Acratech GV2 Ball Head/Gimbal Head with Lever Clamp, Supports 25 lb

I love and trust Acratch. Yes, it's a bit pricey but an investment that is well worth it. My other ball head is a quick release knob. I decided to try the lever release and so far am very pleased. Time will tell. Acratech ball heads are designed to be easier to clean with less areas for dust/dirt to become trapped. That is a great feature. They are very smooth when transitioning from one position to another. I have also newly acquired the Acratech leveling base which I think will go nicely with this ball head. Another great Acratech product.

First and foremost, this is a ball head. This is NOT a gimbal head. It is advertised as both, and let me just say right now that it is not a gimbal nor does it replace a real gimbal. If you are using lighter gear, then the "gimbal" function is likely to be fine. However, it does not have the three axis freedom of movement and a fully compensated centered of gravity that a gimbal does.I have loaded this thing with an 800 and 5D III with grip just to see how it would work in gimbal mode. Yes, it does work... so long as you hold onto your gear. Locking this combo down, all it takes is a nudge and the tripod is heading for the ground. Reason is that to use this in gimbal mode you have to set it at 90 degrees which places your telephoto about 6" away from the center of the tripod's base. Now you have 10+ pounds of gear top loaded on a tripod and 6" off the center axis. Depending on how much you've extended the legs, the nudge required to send it toppling over ranges from "All I did was sneeze!" to "You just gently bumped yourself into a $18,000 mistake". Use the gimbal mode with super telephotos at your own risk.Ignoring all that, this is one super swish ball head. This is exactly the same as the GV2 but with a super speedy lever clamp. Is twisting a knob too slow to release your camera? Do you hate twisting knobs? Then this is the ball head you need (well, not for the latter point; this thing still has knobs on it). Anything that applies to the GV2 that isn't lever clamp related applies here. All that great workmanship and quality is found in this one as well. Since it is so exactly the same, I'm only going to discuss the Lever clamp as that is what you are getting with this model. Short word on quality in general: stellar.If another $100 doesn't matter, get the lever clamp. If you need to almost instantly remove your camera from your ball head, then get the lever clamp. If spinning that knob for about a second is annoying, then get the lever clamp. If you like fancy stuff, get the lever clamp. It does add extra bulk, though, if you're considering a tripod with fully reversible legs. The clamp itself is sturdy all right and super easy to use. It isn't one of those ones where you push in the tab perpendicular to the way you pull the lever. You press the tab in the opposite direction, which means there's no leverage issue with you're using just a thumb and finger. Also, there's almost no chance that the lever is going to mysteriously come undone and drop your fancy camera to one very hard, unforgiving slab of concrete. I say almost because freak stuff can happen, but with the design of the clamp, it would have to be a seriously freak freak-accident. The tab (which is on the lever) must be pushed in as the lever is pulled out. That pretty much requires something with an opposable thumb.Anyway, this thing won't disappoint unless you wanted something plated in gold. Plus, it looks great. Coolest looking ball head I've seen. (The open design is actually very talented at keeping dirt/sand from being trapped inside the housing... because there really is no housing).

best ballhead for the money