just invested in a Sigma ringflash.
Now if only I could take some half decent images
Firstly I want to thank everyone for their advice on both threads and also those who have PM or emailed me direct! It is all appreciated!
There has certainly been quite assortment in information, so I have plenty of options to choose from!
I do believe in keeping thing simply and will be carefully looking at the all the various set-ups closely to see which items would be best suit my style and can seamlessly incorporated into my system.
Discussion
7 repliesOK! I couldn’t wait a few days!
My choice of head will be determined by whether I use a ‘Focusing Rail’ or not and just wondered what your thoughts were about it! Is a focusing rail just another gizmo that ends up rattling in the depths of a camera bag until you decide to clear it out or is it a real boon that is really needed! I have thinking about using the Kirk one with Arca-Swiss plates and my Kirk BH-3 Ball Head!
Does using a geared head eradicate the need of a focusing rail?
Many thanks for all your patience with these two threads!
This really is a personal preference thing, I tend to use a rail quite often, prefering the Manfrotto one which is easy for minor adjustments, I have Arca Swiss plates etc mounted on it.
Phil
Focusing rails really come into their own at levels of magnification above 1:1 i.e. if you're using extension tubes on your macro lens or using a lens such as Canon's MPE-65. Personally, I never use one with my Sigma 150. They can be heavy and cumbersome to use in the field. I have used one on occasions with my MPE-65 but it's not something I'll use regularly.
Matt
Every head has pluses and minuses to be honest, but for me the 410 geared head provides adjustment with super precision, enough to get the subject as parallel to the sensor plane as possible at any rate.
It's not as quick to use as a ball head but it offers much more precision, and coupled with a 55ProB tripod you can get the camera in virtually any position - armed with that combo and an angle finder, a couple of 'plamps' , a remote release and a small reflector or two you'll be set for just about anything.
Use the focus rail money to get the Nikon R1C1 ringlight and remote commander and you'll be ready for absolutely everything
Tim
focusing rail or not, thats the question.
The Manfrotto is fast, large but not much precise.
I found an old Pentax rail at the flea market
its smaller, loads more precise, cost nearly nothing
I have loads of fun with it. Also use it for panoramas (nodal point)
Bertl Menegoni
Innsbruck
Austria
For other occasions I use Benbo Mk 2 and Benbo Trekker Mk 3 tripods, Novoflex MagicBall and MagicBall MB50 heads and have just invested in a Sigma ringflash.
Now if only I could take some half decent images
There has certainly been quite assortment in information, so I have plenty of options to choose from!
I do believe in keeping thing simply and will be carefully looking at the all the various set-ups closely to see which items would be best suit my style and can seamlessly incorporated into my system.
Once again, cheers!