Arca SwissMonoball Z1+ Single Pan Tripod Head with Quick Set Classic Device (Plate Not Included)

I've been pretty hardcore into photography for a number of years. Like most people I started out buying cheap gear only to have to buy it again and again and sometimes again in order to try to save money. It can't take expensive gear to hld a camera steady right? WRONG! Well, as numerous photographers told me when I started, the best way to save $450 on a ball head is to spend $450 on a ball head right from the start and not go cheap and have to keep buying new stuff as the cheap stuff fails.I started out with tripod gear from Manfrotto and found all that to be junk after a couple years. Then I upgraded to Induro (now Benro) and found their tripods to be light years better than Manfrotto. When it comes to tripod heads I started out with Manfrotto and those are in the trash now.Then I moved up to Sirui and that tripod head was OK but it slipped a lot without much weight on it. Then I upgraded to Induro Tripod heads. They were noticeably better, held heavy gear much more steady but still tended to slip after a while. Induro does have good warranty service.Finally I found one of these available as basically an open box item through Amazon Warehouse. The difference between this and every other tripod head I've used is absolutely incredible! There is no comparison between this and Manfrotto, Sirui and even the bigger, higher end Induro ball heads. This thing looks great and is ROCK SOLID. The adjustments are super smooth and it is easy to fine tune everything. I suspect this may be the last ball head I ever have to buy for at least the next 10 years unless maybe I get a backup.That advice offered to me by photographers way back in the day to buy the best stuff up front in order to save a fortune later on was 100% true when it comes to ball heads. The cheaper stuff will work and you may even be satisfied with it but your photos will be blurry (especially if you shoot HDR or other methods that require multiple exposures). With this ball head you won't have to buy another one, maybe ever. If will hold your (heavy) camera gear perfectly steady, you'll get sharper photos and in the long run you'll save money if you plan to shoot a lot! This is an OUTSTANDING ball head and worth the price premium compared to cheap junk and even better products like those made by Induro.

I was mainly a " hand held" photographer until I injured my arm last year. I've had to switch to being a tripod user and it hasn't been an easy transition. I got my tripod, but couldn't make up my mind about a head. I researched and asked questions of my photographer friends for a couple months before buying this tripod head. I went back and forth between the top brands - Kirk, Really Right stuff and this one. I'm not a rich person by any means and to me, this was a big purchase, so I wanted to get it right the first time so I wouldn't be wishing I had gotten a different head a year from now. Currently I use a Canon Eos Rebel XTi. (and a Canon Elan film camera) The heaviest lenses I have are my 100mm macro and my 28 - 135mm so really most any head would do, BUT, if things go as planned, I want to upgrade to a Canon 5D next year, and hope to add a 400mm lens to my bag, so I wanted a head that would handle that as well as what I have now. This one should do that without a whisper of a problem. Weight was also an issue as I often hike and carry my equipment, (and my arm is an issue). I bought the head and camera plates separately. The two plates I got were on closeout at Kirk and were designed to fit the 2 different cameras I currently have. The head feels substantial, but not overly heavy. I mounted the head on my carbon fiber manfrotto tripod. The head looks simple and clean, and it will do everything I need quickly and efficiently without a lot of thinking. The only thing I needed help with was the set screw for minimum tension. I had to look up how to set it. Once that was done, it's a no brainer. Two days after I received this head, I did an outside, night time photo shoot for a nature center program where I had to change positions and locations quickly (including on a trail in the woods ) with flashlights and the moon as light. I didn't have any problems and was so happy with the way it worked for me. If I had to sum it up in one phrase it would be "smooth as silk".

Excellent build quality. Very smooth operating ball head, nice weight and very easy adjustment - most of all very simple to use. 1 knob and that's it! I think the prices are very high for a lot of the equipment out there but for the money and for heads in the same price point, I would have to say this is my favorite.

Everything about this ballhead feels very precise and solid.The ball and panning base move very smoothly and can be set very precisely. The knobs and dials are well designed with no play when they are turned. Importantly the ball does not move AT ALL once locked down, even when loaded up with my Canon 6d, a 70-200 and a radio flash transmitter.I am using a Really Right Stuff L-Bracket on my Canon 6d which fits securely in the upper of the two plate slots on the Z1. I use the Z1 attached to a Gitzo GT2541 carbon fiber tripod. This is a killer combo, super stable.If you like to do a lot of panorama photography I would recommend you instead get the Z1 double pan ballhead instead of the single pan so you can level the camera on the ballhead then pan using the upper pan for the panorama. Another thing to consider is if you use third-party Arca-Swiss style plates, such as Really Right Stuff, get the knob quick release as opposed to the lever release. The lever release may not tighten down securely if the plate is engineered smaller, the knob lets you tighten all plates securely.