Photography, particularly wildlife photography, appears to have taken off in a big way. Unfortunately or fortunately if you’re a pro trying to make a living, some of these “photographers” don’t consider mounting their lens on a stable platform. I recently sold a Wimberley gimbal head on eBay and one of the many questions I received asked if it would fit a specific type of tripod, upon investigation I found out that the tripod was not designed to support his current lens and body let alone the aditional weight of the head.

Another encounter confirmed my thought that the support you give your camera and lens is often undrestermated, in this case “machine gun man” (don’t get me started on that one!) came equiped with two camera bodies and promptly mounted one on a contraption consisting of a pocket tripod and a tube grip with a tiny lens mount on top. I cannot image he got any shots that were sharp.

I purchased my first big glass 4 years ago, a Tokina 300mm f2.8, knowing that I needed to improve on my birdwatching tripod and head, I ended up spending just as much on a tripod, ball head and gimbal attachment as I did on the lens. I’ve since invested in a 600mm lens and even with my current setup it requires the right technique to get sharp shots at low shutter speeds.