Short ballhead for Gitzo 1228 tripod

I am curiouser and curioser-er.Never exhausted with tripod queries. Yet I have never heard anyone say a tripod was too tall for them unless they were shooting ground wildflowers and the like. I have a 228 Gitzo with three section legs,for instance. I always wind up turning the Gitzo with the Arca Ball head upside down,touching the floor,then locking the legs smaller section at just below eye height. And I am not a six footer. You may need a taller tripod sometime to get at eye level with a taller person,even if you have to tippy toe or use a little vinyl stool. That is my best thought,unless I misunderstand your post. Does this make sense?

Correction. The lightweight model I use is a G224. Aloha,GS

I have used the 1228 for several years. If I don't need the full height, I just don't pull the legs to their maximum extension. So what's the problem?

The tripod is not a problem! I'm happy to have finally made a decision on it.

I'm just saying that with full extension of the legs and the center column not raised at all, my camera is at eye height. so I'd like to add a ball head that doesn't raise it too much further. I'd rather just use the legs at their full capacity than have to even them out at a partial length.

The question is about which ball head to purchase, not the tripod.

Gerry, I have no idea what you're talking about. Please try again.

Cathy,

Why not just raise the 1228 as high as you need it? You don't HAVE to raise it to maximum. I have a small Leitz ball head that I'd love to sell you...but it matches with a 1/4-20 thread...and that ain't gonna work with the 1228 (which I have and LOVE).

I'm 6'0 and regularly use my 1228 with only 2 or 3 leg extensions for wedding, commercial, or portrait work. BTW, I use a Gitzo magesium "ball" head which is certainly light, but just OK. I'm seriously looking at the Acratech head.

If the speedometer in your car goes to 120, you must have a tough time in traffic.

Did everyone have a rough day today?

I KNOW I don't have to raise it to the maximum but it's almost the perfect height when I do. I don't want to add a lot more height with the ball head.

Everyone is free to make their cracks but I wish you'd add a ballhead suggestion while you're doing so.

The Arca-Swiss B1 is one of the shortest ball heads, and is a good match for the G-1228.

By the way, I drag a G-1346 around, and never use all the leg extension unless I carry a ladder (which I do, sometimes).

I have that tripod and use it with an Arca B1 too, great combination. I also have a Gitzo 1410 that (even being 6'1") doesn't get fully extended at the bottom section. All you have to do is pull the last section out with your right hand while holding the tripod in your left hand. Make a quick approximate measurement of the length of the last section with your thumb and pinky finger outstretched before locking it down to make sure all three are pretty close. If you're not in a hurry, just close the three extended legs to make sure they're even. It's really not an inconvenience to me.

This is a pretty funny thread. But anyway - short ballhead... probably the Acratech, and the Markins M-10 is on the short side too I think, also the Kirk BH-3.

Another thing you can do is remove the center column and replace it with a Markins base plate. That will reduce the total height of your combo and also make it more rigid.

Guess I can't really see a problem in here.I mean can't imagine seeking a ballhead to fit a height spec on the head and legs combination. Buy a quality head that meets load + smoothness+ store tests, budget, style and PN user recommendations larded through the archives. A quick release system,Arca Swiss is a standard, is really nice when you are out in the field. When you open any tripod, you just about have to let the bottom/distal/smallest 3 leg segments of the pod out only as far as needed to allow the camera finder to go where your eye goes and tighten them at that point,for the camera orientation and total combo height you find workable or where it fits your subject needs(another discussion). The thicker leg segments go to full stop and get tightened. Me, I have a habit of holding the tripod upside down sometimes so I can adjust the bottom segments to a certain even amount by eyeball. Of course,if you wish,put a black or white mark on each of the legs to indicate the point at which you want to lock the beast before you spread it solid. Buy a head that suits the legset. The Arca Swiss B-1 is not tall and does not add much weight.It is one of a number of finely machined ball heads. But head discussions here have a lot to do with a gram here and a gram there,so that is another story,the weight. Usually the height above the leg sections is more or less irrelevant I feel. However,if it becomes an issue,if you don't want or need a head with a pan base(I wont try to elaborate on that either) then you can skim some height off the thing by buying one without the pan base.... Anyway, I think I am beginning to sound like the Abbott and Costello baseball routine. I better go. Be well.

Cathy I'll answer your question as best I can, but you have to understand how ridiculous it sounds to everyone that you would insist on always extending the legs of a tripod fully and then search high and low for a ballhead that is just the right height so the camera comes to your eyelevel. And then you get p!ssed off when people don't warm to your convoluted logic.

The answer is to go to B&H's website and look at the ballheads they have. Many of them should have specifications that list the height. If not, you should be able to find the manufacturers websites and/or 800-numbers and ask for the height specs. Be aware that the shorter the ballhead the smaller the diameter of the ball will be and the less weight it will hold. Good luck to you in your search, I hope you find what makes you happy. BTW, what will you do if you get another camera, you'll need to make sure it's the same height as yours is now or else you'll need to get a new ballhead. And what happens if you wear shoes with different height heels?

The most you will saved is about an inch if you looking for the shortest ballhead. Another suggestion is go with Gitzo G1128 which is about 5 inches shorter. It is not as steady tripod as G1228 but it adequate for up to 70-200 F2.8 without extender. Unfortunately Markins does not make ballhead platform for this model which I believe can greatly benefit from it. Kirk Enterprise does offer a short post with an all-aluminum platform.

I probably shouldn't have told you WHY I wanted a shorter ballhead then no one would have a problem with my question. I'm already taking into consideration which ballhead goes with the tripod and other equipment I have and all the other considerations. I just wanted to know which were the smaller of the better ballheads.

Heels or no heels, doesn't matter. And I'm not mad...to me this is all fun!

Anyhow I'm probably going with the Kirk BH-3. If no one minds.

Cathy, one reason I don't come out to Photo.net much is because of the hostility. The comments in your thread are just par for the course.

I have a somewhat similar problem. I mostly shoot birds, and often use my car as a blind. Unfortunatley, my car (Monte Carlo) doesn't have very tall windows. With window mount and attached ballhead, the camera is often too high, and I can't point the camera down below level without the viewfinder being too close to the car roof and not being able to see through it!!!

I went looking for a shorter ballhead myself. It was either that, or buy another car with taller windows!! The Markins M-10 is what I bought. It's a little shorter than something like the Kirk BH-3, not much, but every little bit helps in my situation.