If there is one piece of equipment that is the most taken for granted and is often the last big investments a new photographer makes, it’s a good tripod and head. When looking at your wish list, you usually see lenses, bodies, flashes, or a myriad of other things on the list well before you see a tripod, let alone a set of legs and a separate head for it. Since I shoot mostly weddings, I don’t have the need for a tripod very often, but when it comes to getting razor sharp images of details, rings, flowers, etc, the 3-legged beast makes an appearance. In the studio, almost everything is done on a tripod from models, to products, to family, well, basically everything. Why? Because I want the sharpest images possible and having the camera on a tripod eliminates any shake I introduce by hand holding the camera. So what you say…a decent tripod can be bought at WalMart for $20 right? No, it simply can’t. If you are buying a tripod without a removable head, then odds are its in the bargain category somewhere. Bogen, Calumet, and several others all make good tripods, but today we are going to talk about the head, in this case a Manfrotto 322RC2 Ball Head.

What’s a ball head?
A typical tripod head can be adjusted in three axis, think of these as left/right, tilt up/down, rotate left/right. To adjust your camera across these three axis you have to loosen and then tighten three separate controls. A ball head has a single friction control and then the entire head can be adjusted simultaneously across all three axis and then locked into place by tightening a single control. This can dramatically speed up the time it takes you to get your camera in the position you want. While some ball heads have a knob or dial to lock the head into position, the 322RC2 has large grip handle that you squeeze to release friction and then release to lock the head into position.

Features
The 322RC2 is made from magnesium in order to keep the weight on the unit as low as possible and is designed to keep the center of gravity over the center of the tripod for better stability. Built into the handle is a nice bubble level and a safety release pin to keep things from coming apart unexpectedly. A thumbwheel in the handle is used to adjust the friction and the unit can support camera systems weighing up to 11 pounds.

• 1/4” screw attachment type (camera)
• 3/8″ female thread attachment type (tripod)
• -90° / +3° tilt range front tilt
• -90° / +90° tilt range lateral tilt
• 11.02 lbs load capacity
• magnesium construction
• 360 ° panoramic rotation
• quick release system
• secondary safety system
• weight: 1.54 lbs

Setup
I had a nice set of Calumet legs handy so the 322RC2 was going to have a nice home on top. From the box to being secured on top of the tripod must have taken all of about 5 seconds since it just screws into place. The 322RC2 also has a movable top plate so you can position into one of three normal positions or even stand the handle upright and put the plate at the end of the handle (great for using on a monopod). Next I screwed the mount plate onto the bottom of my Canon 30D, snapped it into place, locked the handle down and I was ready to go. Total setup time was under one minute.

Usage
Squeeze, adjust, release. Yup, that’s it. Pretty simple huh? Ok, how about some more detail. Using the 322RC2 gives you one of the moments when you think to yourself that you couldn’t believe that something so simple as the tripod could be as good as it now is. Think about trying to shoot anything that is moving in two different planes (kids are a great example of this) and trying to use a three axis tripod to follow their chaotic action. With the 322RC2 you can easily follow the action through all three axis of control and lock your camera in place right where you want it.

Results
A ball head is a seriously cool accessory for a tripod and the 322RC2 may have a hard name to remember but once you use it, you will wonder how you got by without it. When you are ready for a top-notch tripod setup, find a set of legs that meet your requirements and you can’t go wrong sticking the 322RC2 ball head on top.

Author: Kerry Garrison

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