Equipment

Hi, everyone. I know most of you are pros at wildlife, but since I'm new at it, I wondered if you could give me your advice regarding a tripod/monopod head you'd recommend. I understand Gimbals and Ball heads work well for bird and wildlife photography. Do you agree? I'd so appreciate any information you could share. Thank you!

You might check out the Aspen ball head made right here in greater Denver by Colorado Tripod.

Do NOT get a ball head for a monopod; get a tilt head. I use an RRS MH-01 on an Induro CM14 monopod. Induro products are well-made and cost a bit less than the big names.

I just bought this and I only wish I had done it a lot sooner. It holds my 600 F4 lens. I also bought a flag double harness so I could shoot birds in flight. It's brand new and I haven't used that setup however I did put the camera and lens on the mount and it really works well. There are good instructions how to balance the lens. It's so much lighter than carrying a heavy tripod and a gimbal head. Definitely check this out. It has an arca quick release plate.

Wimberley MH-100 MonoGimbal Head for Monopods

Thank you to all who responded. I appreciate your taking the time to do that! I will look into each suggestion and if anyone else has any other recommendations, I’d love to hear them as well.

I just watched a you tube video that mentioned a fluid head. Anyone ever try one of those?

Thank you to all who responded. I appreciate your taking the time to do that! I will look into each suggestion and if anyone else has any other recommendations, I’d love to hear them as well.

I just watched a you tube video that mentioned a fluid head. Anyone ever try one of those?

Thank you to all who responded. I appreciate your taking the time to do that! I will look into each suggestion and if anyone else has any other recommendations, I’d love to hear them as well.

I just watched a you tube video that mentioned a fluid head. Anyone ever try one of those?

Thanks, Nona. That harness sounds interesting and I’ll check the gimbal head you suggested!

I have a RRS Gimbal fluid head also, however I only use this on my tripod. It works well but does not give you the flexibility for birds in flight like the monopod with the MonoGimba head. I use my Wimberley MH-100 MonoGimbal Head on a monopod. Just make certain your monopod will hold the weight of your setup. I saw a cool video when I was looking for something else and decided I wanted to try it because I can't carry the weight of my big lens for walking long distances.

Here is the link to the video I watched please see. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Fgj8bMviZOw

Then I bought this from GlendaleParadeStore.com All-Web Flag Carriers
(Color: Olive Drab)
891OD 1 $69.95 USD

I shot this photo handheld at 1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 280, Spot metering. I had my Nikon D700 with the Tamron 200-500mm lens. This was in April 2013. The D700 had 12.1 Megapixels.

I was with 4 or 5 members of the Englewood Camera Club on the south end of Chatfield Reservoir. They all had gimbal heads. I was the only one that caught the shot.

Now I shoot with the Nikon D500 with the Tamron 150-600mm lens handheld.

I can understand the need for a gimbal head with a prime lens.

I shot this photo handheld at 1/3200, f/6.3, ISO 280, Spot metering. I had my Nikon D700 with the Tamron 200-500mm lens. This was in April 2013. The D700 had 12.1 Megapixels.

I was with 4 or 5 members of the Englewood Camera Club on the south end of Chatfield Reservoir. They all had gimbal heads. I was the only one that caught the shot.

Now I shoot with the Nikon D500 with the Tamron 150-600mm lens handheld.

I can understand the need for a gimbal head with a prime lens.

I have an Induro tripod and a Wimberly gimbal head which is smooth as silk; I love it for situations when I know I'll be standing in one place a lot. However, primarily I photograph birds and most of the time I'm hand holding my camera. Often I'm shooting through the car window with (or without) a beanbag. I've never gotten into using a monopod, although I can see how it would be useful when you're hiking around and don't want to hand hold your camera; sure would be lighter than a tripod.

Oh, my goodness, you've all been so helpful and kind to share all this information with me. THANK YOU!!! It's a lot to take in, but I'm going to go over it more and look up some of these items as I'm weighing what might work best.

Steve, that falcon shot is WONDERFUL... and handheld?? WOW... I have not been anywhere near that successful with birds in flight yet.

I purchased the Tamron 150-600 G2 lens just last year and recently got the 1.4 teleconverter. But one reason I was asking about using a monopod is that I'm finding it can get quite heavy, especially pointing it up in the sky or even at the sheep we photographed on the hillside a couple months ago. I had a few soft images from our sheep excursion, which I assumed was because my arms got tired from the weight, so that's why I've thought a monopod would help.

Being able to handhold gives the most flexibility and is what I'd prefer overall. I didn't take my old monopod to Waterton Canyon for the sheep, because it meant more to haul around. Maybe I just need to workout more instead, huh? :-)

Seriously, thank you all so much!! I am very grateful for all these tips!

Nona, I look forward to watching the video and will check out the Wimberley! Jim, that Induro monopod is no longer available apparently, but I'll look at their other models. Thank you to Chuck and Thomas, too, for your emails with great suggestions!

Gosh, you'll all been amazing. THANK YOU for everything! I'll let you know what I decide as I continue to research all you've shared. If anybody wants to go out to practice, let me know, because I'd love to do that sometime!

I used the monopod yesterday for the first time with the Wimberley MH-100 MonoGimbal Head as seen in the video I sent a link to. I was at a local lake and decided to try it out as opposed to using my Gitzo fluid gimbal head on a tripod. I really enjoyed the freedom of being able to move it around and get birds in flight with my 600 prime. I did a little video as well. If ducks are moving in the water, I can't be as accurate with the movement as using my fluid gimbal on a tripod, however if they are stationary I really couldn't detect much difference. I loved how light the setup is and it balanced fantastic. I could sit holding the monopod with the lens not tightened and it was balanced and not falling down either backwards or forwards. I like being able to sit and not have to adjust the legs of a tripod. It allowed me to bring the camera to my eye and have a great feeling of comfort. It was really light walking with. I definitely would recommend. I really witnessed and took videos of a very sad situation. A drake goldeneye somehow was caught near the ice pretty far out. I am not certain if it was a fish hook or something else. It kept on trying to get out of the situation and I saw drops of blood coming out its' mouth in the video. In the end it gave up after a long fight. I just could not figure out what was holding it from getting away.

Judy, I'm late to this discussion but wanted to tell you about a combination I'm quite pleased with. I have a monopod with three small feet and the capacity to tilt and swivel: Sirui P326S, 6 section carbon fiber monopod ($360). I have a Sirui L1 monopod tilt head on the monopod ($100). I got it from Hunts Photo. I was recommended to them by another club member, Russ Bearden; and I contact Russ' sales rep directly and usually get a discount: Noah Buchanan: mbuchanan@huntsphoto.com, 417-537-8623. I also have a tripod with a gimbal head, which I love to use; but for hiking and quickly setting up I prefer the monopod.